Probate order in Israel – Important tips to easily obtain an Israeli inheritance order for a foreign resident living in the USA or Europe in 2023

What is an inheritance order under the State of Israel and how to obtain the Israeli probate order from the Inheritance Registrar in Israel

In the State of Israel, in order to lawfully inherit someone’s property, one should receive an inheritance order or Israeli probate order from the Israeli Registrar of Inheritance Affairs. An inheritance order is a legal order issued by the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel, who has the authority to grant an inheritance order to a Israeli successor under the Succession Law in Israel.

In what cases the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel may grant an inheritance order to an heir living outside the State of Israel

According to the Succession Law in Israel, the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs possesses the sole authority to issue an inheritance order to an heir living outside the State of Israel. The order specifies the heir’s share in the inherited estate in Israel and the percentage which the heir is entitled to receive according to the Israeli probate law.

The inheritance order in the State of Israel is usually issued for the purpose of dividing the deceased’s estate in Israel in a just manner in cases when the deceased leaves no valid will. Therefore, the Israel Succession Law states that if the deceased, who is the Israeli testator, leaves no will, then their heirs shall receive the testator’s share of the inheritance property in accordance with their kinship to the deceased testator and as stipulated in Israeli Succession Law.

Conditions for obtaining a probate order from the Israeli Inheritance Registrar in favor of foreign residents who live in the United States of America and Europe and are not Israeli citizens

In some Israel inheritance cases there is a valid will according to the Israeli succession law, but it does not include all the assets of the deceased. Therefore, the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel issues a  probate order with respect to the assets located in Israel and mentioned in the Israeli will in favor of a resident of the United States or European countries. As for the assets not listed in the deceased’s will, an Israel inheritance order will be issued under the Israel  Succession Law, setting out a transparent division of the inherited estate located in the State of Israel.

Under Israeli Succession Law, an inheritance order contains the following details

An inheritance order issued by the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in the State of Israel does not specify the scope of the estate or what assets are included in it. The information listed in an Israeli inheritance order usually includes such details as the Israeli heirs names and what is each heir’s share in the estate located in the State of Israel.

Applying for an Israeli inheritance order or Israeli probate order to the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel

To obtain an Israeli probate order in the State of Israel, a written application must be filed in the office of the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel or submitted electronically through the Hebrew language website of the Inheritance Registrar.

The application should be filed in the office of the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in whose jurisdiction the deceased testator lived. In addition, it is possible to apply for an inheritance order or a Israeli probate order to one of the existing religious courts existing in the State of Israel, that is, according to the religion of the deceased in Israel, provided that such court exists in Israel.

You can apply for an Israel inheritance order or Israel probate order online on the Israeli government platform, without travelling to Israel, which is convenient for heirs who are foreign residents

In accordance with the Israeli law, the Registrar of Inheritance has set up an government online system using which persons inheriting property in Israel can apply for an inheritance order or a probate order online without leaving their home or from anyplace in the world. Using this online system, Israeli foreign heirs who live outside the State of Israel and cannot physically reach the Israeli Registrar of Inheritance may submit the documents and apply for an inheritance order.

In which cases under Israeli Succession Law a foreign resident living in the United States or Europe may apply for an probate in Israel or inheritance order in Israel online – top 4 insights from Israel Succession Law (1965)

• It is possible to apply for an Israel inheritance order if the deceased left behind descendants and a spouse.

• The deceased is survived by their natural or adopted children under Israel’s succession law.

• In the event the Israeli deceased left behind a spouse and they had no children, but the deceased’s parents have survived their death.

• If the deceased leaves behind no spouse, children, or parents, then, according to the Succession Law, the deceased’s brothers or sisters inherit the deceased’s estate bequeathed in Israel.

Filing a physical application for an inheritance order with the Inheritance Registrar in the State of Israel

According to Israeli laws, an heir is entitled to receive an inheritance order. For this purpose it is necessary to prepare legal documents required for the application for an Israeli inheritance order, to sign an affidavit, and to have the signature verified by an Israeli lawyer or an Israeli Attorney operating abroad who serves as an Israeli notary, a court or rabbinical court judge in Israel, or a local authority head in Israel – these lawyers and officials are allowed to take the affidavit and warn the declarant to declare the truth while applying for an inheritance order in Israel.

Documents that must be attached to the application form submitted to the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel for the purpose of issuing an Israel inheritance order or a probate order

Enclosed with the application should be the death certificate, if the testator dies outside Israel, complete with an apostille certificate of the treaty state where the testator died. In Israel, the apostille certificate is issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs department.

If the testator’s heirs pass away after the testator, then the death certificate of every heir who died after the testator must be attached as well, in accordance with the Israeli Succession Regulations that govern the submission of documents.

Notifying all the heirs that an application for an Israeli inheritance order has been filed in the State of Israel

The application for an Israeli inheritance order submitted to the Inheritance Registrar in Israel should be attached with the confirmation of the delivery of notices to all the heirs by registered mail, or with an affidavit or written consent of the heirs, confirming that they have received the notice and become aware that an application for an inheritance order or a probate order has been submitted to the Registrar of Inheritance in the State of Israel.

When is it necessary to attach an affidavit of removal from an estate to an application for an Israeli inheritance order or probate order submitted to the Registrar of Inheritance according to the Succession Law in the State of Israel

In case there are heirs who waive their share of the estate, the original declarations of removal from the estate must be attached on behalf of the heirs who wish to be removed from the estate.

An Israeli Inheritance lawyer representing clients in applying for an inheritance order or probate order

An application for an inheritance order or probate order filed by a Israeli Inheritance lawyer on behalf of the heirs must also include an original or a faithful copy of an original power of attorney, proving that the Israeli lawyer may represent the heirs before the Registrar of Inheritance in the State of Israel.

Updating the death of an Israeli citizen who died in the United States  or Europe

If the deceased was an Israeli citizen who died abroad, for example in the US or an European country, the event of death must be updated in the Population Registry in Israel before applying for an inheritance order. If the heirs live outside Israel’s borders, they can go to the Israeli embassy in the United States or Europe and notify it of the death of the testator who died outside Israel’s borders.

A fee should be paid to the Registrar of Inheritance in Israel for filing an application for an inheritance order or probate order

When filling out the electronic form using the Israeli government online system of the Inheritance Registrar, you will have to pay the fees for opening and publishing the application. As of 2023, filing your application online entitles you to a 15% discount on the application opening fee comparing with filing a physical application.

When applicants for an Israeli inheritance order are foreign residents represented by an Israeli lawyer with a Israeli law office in the United States or European countries

When the applicants for an inheritance order are the descendants, spouse, or parents of the deceased person, and are represented by a Israeli lawyer or with an Israeli law firm in the United States or European countries, the application can be filed online by an Israeli lawyer through a law firm in the foreign resident’s country. In order to do so, the Israeli Attorney will have to be given the power of attorney to represent the heirs in the State of Israel.

The work of the Inheritance Registrar after filing the application for an inheritance order or probate order by the heirs in Israel

The Israeli Inheritance Registrar’s office sends a copy of the application to the Israeli General Guardian, which is the official body of the State of Israel and the respondent in the inheritance order proceedings. It is responsible for responding to applications for an inheritance order filed on behalf of the heirs in Israel. The response of the State of Israel should be given to the Inheritance Registrar within 45 days and include one of the following options:

• Approval of the application by the Israeli General Guardian – that is, the General Guardian of the State of Israel consents to the Israel inheritance order or probate order without intervention.

• Request to supplement missing details – the Israeli General Guardian of the State of Israel will request additional documents and require heirs to produce documents for review.

• Forwarding the case to a Israeli Family Court hearing – if there is an objection to the issuance of the inheritance order or probate order on behalf of the heirs, the Israeli General Guardian of the State of Israel, or any interested third parties.

The authority of the Registrar of Inheritances in the State of Israel after filing an application for granting an inheritance order or probate order

The Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in Israel will publish in the daily press a notification of the application filed on behalf of the heirs to allow submitting objections to the order.

Issuing an inheritance order in the State of Israel after the expiration of the last date for filing objections to an inheritance order in the State of Israel

After receiving the Israeli General Guardian’s response, and after the expiration of the deadlines for filing objections, provided that no objections have been filed with the office of the Inheritance Registrar in Israel, the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs in the State of Israel will issue an inheritance order or a probate order, which will determine who are the lawful heirs and what is the share of each heir in the deceased’s estate according to the laws of the State of Israel.

If an objection to the issuance of an inheritance order or probate order has been filed with the Inheritance Registrar in Israel

The process from filing the application to receiving the order takes about 3 to 6 months, provided no court intervention or producing additional documents for the Inheritance Registrar is required. If an objection to the issuance of an inheritance order or probate order in Israel has been filed, then the case will be transferred to the Israeli court system through Family Court for hearing the parties claims and examining the evidence. After that the Israeli court will decide whether and under what conditions to issue the Israeli inheritance order to the heirs under the Succession Law in Israel.

Obtaining the Inheritance Order from the Inheritance Registrar in Israel through the digital network without leaving your home – for foreign residents living in the United States or Europe

Starting in 2018 and as of 2023, the Israeli Inheritance Registrar in the State of Israel issues and signs inheritance orders digitally and does not send the printed copies by mail as was the practice until the year 2018.

An Israeli inheritance order will be delivered by e-mail to heirs living in the United States or European countries

The order signed digitally by the Inheritance Registrar will be sent to the e-mail address provided by the heir when applying for an inheritance order or probate order in Israel. In addition, you will be able to obtain a copy of the inheritance order by registering an account in the Inheritance Registrar’s system on the Israeli Government Services and Information Website.

It is important to save the digital inheritance order

After receiving your order, it is recommended to keep it as a file on your personal computer, so that it can be transferred at any time to any legal party from Israel, who wishes to view the Israel inheritance order. Keep in mind that the Israeli inheritance order file received from the Inheritance Registrar in Israel, is considered an original and can always be transferred by e-mail, whereas the recipient may verify the order with the Israel Inheritance Registrar, through Israel Government’s digital system.

Israeli inheritance order is automatically transferred to Israeli government offices

Notably, the inheritance order issued by the Inheritance Registrar in Israel, including Israeli probate orders issued by Druze and Sharia courts in Israel, is automatically transferred to the government offices, the Ministry of the Interior, Israeli banks, insurance companies in Israel, and other state entities such as the Land Registrar, Israel Land Authority, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Israel Tax Authority, and Israel Corporations Authority.

Therefore, whenever you apply to a government authority in the State of Israel in any matter regarding your Israel inheritance, you do not have to attach the probate order, since the order is already available to the Israeli government bodies, and there is no obligation to attach it again.

Contact With an Israeli Lawyer in Los Angeles to Obtain Inheritance Probate Order From Israel by Israeli Succession Law -1965

If you have any legal questions about obtaining an Israeli inheritance order or Israeli probate order in the State of Israel, please contact our office 24/7 for details and legal advice on inheritance matters in the State of Israel.