Aliyah to Israel with a criminal record: Myths, Questions, and Legalities

Israel is a highly desirable immigration destination for people around the world. Those of Jewish descent have an easy option of making Aliyah according to the law of return. But what if you made a mistake in the past and now have a criminal history? Can you make aliyah with a criminal record, or is the opportunity forever denied to you? On the one hand, the state of Israel is defined as the Jewish homeland, but on the other hand, the state of Israel doesn’t need to, and there are those who would justifiably argue that the state doesn’t want to, become a shelter state for criminals

Our immigration law office specializes in aliyah and immigration to Israel – or more specifically, in overcoming obstacles to immigration. In this article, an immigration attorney will go into detail on how a person with a criminal record may still be able to make aliyah to Israel. The acceptance or rejection of an an immigrant who has a criminal record is not binary, and many factors are accounted. Even if your request is initially denied by the Ministry of Interior, this decision may be successfully appealed and overturned.

What does the Law of Return have to say about aliyah with a criminal record?

The Law of Return put into place in 1950, was  called “the very base of the state of Israel” by David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister.  This law constitutes the main expression of Israel as a national homeland for the entire Jewish nation. The Law states that a person of Jewish descent – a Jew, ” a child and a grandchild of a Jew, the spouse of a Jew, the spouse of a child of a Jew and the spouse of a grandchild of a Jew, except for a person who has been a Jew and has voluntarily changed his religion” – can immigrate to Israel as a national homeland.

The Law was founded upon an ancient biblical commandment, “Thy children shall come again to their own borders.” To gather Jews from around the world and allow them to return to their historic homeland, article 1 of the Law of Return states, “every Jew is entitled to return to the land of Israel.” However, the Law of return still has regulations. Article 2(b) of the Law of Return states a visa will not be granted to someone who is a danger to the public.

What makes a person a “danger to the public”?

How is a danger to the public generally defined? What is taken into account when determining if one is a danger? How can one prove that they are not a threat?

1. Firstly, it must be noted that the High Court judges ruled that a person can have a criminal record, and despite this he may pose no threat to public safety. Threat to the public can be determined from the background and circumstances that surrounded the crime or from other illegal acts committed by the applicant for aliyah.
2. Secondly, the High Court judges proposed additional criteria to examine a person’s level of danger to the public. The severity of the crime is not the only criteria that has to be given weight in the matter of an immigration application. The court judges determined that in regard to the question of a person with criminal record who is requesting to make aliyah to Israel, the Ministry of Interior’s officials who decide on the matter of the immigration request are permitted to take other factors into consideration. These factors include any evidence pointing to the likelihood of the offender repeating his crimes, his chances of rehabilitation, and the frequency of the immigration applicant’s criminal behavior.

Furthermore, on June 2nd, 2024, The Ministry of Interior implemented new regulations to help one answer these questions.

The seriousness of the offense must be taken into account. The date of the offense, the number of crimes committed, and their frequency will be examined. If one has a pattern of committing crimes, that could pose a threat to public safety.

A factual description of the crime committed will also be reviewed. The severity of the sentence, whether it is a matter of imprisonment, and the actual time in prison will be analyzed. Finally, the date of release from prison and the passage of time between the date of release and the application submission will be inspected.

The passage of time could indicate the successful rehabilitation of a person. If one’s application gets rejected because of a criminal record, these things will be considered upon appeal.

In summary, there are multiple factors as far as determining “danger to the public” – from the actual crime committed, to the likelihood of repeat offenses, based on how often the aliyah applicant has committed crimes in the past or how long it has been since their debt to society was repaid and they’ve been living an honest life.

 What should you do if your application for aliyah was rejected due to a criminal background?

You submitted your application for aliyah but were rejected because you have a criminal past; what should the following steps be?

You can submit an appeal to the Ministry of Interior’s officials at the Population and Immigration authorities’ headquarters in Jerusalem. They are permitted to accept or reject the application following the appeal. If this internal appeal is denied, you can file a further appeal with via Israeli court system, with the help of an experienced immigration attorney. 

With this, a person who is eligible under the Law of Return and who is applying to immigrate with a criminal record may sometimes not receive immediate approval to make aliyah to Israel but will rather undergo a probation period of residence in Israel with only a temporary status at first. The Ministry of Interior’s purpose is to determine whether the applicant for Israeli citizenship is involved in criminal activity during their trial period in Israel. After the trial period, and on the condition, of course, that the applicant was not involved in criminal activities, the applicant eligible under the Law of Return will receive an immigrant status in Israel and Israeli citizenship.

An example applicant we’ve helped – Aliyah following a conversion, with a criminal record for drug dealing:

We have experience dealing with cases regarding someone with a criminal record attempting to make aliyah. A man came to us after trying to make aliyah but was denied due to a drug charge offense in 2000. He was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison in 2005 but served only 5. While in prison, he changed his life around to become a model citizen. After release, he converted to Judaism with his wife and became a sought-after professional. In 2018, he attempted to make aliyah but was denied the ability to do so. He and his wife turned to our office for help.

We had to prove that although he has a criminal record, he is no longer a threat to society. We submitted documents multiple times of psychiatric opinions and proof that he has not been imprisoned since. Even after all of this, The Ministry of Interior still denied the application. We filed multiple appeals, both to the Population Authority and to the court in Jerusalem, until finally the aliyah request was granted. 

Cases like this take dedication and perseverance. It is essential to use an expert lawyer when going against the population authority as it can be very difficult, especially on your own. We are here to fight for and allow you to immigrate to Israel. 

Contact us if your aliyah request was denied due a criminal record; we have a great deal of experience in handling these sort of cases and helping our clients find a new home in the Holy Land. 

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03-3724722

055-9781688

office@lawoffice.org.il