Regulation of the Status of a Foreign Spouse in Israel

“The Process for Regulation of the Status of a Foreign Spouse in Israel” is a short phrase that can reveal a detailed procedure entailing years of work and numerous document submissions by a couple with a foreign spouse and the attorney representing them. There are steps involved in regulating the status of a foreign spouse, for example, having the spouse move to Israel with their Israeli partner and be granted temporary Israeli citizenship/residency until receiving an official status.

The application procedure can take several years, even in the best-case scenario without any complications. Although thousands of couples attempt to regulate the status of a foreign spouse every year with the Population and Immigration Authority at the Israeli Ministry of Interior, hundreds of couples experience this procedure as a tiresome struggle against a complex bureaucratic establishment. The Ministry of Interior estimates that 5-10% of marriages between Israelis and foreign spouses are fictitious, and does everything possible to “expose” such relationships and prevent the granting of residency or Israeli citizenship to the foreign spouse.

Regardless of the specific circumstance, regulating the status of a foreign spouse is always a complex and lengthy process with strict conditions for both the foreign spouse and the Israeli who wishes to regulate the spouse’s status in Israel so they can live together. Many documents must be submitted, various steps must be completed in the graduated status regulation process, and coordination with Ministry of Interior officials is necessary. Unlike aliyah with a non-Jewish, for example, where the State of Israel promotes and assists with the process, in the immigration process of a spouse, the bureaucracy is neutral at best and hostile, suspicious, and harful at worst.

The Decker, Pex, Levi law firm specializes in regulating the legal status of foreign spouses of Israelis. Contact us if you are struggling with bringing your spouse to live in Israel, the stages of the graduated procedure, relationship authenticity interviews, and more.

Procedure for Regulating the Status of a Foreign Spouse

Regulating the status of a foreign spouse in Israel essentially involves inviting a partner who is not a resident or citizen of Israel to come to the country and obtain official status based on a relationship with an Israeli. Along the way, it is necessary to provide the Ministry of Interior with documents and evidence of the “sincerity of the relationship” to convince them that it is a genuine relationship, not merely faked to obtain Israeli citizenship.

Status regulation, or as it is professionally known in the Ministry of Interior procedures, “family unification,” is divided into several methods, depending on the relationship between the partners and their status in Israel – the procedure for regulating the status of married couples, the regulation of status for common-law partners, status for partners of Israeli residents who are not citizens, and family unification for partners residing in the area.

“Common-law partners” are people who live together in a monogamous relationship but are not married to each other, including same-sex partners – their status is regulated within the framework of the shared life procedure. Residents of the “area” or “territories” are Palestinians living in the West Bank/Gaza who are in a relationship with an Israeli citizen or resident.

Regulating the Status of Foreign Spouses Married to Israeli Citizens

The procedure for married couples regulates the status of the foreign spouse within 4.5 years, beginning with presenting documents proving the marriage to Ministry of Interior officials to receive approval to invite the spouse to Israel and open a shared life file. As there are no civil marriages in Israel, couples of different religions cannot marry within Israel’s borders. Under such circumstances, applicants need to first present a translated and authenticated marriage certificate from another country.

The immigration process for Jews and those eligible for the Law of Return is much easier than the process for obtaining status for a foreign spouse, and Israeli Muslims usually marry within the country/to residents of the territories (for more information, review the article on this topic above). Therefore, most foreign spouses invited to Israel are non-Jews married to Israelis of Jewish descent who married them abroad. The wedding may take place in the country where the foreign spouse resides, or sometimes the couple travels to a country that allows marriage registration easily for those who are not citizens of that country – such as Cyprus, the Czech Republic, or (in case the couple is in Israel and prefers not to leave the country for various reasons) El Salvador and Paraguay.

A recent development regarding civil marriages abroad – marriages conducted virtually in the state of Utah in the USA. “Zoom weddings” allow couples to register their relationship without leaving home. Within the first six months of the procedure taking place, the foreign spouse will receive a work visa (B-1), followed by temporary resident status (A-5), for a total period of 4 years (the “graduated process” as the foreign spouse’s status changes gradually). Additionally, one’s travel visa in Israel needs to be renewed each year. Throughout the process, Ministry of Interior officials will check the authenticity of the relationship, among other things, through interviews with the couple. At the end of the process, as long as the couple remains together, proving that it is an authentic relationship through documents, interviews, recommendation letters from friends, and evidence of shared life, their life center is in Israel and there is no other hindrance to status regulation, the foreign spouse will receive Israeli citizenship alongside their other citizenship.

Regulating the Status of Common-Law Spouses of Israeli Citizens and Residents, Including Same-Sex Couples

Since marriages between couples from different religions cannot be conducted in Israel, courts have given common-law partnerships more legal power than in other countries. The common-law procedure is relevant for regulating the status of foreign partners of Israeli citizens and permanent residents who are not officially married. Moreover, same-sex marriages conducted abroad are dealt with in the same manner as common-law marriages.

Common-law partners must also present relevant documents and data to initiate the process but the instructions create an important difference depending on the status of the Israeli partner: for an Israeli citizen, the common-law spouse’s status as a citizen will be finalized within 7 years. The common law partner of a permanent resident of Israel will have their status as a permanent resident regulated within 9 years. In the case of same-sex married couples to whom this procedure applies, the permit will be granted under the same procedure as for married couples not of the same sex. At the end of the process, and after an interview that will reinforce the credibility of the relationship, the foreign partner will receive the same status as their Israeli partner.

Regulating the Status of Foreign Spouses Married to Israeli Permanent Residents

It is critical to recognize the difference between foreign spouses who are ‘area’ residents, such as Palestinians from the territories, and spouses who are foreign citizens from other places. Under these circumstances, documents proving the relationship between the partners must be submitted to open a family unification file and begin the graduation procedure. Any official document from another country requires verification according to requirements from the State of Israel, and only after all the documents have been submitted, a sincerity interview will be conducted with the partners to examine the sincerity of the relationship and eliminate any possible contradictions in testimony between the couple. Passing the interview without contradictions will initially lead to the granting of an entry permit to Israel and a tourist visa with a work permit for 15 months, extended for another year after inspection, for a total period of 27 months. Afterwards, the spouse will be granted temporary residency for a year. This residency will only be extended after an inspection, every year for three years, at the end of which the foreign spouse can apply for permanent residency. Note that those who have already received permanent residency status can naturalize in Israel only by renouncing all foreign citizenships, unlike the spouse of a citizen, who can receive citizenship after a status regulation process without Israeli authorities requiring the waiver of the additional citizenship. Read here about receiving status as a permanent resident or citizen as a foreign spouse in Israel.

There is a separate and much more complicated procedure for spouses registered in the population registry of Gaza or Judea and Samaria (usually Palestinian partners of Israeli-Arab permanent residents) since the Ministry of Interior’s policy over the years has been to make it difficult to obtain status in Israel for Palestinians from the territories, regardless of the specific circumstances.

What are the Steps in Regulating the Status of a Foreign Spouse?

What is the purpose of the entire graduation process for obtaining status for a spouse? To ensure that the couple is genuinely invested in the marriage and living together, and that the foreign spouse (and their minor children, if joining) receives residency or citizenship in Israel based on a genuine relationship with the Israeli partner rather than a relationship faked to obtain status in Israel. This means the couple must prove they were in a serious relationship before applying and continue the relationship throughout all the application.

Let us explain the steps for how this can occur. Firstly, when the couple meets and maintains a close relationship, possibly leading to marriage, they should keep various proofs of their connection. For example, records of conversations and emails, flight tickets for visits, accounts from living together in the same apartment, statements from friends that the couple are in a relationship and living together, and more. Under unique circumstances, for example, the time between the beginning of the relationship and inviting the spouse to Israel is particularly short, there is a significant age difference between the partners, or there is another unusual factor, the relationship may be viewed with suspicion by the Ministry of Interior.

At the next stage, the Israeli partner contacts the Ministry of Interior (Population and Immigration Authority) to invite the foreign partner to Israel and open a shared life file to obtain a status. The order procedure includes the submission of proof of the existence of the relationship and numerous required documents. If there are any mistakes in the submitted documents, or if the Ministry of the Interior suspects that the relationship system is falsely fabricated and finds excuses for rejecting the application.

Processing and submitting the application can take months or years, with the partners located in different countries, making it challenging to maintain a strong relationship. However, we no longer recommend trying to start the invitation procedure when the foreign spouse is in Israel – from the point of view of the Ministry of the Interior, this is an attempt to skip the step of inviting the spouse, and they mark the case as “problematic” from the beginning.

After the application is approved, the staggered procedure for obtaining status begins, which lasts from 5 years (married spouses of citizens) to 9 (common law partners of residents). The spouse arrives in Israel and maintains a joint household with the Israeli spouse. Once in a while, Interior Ministry officials will ensure that the couple still lives together, whether it be through home visits, interviews, etcetera. When the foreign spouse arrives in Israel, they receive an A-1 visa, which allows them to work in the country. After several years, their status is upgraded to an A-5 temporary resident visa. At the end of the procedure, the spouse receives status as a citizen or resident in Israel.

Where do you start?

The relevant rules state that if the foreign spouse is in Israel, the request to regulate their status must be submitted online via the Population and Immigration Authority. If the foreign spouse is abroad and the Israeli spouse is in Israel, the Israeli spouse must issue an invitation for the foreign spouse in advance, before entering Israel. If both spouses are staying abroad, the foreign spouse must apply before coming to Israel at the Israeli embassy.

When the application is being processed, the spouse will be granted a residence visa in Israel and the possibility of obtaining a temporary work visa in Israel for six months. The work visa for Israel will be extended if necessary until the end of the examination period. If the request is approved, the spouse will begin a gradual naturalization process that lasts several years (on average between 4-6 years), subject to the discretion of the Ministry of Interior officials handling the cohabitation file. The officials of the Population and Immigration Authority handling the procedure of granting status to a foreign spouse may cancel any license issued for the foreign spouse if non-compliance with the procedure is discovered or they find there was incomplete or false information within the application.

How to handle the request:

When applying in accordance with the provisions of the procedure for regulating the status of a foreign spouse married to an Israeli:

1. When applying, the Population Authority employee will check:
2. The background of the foreign spouse and the Israeli spouse in the computerized system of the Ministry of the Interior
3. Evidence for the sincerity of the relationship and a joint household
4. If there is a criminal record or security clearance issues (this will be checked for both spouses and minor children over the age of 14), or if the foreign spouse is a resident of a “high-risk country” (generally, countries in a state of war or hostile actions with Israel).

As a general rule, if all the threshold documents have been submitted as required, the foreign spouse will be issued a residence permit in Israel (called a “general B/1 permit”) for 6 months. If there are issues with granting of a residence permit, the application will be forwarded to the visa center for examination at the office. If all of the required documents have been submitted, the couple will be provided with a detailed list of the missing documents, which they will be required to obtain by the time of the appointment set for them to continue processing the application at the visa department. If no documents are provided by the deadline, the application will immediately be rejected. If the couple needs more time, they must submit a request for an extension to the Population and Immigration Authority local office where the request is processed.

After receiving the application – The status of a foreign spouse married to an Israeli

1. The Population and Immigration Authority will approve or reject the request based on a comprehensive review. This check may include interviewing with the couple, checking the sincerity of the relationship, the existence of a common residence in Israel and the absence of security or criminal record issues.
2. If there is doubt about the sincerity of the relationship, the visa center at the Population Bureau may extend the validity of the residence permit (B/1) for a period of another six months, at the end of which the sincerity of the relationship will be reexamined, or it will warrant the start of the graded process on the deposit of a bank guarantee.
3. If the request is rejected, the couple will be summoned to the office and given a detailed letter of reasoning and a request for the foreign spouse to leave Israel within 30 days (or within 14 days, if they are staying in Israel illegally).
4. If the application is accepted, an A/5 temporary residence permit will be issued for one year and the graduation process will begin.

What difficulties may arise in the process of obtaining status for a foreign spouse?

As mentioned above, the Ministry of Interior officials must suspect the relationship is false. It is therefore necessary to dedicate time and resources towards preparing for the interviews beforehand with a lawyer and establishing a folder of evidence that the relationship is legitimate and ongoing.

Secondly, lacking certain documents can be a fatal mistake when inviting a spouse to Israel.

Thirdly, lacking proof of a shared residence in Israel. The expectation is that the couple will live together in Israel, but if the foreign spouse is abroad for an extended period, especially in the final stages of the procedure, this will cause difficulties in obtaining status.

Finally, the dissolution of the relationship during the process of obtaining the status. In most cases, separation of the spouses will result in the termination of the procedure and the deportation of the foreign spouse. However, if the Israeli spouse dies near the end of the procedure, after the midpoint, or the two separated for reasons not dependent on the foreign spouse, (such as abuse by the Israeli spouse), it is possible that the foreign spouse will receive a certain status in Israel.

The threshold documents for cohabitation – notarized translation, apostille verification

A lawyer familiar with the complexities of each request for status in Israel can be a helpful resource when navigating this difficult and lengthy process. Getting the assistance of a lawyer will avoid a situation where a lack of the necessary documents will lead to a delay in opening the case and accepting the request. The importance of a lawyer with experience in the field intensifies even in cases where the application is rejected, and it is necessary to exhaust the procedures with the immigration authority even before reaching the court at its various levels.

Several documents must be submitted, some of which are intended to verify the identity of the spouse, if they are in an appropriate state to be in a relationship or marriage, and to ensure that they do not pose a danger to the public or have no criminal record. These basic documents are called “threshold documents”; some of them are called “center of life documents” and are intended to prove that the center of life of the Israeli couple or partner is in Israel while the rest must prove the sincerity of the relationship between the couple. This is a predefined list, but one that may change from bureau to bureau, and the officials may demand additional documents that are not included in this list if they wish.

For documents issued abroad, an apostille verification is required by the Israeli consulate in that country (an apostille is preferred because some officials of the Ministry of the Interior have not heard of document verification at the embassy and are uninterested in learning). Documents that are not in the Hebrew (or in English if the officials handling your case agree to accept English documents) will require a notarized translation into Hebrew. This is even though the Ministry of the Interior procedures state that foreign documents can also be submitted in the language that the worker handling the case speaks, as many bureaus refuse to accept documents in languages ​​other than Hebrew and English, even if the receiving official speaks the language.

What is the total cost of obtaining status for a foreign spouse?

The total price of obtaining status in Israel is complicated to calculate accurately. Firstly, there are the official fees that the couple pays to the Ministry of the Interior for applying. There are also document related expenses, various visas, and fees for receiving the Israeli passport/identity card. It is about several thousand NIS in total.

Additionally, a person must pay for a notarized translation and apostilles in Israel and abroad. As long as a person receives approval for the translation of the documents in the country of origin and receives the apostilles in that country, this should not be too expensive. If you have to translate the documents in Israel (particularly if they were issued in a rare or “exotic” language), forgot to receive an apostille, thus requiring the documents to be reissued or sent back to the country of origin, or if you forgot to receive a document that can only be issued in the country of origin, the costs may rise sharply.

Finally, the services of a lawyer can be relatively costly, depending on the stage in the process at which the lawyer is contacted. An hour-long consultation ($250 + VAT) in which the required documents, the form of work with the Ministry of the Interior and other useful tips will be detailed may save tens of thousands of shekels as a result of the rejection of the application, after which you will have to file legal appeals and appear in court (tens of thousands of shekels).

Regulating the status of a foreign spouse in Israel – Decker, Pex, Levi law firm

The law firm Decker, Pex, Levi is one of the leaders in Israel in the field of immigration law in Israel, obtaining legal status in Israel for foreign spouses who are married or in a permanent relationship with an Israeli. Whether you need to register your marriage abroad, are required to obtain, translate and verify documents, encounter a refusal when inviting your spouse to Israel or face deportation of your spouse – we are here to help you obtain status in Israel and maintain the family unit in Israel.

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03-3724722

055-9781688

office@lawoffice.org.il