The Ins and Outs of Israeli Land Ownership

Are you a foreign citizen interested in purchasing real estate in Israel? This series of articles will explain the ins and outs of Israeli land ownership and legal terms, starting with the history of Israeli Land Law.

Historical Overview: Land Reform Program

Toward the end of the 19th century, Jewish settlement groups, like the Jewish National Fund (JNF) began to purchase large land areas for Jews to settle in. Under the Ottoman rule, a land reform program was in place in which all landowners must register ownership of their lands at the land registry. When the state of Israel was established in 1948, the JNF was the most prominent land owner, apart from the British government. In order to maintain Israel as a Jewish state, the JNF refused to sell any of their lands, and instead offered long-term leases to both individuals and corporations. Through this, the JNF continued to grow and manage its real-estate holdings in Israel. Many years later, the land reform program of the JNF serves as the basis of Israel’s land policy today.

Establishment of the State of Israel

When the state of Israel was established, about ¾ of the land was owned by the state, directly or via the JNF. As a result, National Fund policies from the beginning of the 20th century remain a tradition hailing at least from the establishment of the Israeli state. Due to some dual-ownership complications from the past, the state of Israel and the JNF established a new state agency, the Israel Lands Authority (ILA,) to administer all lands owned by both the state and JNF.

Israel Lands Authority

Today, the ILA manages all the lands of the state of Israel. About 80% of the land is directly owned by Israel, 13% is owned by the JNF, and only about 7% of Israeli land is privately owned. 93% of the land in Israel is government-owned and leased by the ILA to private individuals for periods of 49 to 98 years. Similar to the previous system with the JNF, the ILA is legally prohibited from selling any of its substantial holdings. Since 1969, a land regularization process has been in place, and only 5% of land today is left to be regulated, a process which should be completed over the next few years.

 :  :

03-3724722

055-9781688

office@lawoffice.org.il