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Compulsory Education Law, 5709-1949

חוק לימוד חובה, תש"ט-1949

Published: 1949-09-18Consolidated Hebrew text as of 2025-10-27 · Last amended 2024-11-07✓ Amendment status checked against the Knesset legislation record on 2026-09-29
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Unofficial English translation — for reference only. It may contain errors or omissions and cannot be relied on as a legal text. Only the Hebrew text published in Reshumot is legally binding.More

This English text was translated from the official Hebrew using a range of translation tools, and it undergoes ongoing checks and updates. It is not a certified translation.

Despite these checks, it may contain errors, omissions, or imprecise renderings of legal terminology and cross-references, and it may not yet reflect the latest amendments. It cannot be relied upon as a legal text.

The Hebrew text as published in Reshumot (ספר החוקים) and on the Knesset website is the sole authoritative and legally binding version. In any discrepancy, the Hebrew text prevails.

This translation is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For use in legal proceedings, request a certified Expert Legal Opinion.

Chapter I: Interpretation

Interpretation§

1.

In this Law –

"Minister" means the Minister of Education and Culture;

"Education Council" means – (deleted)

"local education authority" means –

(a)in respect of the area within the jurisdiction of a local authority – that local authority; however, the Minister may prescribe by Order published in Reshumot (Official Gazette) that a person or body of persons maintaining an educational institution for compulsory-education ages within the area of a regional council shall be a separate local education authority in respect of the area of the institution as defined in the Order, if the Minister sees fit to do so for special reasons and after having given the regional council an opportunity to present its arguments;
(b)in respect of a moshav, group or kibbutz – the committee of the moshav, or the secretariat of the group or kibbutz, as the case may be; and the area of the moshav, group or kibbutz is the area of jurisdiction of the committee or secretariat, as the case may be;
(c)in respect of any other area – a committee recognised, or a person appointed, by the Minister, by Order published in Reshumot (Official Gazette), as a local education authority in the area described in the Order; and that area is the area of jurisdiction of that committee or that person, as the case may be;

"child" means a person who at the commencement of the school year was at one of the ages from 3 to 13 inclusive;

"youth" means a person who at the commencement of the school year was at one of the ages from 14 to 17;

"parents" of a child or of a youth includes the guardian of the child or of the youth, and every person in whose possession, supervision or care the child or youth is;

"employer" means a person who employs a child or youth in any work whatsoever, whether for remuneration or otherwise;

"kindergarten education" means education provided in a kindergarten, including a kindergarten within a children's home, for children aged 3 to 5 inclusive;

"compulsory education" means education intended for children and youth and provided over fifteen years of study, of which three are in kindergarten for ages 3 to 5 inclusive and twelve years of study in grades 1 to 12 for children and youth;

"educational institution" means an institution for the systematic education of children or youth;

"educational institution for children" means an educational institution for compulsory education for children;

"educational institution for youth" means an educational institution for compulsory education for youth;

"educational institution for working youth" means an educational institution for evening studies for working youth;

"official educational institution" means an educational institution maintained by the State, or by a local education authority, or by several local education authorities jointly, or by the State and a local education authority, or by the State and several local education authorities jointly, and in respect of which the Minister has declared, by a declaration published in Reshumot (Official Gazette), that it is an official educational institution for the purposes of this Law;

"recognised educational institution" means –

(a)any official educational institution;
(b)any other educational institution in respect of which the Minister has declared, by a declaration published in Reshumot (Official Gazette), that it is a recognised educational institution for the purposes of this Law;

"recognised stream" means – (deleted)

Local Education Authority – Corporation§

1a.

A local education authority that is not a local authority shall be a corporation capable of any obligation, right and legal act within the scope of its functions.

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Chapter II: Compulsory Education

Compulsory Education for Children and Youth§

2.
(a)Compulsory education shall apply to every child and every youth.
(b)(Repealed)
(c)(Repealed)
(d)A child to whom compulsory education applies is referred to in this Law as a "child of compulsory education age"; and a youth to whom compulsory education applies is referred to in this Law as a "youth of compulsory education age".

Apprenticeship as Compulsory Education§

2a.
(a)An apprenticeship of a youth commencing at age 15 pursuant to the Apprenticeship Law, 5713-1953, under conditions to be prescribed in Regulations made by the Minister with the consent of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Employment and with the approval of the Education and Culture Committee of the Knesset – shall be deemed compulsory education for the purposes of this Law.
(b)The Minister shall, with the consent of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Employment, prescribe a compulsory programme of theoretical studies for apprenticeships as referred to in subsection (a).
(c)The theoretical studies programme pursuant to subsection (b) shall be state or state-religious, and a state-religious programme shall be prescribed after consultation with the Council for State-Religious Education established pursuant to section 13 of the State Education Law, 5713-1953.

Duty of Registration§

3.
(a)The parents of a child aged 3 to 5 are each obliged to register the child, at the time and in the manner prescribed in Regulations, with the local education authority within whose area of jurisdiction the child resides. If one of them has registered the child, the other is exempt.

(aa) The parents of a child aged 6 or above or of a youth of compulsory education age are each obliged to register the child or youth, as set out in subsection (b), with an educational institution or with a local education authority as referred to in sections 20 and 21 of the State Education Law, 5713-1953. If one of them has registered the child or youth, the other is exempt.

(b)Pursuant to subsections (a) and (aa), the following shall be registered –
(1)(Repealed)
(2)a child who at the commencement of the school year 5714 or at the commencement of any subsequent school year will be aged 6 – at the time prescribed in Regulations;
(3)a child of compulsory education age or a youth of compulsory education age who arrived in the country as an immigrant – within thirty days of the date of immigration;
(4)a child of compulsory education age or a youth of compulsory education age who has transferred his or her place of residence from the area of jurisdiction of one local education authority to the area of jurisdiction of another local education authority – within thirty days of the date on which the child or youth transferred his or her place of residence.
(5)a child of compulsory education age, or a youth of compulsory education age, residing within the area of a local education authority in which there is no official educational institution and that authority has given notice, in the manner prescribed in Regulations, that it intends to open such an institution – within thirty days of the date of the notice.
(c)
(1)An employer who takes on a youth aged 15 or above for employment is obliged to give written notice thereof, within seven days of the date of taking on the youth for employment, to the local education authority within whose area of jurisdiction the youth resides;
(2)An employer who terminates the employment of a youth aged 15 or above is obliged to give written notice thereof, within seven days of the date of termination of employment, to the local education authority within whose area of jurisdiction the youth resides.
(d)(Repealed)
(e)Subsection (c) shall not apply in respect of a youth as aforesaid –
(1)who has completed his or her studies pursuant to a grade 12 curriculum;
(2)(deleted)
(3)who is an apprentice pursuant to the Apprenticeship Law, 5713-1953.
(f)A person who contravenes the provisions of subsections (a) to (c) is liable to imprisonment of up to fourteen days or a fine of up to ten liras or both penalties together; but if the child or youth in respect of whom the offence was committed is employed in work, the person in contravention is liable to imprisonment of up to twenty-eight days or a fine of up to twenty liras or both penalties together.
(g)(Repealed)

Powers of the Minister in Connection with Registration§

3a.
(a)If a particular local education authority has not commenced the registration pursuant to this Law and the Regulations made thereunder within ten days of the time prescribed therefor, or if the Minister has grounds to assume that it does not intend or is not able to carry out such registration – the Minister may order, by Order published in such manner as appears to the Minister to be appropriate, that that local education authority shall no longer carry out such registration, and that the registration shall be carried out by such person as the Minister shall prescribe, and at such time and in such manner as the Minister shall prescribe.
(b)If the Minister has grounds to assume that a registration, or re-registration, carried out by a particular local education authority was not carried out in accordance with this Law and the Regulations made thereunder – the Minister may, by Order brought to the knowledge of those concerned in such manner as appears to the Minister to be appropriate, cancel that registration and order that the registration be carried out anew –
(1)by the local education authority – at such time as the Minister shall prescribe; or
(2)by such person as the Minister shall prescribe – at such time and in such manner as the Minister shall prescribe.
(c)Where an Order has been given pursuant to this section in respect of a particular registration – every person upon whom the duty of that registration is imposed pursuant to section 3 is obliged to fulfil that duty at the time and in the manner prescribed by the Minister for carrying out the registration.
(d)A registration carried out otherwise than by a local education authority, by virtue of an Order given pursuant to this section – the local education authority shall bear its costs, which shall be collected from it in the manner prescribed by the Minister; and a certificate signed by the Minister stating the amount of the said costs shall serve as conclusive evidence thereof.
3b.§

(Repealed — תשס״א־2)

3c.§

(Repealed — תשס״א־2)

Duty of Regular Study§

4.
(a)The parents of a child of compulsory education age, or of a youth of compulsory education age, are each obliged to ensure that the child or youth studies regularly at a recognised educational institution.
(b)
(1)If a child or youth under the age of 15 does not study regularly at a recognised educational institution, each of his or her parents is liable to imprisonment of two months or a fine of one thousand liras, unless the parent proves beyond all reasonable doubt that he or she did his or her utmost to ensure that the child or youth studied as aforesaid;
(2)A person shall not be prosecuted pursuant to this subsection unless the head of the recognised educational institution in which the child or youth is registered has sent him or her by registered post a written notice that the child or youth has not studied as aforesaid, and even after the dispatch of the notice the child or youth has not studied as aforesaid at any time; and a person shall not be prosecuted pursuant to this subsection unless seven days have elapsed from the date of dispatch of the notice.
(3)A court adjudicating an offence pursuant to this subsection shall in every case hear the opinion of a social worker as defined in the Social Workers Law, 5756-1996, or the opinion of an attendance officer, and also, insofar as possible, the opinion of the psychological counsellor working at the school in which the child studies; for the purposes of this paragraph, "attendance officer" means a State employee or local authority employee whom the Minister of Education and Culture has authorised for this purpose.
(c)
(1)An employer who employs a child of compulsory education age, or a youth of compulsory education age who has not yet completed compulsory education, is obliged to release the child or youth from work, without deduction from his or her wages, on the days and during the hours designated for the child's or youth's study, all as shall be prescribed in Regulations;
(2)An employer who contravenes the provisions of this subsection is liable –

(I) for a first offence – imprisonment of up to fourteen days or a fine of up to ten liras or both penalties together;

(II) for a subsequent offence – imprisonment of up to twenty-eight days or a fine of up to twenty liras or both penalties together.

(d)(Repealed)
(e)Where a person is convicted of an offence pursuant to this section, and it is proved to the court that during the period of absence from studies on account of which the person was convicted, the child or youth was employed in paid work, the court may impose on that person, in addition to any other penalty, a fine not exceeding the wages of the child or youth during that period.
(f)Where it is proved to the Minister that a child or youth on whose account his or her parents paid a fine for an offence pursuant to subsection (b) has studied regularly at a recognised educational institution for one year after the imposition of the fine, the Minister shall be entitled to order the return of the fine to the person who paid it, and the fine shall be returned as ordered.
(g)A child of compulsory education age or a youth of compulsory education age who is registered at a recognised educational institution and, without sufficient cause –
(1)is absent from studies so frequently that in the opinion of the head of the educational institution it constitutes a serious disruption to his or her studies; or
(2)is absent from studies for seven consecutive school days,

shall be regarded as not having studied at the educational institution regularly, and the head of the educational institution shall send to the parents of the child or youth a notice as referred to in subsection (b)(2) and shall forward a copy thereof to the local education authority.

4a.§

(Repealed — תשמ״ח־2)

4b.§

(Repealed — תשמ״ח־2)

4c.§

(Repealed — תשמ״ח־2)

4d.§

(Repealed — תשמ״ח־2)

4e.§

(Repealed — תשמ״ח־2)

Exemption§

5.
(a)The Minister may direct, by a direction published in Reshumot (Official Gazette), that the parents of children and youth, as well as the youth themselves, who study regularly at an educational institution described in that direction and which is not a recognised educational institution – shall be exempt from the duties imposed on them pursuant to section 4; the Minister may prescribe, in Regulations, provisions and conditions that an educational institution must fulfil for the purpose of granting an exemption direction in its respect pursuant to this subsection, including with regard to the operation of the institution.
(a1)The parents of children or youth, as well as the youth themselves, who study regularly at a unique cultural educational institution as defined in the Unique Cultural Educational Institutions Law, 5768-2008, shall be exempt from the duties imposed on them pursuant to section 4.
(b)
(1)The Minister may direct, by a general or special direction, that the parents and employer of a child or youth, as well as the youth himself or herself, shall be exempt from the duties imposed on them pursuant to section 4, if –

(I) there exist, in the Minister's opinion, special reasons for the child or youth not to study at a recognised educational institution, and the child or youth is receiving private systematic instruction to the satisfaction of the Minister; or

(II) the Minister is satisfied that the child or youth is not capable of studying regularly at a recognised educational institution;

(2)In a direction pursuant to this subsection the Minister may prescribe any conditions and any qualifications that appear to the Minister to be appropriate.
(3)A person in respect of whom an exemption direction has been given pursuant to this section shall not be subject to the provisions of sections 6, 7 and 10 except subject to the conditions and qualifications set out in the exemption direction, provided that the duty to provide the child or youth with studies within the framework prescribed by the Minister shall be preserved in every case in which the child or youth is capable thereof.

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