Council for Higher Education Law, 5718-1958

In this Law –

"higher education" – including teaching, science and research;

"academic college" – an institution that has applied to use this designation, and is one of the following:

There is hereby established a Council for Higher Education, whose members shall be appointed by the President of the State (hereinafter – the Council).

The Council is the national institution for matters of higher education in the State, and it shall fulfil the functions imposed upon it under this Law.

The Council shall be a corporation, capable of all obligations, rights and legal acts.

The Council shall be an audited body, within the meaning thereof in section 9(6) of the State Comptroller Law, 5718-1958 [Consolidated Version].

The recruitment and appointment of Council employees shall be carried out by the Council and shall be as for State employees, with such adjustments as shall be prescribed by Regulations; the terms of employment and remuneration of Council employees shall be identical to those of State employees.

The Council shall not be entitled to sell or otherwise transfer any asset in its ownership, to mortgage it, or to let or lend it for a period exceeding ten years, except with the approval of the Minister of Education and Culture; a lease or loan for an additional period which, together with preceding periods, exceeds ten years, shall require approval as aforesaid.

The preparation of the budget and its submission to the Government for approval shall be in the manner prescribed by Regulations.

For the purposes of sections 3a, 3c and 3d, the Council may act through a committee, from among its members or together with persons who are not among its members.

The number of Council members shall be determined from time to time by the Government upon the recommendation of the Minister of Education and Culture, provided that the number shall not be fewer than nineteen and shall not exceed twenty-five, and the Minister of Education and Culture shall be among them.

The Minister of Education and Culture shall be the chairperson of the Council, and the Council may elect a deputy chairperson of the Council from among its members.

The term of office of each Council shall be five years from the day of appointment of the members of that Council; however, the first Council shall serve for two years only.

The Council shall determine its procedural rules, to the extent that they have not been prescribed in this Law or in Regulations.

The Minister of Education, with the consent of the Minister of Finance and with the approval of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee of the Knesset, may prescribe Regulations regarding the payment of remuneration and reimbursement of expenses to members of the Council and its committees.

The Council may recognise a particular institution as an institution for higher education on the basis of rules determined by it for the recognition of institutions for higher education or of types thereof, in addition to the requirement of an adequate academic standard (hereinafter – a recognised institution), provided that such rules shall not restrict freedom of opinion and conscience.

A decision of the Council to recognise an institution under section 9 shall require the approval of the Government.

If an institution has applied to be recognised as an institution for higher education and the Council has refused to do so, the Minister of Education and Culture, or the institution through the Minister of Education and Culture, may bring the application for recognition and the Council's decision before the Government, and the Government may refer it back to the Council for renewed deliberation; the decision of the Council in the renewed deliberation shall be final.

An institution whose application for recognition has been refused by the Government, or whose application for recognition was refused by the Council in renewed deliberation and the Government confirmed that refusal, may, after two years, again bring an application for recognition before the Council, unless the Government has determined in its decision an earlier date for that purpose.

An institution that has been recognised as an institution for higher education shall receive a certificate to that effect from the President of the State; notice of the granting of the certificate shall be published in Reshumot (Official Gazette).

A recognised institution is a corporation and is competent to sue and be sued, to acquire and hold assets and to dispose of them, to enter into contracts and to be a party to any legal or other transaction.

A recognised institution is free to conduct its academic and administrative affairs, within its budget, as it sees fit.

In this Section, "academic and administrative affairs" – including the determination of a research and teaching programme, the appointment of the institution's authorities, the appointment of teachers and their promotion, the determination of teaching and study methods, and any other scientific, educational or management activity.

The provisions of sections 3, 4, 8 to 10, 12, 14(b) and (c) and 24(c) of the Internal Audit Law, 5752-1992, shall apply to the auditor of a recognised institution, with such modifications as are necessitated by the matter.

The Council may, after consultation with the relevant recognised institutions, propose proposals regarding their consolidation, expansion and improvement and regarding cooperation among them; the Council may also propose proposals regarding the advancement of scientific research and regarding the establishment of additional institutions for higher education.

The Council may propose proposals regarding the participation of the State in the budgets of the recognised institutions.

State funding of institutions for higher education and of academic colleges in whose budgets the State participates shall be in accordance with equal criteria, to be determined, inter alia, having regard to the types of institutions and to the development, teaching and research programmes approved by the Council, a committee of its committees that has been authorised for that purpose, or the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport, all as the case may be.

The Council may revoke its recognition of a recognised institution, on the basis of rules determined by it for the revocation of recognition of a recognised institution; provided that such rules shall not restrict freedom of opinion and conscience.

A decision of the Council under section 18 requires the approval of the Government, but the Government shall not approve such a decision unless the institution whose recognition has been revoked has been given a reasonable opportunity to argue its case and to bring its evidence before the Minister of Education and Culture or a person appointed for that purpose; the Government may also refer the matter back to the Council for reconsideration, and if it so decides the provisions of section 11 shall apply with such modifications as are necessitated by the matter.

Where the Government has approved the revocation of recognition of a recognised institution, it shall notify the President of the State accordingly and shall thereafter publish a notice to that effect in Reshumot (Official Gazette).

An institution whose recognition has been revoked may, after two years, again bring before the Council an application for recognition, on the basis of evidence it brings that the grounds that served as the basis for the revocation no longer exist, unless the Government has specified, in approving the revocation, an earlier date for this purpose.

The validity of a permit is four years; if the institution has not opened within four years from the date of the granting of the permit, or has not been recognised under section 9 – whether full, partial, temporary or conditional recognition – the Council may extend the validity of the permit for additional periods not exceeding four years in total.

Where one of the rules or conditions on the basis of which the permit was granted has ceased to be fulfilled or has been breached, the Council may, after having given the institution an opportunity to be heard, revoke the permit or suspend it for a period to be determined by the Council.

Where an institution has been opened or is being maintained without a permit as referred to in section 21a or without a licence as referred to in section 25c, the District Court may, upon application by the Attorney General, order its closure at the time and in the manner that the court shall determine, provided that the closure Order shall not take effect before the expiry of thirty days from the date of the Order.

The Council may recognise a particular academic degree as a recognised degree, on the basis of rules established by it for the recognition of academic degrees (hereinafter – recognised degree).

In this section, "recognised degree" – including the combinations of the degree and the abbreviations customarily used in connection with it.

The Council may, itself or through a person it appoints for that purpose, supervise the conferral of recognised degrees, and it may establish rules for supervision under this section.

A degree recognised under this Law shall be recognised for the purposes of any other law.

Identical recognised degrees conferred by recognised institutions for higher education of different types shall have equal status, including for the purposes of employment, the classification and grade of the employee, and wages and conditions of employment.

"discharged soldier" – as defined in the Absorption of Discharged Soldiers Law, 5754-1994;

"reserve service" – as defined in the Reserve Service Law, 5768-2008.

"army orders" – as defined in the Military Justice Law, 5715-1955;

"person liable for military service" and "regular service" – as defined in the Defence Service Law [Consolidated Version], 5746-1986.

No person shall open or maintain an institution that confers or promises to confer a particular academic degree (hereinafter – degree) or that conducts studies which upon their completion lead to a degree or to credit points towards a degree, nor shall any person publish notice of the opening or existence of such an institution, if the institution has not been recognised under section 9 or has not been granted a permit certificate under section 21a, unless the institution has been granted a licence by the Council (hereinafter – licence).

The State shall not participate in the budget of an institution in Israel that is a branch or affiliate of a parent institution except for special reasons, with the approval of the Government, on the proposal of the Council.

The institution in Israel shall present to the Council, at any time upon its request, particulars concerning its structure and activities, and any other information that the Council requires of it; the Council, or a person acting on its behalf, may inspect the institution in Israel for the purpose of examining whether the conditions for the licence are being fulfilled.

The Council may grant a temporary licence to an institution in Israel, for a period it shall determine that shall not exceed four years, even if the institution does not fulfil one of the conditions set out in section 25d, and it may make such licence subject to conditions as referred to in section 25h.

A licensed institution shall indicate, in all its publications to the public, that the degree to be conferred upon students upon the completion of their studies is an academic degree of the parent institution abroad and is not an Israeli academic degree, and shall indicate the identity of the home country; the manner of indicating that the institution holds a licence from the Council shall be determined by rules established by the Council, with the approval of the Education and Culture Committee of the Knesset.

If a condition under section 25d or a condition of the grant of the licence under sections 25h or 25i has not been fulfilled or has ceased to be fulfilled, or if the institution has breached the provisions of sections 25e, 25g or 25j, the Council may revoke the licence or suspend it for a period it shall determine; the Council shall not decide to revoke the licence or to suspend it except after having given the institution an opportunity to be heard and having set a reasonable period for remedying that which requires remedying in order to ensure fulfilment of the conditions or provisions as aforesaid.

The Council shall notify an applicant for a licence of its decision on the application within one year from the date of submission of the application.

An institution in Israel whose application for a licence has been refused or whose licence has been revoked may, after one year, again bring before the Council an application for the grant of a licence, on the basis of evidence it brings that the grounds that served as the basis for the refusal or revocation no longer exist.

Notice of the grant, suspension or revocation of a licence shall be published in Reshumot (Official Gazette), and the date of the grant, suspension or revocation of the licence, as the case may be, shall be specified therein.

The Council may establish, with the approval of the Education and Culture Committee of the Knesset, rules for the implementation of its powers under sections 25d to 25m.

A degree conferred upon graduates of a licensed institution as referred to in section 25c shall have the same status, in every respect, except for the purposes of employment, the classification and grade of the employee, and wages and conditions of employment, as the identical degree conferred by the parent institution in the home country, and the grant of a licence to the institution in Israel does not constitute recognition by the Council of the institution in Israel as a recognised institution for higher education or accreditation of the institution in Israel to confer recognised degrees within the meaning of this Law.

A person who does one of the following is liable to one year's imprisonment:

Without derogating from the provisions of section 26, an offence under paragraphs (2) and (4) to (7) of that section shall also be regarded as an offence under the Consumer Protection Law, 5741-1981, and the Commissioner for Consumer Protection and Fair Trade under that Law shall have, in respect of those offences, all the powers vested in him under Chapters E and F of that Law.

The Education Ordinance shall not apply to an institution that has been recognised, to an institution that has been granted a permit, or to an institution that has been granted a licence under this Law.

The Council shall be empowered to exercise its powers under this Law in relation to Israelis in the Region, and the rights and duties under this Law shall apply to them; for this purpose, "Region" and "Israeli" have the meanings assigned to them in the Emergency Regulations (Judaea and Samaria – Jurisdiction over Offences and Legal Assistance), 5727-1967, as extended in validity and amended in text by law from time to time.

The Minister of Education and Culture is responsible for the implementation of this Law; he shall bring before the Government the decisions of the Council that require approval and its proposals, and before the President – every matter that is to be brought before him under this Law.

The Minister of Education and Culture may, after consulting the Council, make Regulations for the implementation of this Law, including, inter alia, concerning timetables for the processing, within a reasonable time, of applications for the grant of a licence to institutions and of applications for recognition of institutions – from the time of their submission until the decision thereon, by the Council and by the Government.

The Minister of Education, with the consent of the Minister of Finance and with the approval of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee of the Knesset, may prescribe by Regulations fees for the submission of applications as set out below, and may prescribe different fees having regard to different categories of institutions of higher education: