Financial Services Supervision Law (Pension Counselling, Marketing and Clearing System), 5765-2005
חוק הפיקוח על שירותים פיננסיים (ייעוץ, שיווק ומערכת סליקה פנסיוניים), תשס"ה-2005
Published: 2005-08-10Consolidated Hebrew text as of 2026-07-27 · Last amended 2026-07-22✓ 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
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Section C: Prohibited Advertising
Prohibition on advertising of institutional bodies by a pension counsellor§
23.
A pension counsellor shall not advertise, in the media, by circular, by post, electronic mail, facsimile, internet or by any other means, the fact of its engagement in pension counselling in relation to pension products to which a particular institutional body has a nexus.
Restriction on use of the word "counselling"§
24.
(a)A pension agent shall not use the word "counselling" or any word derived therefrom, in the name under which it conducts its business or in any publication on its behalf.
(b)No person, other than a pension counsellor, shall use the combination of the words "counselling" and "pension" or the combination of derivatives of those words, in the name under which that person conducts its business or in any publication on its behalf, except under a permit granted by the Commissioner.
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Contact Us →Section D: Licence Holder Liability
Liability of an individual licence holder§
25.
Engagement within the framework of a corporation shall not derogate from the application of the provisions of this Law to an individual licence holder acting on behalf of the corporation.
Prohibition on conditioning licence holder liability§
26.
(a)The giving of the client's consent, whether in advance or retrospectively, whether in writing or orally, whether in relation to a particular pension counselling, whether in relation to a particular pension marketing and whether in relation to a particular transaction, shall not exempt a licence holder from its duties under this Chapter, unless expressly provided otherwise in this Law.
(b)An exemption clause in an agreement, which exempts a licence holder from liability imposed on it under this Law or under any other law, in respect of the manner in which it fulfils its function, or which qualifies such liability — is void.
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Contact Us →Section E: Pension Counselling Agreement
Pension counselling agreement in writing§
27.
(a)A pension counsellor shall draw up a written agreement with a client and shall deliver a copy thereof to the client, prior to the commencement of the pension counselling (in this Law — a pension counselling agreement).
(b)A pension counselling agreement shall include the matters required for the purposes of the engagement, including the following matters:
(1)the identification particulars and data of the client;
(2)the needs of the client as referred to in section 12;
(3)fees and reimbursement of expenses to be charged to the client, the method of their calculation and the manner of their collection, subject to the provisions of section 28;
(4)a determination as to whether the matter concerns a one-time or ongoing pension counselling, and in respect of ongoing pension counselling — the period during which the pension counselling will be provided;
(5)a determination as to whether, as part of and in continuation of the pension counselling, the pension counsellor will execute a transaction on behalf of the client;
(6)a determination that the client is entitled to cancel the engagement with the pension counsellor at any time;
(7)in respect of an agreement for the provision of ongoing pension counselling and the execution of a transaction as part thereof and in continuation thereto — a power of attorney enabling the pension counsellor to receive any information concerning the client, relating to the pension counselling and to the transaction as aforesaid, held by the institutional body with which the transaction was executed, including by means of a central pension clearing system; the Commissioner shall give directions regarding the text of the power of attorney and the period of its validity;
(8)a provision stating that the client is aware that the duty of confidentiality imposed on the pension counsellor is subject to the pension counsellor's obligation to disclose information pursuant to any law.
(c)The Commissioner may give directions regarding the structure of a pension counselling agreement, its form and the manner of its delivery to the client, as well as regarding additional matters to be included in such an agreement, generally or by types of agreements, and may also give directions regarding types of agreements in which there is no obligation to include a matter from among the matters set out in subsection (b).
(d)Where a pension counselling agreement provides that the matter concerns ongoing pension counselling, the particulars under subsection (b)(1) and (2) shall be updated whenever the client gives notice of a change therein, and a copy of the update document shall be delivered to the client; if the client has not given notice of such a change for a period of one year, the pension counsellor shall initiate the updating of the particulars.
Fees, reimbursement of expenses and payment of distribution commission to a pension counsellor§
28.
(a)The calculation of fees and reimbursement of expenses to be charged to the client in respect of pension counselling, and of a distribution commission to be charged to an institutional body, shall be made independently of the identity of the institutional body that has a nexus to the pension product that is the subject of the pension counselling, or of the type of pension product that is the subject of the pension counselling; such fees and reimbursement of expenses shall not be regarded as part of the management fees or reimbursement of expenses that the client is charged to pay to the institutional body in respect of a transaction concerning that pension product, and a distribution commission shall be regarded as part of the management fees paid by the client to the institutional body.
(b)A pension counsellor is not entitled to collect from a client fees and reimbursement of expenses calculated as a proportion of the amounts transferred by the client to savings by means of the pension product, or as a proportion of the amounts accumulated in such savings, or to collect a distribution commission from an institutional body, except during the pension counselling period fixed in the agreement pursuant to the provisions of section 27(b)(4).
(c)A pension counsellor is not entitled to collect a distribution commission calculated as a proportion of the management fees collected by the institutional body from the client, or in an amount or at a rate exceeding that fixed pursuant to section 32 of the Provident Funds Supervision Law.
(d)The Minister may prescribe, with the approval of the Finance Committee of the Knesset, maximum rates and amounts for fees and reimbursement of expenses to be charged to a client in connection with pension counselling.
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Contact Us →Chapter III-A: Duties of an Institutional Body towards a Licence Holder
Prohibition on unreasonable refusal to engage with a pension counsellor§
28a.
(a)An institutional body shall not unreasonably refuse to enter into an agreement with a pension counsellor for the execution of a transaction on behalf of a client, as referred to in section 17a(a) (in this Chapter — an agreement for the execution of a transaction), and shall not terminate an engagement with a pension counsellor under such an agreement in the circumstances set out in paragraphs (1) to (3) of the definition of "unreasonable refusal" to enter into an agreement with a pension counsellor for the execution of a transaction, in subsection (c).
(b)An institutional body that refuses to enter into an agreement with a pension counsellor for the execution of a transaction, or that terminates an engagement under such an agreement with a pension counsellor, shall notify the pension counsellor thereof in writing, and shall set out in such notice its reasons for the refusal.
(c)For the purposes of this section, "unreasonable refusal" to enter into an agreement with a pension counsellor for the execution of a transaction, or termination of an engagement under such an agreement — a refusal to enter into an agreement with a pension counsellor for the execution of a transaction (in this definition — a refusal), in the following circumstances:
(1)a refusal to enter into an agreement with a pension counsellor for the execution of a transaction on terms, in respect of the rate and conditions of the distribution commission, the service provided thereunder and its duration, that are similar to the terms fixed in such an agreement with another licence holder with whom the institutional body has engaged;
(2)a refusal based on one of the following:
(a)the number of clients to whom the pension counsellor provides ongoing pension counselling (in this paragraph — the pension counsellor's regular clients);
(b)the characteristics of the pension counsellor's regular clients, including their financial circumstances;
(c)the volume of amounts standing to the credit of the pension counsellor's regular clients in provident funds;
(d)the volume of distribution commissions collected by the pension counsellor pursuant to section 19(a)(2);
(e)the fact that the licence holder is a pension counsellor;
(3)a refusal in other circumstances that the Minister shall prescribe, with the approval of the Finance Committee of the Knesset;
without derogating from the provisions of paragraph (2), a refusal based on an agreement that is not profitable to the institutional body in respect of the rate and conditions of the distribution commission, the service provided thereunder and its duration, in relation to a particular type of pension product, shall not be regarded as an unreasonable refusal, provided that there is no agreement on similar terms as aforesaid with another licence holder.
Prohibition on discrimination against a licence holder in the provision of services§
28b.
(a)An institutional body shall not discriminate, in the provision of services, including in providing access to the institutional body's systems, between a particular licence holder with whom it has engaged under an agreement for the execution of a transaction and another licence holder with whom it has engaged under such an agreement; for this purpose, the payment of a distribution commission to a particular licence holder at a rate different from the rate of the distribution commission paid to another licence holder shall not be regarded as discrimination as aforesaid.
(b)Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (a), the Commissioner may give directions regarding the circumstances and criteria for the provision of the service, including with respect to accessibility, frequency and availability of the services, deviation from or breach of which shall be regarded as discrimination for the purposes of that subsection.
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Contact Us →Chapter IV: Registration and Reporting
Registration of transactions§
29.
(a)A licence holder shall maintain records of every act of pension counselling, every act of pension marketing or every act of executing a transaction on behalf of a client, and shall retain such records for a period of seven years.
(b)The Commissioner may give directions regarding the particulars to be included in the records referred to in this section, as well as regarding the manner of their preparation, retention and delivery to the client.
Reporting to the Commissioner§
30.
(a)A pension counsellor and a pension marketing agent are required to report immediately to the Commissioner if any of the conditions for the grant of a pension counsellor's licence or a pension marketing agent's licence, as the case may be, has ceased to be fulfilled in their regard, or if any condition has been fulfilled in their regard by reason of which the Commissioner is entitled to revoke, suspend or attach conditions to such a licence.
(b)A pension counsellor and a pension marketing agent shall report to the Commissioner the address of the place where they engage in pension counselling or pension marketing, as the case may be, and any change therein, within 21 days of the date on which they commenced engaging in pension counselling or pension marketing at that address.
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Contact Us →Chapter V: Supervision of a Licence Holder
Commissioner's supervision§
31.
(a)In the performance of its functions and duties under this Law, a licence holder shall be subject to the supervision of the Commissioner.
(b)
(1)The Commissioner may, for the purpose of supervision as referred to in subsection (a) and after consultation with the Committee, give directions concerning the manner of operation of a licence holder, an office holder therein and any person employed thereby, all in order to ensure the proper management of the affairs of the licence holder and the protection of the interests of its clients, and to support the stability of the financial system and its orderly operation; such directions may be given in relation to all licence holders or in relation to a particular type of licence holder;
(2)(Repealed)
(c)The provisions of Section B-1 of Chapter IV, Chapter V and sections 63, 64 and 97 of the Insurance Supervision Law, and the provisions of section 102 of that Law in respect of a decision under section 62(a) of that Law, shall apply in respect of a licence holder, with necessary modifications and with the following modification: in section 49d(a) of that Law, in the opening passage, instead of "as set out in the Third Schedule or in section 104, other than a breach listed in items (1) and (3) to (8) of Part 1 of the Third Schedule" read "as set out in sections 32(d) and 38 of the Pension Counselling and Marketing Law".
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Contact Us →Chapter V-A: Central Pension Clearing System
Section A: Licence to Operate a Central Pension Clearing System
Licensing requirement§
31a.
No person shall operate a central pension clearing system unless a licence has been granted to that person to do so pursuant to the provisions of this Section, and in accordance with the conditions of the licence.
Conditions for the grant of a licence to operate a central pension clearing system§
31b.
(a)The Commissioner may grant a licence to operate a central pension clearing system to a company in which all of the following are met:
(1)it is a company as defined in the Companies Law;
(2)its sole business is the operation of a central pension clearing system;
(3)its equity capital is not lower than the minimum rate prescribed by the Minister pursuant to the provisions of section 31h, to the extent prescribed;
(4)the company holds such types of insurance as the Minister has prescribed, in the amounts, at the rates and on the conditions prescribed, to the extent prescribed;
(5)the company has reliable hardware and software systems that provide a reasonable level of availability and reliability, and that provide reasonable protection against intrusion, disruption, interference or causing damage to a computer or computer material as defined in the Computers Law, 5755-1995, having regard to the sensitivity of the information;
(6)the Commissioner is satisfied, after consulting with the Head of the Privacy Protection Authority, that the technological system to be used by the central pension clearing system meets the conditions set out in section 31p(a); in this Chapter, "Head of the Privacy Protection Authority" — the head of the Authority as defined in the Privacy Protection Law, 5741-1981.
(b)The Commissioner shall take into account the following matters when considering an application for a licence to operate a central pension clearing system:
(1)the action plans of the applicant company and the prospects of their realisation;
(2)the suitability of the office holders in the applicant company;
(3)the financial resources of the applicant company;
(4)the financial resources and business background of the holders of means of control in the applicant company;
(5)the contribution of the grant of the licence to competition in the capital market, and in particular to competition in the pension savings market and the level of service therein;
(6)considerations of public benefit.
(c)The Commissioner shall not refuse to grant a licence to operate a central pension clearing system to a company in which the conditions set out in subsection (a) are met, except after consultation with the Committee, and after the company has been given an opportunity to present its arguments before the Committee, in the manner directed by the Committee.
(d)Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (c), the Commissioner may direct that a licence be granted by way of tender if satisfied that this is the best manner of granting it; if the Commissioner so directed, the conditions of the tender shall include, inter alia, the conditions set out in subsection (a), the number of successful tenderers and the period of the licence; in respect of payments for operations in a central pension clearing system as referred to in section 31n, the conditions of the tender or the licence granted to the successful tenderer may include provisions different from the provisions under that section.
Application for a licence§
31c.
(a)A company wishing to engage in the operation of a central pension clearing system shall submit to the Commissioner a written application for a licence to operate a central pension clearing system, in a form directed by the Commissioner; the application shall be accompanied by the company's incorporation documents as well as by particulars regarding —
(1)the office holders in the company and their business background;
(2)the holders of means of control in the company, their business background and the financial resources available to them;
(3)the company's action plan regarding the operation of the central pension clearing system and the manner of its preparation for the operation of such a system, including engagement with service providers;
(4)the technological system to be used by the central pension clearing system, and the standard technological alternatives as referred to in section 31p(a);
(5)the operations as referred to in section 31i that the central pension clearing system will carry out.
(b)The Commissioner may require an applicant company as referred to in subsection (a) to provide additional data and documents beyond those specified in that subsection, to the extent the Commissioner considers this necessary for the purpose of making a decision on its application.
Conditions in a licence and their modification§
31d.
In a licence to operate a central pension clearing system, the Commissioner may prescribe conditions and restrictions, and may modify them and add operations for the performance of which the system will serve, as detailed in section 31i, provided that a modification, or the addition of an operation, not at the request of the company operating a central pension clearing system, shall be made after consultation with the Committee and after the company has been given an opportunity to present its arguments before the Committee in the manner directed by the Committee.
Lapse and revocation of a licence§
31e.
(a)The validity of a company's licence to operate a central pension clearing system shall lapse upon the occurrence of one of the following:
(1)the company did not commence operating the system by the end of the period fixed therefor in its licence;
(2)the company did not succeed in a tender that the Commissioner directed be held as referred to in section 31b(d).
(b)The provisions of sections 22 and 23 of the Insurance Supervision Law shall apply, with necessary modifications, in respect of the revocation of a licence to operate a central pension clearing system.
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