Succession Law, 5725-1965
חוק הירושה, תשכ"ה-1965
Published: 1965-02-10Consolidated Hebrew text as of 2025-01-01 · Last amended 2024-07-07✓ Amendment status checked against the Knesset legislation record on 2026-09-28
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Chapter I: General Provisions
Succession§
1.
Upon the death of a person, his estate passes to his heirs.
The Heirs§
2.
Heirs are either heirs by law or beneficiaries under a will; succession is by law except to the extent that it is by will.
Capacity to Inherit: Natural Persons§
3.
(a)Any person who was alive at the time of the testator's death has capacity to inherit from him.
(b)A person born within 300 days after the testator's death shall be treated as if he had been alive at the time of the testator's death, unless it is proved that his conception occurred after that time.
(c)For the purposes of inheritance rights of a child, it is immaterial whether or not his parents were married to each other at the time of his birth.
Capacity to Inherit: Corporations§
4.
A corporation has capacity to inherit if at the time of the testator's death it had capacity to acquire property, or if it acquired such capacity within one year from the grant of an order for execution of the will; the court may extend that period by one additional year.
Disqualification from Inheriting§
5.
(a)The following are disqualified from inheriting from the testator:
(1)a person who intentionally or with indifference caused the death of the testator;
(1a)a person who was convicted of attempting to cause the death of the testator;
(2)a person who was convicted of concealing or destroying the testator's last will, or of forging it, or of claiming under a forged will.
(b)A person who was convicted of attempting to cause the death of the testator and whom the testator has pardoned, in writing or by making a will in his favour, shall regain capacity to inherit from the testator.
(c)Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a), the court may, for special reasons to be recorded, determine that the disqualification from inheriting shall apply only to part of the right to inherit from the testator, or shall not apply at all to a person who falls within the scope of that subsection, having regard to the circumstances of the killing or the conviction, as the case may be, if it is satisfied that such was the testator's wish.
(d)The provisions of subsection (a)(1) shall not apply to an heir who proves, to the standard of proof required in civil proceedings, that the circumstances of a defence to criminal liability under Section B of Chapter E-1 of the Penal Law, 5737-1977, are satisfied.
(e)The court may order that an heir shall not be entitled to perform any act in respect of estate assets that would alter the status of rights in those assets, including withdrawal, transfer, sale, gift, charge or attachment, until the determination of the criminal proceedings or until a decision of the court as referred to in subsections (a) to (d), as the case may be.
Renunciation by Heir of His Right in the Estate§
6.
(a)After the death of the testator and as long as the estate has not been distributed, an heir may, by written notice to the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs, or to the court when the matter has been transferred to it pursuant to section 67a, renounce his share in the estate, in whole or in part, or renounce a portion to which he is entitled under a will, in whole or in part.
(b)A person who has renounced his share in the estate shall be treated, to the extent of the renunciation, as if he had never been an heir; renunciation in favour of another person is permitted only in favour of the testator's spouse, child or sibling.
(c)Renunciation by a minor or by a person declared legally incompetent requires the approval of the court.
(d)A conditional renunciation is void.
(e)In this Law, "Registrar of Inheritance Affairs" has the meaning assigned to it in section 65a.
Renunciation in Special Circumstances – Iron Swords§
6a.
(a)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 6, an heir of any of the persons listed below may renounce his share in the estate also in favour of family members of the testator listed in section 10, and also in favour of the testator's former spouse and in favour of his child or a child whom the testator regarded as his child, if the testator died during the period referred to in the definition of "acts of war":
(1)a person who died in acts of hostility or in acts of war;
(2)a soldier who fell in active service as defined in the Fallen Soldiers' Families (Benefits and Rehabilitation) Law, 5710-1950;
(3)a person who was entitled to benefits under Chapter XIII-1 of the National Insurance Law [Consolidated Version], 5755-1995;
(4)a police officer as defined in the Police (Disabled Persons and Casualties) Law, 5741-1981;
(5)a prison officer as defined in the Prison Service (Disabled Persons and Casualties) Law, 5741-1981;
(6)a guard as defined in section 6a of the Local Authorities (Regulation of Guarding) Law, 5721-1961.
(b)The Minister may, by Order, extend the period referred to in the definition of "acts of war" by additional periods not exceeding one year at a time.
(c)In this section —
"the declaration of a special situation on the home front" means the declaration of a special situation on the home front as defined in the Civil Defence Law, 5711-1951, of the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023);
"acts of hostility" means the acts of hostility that occurred during the period from the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023) until the end of the period of validity of the declaration of a special situation on the home front;
"acts of war" means the significant military operations that occurred during the period from the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023) until one year after the end of the period of validity of the declaration of a special situation on the home front;
"the significant military operations" means the significant military operations in respect of which the Ministerial Committee on National Security Affairs decided pursuant to section 40 of Basic Law: the Government, and of which it notified the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee of the Knesset on the 23rd of Tishrei 5784 (8 October 2023).
Other Transactions in the Heir's Right§
7.
(a)After the death of the testator and as long as the estate has not been distributed, an heir may, by written agreement, transfer or charge his share in the estate, in whole or in part, and the heir's creditors may attach his share in the estate.
(b)A transfer and charge as aforesaid by a minor or by a person declared legally incompetent require the approval of the court.
(c)A transfer, charge or attachment as aforesaid confers rights only to the extent of what is due to the heir upon distribution of the estate; they deprive the heir of the right to renounce his share in the estate.
(d)An heir's right in a specific asset of the estate is not transferable, chargeable or attachable as long as the estate has not been distributed.
Transactions in Future Inheritance§
8.
(a)An agreement concerning a person's inheritance and a waiver of his inheritance made during that person's lifetime are void.
(b)A gift made by a person on the condition that it shall vest in the recipient only after the donor's death has no effect unless it was made by way of a will in accordance with the provisions of this Law.
Mutual Wills§
8a.
(a)Spouses may make wills in reliance of one spouse upon the will of the other spouse; such wills may be made whether the beneficiary under each will is the spouse or a third party, whether in two documents executed at the same time or in one document (in this section — mutual wills).
(b)The revocation of a mutual will shall have no effect unless one of the following occurs:
(1)during the lifetime of both spouses — the testator wishing to revoke his will shall deliver written notice of revocation of the will to the other testator; upon delivery of such notice, the mutual wills of both testators are revoked;
(2)after the death of one of the spouses —
(a)as long as the estate has not been distributed — the surviving spouse wishing to revoke his will shall renounce, not in favour of himself, but in favour of the testator's child or sibling, all portions or shares of the estate he is due to receive under the mutual will of the deceased testator;
(b)after distribution of the estate — the surviving spouse wishing to revoke his will shall return everything he inherited under the mutual will to the estate, and if restitution in kind is impossible or unreasonable — shall restore the value of the portion or share of the estate he inherited.
(c)The provisions of subsection (b) shall apply unless the mutual wills contain a different provision; however, a provision that entirely negates the right to revoke the will during the lifetime of both spouses is void.
Two Persons Who Died Simultaneously§
9.
(a)Where two or more persons have died and it has not been determined which of them died first, the rights in the estate of each of them shall be governed by the following rules:
(1)if one of the claimants is a certain heir and another claimant is a doubtful heir, the claimant who is a certain heir shall prevail;
(2)if both claimants are doubtful heirs, the claimant who is the spouse or relative of the testator whose estate is being distributed shall prevail;
(3)as between several claimants at the same order of priority, the estate shall, in the absence of a will, be distributed in accordance with the rules of distribution applicable to succession by law.
(b)In this section, "certain heir" means a person who would have been an heir whether one or the other died first; "doubtful heir" means a person who would have been an heir only if one of them died first.
Two Persons Who Died Simultaneously – Iron Swords§
9a.
(a)Where family members have died and one or more of them died in acts of hostility or in acts of war, and their deaths occurred during the period from the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023) until the 23rd of Tishrei 5784 (8 October 2023), they shall be treated as persons in respect of whom it cannot be determined who died first, pursuant to section 9.
(b)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9(a), the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs or the court, as the case may be, may take the following steps in respect of the estate of a person who died as referred to in subsection (a):
(1)approve a different distribution among the heirs, if the certain heirs have consented to it; and in the absence of certain heirs — approve a different distribution to which the doubtful heirs who are the testator's spouse or relative have consented;
(2)determine a different distribution among the heirs, for special reasons to be recorded, including on account of the nature of the family relationships and their conduct or on account of ascertaining the testator's wishes, provided that no such determination shall be made on the basis of the order in which the family members died.
(c)Family members who died in acts of hostility or in acts of war shall be treated as persons in respect of whom it cannot be determined who died first, and the provisions of subsection (b) shall apply to their estates, unless it is known of any of them that he was alive after the period referred to in subsection (a).
(d)In this section —
"heirs" means certain heirs and doubtful heirs;
"acts of hostility" and "acts of war" have the meanings assigned to them in section 6a.
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Heirs from among the Family§
10.
The heirs by law are:
(1)the person who was the testator's spouse at the time of the testator's death;
(2)the testator's children and their descendants, his parents and their descendants, his grandparents and their descendants (in this Law — the testator's relatives);
their inheritance rights shall be as set out in this Chapter.
Inheritance Rights of Spouse§
11.
(a)The testator's spouse takes the movable property, including a passenger motor vehicle, which, in accordance with custom and circumstances, belongs to the joint household, and takes from the remainder of the estate —
(1)if the testator left children or their descendants or parents — one half;
(2)if the testator left siblings or their descendants or grandparents — two thirds, provided that if, on the eve of the testator's death, the spouse had been married to him for three years or more and was living with him at that time in a dwelling that is included, in whole or in part, in the estate, the spouse shall take the whole of the testator's share in that dwelling, and two thirds of the remainder of the rest of the estate.
(b)If the testator left no relative from among those listed in subsection (a), the spouse inherits the entire estate.
(c)That which is due to the spouse on a cause arising from the matrimonial relationship, including that which a wife receives under a ketubbah, shall be deducted from his or her share in the estate; this provision shall not apply to that which is due to the spouse under the Spouses (Property Relations) Law, 5733-1973, or under a property agreement within the meaning of that Law, and it does not derogate from the right of a spouse to receive from the estate that which the testator received by reason of the marriage on condition that it be returned when the marriage ends.
Order of Priority among the Testator's Relatives§
12.
The testator's children take priority over his parents, and his parents take priority over his grandparents.
Shares in the Estate§
13.
The testator's children share equally among themselves, and likewise the testator's parents share among themselves and his grandparents share among themselves.
Substitutes for an Heir§
14.
(a)Where a child of the testator has predeceased him and has left children, those children shall inherit in his place, and in the same manner the children of any relative of the testator who predeceased him shall inherit; these provisions shall not apply where the testator left a spouse together with parents or grandparents as referred to in section 11(a), or any one of them.
(b)Children inheriting pursuant to subsection (a) share equally among themselves what they inherit in that manner.
(c)Where a child or descendant of a child of the testator has been found to be disqualified from inheriting and has left children, those children shall inherit in his place; however, the court may determine that the children shall not inherit in place of the person disqualified from inheriting, if it is satisfied that it was the testator's wish that they should not inherit.
(d)Where a relative of the testator who is not his child or descendant of his child has been found to be disqualified from inheriting and has left children, those children shall not inherit in his place; however, the court may determine that the children shall inherit in place of the person disqualified from inheriting, if it is satisfied that it was the testator's wish.
An Heir Who Has Renounced§
15.
A person who has renounced his share in the estate other than in favour of the testator's spouse, child or sibling — his share is added to the remaining heirs in proportion to their shares.
Inheritance by Virtue of Adoption§
16.
(a)A person who has been lawfully adopted inherits from his adopter as if he were the adopter's child, and the descendants of the adopted person also inherit from the adopter; the adopter inherits from the adopted person as if he were the adopted person's parent.
(b)The adopted person and his descendants are entitled by law to share in the estates of the adopter's relatives as if they were heirs, and the adopter's relatives are entitled by law to share in the estate of the adopted person as if they were heirs.
(c)The adopted person and his descendants inherit from the relatives of the adopted person; however, the adopted person's parents and grandparents and their descendants do not inherit from the adopted person.
The State's Right of Inheritance§
17.
(a)In the absence of an heir under sections 10 to 16, the State shall inherit as heir by law.
(b)That which the State inherits under this section shall be used for the purposes of education, science, health and welfare; however, the Minister of Finance may grant from the estate assets or pay, within the value of the estate assets that have come into the State's possession after settlement of the estate's debts, a lump sum or recurring payments —
(1)to a person who, on the eve of the testator's death, was dependent on the testator;
(2)to a person or corporation on whom the testator, on the eve of his death, was dependent;
(3)to a member of the family of the testator or of his spouse who is not an heir by law.
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LawFamily LawCivil Law
חוק הירושה, תשכ"ה-1965
Hoq ha-Yerusha
Hoq Yerusha 1965
Succession Law
Inheritance Law
Israeli Succession Law
Yerusha
Estate succession
Probate law Israel
5725-1965