How do you hire an Israeli employee in 2026?
No probation clause protects an Israeli hire from the law's first day. Statutory notice and severance start counting from day one, so a worker dismissed in month two after the first year still gets a full 30 days of notice. Treat the trial period as a contract term, not a legal one.
· Israel guide
Illustration · Tel Aviv, Israel
The Israel hire process has five steps. Offer letter, work-permit check, written employment contract, Bituach Leumi and pension setup, first payday.
Israel sets no probation period in law. Any trial period lives in the contract only. Notice and severance accrue from the first day of work.
Notice during the first six months is 1 day for each month worked. After the first full year it reaches 30 days. Severance becomes payable once a worker completes 1 year of service and is then dismissed.
The minimum wage is ILS 6,443.85/month from 1 April 2026. Pay must land by month-end, and wages unpaid by the 9 days mark count as delayed wages under the law.
What does the end-to-end Israel hire process look like?
Five steps take you from accepted offer to first payslip. Offer letter, work-permit check, written contract, Bituach Leumi and pension setup, first payday.
The work-permit check matters only for foreign nationals. Israeli citizens and permanent residents can start without one.
| Step | What happens | Owner | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Offer letter | Written offer with role, salary, start date, trial-period terms, and any conditions | Client / Teamed drafts | Same day after verbal accept |
| 2. Work-permit check | Confirm Israeli citizenship or residency, or verify a valid work visa and B-1 permit for foreign nationals before the start date | Teamed | Before the employee starts |
| 3. Written employment contract | Signed written terms covering pay, hours, leave, notice, and pension, in line with the Notification to Employee Law | Teamed (legal employer) | On or before day one (notice within 30 days) |
| 4. Statutory setup | National Insurance (Bituach Leumi) registration, income-tax file coordination, and mandatory pension fund enrolment | Teamed | Days 1 to 7 |
| 5. First payday | First payslip issued; the monthly wage is paid at month-end, with income tax and National Insurance withheld | Teamed | End of first payroll month |
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Issue the offer letter
Send a written offer the same day as verbal acceptance. Include role, salary above the minimum wage of ILS 6,443.85/month, start date, the trial-period terms, and the pension arrangement.
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Complete the work-permit check
Confirm Israeli citizenship or residency by collecting a Teudat Zehut copy, or verify the B-1 work permit and visa for foreign nationals before the employee starts. Retain copies of all documents.
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Issue the written employment contract
The signed contract should be in place on or before day one, with written notice of terms due within 30 days. Teamed's standard Israel contract meets the Notification to Employee Law. Clients choose commercial terms; Teamed signs as the legal employer.
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Complete the statutory setup
Register the employee with National Insurance, coordinate the income-tax file, and enrol them in a mandatory pension fund. Collect the tax coordination form and bank details. This runs across days one to seven.
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Issue the first payslip and file deductions
Run the first payroll so the monthly wage lands at month-end. Withhold income tax and National Insurance, and remit pension contributions. Wages unpaid by the 9 days mark count as delayed wages, so the timing is firm.
What must an Israel offer letter include?
The offer letter is not the binding contract. It is the document the candidate weighs before they commit.
Include role title, reporting line, start date, gross monthly salary, working location, the trial-period terms, pension arrangement, and any conditions such as work-permit status.
Three traps to avoid in Israeli offer letters:
- Calling the trial period a probation. Israel has no probation in law. A worker dismissed during a contractual trial still earns notice and, after 1 year, severance. Frame the trial as a review point, not a rights-free window.
- Quoting salary below the floor. The minimum wage is ILS 6,443.85/month from 1 April 2026, or ILS 35.40/hour on a 182-hour month. An offer under that figure cannot stand.
- Leaving pension out. Israel mandates pension enrolment for most employees. An offer silent on pension creates a mismatch when the contract is issued. State the arrangement up front.
Teamed's standard Israel offer letter covers the required ground and matches the written terms that follow. Clients choose commercial elements. Teamed holds the legal-employer position and issues the final contract.
Israel work-authorisation checks for foreign national employees
Israeli citizens and permanent residents can start work without a permit. Foreign nationals need a valid work visa and B-1 work permit before their first day.
Employing a foreign national without the correct permit is an offence under Israel's entry and foreign-worker rules.
Israeli citizens and permanent residents
There is no separate work-authorisation check for Israeli citizens or permanent residents. The employer keeps a copy of the national identity card (Teudat Zehut) as a standard identity record. New immigrants under the Law of Return hold residency from arrival and can work without a permit.
Foreign nationals
Every foreign national needs a B-1 work permit and a matching work visa before starting. The employer applies to the Population and Immigration Authority, and the role usually has to clear a local-labour test first. Israel runs separate streams for skilled experts, the high-tech visa route, and lower-skilled sectors, each with its own quota and documentary set. Processing times vary, so allow several weeks for a new application.
The Labor Enforcement Administration oversees employer compliance with Israeli labour law, from wage protection and working hours through to the rules on employing foreign workers. Every employer must meet its requirements from the first day of employment.
Source: Israel Ministry of Labor: Labor Laws Regulation and Enforcement Administration
Ongoing permit renewals
Work permits in Israel are time-limited and tied to the employer. You must track expiry dates and start renewal well ahead of the deadline. Teamed monitors each permit and alerts the employee and client before renewal falls due, so no lapse occurs.
The Israel written employment contract: what must it contain?
Israel requires every employer to give an employee written notice of their core terms within 30 days of starting, under the Notification to Employee Law.
Most employers fold those terms into a signed contract issued on or before day one. That contract is the binding document. The offer letter is not.
What a written notice or contract must cover under Israeli law:
- Identity of the employer and the employee
- Start date and, for a fixed-term role, the end date
- Main duties and job title
- The employee's direct manager
- Gross salary, its components, pay date, and pay interval (the monthly wage is paid at month-end)
- Working hours and the length of the working week (the statutory maximum is 42 hours)
- Weekly rest day
- Paid annual leave: 16 days gross per year for the first five years, rising to 18 days in year six, 21 days in year seven, and up to 28 days from year eight
- Sick-pay terms: 1.5 days accrue per full month worked, capped at 90 days
- Pension and provident fund contributions, and the social benefits the role carries
- Notice required to end the contract
Israel does not bundle these into one codified statement the way the UK uses a Section 1 statement. The duty is simply that the employee receives the terms in writing within 30 days, and in practice the signed contract carries them. Teamed's standard Israel contract satisfies the Notification to Employee Law and the related pension and leave rules. Clients choose commercial terms; Teamed signs as the legal employer.
Key source: Annual Leave Law, 5711-1951 via Nevo.
Onboarding admin in the first week
Days 1 to 7 cover contract signing, National Insurance registration, income-tax file coordination, pension enrolment, and bank details.
Teamed handles the statutory setup. The client handles the operational side.
| Onboarding task | Who does it | Day |
|---|---|---|
| Written employment contract signed | Employee and Teamed | Day 0 or 1 |
| Work-permit check completed | Teamed | Day 0 (before start for foreign nationals) |
| National Insurance (Bituach Leumi) registration | Teamed | Days 1 to 7 |
| Income-tax coordination form (Teum Mas) collected | Employee submits to Teamed | Day 1 |
| Mandatory pension fund enrolment | Teamed | Days 1 to 7 |
| Bank account details collected for payroll | Teamed | Days 1 to 7 |
| Health fund (Kupat Holim) confirmation | Employee and Teamed | Day 1 |
| Equipment and system access | Client | Days 0 to 1 |
| Manager introduction and first-week plan | Client | Days 0 to 7 |
| 30-60-90 day plan documented | Client (manager) | Days 1 to 14 |
How does Teamed handle Israel employment for you?
Teamed becomes your legal employer of record in Israel for from $599 per employee per month, with zero FX mark-up in any currency.
Israeli notice rules, National Insurance, income tax, and mandatory pension all run on one platform.
Real HR and legal experts handle your Israel hires, from the first offer letter through every monthly payroll, National Insurance, and pension remittance. An actual person, not a chatbot or a pooled queue. There is no setup fee and no exit fee. Employer cost passes through at cost, itemised on every invoice.
EOR payroll, contractor onboarding, and entity setup all live on one platform. An Israel contractor who converts to direct employment keeps their record. Run the Crossover Calculator to see when your Israel hire is ready to graduate to your own entity. EOR is the right model until it isn't, and Teamed tells you when. Start from the Israel hiring overview; each guide here takes one layer of Israeli employment law.
Key sources: Minimum Wage Law, 5747-1987, National Insurance (Bituach Leumi), and Extension Order for Mandatory Pension Insurance.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a probation period when hiring in Israel?
Israeli law sets no statutory probation period. Any trial period exists only in the individual contract or a collective agreement. Statutory notice and severance accrue from the first day regardless of any trial label. Notice during the first six months is 1 day for each month worked, and reaches 30 days once the employee passes their first full year.
How long does it take to hire someone in Israel through Teamed?
Teamed can onboard an Israeli citizen or permanent resident within a few business days once the offer is accepted. The contract is signed on or before day one, with written notice of terms due within 30 days. National Insurance, income-tax coordination, and pension enrolment are completed in the first week. Foreign nationals who need a B-1 work permit must have it in place before the start date, which adds lead time depending on the permit stream and the Population and Immigration Authority queue.
What notice period applies when ending an Israeli employee's contract?
Notice scales with length of service from the first month. During the first six months it is 1 day for each month worked. After the first full year a monthly-salaried employee is entitled to 30 days, the maximum statutory notice of 1 month. An employer who dismisses without notice must pay the employee's regular wage for the un-given period.
When does an Israeli employee become entitled to severance?
Statutory severance becomes payable once an employee completes 1 continuous year of service with one employer and is then dismissed. The default rate is one month's salary for each year of service for a monthly-salaried worker, though many employers fund this through a pension arrangement under Section 14 of the Severance Pay Law.
What is the minimum wage and annual leave for an Israel employee?
The monthly minimum wage is ILS 6,443.85/month from 1 April 2026, or ILS 35.40/hour on a 182-hour month. Paid annual leave is 16 days gross per year for the first five years, rising to 18 days in year six and up to 28 days from year eight. Israel also recognises 9 days of statutory festival rest days alongside the weekly Sabbath.
The single thing that catches new employers in Israel is the absence of probation. There is no rights-free trial window. Notice and severance accrue from day one, and a worker is owed severance the moment they pass one year of service. Build the trial period into the contract as a review point, never as a way to sidestep the law.
In Israel there is no probation in law. The trial period sits in the contract, while notice and severance start counting from day one.
The minimum wage rose to a fresh figure on 1 April 2026, and the monthly wage has to land by month-end.
The contract goes in on day one. National Insurance and pension follow inside the first week.
