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Can an Israeli landlord refuse to rent an apartment to a foreign national?

Israel has no dedicated fair housing statute, so the answer turns on who the landlord is. The Prohibition of Discrimination in Products, Services and Entry into Places of Entertainment and Public Places Law 5761-2000 binds anyone whose business is supplying a product or a public service, which captures real estate agents, letting agencies and owners of multiple units, and it prohibits refusal based on race, religion, nationality, country of origin and several further grounds. A private owner letting a single apartment sits outside that statute, and a claim would rest instead on the pre-contractual good faith duty in Section 12 of the Contracts (General Part) Law 5733-1973. Where the law does apply, a court may award compensation without proof of damage.

The 2000 Law works by targeting the supplier rather than the property. Section 3 prohibits a person whose occupation is supplying a product or a public service from discriminating on the listed grounds, and the statute shifts the explanation onto the supplier once the claimant shows facts that suggest a discriminatory refusal. Licensed brokers carry a second layer of exposure, because the Real Estate Brokers Law 5756-1996 requires a broker to act fairly and loyally toward both sides of a transaction and the Registrar can suspend a license for breach. Section 5(b) of the 2000 Law allows a court to award compensation without the claimant proving any financial loss.

A prospective tenant who is turned away needs evidence created at the time. Screenshots of the listing, the messaging thread and a witness who enquired about the same unit shortly afterwards carry far more weight than a later account of a telephone call. Claims of this size usually go to the Small Claims Court, where no lawyer is needed and the hearing is short, or to the Magistrates Court where larger compensation is sought. Foreign tenants should also know that ordinary tenancy rights in Israel apply identically once a lease is signed, whatever the tenant's citizenship or visa status.

⚖ In Practice
  • Governing law: Sections 3 and 5, Prohibition of Discrimination in Products, Services and Entry into Places of Entertainment and Public Places Law 5761-2000
  • Also relevant: Real Estate Brokers Law 5756-1996 (broker's duty of fairness); Section 12, Contracts (General Part) Law 5733-1973 (pre-contractual good faith)
  • Competent authority: Small Claims Court (Beit Mishpat LeTvi'ot Ktanot) or Magistrates Court (Beit Mishpat HaShalom); broker complaints go to the Registrar of Real Estate Brokers at the Ministry of Justice
  • Compensation: the statute caps damages awarded without proof of loss at a figure fixed at NIS 50,000 when the law passed in 2000 and linked to the consumer price index since
  • Small claims route: claim ceiling of approximately NIS 39,000 (2026), filing fee of about 1 percent of the claim, no legal representation permitted
  • Timeline: small claims hearings are commonly listed within 2–4 months of filing, with judgment usually delivered within weeks of the hearing

From the full guide: Renting an Apartment in Israel: Tenant Rights Guide for Foreign Nationals

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Get a Free Consultation with Adv. Eli ShimonyPrepared under the direction of Adv. Eli Shimony, Eli Shimony Law Office · Editorial policy

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