Does acquiring foreign citizenship cause an Israeli citizen to lose their Israeli citizenship?

Section 9 of the Citizenship Law 5712-1952 sets out the limited circumstances in which Israeli citizenship can be lost. Voluntarily acquiring foreign citizenship is not one of them. This reflects Israel's deliberate policy of supporting the Jewish diaspora — the Law of Return itself anticipates that new immigrants may retain their prior nationalities, and Israel has never required new citizens to formally renounce foreign citizenship as a condition of Israeli citizenship. Israeli citizens who naturalize abroad are not required to notify the Interior Ministry (Misrad HaPnim) or the Population Registry, and the Israeli government will continue to treat them as Israeli citizens regardless of what foreign citizenship they acquire. The only way to formally relinquish Israeli citizenship is through the voluntary renunciation process under Section 10, which requires a written application submitted through an Israeli consulate or in Israel, and explicit approval from the Interior Minister — a process that is rarely straightforward and is almost never approved for minors. For a full explanation of how dual citizenship operates under Israeli law, see the dedicated guide.

The practical result is that many Israelis living outside Israel hold two or more passports simultaneously and exercise rights under multiple legal systems — including inheritance rights, property purchase rights, and Israeli consular services abroad. Israeli passports remain valid for 10 years for adults and 5 years for minors, and can be renewed at any Israeli consulate worldwide regardless of where the holder lives or what other citizenship they hold. The one exception is for countries that themselves prohibit dual citizenship: a country such as Japan or Singapore may require a person naturalizing there to renounce other citizenships. That requirement, if any, is imposed by the other country — Israel places no such obligation on its citizens and will continue to regard the person as Israeli unless they complete the formal renunciation process under Section 10. Israeli citizens abroad should also be aware that entry to Israel on a foreign passport does not affect their Israeli citizenship, but Israeli border control may ask to see the Israeli document if the citizen is identified as Israeli in the Population Registry.

From the full guide: Dual Citizenship in Israel: What the Law Allows and How It Works

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