Inheritance & Probate

How do heirs transfer an Israeli apartment registered with a chevra meshakenet instead of the Land Registry?

The succession order comes first, and the housing company, not the Land Registry, executes the transfer. Where a building has never been registered as a condominium under the Land Law 5729-1969, ownership sits in the private ledger of a chevra meshakenet (registration company). Heirs produce the succession order or probate order issued under the Succession Law 5725-1965 together with the company's own transfer forms, and the company amends its ledger and issues a fresh confirmation of rights (ishur zchuyot). Nothing is filed at Tabu at that stage, which surprises foreign heirs who expect a land registry extract.

Israeli law separates who inherits from where the asset is recorded. The Succession Law decides the shares, and the Registrar of Inheritance Affairs issues the order that proves them. A registration company is a private record keeper appointed by the original developer or the Israel Land Authority for buildings the state has not yet parcelled, so it sets its own documentary requirements, charges its own handling fee, and acts only on an original or certified copy of the order. Several companies also ask every co-heir to sign the transfer request, even where the order already fixes each share.

The practical risk for a foreign heir is finding out about the registration status too late. Ask the estate lawyer to request a confirmation of rights before assuming a Tabu search will show anything, because an unregistered building returns an empty result and families sometimes conclude, wrongly, that the deceased owned no property. Companies routinely require an apostilled and translated foreign death certificate, and names that match the heirs' passports exactly. Keep the updated confirmation of rights, because it is the only proof of title until the building is registered as a condominium and the rights migrate to Tabu. Our guide on registering inherited property in Israel sets out both routes.

⚖ In Practice
  • Governing law: Succession Law 5725-1965 (succession and probate orders); Land Law 5729-1969 (condominium registration)
  • Competent authority: Registrar of Inheritance Affairs (Rasham HaYerushoth) for the order; the private registration company (chevra meshakenet) for the transfer itself
  • Fees: succession order application NIS 538 (2026); registration companies typically charge a handling fee of roughly NIS 300 to NIS 800 per transfer
  • Timeline: 3 to 6 months for an uncontested succession order, then 2 to 6 weeks for the company to update its ledger once the file is complete
  • Document set: certified succession order, death certificate (apostilled and translated where foreign), heirs' passports, and the company's signed transfer forms

From the full guide: Registering Inherited Property in Israel: Tabu and ILA Steps


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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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