Shmuel, a former Israeli, lived in Texas for 30 years and passed away there. Most of his assets are in the United States. However, he left behind an Israeli bank account with significant money, an apartment he owned in Givatayim, where he and his family lived before they left Israel, and an apartment in Netanya that he inherited from his parents. Shmuel’s heirs contacted our office and asked us to handle the distribution of his assets in Israel to his heirs.
To distribute the assets in Israel of a foreign resident (whose center of life is outside of Israel), his heirs must obtain an inheritance order or a probate order (if the non-resident left behind a will) from the Israeli court.
The legal procedures in the country of residency are irrelevant to assets in Israel and do not shorten the bureaucratic process here.
If the non-resident did not leave behind a will, his heirs must request an inheritance order.
If the foreign resident left behind a will, his heirs are required to request a probate order.
In both cases, since it is a foreign resident (who, according to Israeli law, is subject to personal law in the country of his residency), a legal opinion regarding the foreign law must be attached to the request. The legal opinion must refer to whether the inheritance laws in the country of residency are compatible with and support the requested order in Israel.
We recommend that foreign residents who have assets in Israel draw up a will in Israel that only refers to these assets. You can read more on this topic in the article: “The Importance of a Will for a foreign resident who owns properties in Israel“.
You must produce the original will in Israel when requesting a probate order.
If the heirs do not have the original will (for example, if the original was lost or handed over as part of a legal proceeding abroad), then they have to submit a special request for the issuance of a probate order based on a copy of the will (and to explain why they cannot submit the original will along with evidence for this).
If the deceased had several real estate assets in Israel, then before applying for an order, it is worthwhile to explore the question of whether it is beneficial to divide the assets in a way that will result in tax savings when they are sold in the future, since the first distribution of the assets is exempt from tax.
Contact us today to receive the appropriate advice that will allow you to handle the matter quickly, efficiently, and professionally.
