Procedure 1.6.0001 blocks your case until costs owed to the Authority are paid. A guide to the rule, one-month renewals, and exemptions on economic grounds.
You previously received a judgment or decision ordering you to pay the costs of the respondent — the Ministry of Interior, the Population and Immigration Authority — in the amount of thousands of shekels. Months have passed, and sometimes years. Now you want to file a new application to regularize your status, renew a licence, or continue in the graduated process, and the bureau tells you that your case will not move forward until the debt is settled — sometimes said aloud at the counter, and sometimes in a written decision citing a clause in a procedure.
This is not the decision of a single clerk but a written instruction in the Authority's procedures, and it applies to an Israeli sponsor as well — not only to the foreign national. Still, the instruction is not a statute, and the procedure also sets out a special renewal track and the option to request that the condition be lifted on economic grounds. Below is what is required of you, what can be done when you cannot pay, and how the tribunals treat this — including when costs are awarded against the Authority itself.
The source of the condition is Procedure 1.6.0001 (the Procedure for the Receipt of Applications and Appeals against Decisions of the Bureaus and Headquarters of the Population Authority), edition 8, dated 24 February 2022. Clause א.3 provides that "an applicant or sponsored person, Israeli or foreign, against whom costs were awarded in a legal proceeding in favor of the Authority, must settle payment of the debt before his application is handled."
The instruction is repeated and sharpened in clause ג.1.ה, which provides that the application of an applicant in status matters, Israeli or a foreign national, against whom — or against whose sponsored person — costs were awarded in a legal proceeding in favor of the Authority, will not be handled until payment of the debt is settled. Note: the condition applies even to an Israeli citizen; it applies even when the debt is not yours but that of the sponsor or of the person applying on your behalf; and it is phrased as a condition for handling the application, not as a ground for denying it on the merits.
It is also important to distinguish between a costs debt and a fee: a fee is a statutory payment under the Entry into Israel Regulations, whereas awarded costs are a debt created in an earlier proceeding, which the Authority enforces by virtue of an internal administrative directive — a distinction with real practical significance.
A person lawfully staying in Israel with a valid residence licence does not immediately fall outside the bounds of lawful status. Clause ג.1.ו of the procedure sets out an interim track: a foreign national on whom unpaid costs were imposed, and who is lawfully staying in Israel, will — upon coming to renew his licence — have it renewed for one month only, for the purpose of paying the awarded costs.
If, at the end of that month, the costs have still not been paid, and provided reasons were presented, the licence will be extended for one further month only; at the end of that period, if the debt remains unpaid, the licence will not be renewed. In practice, this means you generally have about one to two months — and no more — before your stay may turn into unlawful presence. "Reasons" are not a statement made aloud at the counter; submit them in writing, with supporting evidence, and make sure they are scanned into the file.
The procedure does not leave someone who cannot pay without a remedy. Clause ג.1.ז provides that a request to lift the condition of paying the debt on economic grounds — whether for the purpose of examining the application or for renewing the licence — will be decided by the head of the Population Administration or his deputy, accompanied by the supporting materials required under clauses ג.3 through ג.5 of Procedure 5.1.0003 (the Procedure for Granting a Fee Exemption in Applications for a Visa or Licence under the Entry into Israel Law, 5712-1952).
What is required in practice? Clause ג.3 requires a detailed letter explaining the reasons for the request, and, if the applicant is staying without a valid licence, also an explanation regarding the period of stay. Clause ג.4 requires relevant documents and an affidavit verifying the facts, which must detail the applicant's assets and those of the spouse and relatives on whom the applicant is dependent; the sources of income in the six months preceding the application; the place of residence during that period and the rent paid for it; and the legal fee paid or agreed with the lawyer. Clause ג.5 adds that the bureau clerk may demand any further document needed to examine the request.
The procedure also indicates how the matter is weighed: in examining the ability to pay, account is also taken of the possibility that, if status is granted, the applicant will become entitled to National Insurance Institute benefits. If the exemption request is denied, the decision must note, at the margin, the option to file a written internal appeal, without delay and no later than 21 days.
The first step is to establish exactly what was awarded and in which case — not infrequently these are costs awarded years earlier, in a proceeding conducted through a different attorney. Ask the bureau for the decision on which it relies, and check the case number, the amount, and the date. If payment is possible, that is the fastest way to remove the obstacle; find out the payment mechanism from the bureau, and keep proof of payment.
If payment is not possible, do not settle for a general statement of financial hardship: a request under clause ג.1.ז that is not supported by an affidavit and evidence may fail before it is even examined on the merits. At the same time, ask for a written, reasoned decision — a demand delivered orally is hard to challenge, whereas a written decision opens the path of appeal.
Costs are not awarded only against status applicants. The tribunals and the administrative courts also award costs against the Authority, chiefly over deficient conduct of proceedings: failing to file a response, repeated requests for extensions, or reversing position just days before a hearing after months of waiting.
The same applies to delay in issuing a decision on an internal appeal. Even where the Administrative Procedure Amendment (Decisions and Statements of Reasons) Law, 5719-1958 does not apply to decisions under the Entry into Israel Law, the Authority is not free to decide whenever it wishes: Section 11 of the Interpretation Law, 5741-1981 requires acting "with due speed," and the speed required of the individual — 21 days for an internal appeal, 45 days for an administrative appeal — bears on what is expected of the Authority. If a proceeding has been drawn out unnecessarily, it is worth petitioning to have the Authority charged with costs and detailing the timeline in the pleadings.
A decision by an Authority official may, as a rule, be challenged by a single written internal appeal, without delay and no later than 21 days from the day the decision is received, and only at the bureau where the decision was made (clause ב.2.ב of Procedure 1.6.0001); an appeal filed late will not be handled. No fee may be charged upon filing an internal appeal, and the bureau must confirm its receipt with a "received" stamp.
After exhausting the internal appeal, and depending on the type of decision, the path is an appeal to the Appeals Tribunal for immigration matters within 30 days from the day the decision was lawfully published, from the day notice of it was received, or from the day the appellant learned of it — whichever is earlier (Section 13כד(b) of the Entry into Israel Law, 5712-1952). A judgment of the tribunal may be challenged by an administrative appeal to the District Court sitting as the Court for Administrative Affairs within 45 days (Section 13לא(a)), and an interim decision may be challenged by an application for leave to appeal (Section 13לא(b)).
A critical point: filing an application or an appeal does not, in itself, stay removal or detention, unless a specific procedure provides otherwise or a judicial decision orders a stay of execution (clause א.2 of the procedure). It is therefore worth considering a request for interim relief alongside the filing of the appeal.
In Appeal (Tel Aviv) 3296-24 (4 Mar 2025), concerning a couple who sought to begin the graduated process, the Appeals Tribunal held that, unlike a duty to pay a fee, there is no room to condition the rendering of a service — examining an application for status — on payment of costs awarded in an earlier proceeding, certainly where the procedure concerns the exercise of a vested right under Section 7 of the Citizenship Law, 5712-1952. Even if non-payment may be a legitimate factor among the overall considerations on the merits of an application, it cannot serve as a threshold condition barring examination altogether. Entry into the graduated process was not conditioned on payment — but the appellants must pay in accordance with the law.
By contrast, in Appeal (Tel Aviv) 2163-26 (16 Jun 2026), a request for interim relief was denied for a family that had stayed in Israel for many years without status, after the Authority first demanded payment of costs awarded in an earlier proceeding, expressly citing clause א.3 of the procedure. The tribunal noted that although it appeared the appellants were able to raise funds for other needs, they had not paid the 2,500 ₪ awarded against them, and that avoiding payment — without establishing an inability to pay — "does not amount to good-faith conduct." The lesson: non-payment not accompanied by a reasoned exemption request counts against you on the question of good faith and clean hands, a key question in any application for interim relief.
In the same case, in the judgment of 25 Aug 2026, the appeal was struck out and the appellants were ordered to pay 3,500 ₪ in costs — on top of the earlier debt; an example of how debt accumulates from proceeding to proceeding and blocks the case for years.
And in the opposite direction: in Appeal (Jerusalem) 2261-25 (9 Sep 2025), the Authority was ordered to pay 2,000 ₪ in costs after failing to file any response at all and, only days before the hearing, announcing that the matter would be returned for administrative reconsideration; its request for reconsideration was denied. In Administrative Appeal (Beer Sheva) 58702-04-26 (8 Jul 2026), an appeal against the striking out of an internal appeal was allowed; the court held that waiting roughly half a year for a decision on an internal appeal is unreasonable and amounts to "undue delay of justice," and the Authority was ordered to pay 7,500 ₪. Documenting the timeline is an asset — both for relief and for costs.
Our office assists status applicants and Israeli sponsors who have encountered a demand to settle a costs debt as a condition for handling their case. We locate the decision from which the debt arises and examine its scope and validity, assess whether the condition is properly applied to the type of application, and, where appropriate, prepare a reasoned request to lift the condition on economic grounds, supported by the affidavit and evidence the procedure requires. At the same time, we act to preserve the continuity of the licence, file an internal appeal or an appeal to the tribunal on time, and seek interim relief where enforcement is a risk — so that the financial demand does not turn into a block with no way out.
That is what clause א.3 of Procedure 1.6.0001 provides, as does clause ג.1.ה of the same procedure. Still, this is an administrative directive, not a statute, and the Appeals Tribunal held in Appeal (Tel Aviv) 3296-24 (4 Mar 2025) that, unlike a fee, a costs debt cannot serve as a threshold condition barring examination of an application resting on a right under the Citizenship Law. In appropriate circumstances the condition can be contested, while at the same time filing a request to lift it on economic grounds.
Yes. The procedure is expressly worded to apply to "an applicant or sponsored person, Israeli or foreign," and clause ג.1.ה adds that the application will not be handled even where the costs were awarded against the sponsored person on the applicant's behalf. A costs debt of the Israeli sponsor can therefore halt the handling of the foreign spouse's or family member's application, and it should be settled or a request should be made to lift the condition.
Clause ג.1.ו of the procedure provides that a foreign national lawfully staying in Israel who owes unpaid costs will, upon renewal, receive a licence for one month only, for the purpose of paying the costs. If he has not paid but reasons were nonetheless presented, the licence will be extended for one further month only. At the end of that period, if the costs remain unpaid, the licence will not be renewed — so it is worth acting already in the first days of the first month.
Clause ג.1.ז of Procedure 1.6.0001 allows filing a request to lift the payment condition on economic grounds, and it is decided by the head of the Population Administration or his deputy. The supporting materials required under clauses ג.3 through ג.5 of Procedure 5.1.0003 must be attached: a detailed explanatory letter, and an affidavit detailing the applicant's assets and those of the spouse, the sources of income in the six months preceding the application, the place of residence and the rent paid for it during that period, and the legal fee paid or agreed with the lawyer. A general claim without an affidavit and documents may well be rejected.
It could. In Appeal (Tel Aviv) 2163-26 (16 Jun 2026) it was held that avoiding payment of awarded costs, without establishing an inability to pay, "does not amount to good-faith conduct," and this counted against the appellants in their request for interim relief. Since interim relief is an equitable remedy conditioned on good faith and clean hands, it is better to show that you acted — paid, arranged installments, or at least filed a reasoned exemption request.