Who is a trafficking, slavery or forced-labour victim in Israel, what permits and rehabilitation apply, and how to appeal a refusal — our practical guide.
If you — or someone you are supporting — were held in Israel under conditions that did not truly let you leave: a confiscated passport, unpaid wages, impossible working hours, threats, or being cut off from anyone who could help — the law may regard you as a victim of human trafficking, or of being held under conditions of slavery or forced labour. Recognition as such opens a separate track of a residency and work permit, a rehabilitation year, and sometimes continued status, regardless of whether you entered Israel lawfully.
This guide is for victims, for shelters, and for the organisations that support them. We explain who is recognised and by whom, which permits are granted and for how long, what happens once a detention order and a removal order have already been issued, and how to appeal a refusal. One point up front: not every case of labour exploitation rises to the level of trafficking or slavery — and that distinction is at the heart of the matter.
The criminal prohibition is set out in the Penal Law, 5737-1977. Section 203א, in its then wording, dealt with human trafficking for prostitution — the provision to which Procedure 6.3.0007 refers — and Section 377א prohibits human trafficking, defined as "the sale or purchase of a person, or otherwise dealing in a person," done for one of the section's prohibited purposes — including reducing a person to slavery, forced labour or prostitution — or placing the trafficked person at risk of any of these. The Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (Legislative Amendments) Law, 5767-2006, which came into force on 29 October 2006, added offences of holding a person under conditions of slavery and forced labour.
Status itself is granted under the Entry into Israel Law, 5712-1952, and pursuant to the Population and Immigration Authority's procedures: Procedure 6.3.0007 (the procedure for granting status to women victims of trafficking on humanitarian grounds), Procedure 6.3.0008 (the procedure for granting status to victims of slavery and of trafficking for slavery and forced labour), and Procedure 5.3.0050 (the procedure for handling women victims of trafficking who wish to testify). In the background stands Government Decision 2806 of 1 December 2002 on establishing a shelter for victims of human trafficking for prostitution; under its authority the first shelter for women was established, and later also a shelter for men.
The threshold condition is not a conviction, or even an indictment. Clause ב.1 of Procedure 6.3.0008 provides that the procedure applies to anyone in respect of whom confirmation has been furnished by the Israel Police, supporting information from another competent authority, or other credible evidence. The central body is the Human Trafficking Unit of the Police: under clauses ד.1.א–ד.1.ב of Procedure 5.3.0050, an Authority employee who suspects trafficking passes the information to the Unit, and the Unit — if it finds that prima facie evidence exists — forwards confirmation to the officer in charge at the Population and Immigration Authority, and under clause ב.6 the head of the Unit directs transfer to a shelter. Clause א.7 of Procedure 6.3.0008 adds that a bureau official who suspects trafficking must refer the foreign national to the Legal Aid Division of the Ministry of Justice and notify the officer in charge.
What is this prima facie evidence? In HCJ 1591/18 (17 Sep 2020), the Supreme Court held that the examination is conducted on the basis of administrative evidence and is subject to the rules of administrative law, including the duty to base the decision on a sufficient factual foundation. The State itself proceeded from a relatively light burden of proof, so there may be many cases in which prosecution is not possible yet an entitlement to recognition and rehabilitation rights nonetheless arises — "criminal prosecution is one matter, rehabilitation another." The Court also pointed to genuine uncertainty in how such requests are examined — whether the applicant is interviewed, and whether the Authority is under a duty to gather material on its own initiative.
Procedure 6.3.0007 deals with women who have fallen victim to trafficking for prostitution, and under clause א.3 applies whether the woman has finished testifying, was willing to testify but ultimately did not, or is asking to remain for rehabilitation. Clause ב.1 sets an important presumption: a woman staying at a shelter is presumed to be a trafficking victim, unless other weighty findings exist.
Procedure 5.3.0050 governs the preceding stage: under clause ד.2.2 the shelter's director submits to the officer in charge a request for a B/1 permit for up to six months, and a request for extension is submitted about a month before it expires, for as long as proceedings in the case continue. For someone without a travel document, the permit is issued on Form Al/11, and the procedure clarifies that residence permits are issued even where a removal order stands against the witness.
Procedure 6.3.0008 deals with victims of slavery, of trafficking for slavery, and of being held under conditions of slavery — men and women alike, including foreign workers employed across the various labour sectors. Clause א.8 provides that it applies both to those staying lawfully and to those staying unlawfully, "even if a removal order has been issued against them."
Under clause ב.2 of Procedure 6.3.0008, once it is determined that prima facie evidence exists, the victim is entitled to receive, immediately, a temporary general B/1 permit for three months. If the person is a witness in legal proceedings, the permit is extended until those proceedings end, subject to the State Attorney's Office's approvals, and at the investigation stage it is granted on the basis of a request from the police.
Clause ב.3 entitles every victim to request a rehabilitation year — a B/1 permit for one year — up to a month before the temporary permit expires. The request is examined according to the prospects of rehabilitation, and must be accompanied by a personal letter in the applicant's own language with a Hebrew translation, documents on employment and housing, an opinion from a social worker or licensed treatment professional, a travel document, and a letter from a supporting organisation. Authority to approve rests with the Head of the Population and Immigration Authority, and the process is exempt from a fee (clause ב.4).
What follows depends on the status you held when recognised. Under clause ג.7, for someone who held a valid work permit, the temporary permit and the rehabilitation year are not counted towards the maximum 63 months of work in Israel, and clause ג.12 sets out a table allowing the remaining period to be completed; for someone who has already used up the 63 months, there is a 45-day B/2 permit to arrange departure. Someone who stayed unlawfully is entitled to a rehabilitation year, but under clause ג.8 must leave once it ends, and an extension beyond the year will be approved under clause ג.14 only in exceptional cases.
Often the suspicion arises precisely at the enforcement stage, after the worker has already been arrested. Procedure 10.8.0006 (the procedure for joint enforcement teams) addresses this in clause 5.1 of the "Miscellaneous" chapter: where a concern about human trafficking arises in the field, the material, together with a reasoned letter, is transferred to the officer coordinating the fight against trafficking, and the referral is examined under Procedure 6.3.0008. Even where a detention order and a removal order have been issued against the foreign national, the inquiry continues — the procedure directs the officer in charge to update the regional manager.
That said, the separation between forums matters. In a Detention Review Tribunal decision of 29 Jul 2026 (case 1318-07-26), counsel for a caregiver who had been arrested raised serious claims about the circumstances leading to his arrest, but the Tribunal upheld the detention order and ruled that cancellation of the permit and the removal order were "matters this forum has no authority to review." An application must therefore be made in parallel to the officer in charge and to the Appeals Tribunal for immigration matters, together with a request for a temporary order or an interim order.
Requests under both procedures are submitted by registered mail to the Border Control and Crossings Department in Jerusalem (clause ג.3 of Procedure 6.3.0007 and clause ג.1 of Procedure 6.3.0008). The officer in charge prepares a summary and forwards a recommendation to the director of the Population Administration, and the decision is delivered to the applicant, with a copy to the shelter or to representing counsel (clauses ג.5–ג.7). Note the short timetables in clause ג.2: someone who has finished testifying has two weeks to submit the request and two weeks to complete documents; someone who has not testified has a month from arrival at the shelter.
Were you refused? The route is an internal appeal under Procedure 1.6.0001 (the procedure for handling requests and appeals against decisions of the Authority's bureaus and headquarters), generally within 21 days; after that, an appeal to the Appeals Tribunal; and against its judgment, an administrative appeal to the District Court sitting as the Court for Administrative Affairs within 45 days. At every stage it is possible to request an interim order extending the permit until a decision is reached, and this is relief that is granted in practice.
In HCJ 1591/18 (17 Sep 2020), a woman sought recognition as a trafficking victim on the basis of a forced marriage. The petition was granted in part and the matter was remanded to the competent authorities, since the factual foundation required completion — among other things because the material on which the examination had relied had been gathered for a different proceeding. The lesson: a request for recognition should rest on material gathered specifically for that purpose — a detailed affidavit, a therapeutic opinion, and evidence of the conditions of employment.
In Leave to Appeal (Supreme Court) 505/24 (16 Jul 2024), the case concerned a woman recognised by the Israel Police as a victim of being held under conditions of slavery. The proceeding ended with an agreement that the matter be returned for further examination by the Inter-Ministerial Humanitarian Committee, and the Supreme Court noted that the Authority is presumed to examine the request "with an open heart and a willing mind," giving due weight to the recognition as a victim of slavery and trafficking. The lesson: police recognition remains relevant in the humanitarian track that follows it.
In Appeal (Jerusalem) 2898-23 (22 Sep 2024), the case concerned two cleaning workers who had been recognised as trafficking victims after being sexually exploited by their employer and testifying against him; they had received a rehabilitation year at a shelter and sought an extension. The Tribunal held that once the rehabilitation year had ended, the procedure no longer applied; the first woman's appeal was dismissed since she had meanwhile left Israel, while for the second — whose circumstances were especially harsh and who was not removable — the permit was extended, beyond the strict letter of the law, by six months. The lesson: after the rehabilitation year, an independent basis is required, resting on exceptional, documented circumstances.
On the other hand, Appeal (Jerusalem) 3758-19 (24 Mar 2022) illustrates the boundary. A foreign construction worker who sought to switch employers, claiming employment under conditions of slavery, was refused: the police responded that no prima facie evidence had been found that the company's workers were trafficking victims or were employed under conditions of slavery, and his claims about working hours and wage deductions were not backed by supporting documents. It was also held that claims of labour-rights violations belong in the Labour Court. The lesson: exploitation at work, however severe, is not the same as trafficking or slavery, and sometimes the two tracks must be pursued in parallel.
Our office supports victims of trafficking, slavery and forced labour, and the bodies that refer them to us — shelters, social workers and support organisations: in building the evidentiary foundation supporting recognition, in submitting requests for the temporary permit and the rehabilitation year to the Border Control and Crossings Department, and in challenging a refusal — internal appeal, appeal to the Appeals Tribunal, and administrative appeal, including requests for interim orders. We also act when suspicion arises only after a detention order and a removal order have already been issued. Every case is examined on its own merits, and the above does not constitute individual legal advice.
Yes. The threshold condition under the procedures is not a conviction or an indictment but "prima facie evidence" that you are a victim, generally confirmed by the Human Trafficking Unit of the Police. HCJ 1591/18 (17 Sep 2020) clarified that the examination is conducted on the basis of administrative evidence and that the State itself proceeded from a relatively light burden of proof, so that even where prosecution is not possible, an entitlement to recognition and rehabilitation may still arise. That said, recognition is not automatic and must be established with organised material.
Yes. Clause א.8 of Procedure 6.3.0008 provides that the procedure applies even to someone staying in Israel unlawfully, and even if a removal order has been issued against them, and Procedure 10.8.0006 directs that the material be transferred to the officer coordinating the fight against trafficking even where orders have already been issued. It is important to know that the Detention Review Tribunal examines only the grounds for detention, not the cancellation of the permit or the removal order. An application should therefore be made in parallel to the officer in charge and to the Appeals Tribunal, requesting a temporary order or an interim order.
Under Procedure 6.3.0008, a general B/1 permit is first granted for three months, extended for as long as proceedings continue and subject to the State Attorney's Office's approvals, after which a rehabilitation year may be requested on a one-year B/1 permit. At its end, someone who held a valid work permit at the time of recognition may complete the remaining part of the maximum 63-month period, while someone who stayed unlawfully is required to leave Israel. An extension beyond the year is possible only in exceptional cases where special justification exists.
Not necessarily. The tribunals distinguish between a violation of labour rights, however severe, and the offences of human trafficking, holding under conditions of slavery, and forced labour. In Appeal (Jerusalem) 3758-19 (24 Mar 2022), a construction worker's appeal was dismissed after the police responded that no prima facie evidence had been found of trafficking or of employment under conditions of slavery, and the Tribunal added that claims of labour-rights violations belong in the Labour Court. Sometimes it is correct to pursue both tracks in parallel.
Requests under Procedure 6.3.0007 and under Procedure 6.3.0008 are exempt from a fee, and no payment may be charged for the permit, its extension, or the issuance of a laissez-passer for foreigners. Someone without a valid travel document is referred to their state's representation in Israel to have it renewed, and where they have no representation in Israel, a laissez-passer for foreigners may be issued. Under Procedure 5.3.0050, the permit may also be issued on Form Al/11, which serves as an identifying document.