I am delighted to report that my wife and I have just obtained our Israeli citizenship. We will be forever grateful for all of the help, guidance and support which Ariel Galili of Decker, Pex, Ofir & Co. provided through this process.
I am a Jewish, 80-year-old American, and my wife is not Jewish. We had started the process on our own back in November 2020 via the Jewish Agency and Nefesh B’Nefesh, but soon became entangled in the delays and often-changing regulations due to Covid-19. The pandemic also caused delays in obtaining the required apostilles for various documents from various state agencies and the US State Department.
We found Decker, Pex, Ofir & Co. On the internet and began working with Ariel in late November 2021. Ariel did a superb job of leading us through the process, helping us to understand which documents were essential, which would most likely be required, and which, though included on the list of required documents, were rarely required. He helped us several times to understand what was likely and unlikely to occur as “the next step.” Helping us manage our expectations was extremely useful to us.
Besides his knowing the laws, regulations and procedures, Ariel also made us feel that he was truly interested in helping us to successfully work through this process in as smooth, timely, and frustration-free manner as possible.
My wife and I strongly recommend anyone planning to go through this process seriously consider hiring Decker, Pex, Ofir & Co. and, specifically, Ariel Galili.
Marce Ruth St. Rey
Party time in the heart, my beloved husband received his residence after so much time of battles and faith. Gratitude, God has blessed us with wonderful beings who have accompanied us, including a "precious angel" who touched our hearts, our excellent and fantastic lawyer: Maria Chernin Dekel, sweet and wonderful human being, who has guided us and stayed On our side. side in this intense legal transit whom we bless on every occasion. God bless you dear Maria, you have exceeded your professional duty by containing us and collaborating with us in hard times, very hard, for that we want to thank you publicly, you are unique!!!
We bless and thank the entire team at Decker Pex Tal Ofir Law Firm.
Priscilla Moses
competent consulting, fast processing, reliable, warm & good team. highly recommended
Gáspár Erőss
If you need to solve any complicated legal issue in Israel, don't hesitate to contact them. Otherwise you will loose hours/days/weeks with things that they can solve in minutes. They helped me to obtain my expert working visa in Israel and even after that they responded further questions and gave me advices related to administrative issues in Israel which saved me a lot of time. Irena Rosenberg and Michael Decker worked on my case, they are very professional and helpful. They will not let you down, feel free to contact them.
Israel iluz
We were very satisfied with the service of Nehama. She was very professional in all her dealings and kept us informed all the way.
We highly recommend this law firm. They proved to be reliable, efficient and pleasant to work with.
Prima Lorenzo
I admire the Austrian citizenship team in Tel-Aviv branch! They deserve more then 5 stars!! They are very friendly and professional. I've got Austrian citizenship in 4 months for all family members which consists of 12 people! The entire team is very friendly and responsive. They are always answering questions and support during the process. I recommend to everyone. Was 100% satisfied.
Schruuf
We were very pleased and content with the services of this law firm. They supported us 100% and solved our case successfully, we couldn't be happier.
Lilian Granovsky
I can highly recommend these services!
Every time we turned to Joshua we always got a professional quick and helpful respond.
Joshua Pex was both an amazing human being and an inspiring human rights attorney. I reported directly to him for various activities I performed as in intern. I was impressed with his incredibly solid character. He is trustworthy, fair, and goes above and beyond to advocate for the vulnerable. He is completely trustworthy and high caliber in his work. His partners and employees are very blessed to work with him. I am honored to know them.
Heather Lebrun
Yossi Montrose
Very knowledgeable and professional
Sophie Cooperman
Oded Ger did an excellent job by reviewing a modeling contract I was offered. Explained the bad clauses in the contract, and their possible consequences. Thank you for your amazing job, your professionalism, your consultation and honesty. You showed me from your experience how it can be done differently. It was the best decision choosing you as my lawyer.
I highly recommend this firm, especially Oded Ger.
Eden Weiss
Extrmely friendly, professional and helpful. A big thank you to Irina especially from the Jerusalem office. Highly Recommended.
Dumitrascu Cristina
Best lawyer house from Israel! I couldn’t dealt with my situation without their professionalism and effectiveness. Their dedication to every legal aspect and their drive it’s how a true lawyer house can be!
Working in European market and international now, I couldn’t dare to let myself wide my wings on countries unknown to me. Definitely they’ll be the lawyers representing me, my business at every international aspect and on personal development.
When you hear Decker,Pex,Ofir &Co, you hear 10+ class services, luxurious professionals, confidentiality and exclusive attention to your needs.
Michael and Ariellah Waizman
For Advocate Joshua Pex.
We were in a devastating situation when my wife received an order from the immigration office to leave Israel within 30 days, without any explanation, after we have been married and in the process for six and a half years. We heard of Advocate Pex through a friend of a friend. We contacted Mr. Pex and he was ready to help us when he heard of our situation.
The service is amazing! Always ready to assist without regard to the time it takes. The advice Mr. Pex gave us was great, such as what to do, he gave useful links, and advice about which officials to contact. The price for the service was great!
The process until we received the extension for another year for my wife was not long (3 months). Things started moving once Mr. Pex came into the picture.
We highly recommend Advocate Joshua Pex! We achieved our goal and the fear of deportation has been lifted!
Halvor Ronning
Courteous, clear, efficient service.
Kfir Cohen
We were searching for a law firm that will be honest with us and really work hard for a satisfying result, it wasn't an easy task
We found them online; they were the only law firm from all of our searchings which were completely honest and NOT gave us just what we wanted to hear
Using them guaranteed honesty above all. A legal team that is friendly and cares for a superb result
They really care about helping their customers without any other interest
Nadia gave us service behind what we expected; she was professional which lead to fast and easy process with great result
We definitely recommend using them
TarcisioePotira Freitas
I really recommend the law office's services. The service is very professional and efficient, the price is right. I am satisfied with the services I needed and happy to have known them.
Greg Olson
We highly recommend Adv. Mike Decker and have know him for many years. He has helped our family with many battles over the years. We recently received our permanent residency after 23 years in Israel. We so much appreciate Mike’s representation of us.
Alexander P Gutterman
EU PASSPORT ! Big news! Thanks to Michael Decker and the other good people at the law office, as well as to the virtue of my ancestors, the cruelty of the Inquisition, reparations issued in the Iberian Peninsula, and etc, I am delighted to be on track for Portuguese and European Union Citizenship! A truly incredible development and one which brings me deep joy.
Shaltiel Devorah
Mr. Joshua Pex is knowledgeable and Professional. I really appreciate his courteous and direct approach.
Paul Prince
The team of lawyers and assistants are incredibly professional. Aiming to give their clients the advice possible regarding the normative and the law of Israel. With well trained and professional secretary at the front desk to the lawyers team, I could say that I had one of the most professional services possible. I'm super glad of choosing Joshua Pex of Law office for immigration solution, lawyers to advise in my case, to me, it is remarkable.
Matthias Oppliger
I have been receiving services from this Law Firm for several years now and I want to say THANK YOU to the team, especially Joshua Pex. They are doing outstanding work. The services I have received for both our Israeli non profit association but also our social business have helped us solve many issues at hand and provided solutions in complicated situations. Personally, I am grateful for support in visa issues as a foreigner living now in Israel for many years.
Dongdiet & Nellie
We are very happy with the services. Somehow they managed to translate the law lingo into language we actually understand 😉 and their outstanding YouTube videos helped us to have a better grasp of what process we had to go through. Their patience, clear explanation and experience are very valuable. It's also very nice to know that you will receive response promptly; it made us feel we can really trust their services. We recommend all those looking for immigration lawyers to get in touch.
lynn vonne
Excellent service, very friendly and helpful, fast responding and very patient. Highly recommend. I will choose them again next time if needed.
Andreas Kelling
We have been working with Decker, Pex Ofir & Co - Law Firm in Tel Aviv for many years very well. Because we appreciated their lawyers services, we recommended businesses and individuals again and again to go there as well.
Amir Abt
The best lawyer firm I’ve had dealt with. I would like to thank Anat Levi and Ariel Galili from the Jerusalem branch for all of their efforts and patience, we could not have been Able to reach to where we are now without them
Arielle Bosch
Incredibly knowledgeable, approachable, accessible, and evident across the board that they truly care about the people they are helping. They are quick to respond, engaged, and obviously top-notch lawyers. I couldn't recommend them highly enough. Thank you, Joshua and Itamar for your help with our Joint Life Application. You were a calming energy during a storm - always breathed a sigh of relief after speaking with you. It is so difficult to get straight answers from the Misrad Hapnim, but you guys are straight shooters. I appreciate your candor and evident integrity. Hope to work with you in the future, and will send everyone I know in need of legal aid your way. Thank you for your guidance and support.
Michelle Long
Josh has been helping me on and off for a few years now. I have needed legal advice and assistance with immigration due to a complex situation of mine, and he has been extremely available and responsive, honest and clear about my route and how to proceed. Very much recommended!
YK C
We had a pleasure of working with Irena Rosenberg who assisted in getting our two U.S. born children registered in Israel and supported visa process for my wife in 2021. During the pandemic, my wife and I decided to move to Israel where I am originally from after living in the U.S. for over 20 years, but we had no idea how to go about securing visas before and after arriving in Israel. Irena is knowledgeable, reliable and competent lawyer who always had answers to all our questions which made us feel confident that everything would be fine with her assistance. We are now happily living in Israel and are so grateful to have Irena who is a genuinely nice person as our lawyer.
Jacob Newberry
A really excellent firm. They knew exactly how to handle my situation effectively and efficiently, and we got the result I needed without much fuss. Adi Berger was a wonderful advocate for me and I am deeply grateful for her help!
Romania is a beautiful country known for its rich history, iconic landmarks, culture, and breathtaking landscapes. Apart from these features, the fact that Romania is one of the European Union member countries has made it an attractive immigration destination. The rich benefits of an EU passport, such as access to top-quality education, healthcare, and social benefits, are the reasons why many people want to acquire Romanian citizenship.
There are multiple pathways to obtain Romanian citizenship such as residence (by living in the country for 8 or more years or marriage to a Romanian citizen), investment and by birth.
For Jews in Israel, Romanian citizenship by descent is an easier option. If you have a parent or a grandparent who was a Romanian citizen, you can apply for Romania citizenship by descent.
Romanian Jews: An overview
Jews have had a long history in Romania and are believed to have lived in the country since 2nd Century AD. In 1930, an estimated 728,115 Jewish people were recorded in the Romanian Census, that accounted for four percent of Romania’s population. Even before Romania formally began collaborating with the Nazi forces in 1940, Jews faced harsh persecution and antisemitic sentiments from authorities.
In the 19th century, many Jews from Romania migrated to Israel, forming a community of Romanian origin Jew. Jews who fled Romania in the 1930s and the emigrants to Israel during World War II and their descendants (children and grandchildren) who were later born in Israel account for 10 percent of Israel’s population. As per an estimate, the number of Romanian Jews in Israel could be up to 400,000.
If you have an ancestor (a grandparent or parent) who was once a Romanian citizen but had to leave Romania due to persecution, you can apply for Romania citizenship by descent.
Romania citizenship by descent: Who can apply?
Application for Romania citizenship by descent can be made by individuals:
one or both parents were citizens of Romania at any point during their lifetime
Any one out of the eight great-grandparents was a citizen of Romania during their lifetime at any point and lost the Romanian citizenship due to no fault of their own.
Romania terms this as ‘restoration of citizenship’ rather than ‘acquiring’ of citizenship. According to the citizenship law, any person who is a descendant of a Romanian citizen is eligible for Romanian citizenship by descent. The law also makes it clear that both biological descendants and adopted children/grandchildren of former Romanian citizens can apply for Romania citizenship by descent.
Another thing to note is that the Romanian territory in the early twentieth century included many other countries such as Ukraine, Moldova and Hungary. You can also apply for Romanian citizenship by descent if your grandparent or parent was born in any of these regions under Romanian rule.
How to get Romanian citizenship by descent?
The process of acquiring Romanian citizenship by descent begins with establishing the fact that your parent or grandparent was once a Romanian citizen. As there are many Jews in Israel who belong to the community of Romanian-origin Jews, the chances are very high that you have an ascendant who was a Romanian Jew.
Preparing documents
Once you establish this fact, the next step will involve preparing the necessary documents. You will need written proof of the fact that your ascendant was born in Romania or lived there before 1930s.
Although birth certificates in Romania are public records, it is not possible to gain access to them unless it is your own birth certificate that you want to obtain. Apart from this, you will also need to keep ready your passport and civil status documents with legalized translation. If you are looking to acquire Romanian citizenship for your spouse and children, you will need to prepare their documents as well.
All the documents must be translated and legalized irrespective of the pathway you take towards Romanian citizenship.
Obtaining birth records or other legal documents in Romania can be a difficult process, particularly if you are not in Romania or do not have any relatives in that country who can assist you.
The other documents you will need include a criminal record from the country of origin as well as proof of income if you are looking to reside in Romania. After you get all these documents, you will need to submit them at the consular office.
Expert assistance on obtaining Romanian citizenship by descent
Our Israeli law office is committed to assisting individuals in acquiring Romanian citizenship by descent. We carry out a detailed assessment while evaluating each client’s unique circumstances and immigration needs before recommending the right pathway to Romanian citizenship. Whether it is assisting you in getting birth certificate that proves your connection to your ascendant who was a Romanian citizen or assistance in legalization, we are with you every step of the way.
Our comprehensive guidance and assistance also extend to acquiring passports of other EU countries, including Portugal, France, Austria, Holland, and Bulgaria.
: 03-3724722
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Romanian Citizenship for Israelis with Romanian Heritage