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!
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
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!
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.
Priscilla Moses
competent consulting, fast processing, reliable, warm & good team. highly recommended
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
Halvor Ronning
Courteous, clear, efficient service.
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.
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.
lynn vonne
Excellent service, very friendly and helpful, fast responding and very patient. Highly recommend. I will choose them again next time if needed.
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.
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.
Eden Weiss
Extrmely friendly, professional and helpful. A big thank you to Irina especially from the Jerusalem office. Highly Recommended.
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.
Lilian Granovsky
I can highly recommend these services!
Every time we turned to Joshua we always got a professional quick and helpful respond.
Shaltiel Devorah
Mr. Joshua Pex is knowledgeable and Professional. I really appreciate his courteous and direct approach.
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
Stuart Safft
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Yossi Montrose
Very knowledgeable and professional
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.
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.
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.
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.
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!
If the Interior Ministry refuses a joint life application or to continue the process of legalizing a foreign spouse’s status, it is not the final word. It is possible to file an appeal for foreign spouse in Israel against the decision via one of several appeal mechanisms.
In this article, Michael Decker, an attorney with extensive experience in the area of immigration to Israel, explains how to appeal decisions by the Interior Ministry and the Population and Immigration Authority regarding legalizing the status of foreign spouses in Israel.
Our law offices in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, specialize in Israeli immigration law. Our office has extensive experience in accompanying couples through all stages of legalizing foreign spouses and representing them before all the administrative and judicial courts.
Foreign spouses seeking to live with their Israeli partners must be aware that they may face significant barriers along the way. Interior Ministry officials handling the application may arbitrarily decide not to accept a joint life application, or not to continue the process of legalizing the foreign spouse’s status. However, the couple should know that they have the right to appeal for foreign spouse in Israel facing a refusal or postponement of arranging legal status. Here we will explain when and how a couple can appeal such a decision.
Decisions subject to appeal
Most opinions made on the basis of Population and Immigration authority regulations regarding married couples or common-law couples can be appealed. In this framework, a couple can appeal a refusal to accept a joint-life application (due to lack of prerequisite documents or the impression that the relationship is not sincere). Similarly, couples can appeal refusals to begin the graduated process. Likewise, couples can appeal decisions concerning legalizing the status of minor children of the foreign spouse. Interior Ministry decisions are often issued without the explanations required by law, or based on erroneous factual information. For more information on the justification requirements for administrative offices, including the Interior Ministry, see this article on our website.
Anyone who considers that he or she has been harmed by decisions in this area has the right to appeal them. For more detailed information on filing an internal appeal against the Interior Ministry, see this article.
The right to file an internal appeal
Not everyone is aware that in the case of the Authority’s refusal, one has the right to file an internal appeal; that is, a written appeal submitted to a senior figure in the Authority. It is preferable and sometimes mandatory to activate this right before turning to the judicial courts.
First of all, the internal appeal may be accepted. Second, if it is not filed, it may appear that the person did not try all available channels before turning to the courts, and the appeal to the appeals court may be rejected on this basis.
The regulation regarding appeals states that in the appeal, the matter will be discussed by personnel more senior than those who made the decision. For example, in an appeal of a decision by a team head, the vice-director or director of the office will be the one to hear the appeal. Time is a deciding factor, for the regulations state that the internal appeal must be filed within 21 days of receiving the decision. Even though there is no oral hearing during the appeal, it is advisable to file it with the advice and assistance of an attorney experienced in the field of Israeli immigration.
Appealing to the Appeals Court
For most rejection decisions by the Authority, the judicial court handling the appeal is the Appeals Court of the Population and Immigration Authority. This is a professional court established under the Entrance to Israel Law. At present there are four such courts throughout Israel (in Jerusalem; in Tel Aviv; in Haifa in the North; and in Be’er Sheva in the South). Here too, the time factor is critical. The appeal must be filed within 30 days of the legal publication of the decision; or the day it was given to the applicant; or the day he or she learned of it, whichever is earliest of the three.
The Appeals Court has the authority to intervene in a decision by the Interior Ministry, to cancel it or revise it. For more information on appealing an Interior Ministry decision regarding immigration to Israel, to the Appeals Court under the Entrance to Israel law, see this article on our website.
Administrative appeal to the Administrative Affairs Court
An Appeals Court decision can be appealed to the District Court, sitting as an Administrative Affairs Court. The appeal must be filed within 45 days from hearing the decision orally or its transmission to both sides. Note that the Population and Immigration Authority also has the right to appeal decisions of the Appeals Court. The Administrative Affairs Court will intervene in a decision of the Appeals Court in a case where it sees justification for doing so.
Permission to appeal to the Supreme Court
Note that even for a ruling by the Administrative Affairs Court, the appellant can request to appeal to the Supreme Court. However, given that it would be the third court to examine the case, intervention in such cases takes place only very rarely. Permission to appeal is given, for example, in cases dealing with a question of principle which goes beyond the issue between the claimants.
Contact an immigration attorney
We have given you general information about the possibilities of appealing decisions by Interior Ministry officials regarding legal status of foreign spouses. Given that each step of the appeal process may be critical, it is highly recommended to obtain the services of an immigration lawyer. If you need legal advice or assistance in this matter, an attorney from our offices specializing in immigration to Israel and representing couples in obtaining legal status, will be happy to be at your service.
:03-3724722
:055-9781688
: [email protected]
Legal Precedents that Will Help You Arrange the Israeli Legal Status of a Foreign Spouse