Joint life application in the Interior Ministry – Documents for foreign partners
Michael Decker
Michael Decker
lynn vonne
Excellent service, very friendly and helpful, fast responding and very patient. Highly recommend. I will choose them again next time if needed.
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.
Sergei m Vashkevich
We came to Mr. Joshua with so many questions (and most of all, with so many concerns and worries) …
When we explained our case to him, first of all, he calmed us down and helped us to see the big picture, which took away our fears;
Then he presented us with a detailed explanation and a few options to explore, and a timeline, how things work and necessary steps to undertake on our part,
We thank and highly recommend Mr. Joshua for showing us so much empathy, care and professionalism (!)
Adi Katina
Great Team. With no doubt, this office is actually thee best-leading office in Israel. Simply put, if you want your case to win, just join them, hand in your documents, and celebrate the victory.
Kindest regards,
Adi k.
Shurouq Hajyassin
We were very satisfied with the consultation we had.
You were very straightforward with us , You tried to help us in every way you could . we really appreciate that.
And of course the fast reply we got from you on our emails and the appointment you gave us .
You deserve more than 5 stars????
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.
Andreas Kelling
We have been working with Decker, Pex & 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.
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.
Sveta Vashkevich
We (myself and my husband) came to Mr. Joshua Pex – for his professional advice – and we received such human warmth and caring attitude, that our hearts melted …
His attention to our details and our situation peculiarities, combined with his professionalism and knowledge, helped us to map out what needs to be done on our part: we appreciate and recommend You, Mr. Joshua!
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.
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
Genaan Abdelall
I cannot recommend Nechama enough! Her expertise, professionalism, and dedication to her clients is unparalleled. From the moment I reached out to her, she provided clear and concise communication, and helped me navigate through a complex legal issue with ease.
Throughout the entire process, Nechama went above and beyond to ensure that I was informed and comfortable with every decision. She demonstrated a deep knowledge of the law, and was able to offer sound advice that ultimately led to a positive outcome.
What sets Nechama apart is her compassionate and empathetic approach to her clients. She truly cares about the well-being of her clients, and it shows in the way she handles every case.
If you are in need of a lawyer, I highly recommend Nechama.
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!
Yossi Montrose
Very knowledgeable and professional
Josh W-S
The firm had a quick response to my last-minute needs, they were helpful in communicating with me in English, and they fulfilled my needs in a timely fashion.
Michael Soffer
I would like to recommend Attorney Yehuda Elcharar. He assisted both me and my company in a complex lawsuit. He handled negotiations that led to a favorable outcome much quicker than expected.
I am extremely pleased with choosing Attorney Elcharar. Many thanks also to the office team, Oz and Chaya, for their assistance throughout the entire process.
Thanks again ????
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.
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
Priscilla Moses
competent consulting, fast processing, reliable, warm & good team. highly recommended
David De La Rosa
Very friendly, professional, and effective, highly 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Lauma Zariņa
This is definitely the best lawyer I know!!! very honest and super helpful he really helped me a lot dealing with immigration issues in Israel and it was very successful!
I highly recommend
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.
Lilian Granovsky
I can highly recommend these services!
Every time we turned to Joshua we always got a professional quick and helpful respond.
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!
Shaltiel Devorah
Mr. Joshua Pex is knowledgeable and Professional. I really appreciate his courteous and direct approach.
Наталья Мажуга
Great lawyers Joshua Pex and Nechama and Michael Deker who really want to help you and I have very trustful relationships with them. All my cases they took they won. Thank you and let’s keep working together
Halvor Ronning
Courteous, clear, efficient service.
Eden Weiss
Extrmely friendly, professional and helpful. A big thank you to Irina especially from the Jerusalem office. Highly Recommended.
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
Morgan Jones
The team at Decker, Pex & Co have been awesome to work with in helping our US company establish banking in Israel and in providing counsel for legal needs in Israel. I highly recommend!
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!
Esty A
I had a consultation with Batya and she was very helpful. She made sure I understood all the information I needed, and was patient with me in gathering documents I needed.
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 & 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 & 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.
Tomer Hila Birnbach
I received a recommendation from friends about the firm, and indeed every word is correct, a service team, professional, welcoming, a fair price for the work I requested, I am satisfied
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.
A joint life application is the first stage in obtaining legal status for a foreign spouse of an Israeli citizen. At this stage the couple is required to present various documents which must be obtained ahead of time. In this article we have collected information on the required documents for foreign partners seeking to obtain status in Israel.
Our law offices specialize in Israeli immigration law. Our office assists foreign spouses in immigration and obtaining citizenship, including representing them before the Interior Ministry Population Authority and the administrative and legal courts.
The joint-life application and the importance of presenting all documents for foreign partners
An Israeli citizen’s foreign partner who seeks citizenship must undergo a procedure at the Population and Immigration Authority. The Citizenship Law sets out different regulations for married couples and common-law couples, but in both cases the procedure begins with the filing of a joint-life application for the couple. For more details on this subject, see articles published on our website; both regarding common-law couples and regarding obtaining legal status for married partners.
When filing a joint-life application, the partners are required to appear in person (either at a Ministry of Interior branch in Israel or, if in another country, before an Israeli government representative, such as a consul). At this point they must submit prerequisite documents, as well as additional documents that may be required in specific cases. Before we go into these documents in detail, we stress that it is important to obtain them ahead of time. It is also important to make sure that, if required, the documents are verified with an apostille stamp and include a notarized translation.
Prerequisite documents for filing a joint-life application in the Interior Ministry
Both married and common-law couples must present: an application form for a new visa or to extend an existing one; a foreign passport for the foreign partner, valid for at least two years; passport photos of both partners; identity card of the Israeli partner; a letter, signed by both partners, explaining their relationship; and a declaration by the couple stating the validity of the material they have presented and their obligation to notify the Ministry of any change in their circumstances (the declaration is attached as an appendix to the Interior Ministry regulations). A married couple must also attach an original marriage license, authenticated and translated.
In addition, the couple must present additional evidence of the sincerity of their relationship, covering at least a year before submitting the application. Such documentation may include photographs of them together, a rental contract, joint bills, and letters and references by family and friends regarding the couple’s acquaintance with each other (along with a copy of the identity card, as well as contact information, for each reference). Depending on the specific case, additional evidence may be requested.
Additional documents – filing a joint-life application in the Interior Ministry – inviting a foreign partner to Israel
The Population and Immigration Authority office will also ask the invited partner to present an original/authenticated birth certificate; a public certification of personal status from the partner’s country of origin, stating former and current status; a certificate of good conduct (proof that he or she does not have a criminal record) from the country of origin; and if the first or last name was changed, a public certificate of the name change. If the foreign partner comes from the CIS or Eastern Europe, the Authority office will send them to the Communications Bureau (Netiv) to obtain an opinion. For a couple seeking legal status for children of the foreign partner from a previous relationship, additional documents will be required, as described in another article on this topic.
Can a couple appeal if the application is rejected because of missing documents?
For a variety of reasons, the couple may run into difficulties obtaining all the required documents. This is common, for example, with asylum seekers, who cannot return to their country of origin in order to obtain the prerequisite documents. The law allows couples to appeal the Population and Immigration Authority’s decision regarding prerequisite documents. In certain cases, the appeals court may intervene in the Authority’s decision and overturn it. For more information on the process of appealing an Interior Ministry decision, see this article on our website.
Contact an attorney specializing in immigration law
The issue of obtaining documents is critical in order to meet Interior Ministry regulations and successfully obtain Israeli legal status for a foreign partner. If you have legal questions, or have encountered difficulties in obtaining documents, an expert immigration attorney from our law offices will be happy to help. You can contact us at the telephone numbers or email address below.
When filing a joint-life application, the partners are required to appear in person (either at a Ministry of Interior branch in Israel or, if in another country, before an Israeli government representative, such as a consul). At this point they must submit prerequisite documents, as well as additional documents that may be required in specific cases. Before we go into these documents in detail, we stress that it is important to obtain them ahead of time. It is also important to make sure that, if required, the documents are verified with an apostille stamp and include a notarized translation.
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