Expand your organization into Israel, even without an Israeli entity
Israel is a completely unique and fascinating country located on eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea. This location connects it with the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. Its location, strong rich religious and cultural history, and highly developed economy make it one of the most diverse countries in the world and a great place to expand any business.
If you are planning an expansion into Israel for your business, you will need to be prepared to deal with the country’s complex business and employment laws. The official language of Hebrew is an obvious barrier, but the country also has its own unique and often confusing regulations that you will need to comply with in order to establish and grow your business there.
At Horizons, we specialize in helping organizations of all kinds to build and grow their presence abroad, including in Israel. Our professional employer organization (Israel PEO), employer of record, and payroll services can offer you everything you need to start your Israeli expansion rapidly, efficiently, and compliantly.
As the only global PEO with an in-house recruitment team, we can also take care of the sourcing, hiring, and onboarding of your Israeli workforce, along with any associated HR and legal compliance work. Our tailored services can save you thousands in expansion costs.
How can our Israel PEO simplifies your expansion
Horizons enables your business to expand its operations into Israel, without setting up a legal subsidiary.
Rapid Market Entry
Horizons will enable you to source, hire, and onboard professionals across Israel in as little as 48 hours.
Cost-Effective Expansion
Our Israel PEO solution can help you benefit from cost savings of up to 85%, without the need to establish an Israeli entity.
Payroll Outsourcing
Accurate, on-time salary and payroll processing, individual income tax declaration, expense management, statutory benefits administration, and social benefits contribution.
Employee Onboarding
Utilize the relevant provision for all types of Israeli labor contracts, whether a fixed-term or open-ended contract.
Onsite Legal & HR Team
In-country legal guidance through employee acquisition, contract renewals and termination, benefits distribution, and HR compliance; as well as local tax, law, and financial expertise.
Ensure Full Compliance
We ensure that employment contracts are fully compliant and adhere to Israel labor laws and best practices.
Employment & Labor Laws in Israel
📝 Employment contracts in Israel
While it is not legally required, we strongly recommend always producing written contracts of employment for all of your employees in Israel. These contracts should be written in Hebrew, use the Israeli shekel currency, and include details such as parental leave, vacation allowance, salary/wage, and other relevant details.
By partnering with our Israel PEO, Horizons’ team of local experts can provide assistance for drafting strong employment contracts that are compliant with local regulations.
⏰ Working hours in Israel
The standard working week in Israel is Sunday to Thursday, as Jewish people do not work on Saturdays and businesses must apply for a permit to allow it.
The maximum number of working hours is 43, with no more than nine hours per day. Any hours worked in excess of these limits must be compensated at overtime rates, which are 25% extra for the first two hours and 50% extra for any more than two, or any work on the Sabbath (Saturday).
📅 Public holidays in Israel
There are several public holidays celebrated in Israel. Most are affiliated with Judaism, so non-Jews will usually not celebrate them:
Date | Description | 7 Jan | Asarah B’Tevet (Tenth of Tevet) |
|---|---|
10 Feb | Tu Bishvat |
2 Mar | Election Day |
9 Mar | Fast of Esther, Purim Eve |
10 Mar | Purim (Tel Aviv) |
11 Mar | Shushan Purim (Jerusalem) |
20 Mar | March Equinox |
4 Apr | Aliyah Day |
8 Apr | Passover Eve |
9 Apr-15 Apr | Passover |
21 Apr | Yom HaShoah |
28 Apr | Yom HaZikaron |
29 Apr | Yom HaAtzmaut |
12 May | Lag BaOmer |
22 May | Jerusalem Day |
28 May | Shavuot Eve |
29 May | Shavuot |
21 Jun | June Solstice |
9 Jul | 17th of Tammuz |
29 Jul | Tisha B’Av Eve |
30 Jul | Tisha B’Av |
18 Sep | Rosh Hashana Eve |
19 Sep-20Sep | Rosh Hashana |
21 Sep | Gedaliah Fast |
22 Sep | September Equinox |
27 Sep | Yom Kippur Eve |
28 Sep | Yom Kippur |
2 Oct | Sukkot Eve |
3 Oct-8 Oct | Sukkot |
9 Oct | Sukkot (Day 7), Hoshanah Rabah |
10 Oct | Shemini Atzeret / Simchat Torah |
25 Oct | Aliyah Day School Observance |
11 Dec-15 Dec | Hanukkah |
16 Dec | Hanukkah (Day 6) / Rosh Chodesh Tevet |
17 Dec-18 Dec | Hanukkah |
21 Dec | December Solstice |
25 Dec | Asarah B’Tevet (Tenth of Tevet) |
🏖 Israel vacation leave
Workers in Israel are legally entitled to a certain amount of paid vacation leave each year. The number of days varies based on length of employment, but ranges from 10 days to 23 days. Some employers may choose to offer more days as part of their benefits packages.
😷 Israel sick leave
Workers in Israel can accrue 1.5 days of sick leave for every month of employment. This is unpaid for the first day of absence, then paid at 50% of normal pay for days two and three, then paid at 100% of normal pay for the following days. Many employers choose to offer more generous sick leave but it is not legally required. After working with an employer for over a year, workers also qualify for a daily convalescence payment for a limited number of days.
👶 Parental leave in Israel
Female employees who have worked for over six months with their employer can take seven weeks of leave at 100% of normal pay, and their position must be retained by the company. After ten months of employment, they are entitled to 14 weeks of leave, and seven weeks can be taken in advance of the birth.
Fathers can take eight days of leave (five paid by employer and three taken from vacation leave), after their child has been born.
💰 Terminations and severance in Israel
When employees are dismissed without proper cause in Israel, they are generally entitled to severance pay.
For terminations, notice must be given. In the first six months of employment, only one day of notice is required. For at least six months of employment, six days plus two and a half days for every month after the sixth month is required. After one year of employment, 30 days of notice is required.
Employees can usually offer severance instead of notice if they wish.
Navigating employee terminations and handling severance packages can be complicated for companies expanding overseas for the first time. Horizons’ Israel PEO can mitigate risk for foreign companies and provide guidance through this process.
🏦 Taxation in Israel
Employees and their employers in Israel must pay toward national insurance and health insurance funds. The contributions are 12% of salary for employees and 6.75% for employers.
Income tax is progressive in Israel, with rates ranging from 10% to 50% depending on income level.
As of 2020, the corporate tax rate in Israel is 23%.
🏥 Health coverage in Israel
In Israel, healthcare is universal and workers can choose between four different levels of insurance. Some also choose to pay for private insurance, so employers may want to offer private insurance as a benefit for employees.
💳 Israel compensations & benefits
Compensation laws in Israel
As of Jan 2020, the minimum wage in Israel for someone working five days per week is 212 NIS per week. There is a higher rate of 244.62 NIS for people working six days per week.
Benefit management in Israel
Building and running a benefits system for your employees in Israel can be complicated if you are unfamiliar with the country, its laws, and its customs. If you want to manage the setup independently, you should expect it to take weeks and potentially delay your expansion process.
Horizons can help you simplify this stage of your expansion by offering our tailored Israel PEO & benefit management outsourcing. We can provide expert advice on the best course of action and take care of your benefit setup and management, helping you focus solely on your Israel expansion.
Request a Proposal
Horizons helps businesses expand into Israel faster
Horizons’ Israel PEO, employer of record, and payroll outsourcing can provide your company with everything you need to kickstart your Israel operation. Our Israel experts will help be ready to begin trading in the country in as little as 48 hours, and could slash your expansion costs by up to 82%, whether or not you’ve already registered an entity in Israel.
Our team will handle all of your expenses, payroll, legal compliance, and more in Israel, as well as any ongoing human resources work. And as the only global PEO with a dedicated in-house recruitment team, we can also find and hire your local workforce in Israel, using our Israeli subsidiary as employer of record for your employees so you don’t even need to register an Israeli entity.
Contact our Israel experts today to find out how our custom outsourcing services can help you to seamlessly expand into Israel.
