Representation before the Population Authority: what a representative can and cannot do

Written by Alon, founder of IsraelVisa · Based on the procedures of the Population and Immigration Authority

Published: 6 November 2026

The short answer

The partner procedures of the Population and Immigration Authority let someone act for you on paper, never in the room. A decision may be served on counsel and a representative may write and file for you; every interview, identification visit and signature is yours. This article draws that line from procedures 5.2.0008 and 5.2.0009 (July 2026), the Appeals Tribunal's rules and the Bar Association Law.

Doing the Gradual Process yourselves or with a lawyer: how to decide

What a representative may do on paper

Both procedures count the time for completing documents from lawful service: receipt of the decision by the applicant or by counsel. That is the only place a representative appears in the procedures. The office may write to a person acting for you, and the 45 days then run from the day that person received the letter; arrange that every letter reaches you the same day.

Someone else may prepare the written steps: the application, the answer to a request for documents, an internal appeal, a letter to the office. The explanation letter about your relationship and the affidavit on page 3 of form Ash/6 are still signed by both of you.

Application refused: what are the options

What only the two of you can do

The procedures interview the partners, not their representatives. At any stage the office may summon the applicants, or either of them, to an interview (5.2.0008 clause C.9; 5.2.0009 clause C.6). Once the documents are complete, the applicants identify themselves and present the originals, and where possible the couple is interviewed then (section E, items 10 and 11 of both). Both partners are interviewed before every extension (clauses G.10 and G.5), both are invited when a refusal rests on the interview (clause F.3), and at the end of the process both must be present and sign (5.2.0008 section H).

No clause lets a representative answer or be interviewed in your place.

The interview record and the interpreter at the Population Authority

The power of attorney: no procedure, so ask the office

The Authority's published index of procedures has no procedure on representatives or on what a power of attorney must contain. An office asked to deal with a lawyer wants a signed power of attorney in practice; since no published rule sets its form, ask the office handling your file what it requires, and keep a copy of what you signed.

A gov.il service does exist through which a citizen or resident grants a lawyer, by the national identification system, a power of attorney for obtaining records from the Authority. It retrieves your records; it does not appoint counsel for the application. Its conditions are on the page.

Granting a power of attorney to a lawyer in the national identification system (gov.il, Hebrew)

Who may represent you: a lawyer, a friend, a paid helper

The Bar Association Law reserves to Bar members, as an occupation or for pay, representation before courts and tribunals, legal drafting for others and legal advice (section 20). A non-lawyer who does such work commits an offence (sections 96 and 97), and a court will not entertain a non-lawyer's claim for a fee for it (section 98). A relative who helps with forms, for nothing, is not what these sections are about; a paid adviser who writes your appeal is.

The Entry into Israel Law names one exception: a person in custody or on bail may be represented before the Detention Review Tribunal, free of charge, by someone who is not a lawyer (section 13(20)).

What immigration lawyers in Israel do

Before the Appeals Tribunal

An appeal goes to the Appeals Tribunal within 30 days of the decision (section 13(24)(b) of the Entry into Israel Law). Under the 2014 Regulations the notice of appeal is signed by the appellant or by counsel (regulation 4(b)); a represented appellant adds the lawyer's details and a valid power of attorney, or another representative's details (regulation 4(c)(8)); the facts are verified by the appellant's own affidavit (regulation 4(d)). Filing is online, but an appellant without a lawyer is exempt unless he or she consented in writing, and may file in person, by email, fax or registered mail (regulation 27).

The Tribunal's instruction sheet of 1.1.2026 adds that the notice is typed in Hebrew and signed by the appellant or counsel, and that a fee of NIS 755 is paid before filing unless an exemption was requested; check the current amount before you pay. A refusal of entry at the border goes to the same Tribunal.

Refused entry at the border: your rights, the Tribunal and the next application

The split of work when you use a lawyer

A lawyer can take over the paper: service and dates, letters to the office, the appeals and the hearing. What stays with you:

Every interview: when the originals are presented, before each extension, and whenever the office summons either of you.
Identifying yourselves at the office and presenting the originals in person.
Signing your own explanation letter, the affidavit on form Ash/6 and the application at the end of the process.
Collecting the evidence of a shared life, which only the two of you have.
The affidavit that verifies the facts of an appeal, and attending a hearing when summoned.

Reaching the visa desk of the Population Authority

How IsraelVisa helps

IsraelVisa helps you keep in one place what was filed and when, the letters you received and the evidence of your shared life, yourselves and at your own pace. IsraelVisa does not give legal advice and does not represent you; if you wish, you can find independent lawyers through it.

Frequently asked questions

Can our lawyer go to the interview instead of us?

No. The procedures summon the applicants to the interview, interview the couple when the originals are presented, and interview both partners before every extension; no clause lets a representative be interviewed or answer in your place.

Is there a set form of power of attorney for the Population Authority?

The Authority's procedures index has no procedure on representatives or on the contents of a power of attorney. Ask the office handling your file what it requires. The gov.il service for granting a lawyer a power of attorney through the national identification system covers obtaining records from the Authority.

Can a friend who is not a lawyer file the appeal to the Tribunal for us?

The Tribunal's regulations contemplate an appellant represented by another person, whose details are given in the notice, and the Entry into Israel Law allows a free non-lawyer representative before the Detention Review Tribunal. Doing such work for pay is reserved to lawyers under the Bar Association Law, and a non-lawyer cannot sue for the fee.

If we appeal without a lawyer, must we file online?

No. Under regulation 27 an appellant not represented by a lawyer is exempt from online filing unless he or she consented in writing, and may file in person, by scanned email with confirmation, by fax or by registered mail. The appeal is in Hebrew, with an affidavit and the fee, within 30 days of the decision.

Sources

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The information in this article is general and does not constitute legal advice. The procedures are updated from time to time; check the current version on the website of the Population and Immigration Authority.