Support letters from family and friends: who writes them and what they should say

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

Published: 5 November 2026

What the procedures say

All three procedures of the Population and Immigration Authority list, among the file-opening documents, proof of a sincere relationship and a shared centre of life from at least the last year: section D.2.H of 5.2.0008 (spouses of citizens) and of 5.2.0009 (shared life, including same-sex couples), section C.3 of 5.2.0011 (spouses of permanent residents). Among its examples are letters and recommendations from family members and friends about their acquaintance with the couple.

The procedures add one instruction: a copy of each recommender's identity card and contact details are attached. Nothing more is required: no number of letters, no form, length or language, no affidavit or notary.

Who can write one

The procedures name family members and friends, and the subject of the letter is the writer's acquaintance with you as a couple. The right writers are people who actually know you together: a parent or sibling who has hosted you, a friend who sees you regularly, a neighbour who knows your home life. Someone who has met only one of you cannot describe the relationship.

Writers can come from either side, and the procedures say nothing about where a writer lives. A writer abroad with no Israeli identity card can attach a copy of the identity document they hold.

What a useful letter contains

  • Who the writer is: full name, identity number, address, telephone and e-mail (contact details are required with every letter).
  • How the writer knows each of you, and since when.
  • What the writer has seen of your shared life: visits, family events, holidays, with places and approximate dates.
  • The date, the writer's signature, and the copy of the identity card.

A page is usually enough; concrete details beat general praise.

Language, form and originals

The procedures do not say in which language such a letter is written. Their translation rule covers the foreign partner's public documents, submitted original, authenticated and translated under procedure 1.3.0001 (section D.2.E of 5.2.0008 and 5.2.0009, C.2.G of 5.2.0011); a letter is not one of them. The office works in Hebrew, so a writer who prefers another language can write in it and you add a plain translation. The clerk may ask for any further document according to the circumstances (section D.3; C.3 of 5.2.0011), a formal translation included.

Keep the signed originals: once all the documents are in, you are invited to present the original documentation of section D.2, with an interview where possible (section E.2).

Documents for the Gradual Process: how recent, authenticated and translated

When the foreign partner is still abroad

The same document list applies from abroad. Both of you abroad: you apply at the Israeli representation with all the documents of section D.2 (section E.1). The Israeli partner in Israel and the foreign partner abroad: the Israeli partner files the online application, and the consulate starts dealing with the foreign partner only after that filing (sections D.1 and D.2.A); under 5.2.0011 the permanent resident attends the office (section C.1).

So the letters are gathered before the foreign partner arrives. The decision on entry is made, as a rule, within 90 days of the complete request reaching the Authority from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, after a first check of the sincerity of the relationship; the evidence you filed is what that check has to go on.

What weakens a letter

  • Several letters with the same wording: writers who copy one template did not write from their own knowledge.
  • Praise without facts: what good people you are, not how the writer knows you, is not the acquaintance the procedures ask about.
  • Dates and places that contradict your own story. You also sign an explanatory letter about the relationship and how and since when you know each other (section D.2.F; C.2.F in 5.2.0011) and an affidavit that the material is true (D.2.G; C.5); a friend's letter that puts your first meeting in the wrong year raises questions about both.
  • Writers who never met the foreign partner.
  • A letter without the copy of the identity card and the contact details.

Insufficient documents come back as a written list of what to resubmit within 45 days; otherwise the application is refused on the threshold (section E.2 of 5.2.0008 and 5.2.0009).

Where letters fit among the rest of the evidence

Letters are one item in an open list (the procedures say "among others") beside photographs of the two of you; a lease, joint bills and a bank statement; confirmations of services from government institutions, including the municipality (5.2.0008 and 5.2.0009); and any other record that shows the relationship exists and how long it has lasted.

After the background checks, the office first confirms that evidence of a shared centre of life and a sincere relationship was submitted at all (section E.2; D.1.H of 5.2.0011). Before every extension of a licence, both of you are interviewed and the checks of sincerity and centre of life are repeated (section G.10 of 5.2.0008, G.5 of 5.2.0009, D.8.D of 5.2.0011). No documents are listed for an extension; bring up-to-date evidence of the same kinds, fresh letters included if you have them.

The documents for the Gradual Process

How IsraelVisa helps

IsraelVisa helps you list the people who could write, keep their letters, identity copies and contact details with the rest of your evidence, and check that the dates match your own letter, yourselves and at your own pace. IsraelVisa does not give legal advice; if you wish, you can find independent lawyers through IsraelVisa.

Frequently asked questions

How many letters do we need?

The procedures do not set a number. They list letters from family and friends as one kind of evidence, with a copy of each writer's identity card and contact details. A few specific letters from people who really know you as a couple serve better than many identical ones.

Must the letters be in Hebrew?

The procedures do not say. Their translation rule covers the foreign partner's public documents. The office works in Hebrew, so a letter in another language is best accompanied by a translation; the clerk may ask for one.

Does a letter have to be an affidavit or notarised?

The procedures do not require that. They ask for the letter, a copy of the writer's identity card and contact details.

Do we need new letters at every renewal?

Not as a stated requirement. Before every extension the procedures require an interview of both partners and updated checks of the sincerity of the relationship and of your shared centre of life, without listing documents. Bring up-to-date evidence of your shared life; a recent letter can be part of it.

Related guides

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.