Can a non-resident get a mortgage in Israel?
You live in New York, London or Toronto and you want to finance part of the purchase in Israel rather than pay all cash. It is possible, and common. What you need to know fits in a few figures: 50% of the price, an Israeli bank account, translated proof of income, and a month or two of lead time.
The short answer
Yes. All the major Israeli banks lend to buyers who live abroad, with no nationality requirement. In practice a non-resident gets up to 50% of the price, over 30 years at most, on income earned in dollars, pounds or Canadian dollars. An Israeli citizen living abroad, or a buyer whose aliyah is planned within two years, goes up to 70-75%. You need an Israeli bank account, translated documents, life insurance, and 4 to 8 weeks.
The figures to remember, November 2026
- Non-resident financing
- 50%
- Citizen or aliyah within 2 years
- 70–75%
- Prime rate
- 4.75%
- Maximum payment-to-income
- 35–40%
- Usual timeline
- 4–8 weeks
- Maximum term
- 30 years
How much a bank lends, by profile
The Bank of Israel sets loan-to-value caps for residents: 75% for a first home, 70% for a replacement home, 50% for an investor. The non-resident is not named in the directive. Banks, out of caution, treat them as an investor, hence the practical cap of 50%. It is not a legal prohibition, it is a risk policy, and it is negotiated file by file. A new immigrant, by contrast, is treated as a resident from arrival: see mortgage for new olim. And the 50% down payment comes on top of the costs: the total to gather is in how much deposit do I need.
| Buyer profile | Financing | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign non-resident, no link to Israel | ≈ 50% | Treated as an investor; the bank cannot garnish your income abroad |
| Israeli citizen living abroad, only home in Israel | up to 75% | Treated as a resident first-time buyer |
| Aliyah planned within 2 years (Jewish Agency / Nefesh B’Nefesh or ministry file) | up to 75% | Some banks require aliyah to be effective before funding |
| Non-resident who already owns a property in Israel | 50% | Additional home, like a resident investor |
The amount is calculated on the lower of the two values: the contract price and the bank’s appraisal (shamai, licensed appraiser). The bank then checks repayment capacity: the monthly payment must not exceed 35 to 40% of your net income, read after the currency haircut.
What the banks require
A non-resident’s file is thicker than a resident’s, because the bank cannot verify anything itself. It asks for:
- Stable, documented income: last three pay stubs and two years of tax returns (1040 and W-2, SA100 and P60, T1 and T4) for an employee; financial statements and tax returns for the last two or three years for a self-employed buyer, plus a CPA or accountant letter. English is accepted by all major banks; other languages need a certified translation.
- A traceable down payment: three to six months of bank statements, and a document for each source (savings, sale of a property, gift with a gift letter, family loan with a contract). This is the anti-money-laundering rule, applied strictly.
- An Israeli bank account, from which the payments are debited. It opens remotely at most banks, by power of attorney or by video call. See do I need an Israeli bank account?
- Life insurance (bituach hayim) covering the outstanding principal, and building insurance (bituach mivneh). Past 60 or with a medical history, life cover can be declined or loaded: fill in the medical questionnaire at the same time as the application.
- A compatible age: most banks want the loan repaid before 75 or 80. At 55, the term drops to 20-25 years, which raises the payment.
How it works, step by step
- Pre-approval (ishur ekroni), before you even search. With your documents, the bank states the amount it agrees to lend. Free, usually valid 24 days, renewable. Timeline: 2 to 10 days.
- Opening the Israeli account. 1 to 3 weeks remotely, one morning in person.
- Signing the sale contract, with a financing clause drafted by your lawyer.
- Appraisal by a shamai appointed by the bank, at your expense (₪600 to ₪1,500). One week.
- Final offer and signing of the loan documents, at the branch, at the consulate, or before a foreign notary with an apostille. Insurance taken out. 1 to 3 weeks.
- Funding: the money goes straight to the seller or the developer according to the schedule. The bank registers a mortgage at the Tabu.
The detailed version, with the banks compared and the exact documents, is in the mortgages-for-non-residents page.
What it costs: rates and tracks
The tracks (maslulim) are the same as for a resident: prime (variable, follows the Bank of Israel policy rate, 3.25% in November 2026, prime 4.75%), fixed unlinked, fixed CPI-linked (madad, the consumer price index), variable every five years. At least one third of the loan must be at a fixed rate. The difference for a non-resident is the margin: 0.2 to 0.4 of a point more.
| Track | Resident, strong file | Non-resident |
|---|---|---|
| Prime | P − 0.7 to − 0.9% | P − 0.3 to − 0.6% |
| Fixed unlinked, 25 years | 4.8 to 5.1% | 5.0 to 5.5% |
| Fixed CPI-linked, 25 years | 2.6 to 3.0% + CPI | 2.9 to 3.3% + CPI |
If your income is in dollars or pounds, favour the fixed unlinked share: you already carry currency risk, there is no point adding rate risk and inflation risk. Unlike a 30-year fixed in the US, there is no single-rate loan here; the mix is the norm. Side costs: file-opening fee ≈ 0.25% of the loan (negotiable), appraisal, and a broker at ₪6,000 to ₪15,000 or 0.5 to 1% of the loan if you use one.
Split between tracks
Prime (variable)
Fixed, unlinked
Fixed, CPI-linked
Bank of Israel rules: at least one third of the loan at a fixed rate, at most two thirds on prime. The simulator adjusts the sliders accordingly.
- Principal repaid—
- Interest—
- Prime (variable) · Fixed, unlinked · Fixed, CPI-linked—
Indicative rates, November 2026 (policy rate 3.25%, prime 4.75%). The CPI-linked track is simulated with constant inflation; in reality both the payment and the outstanding balance move with the CPI. Banks apply different margins by profile and city: a real offer can differ by ±0.5 point.
Worked example: professional in Chicago, 3 rooms in Jerusalem
| Down payment (50%) | ₪1,200,000 (≈ $333,000) |
| Mas rechisha (8%) | ₪192,000 |
| Lawyer, agent, broker, appraisal, bank fees | ≈ ₪95,000 |
| Cash required | ≈ ₪1,487,000 (≈ $413,000) |
| Loan of ₪1,200,000, mix 35% prime / 40% fixed / 25% CPI-linked | ≈ ₪6,800 / month (≈ $1,890) |
| Income as read by the bank ($6,100 × 3.6 × 15% haircut) | ≈ ₪18,700 |
| Payment-to-income | 36%: financeable, with no margin |
With a car loan or student loan of $650 a month back home, the ratio rises to 49% and the bank refuses. The fix in that case: cut the Israeli loan to 40%, or pay off the US loan before filing.
When the bank says no, and the alternatives
Non-resident refusals almost always have the same cause: a poorly documented down payment, a payment-to-income ratio above 40%, declined life insurance, or a property that is hard to appraise (unregistered rights, construction without a permit). A broker who files non-resident applications every month knows which bank accepts what at a given moment, and that is where they earn their fee.
If the Israeli mortgage is not enough, three complements exist: borrowing at home against an existing property (HELOC or cash-out refinance in the US, remortgage or further advance in the UK, HELOC in Canada; often cheaper but shorter), developer financing on a new build (a 20/80 schedule that leaves two or three years to arrange the loan), and Israeli non-bank lenders, up to 80-85% financing but at markedly higher rates. The most common structure among Anglo buyers combines the first two. See borrowing in the US or UK to buy in Israel, and for the whole path of an American or British buyer, buying from the USA and buying from the UK.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum down payment for a non-resident?
Count on 50% of the purchase price as down payment, plus the 8% purchase tax and fees (3 to 4%). On a ₪2M property, that means about ₪1.25M of your own cash. An Israeli citizen or a future oleh drops to 25-30% down, with a reduced tax on top for the oleh.
Does the bank accept income in dollars or pounds?
Yes. It converts your net income into shekels at a conservative rate and usually applies a 10 to 20% haircut for currency risk. You need pay stubs or financial statements in English (accepted by all major banks), plus the last two years of tax returns (1040, SA100 or T1).
Do I have to fly to Israel to sign the loan?
Not necessarily. The loan documents can be signed before a notary public in your country and apostilled, at an Israeli consulate, or through a specific power of attorney accepted by the bank. The bank account can also be opened remotely at most banks, but one trip speeds everything up.
Are rates higher for a non-resident?
A little: 0.2 to 0.4 of a point more margin on prime and on the fixed track compared with a resident with a strong file. In November 2026, with prime at 4.75%, a non-resident typically gets P − 0.3 to − 0.6% on the prime share and 5.0 to 5.5% on the unlinked fixed share.
How we work
Every amount, bracket and rate on this page is checked against the official source listed at the bottom and dated. When a schedule or rate changes, the page is updated within days. Our methodology.
Sources
Know within 48 hours how much a bank will lend you
An English-speaking mortgage broker who specialises in non-resident files shops several banks and comes back with a pre-approval. Describe your income, your down payment and the property you have in mind.