Tabu Extract: How to Obtain One, What It Costs and How to Find the Block and Parcel

What is a Tabu extract?

A Tabu extract, officially a land registration extract, is an official document issued by the Land Registration and Settlement of Rights Authority at the Ministry of Justice. It reflects what is recorded in the land registers for a particular property as of the date it is issued:

• The registered owners and each owner's share in the property.
• Mortgages and charges in favour of banks or other parties.
• Cautionary notes, attachments and court orders registered against the property.
• Leases, where the right is a leasehold rather than ownership.
• Property details: block, parcel and sub-parcel, registered area, the share in the common property, and appurtenances such as parking and storage.

In an apartment transaction, the extract is the starting point for every check: it is where you begin to establish whether the seller really is the owner, what must be cleared before ownership is transferred, and what will be registered in your name at the end of the process. More on these checks in the article 12 checks you must make before signing a sale agreement.

Types of extract

• Regular (full) extract. All current information on the property. This is the extract suitable for most purposes, including buying and selling.
• Historical extract. Also includes entries that have been deleted, such as mortgages that have been discharged and previous owners. Useful when you need to understand the property's history.
• Consolidated extract. General information on all the apartments in a condominium. It does not contain every registration detail, but it helps to identify the sub-parcel of a particular apartment.

You can also order an extract bearing an apostille, for use outside Israel.

How do you obtain a Tabu extract online?

Anyone can order a registration extract, for a fee, through the Ministry of Justice's "Land Online" (Mekarkein Bareshet) website. You do not need to be the owner of the property and you do not need to give a reason for the request.

1. Go to the Tabu extract service on gov.il and from there to the "Land Online" website.
2. Choose the type of extract: full, historical or consolidated.
3. Enter the block and parcel and, for an apartment in a condominium, the sub-parcel as well.
4. Pay on the government payments website.
5. The extract is sent to your email within minutes.

How much does a Tabu extract cost?

The fee is set by the Land Regulations (Fees) and is updated from time to time. The binding amount is shown at the time of payment on the government website.

The cheapest and quickest route is to order directly on the government website. Some private websites offer to "obtain an extract" for a higher fee, but the extract itself is the same extract.

How do you find the block and parcel by address?

To order an extract you need the block and parcel numbers. There are several simple ways to find them:

• The government search engine. The simplest way is the Survey of Israel's block and parcel search by address on gov.il. Choose the town, street and house number, and you receive the block and parcel numbers.
• Government map (GovMap). If you also want to see the location on a map, search for the address on GovMap, click on the building and read the block and parcel in the information window.
• The municipal tax (arnona) bill. In most local authorities the block and parcel are printed on the bill.
• Property documents. In the previous purchase agreement, in the building permit or in an old extract.

Sub-parcel. In a condominium you also need the sub-parcel number, which is not necessarily the same as the apartment number in the building. You can find it in a consolidated extract for the building, or through the Land Registration Authority's call centre on *8653, option 7 and then option 1, Sunday to Thursday, 08:00 to 16:00.

How do you find the address by block and parcel?

Sometimes the situation is reversed: you have a block and parcel number from a document, an advertisement or an inheritance, and you need to work out where the property is. Here too you use the Survey of Israel's search engine: choose the search by block and parcel, enter the numbers and you receive the address. For a plot that does not yet have a street address, you can search for the block and parcel on GovMap and see the location and the parcel boundaries on the map.

When buying a plot of land, it is worth checking, beyond the extract, the plans that apply to the parcel and the building rights. The Tabu extract shows the proprietary rights, but not what may be built.

How do you read a Tabu extract before buying?

At first sight a Tabu extract looks like a table of codes and numbers. These are the points to check in it in every transaction:

1. The seller's identity. The name and ID number of the registered owner must match the person signing the agreement. Where there are several owners, all of them must be parties to the transaction.
2. The share being sold. Whether the seller holds the whole property or only part of it.
3. Mortgages. A registered mortgage does not prevent a transaction, but the agreement must provide how it will be discharged out of the purchase price and in what order.
4. Cautionary notes. A note in favour of another person may indicate that the property has already been sold or charged. On its significance, see the article Cautionary notes and the payment mechanism.
5. Attachments and orders. Every attachment or order needs an explanation and a solution before any payment is made.
6. Appurtenances. The parking space and storage room you were promised must appear in the extract as appurtenances of the apartment, and not only in the agreement.
7. Ownership or lease. For a leasehold property, for example from the Israel Land Authority, the terms of the lease must also be checked.

An extract reflects the position on the day it is issued only. That is why you obtain an up-to-date extract close to signing, and again before every significant payment.

An apartment not registered in the Land Registry

Not every apartment is registered in the land registers in its owners' names. In new buildings not yet registered as a condominium, and in properties of the Israel Land Authority or of housing companies, the rights are recorded elsewhere:

• The Israel Land Authority issues a confirmation of rights for properties whose rights are registered with it.
• A housing company or developer issues a confirmation of rights according to its own records.

In a transaction of this kind the checks are different, and so is the way the purchaser's money is protected. When buying from a developer it is particularly important to understand when and how the apartment will be registered in your name. Details on the page Buying an apartment from a developer.

Further reading: The 12 checks before signing | Cautionary notes | Purchase tax calculator