Registration at the Land Registry: steps, documents and fees

Why is registration the transaction itself and not a technicality?

Under the Land Law, a real estate transaction is completed by registration. Until it is registered, the law treats it only as an undertaking to make a transaction. Registration alone makes the buyer the owner, and for settled land the registration is conclusive evidence of its content.

That is why legal representation in an apartment transaction does not end at signing. Between signing and registration there is a series of approvals and payments, and during that period what protects the buyer is the cautionary note.

Where is the property registered?

"Tabu" is the common name for the land registers kept by the Land Registration and Settlement of Rights Authority at the Ministry of Justice. Most apartments are registered there, but not all. Many apartments, especially in relatively new buildings or in older neighbourhoods built by public companies, are recorded with the Israel Land Authority or with a housing company, where the route is different. The first step is always a land registry extract and checking which office holds the block.

What are the steps in registering a second-hand apartment?

1. Checking the extract before signing: who the owner is, which mortgages, attachments and notes are registered, and whether the registration matches what is actually being sold.
2. Registering a cautionary note: in favour of the buyer, and if there is a mortgage also in favour of the bank, as close to signing as possible.
3. Reporting to the Tax Authority: the seller's and buyer's declarations, payment of purchase tax and settling capital gains tax. A sale will not be registered without the Tax Authority's approval.
4. The local authority certificate: the municipal certificate for the Land Registry, which confirms among other things that there is no municipal tax debt and that any betterment levy has been paid or secured.
5. Discharging the seller's mortgage: payment according to the seller's bank's letter of intent and deletion of the charge.
6. Sale deed and application for registration: the sale deed is signed and verified by a lawyer, and the application to register the sale is filed with all the approvals, online or at the registry office.
7. Registering the buyer's mortgage and a final extract: after registration, order an up-to-date extract and check that ownership is registered in the buyers' names in the correct shares and that the new mortgage is registered as required.

And when buying from a developer?

In a new building, the apartment is registered in the buyer's name only after the whole building is registered in the condominium register. The developer leads this process, and it sometimes takes a long time after handover. Until then, the buyer's rights are protected by a cautionary note registered on the parcel. In the agreement with the developer it is important to set a date for registering the condominium and transferring ownership, and what happens if it is not met.

Land registration fees for 2026

In 2026 registering a sale costs ₪44, registering a mortgage ₪188, registering a cautionary note ₪188 and an online extract ₪18. These are the 2026 fees under the Schedule to the Land Regulations (Fees). Purchase tax is not a fee and is paid separately to the Tax Authority.

• Updates: the fees change on 1 January each year according to the change in the consumer price index and are rounded to the nearest shekel. We update this table at the start of each year.
• Discounts and exemptions: the regulations include exemptions for certain groups and a temporary provision for a discount on certain online actions. The binding amount is the one shown at payment.
• Who pays: the mortgage registration fee is paid by the mortgagor; the fee for registering another transaction is paid by the person in whose name the right is registered; and any other service is paid for by the person requesting it.

To estimate all the additional costs of buying, beyond the fees, you can use the additional costs calculator.

How and where is the fee paid?

The fees are paid on the government payments website, as part of filing the online application for the relevant service. These are the main services of the Land Registration and Settlement of Rights Authority (in Hebrew):

• Application to register a sale: registering the transfer of ownership to the buyer.
• Application to register or cancel a cautionary note.
• Producing a land registry extract: an online extract, including an extract with an apostille.
• Application for an inheritance order: a combined application for an inheritance order and registration of the inheritance can be filed.
• Tabu-Net: signing up for alerts on activity in the property.

The Authority's call centre: *8653, extension 7 and then extension 1, Sunday to Thursday, 08:00 to 16:00.

Which mistakes should you know about?

• Relying on an old extract. An extract is correct only as of the day it was produced. Check an up-to-date extract before signing and before every significant payment.
• Paying before the note is registered. The first significant payment should be made against registration of the cautionary note, not before it.
• Forgetting the betterment levy. Without confirmation that it has been paid, the municipal certificate will not be issued and registration will stall. See Betterment levy: what it is and how it is calculated.
• Not checking the extract after registration. An error in a name, a share or a sub-parcel is easier to correct immediately than years later.
• Paying private websites for an extract. The extract is available directly on the government website, for the fee.

What does the law say?

A real estate transaction requires registration and is completed by registration; until then it is an undertaking to make a transaction (section 7 of the Land Law). The fees are set in the Land Regulations (Fees), 5735-1974, and change on 1 January each year.

• Completion of the transaction: a real estate transaction requires registration, and a transaction not completed by registration is treated as an undertaking to make a transaction (section 7 of the Land Law, Hebrew).
• Force of registration: for settled land, registration is conclusive evidence of its content (section 125).
• Tax approval: a sale of a right in land will not be registered without the approval of the Land Taxation director (section 16 of the Land Taxation Law).
• Betterment levy: an act that is a realization of rights will not be registered without a certificate that the levy has been paid or secured (section 10 of the Third Schedule to the Planning and Building Law).
• Fees: the Schedule to the Land Regulations (Fees); annual update under regulation 2; liability for payment under regulation 21.

Sources

• Land Law, 5729-1969: section 7, section 125. Hebrew.
• Land Regulations (Fees), 5735-1974: regulation 2, regulation 21 and the Schedule, as updated for 2026. Hebrew.
• Land Taxation (Capital Gains and Acquisition) Law, 5723-1963: section 16. Hebrew.
• Planning and Building Law, 5725-1965: Third Schedule, section 10. Hebrew.
• Land Registration and Settlement of Rights Authority: application to register a sale, producing a land registry extract (Hebrew).

The fees and legislation were checked on 14 November 2026. The fees are updated at the start of each year.