Mas rechisha 2026: Israel purchase tax brackets and worked examples
Purchase tax is the first cost of buying in Israel, and the one that varies most with who you are: 0% for a resident buying their only home at ₪1.9M, 8% from the first shekel for a non-resident, 0.5% for a new immigrant (oleh). The brackets are frozen until January 2028. This guide gives the schedule, the status rules and three full calculations.
The short answer
Mas rechisha (purchase tax) is paid by the buyer within 60 days of signing. In 2026, a resident buying their only home pays 0% up to ₪1,978,745, then 3.5% up to ₪2,347,040, 5% up to ₪6,055,070, 8% up to ₪20,183,565 and 10% above. An investor or a non-resident pays 8% from the first shekel up to ₪6,055,070, 10% above. A new immigrant (oleh) pays 0% up to ₪1,978,745 then 0.5% up to ₪6,055,070. The thresholds are frozen until 15 January 2028. There is no equivalent of the US transfer tax split or the UK stamp duty surcharge: one tax, one payer, three schedules.
The figures to remember, November 2026
- Only home, 0% bracket
- ≤ ₪1.98M
- Non-resident / investor
- 8 → 10%
- Oleh, only home
- 0 → 0.5%
- Filing / payment
- 30 / 60 days
- Sale of the previous home
- 18 months
- Thresholds frozen until
- 15/01/2028
What mas rechisha is
Mas rechisha is Israel’s tax on acquiring a right in real estate: apartment, house, land, but also shares in a company that holds property. It is owed by the buyer, calculated on the contract price (or on market value if the Tax Authority considers the price understated, for instance between relatives), and paid once. It is the closest thing to stamp duty (UK), land transfer tax (Ontario, British Columbia) or stamp duty (Australia), but at a much higher rate for anyone who is not a resident buying their only home. Do not confuse it with mas shevach (capital gains tax, paid by the seller) or arnona (the annual municipal property tax).
The amount turns on two questions: is the buyer an Israeli resident? and will the property be their only home in Israel? The answers decide which of the three schedules applies: only home (progressive, favourable), additional home (8% then 10%, which also applies to non-residents), or oleh (near zero). The schedule is set by the Real Estate Taxation Law (hok misui mekarkein) and its regulations, and the thresholds are in principle indexed every 16 January.
The 2026 brackets
| Price bracket (₪) | Only home, resident | Additional home, investor, non-resident | New immigrant (oleh), only home |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 – 1,978,745 | 0% | 8% | 0% |
| 1,978,745 – 2,347,040 | 3.5% | 8% | 0.5% |
| 2,347,040 – 6,055,070 | 5% | 8% | 0.5% |
| 6,055,070 – 20,183,565 | 8% | 10% | 8% |
| Above 20,183,565 | 10% | 10% | 10% |
Two practical consequences. For a resident, the tax stays low up to ₪6M: ₪12,890 at ₪2.35M, ₪45,538 at ₪3M, ₪120,538 at ₪4.5M. For everyone else, it is a flat 8%: ₪240,000 at ₪3M, ₪360,000 at ₪4.5M. The gap between the two statuses exceeds ₪190,000 (about $53,000) from ₪3M, which is why the question of residency and aliyah is settled before signing, not after.
Who counts as a "resident" for purchase tax
The favourable schedule is reserved for a toshav Israel (resident of Israel) in the tax sense: a person whose centre of life is in Israel, judged on a cluster of indicators (home, family, work, days of presence). The presumption kicks in at 183 days of presence in the year, or 30 days in the year and 425 days cumulated over three years. Citizenship does not count: an Israeli citizen who has lived in Brooklyn for ten years is a non-resident; an American settled in Tel Aviv for two years on a work visa is a resident. A US passport, a UK passport or dual nationality changes nothing either way.
The law adds a bridge: a non-resident buyer who becomes a resident within two years of the purchase can ask to be taxed as a resident on that property, if it is their only home. The return is first filed under the "additional home" schedule, then an amendment request is lodged with proof of residency (teudat zehut, teudat oleh, children enrolled at school, employment…). The overpayment is refunded with interest and indexation. In practice, this is the route followed by families who buy a year before their aliyah or their move.
The "only home" (dira yechida)
The property must be, at the time of purchase, the buyer’s only home in Israel. Owning a share of another home does not disqualify you if that share is under one third, or if it is an inherited property held at under 50%. A property abroad does not count: your house in Teaneck, Hendon or Thornhill is irrelevant. Nor do land, a shop or an office.
The most frequent case is the buyer who replaces their home: they buy the new one before selling the old one. The law treats them as an only-home buyer provided the old property is sold within 18 months of buying the new one. If the new one is bought off-plan, the deadline runs until 24 months after actual delivery (or the contractual delivery date if later). The buyer files at the reduced rate with an undertaking to sell; if the deadline passes, the Tax Authority claims the difference with interest and indexation from the purchase date, and may add a penalty.
The 18-month deadline is applied strictly. A signed memorandum that has not closed is not enough: what counts is the date of the sale (signed sale contract). In a slow market, leave a margin, or ask your lawyer about an extension for exceptional circumstances, granted case by case.
Mixed couples and joint purchases
The Tax Authority looks at the family unit (ta meshutaf): spouses and their children under 18 are treated as a single buyer. Three situations come up often.
- One resident spouse, one non-resident, joint purchase of the couple’s only home. The "only home" schedule generally applies to the whole property, because the family unit is deemed resident as soon as one spouse is and the couple’s centre of life is in Israel. If the couple lives abroad and only one of them has kept Israeli tax residency, the Tax Authority can split: half under the resident schedule, half at 8%.
- One spouse already owns a home acquired before the marriage. The home bought together is not the family unit’s "only home": 8% on the whole, unless you can show an effective separation of property (prenuptial agreement, separate accounts) and have each half taxed on its owner’s status. A classic source of disputes.
- Buying with a parent or an adult child. Each buyer is taxed on their share according to their own status: a non-resident parent taking 30% of the property pays 8% on that 30%, the resident child pays the progressive schedule on their 70%. Common among American parents helping a child who has made aliyah.
Olim: the regime in force since 15 August 2024
Until August 2024, an oleh had a specific schedule (0.5% then 5%) that applied even to an additional home, but with a low first-bracket threshold, which often made it less attractive than the ordinary "only home" schedule. The reform of 15 August 2024 replaced that system with a reduced only-home schedule: 0% up to ₪1,978,745, then 0.5% up to ₪6,055,070, then the ordinary 8% and 10% brackets.
| Condition | Detail |
|---|---|
| Status | Oleh hadash under the Law of Return, or an assimilated returning resident in some cases (toshav hozer vatik, after 10 years abroad). |
| Window | Purchase between one year before and seven years after the aliyah date shown on the teudat oleh. A contract signed before aliyah is therefore covered if aliyah takes place within twelve months. |
| Property | A residential home that will be the oleh’s only home in Israel, in which they live. The replacement rules (sale of the old home within 18 months) apply. |
| Frequency | Once only (one home; a business premises could also benefit under the old regime, no longer under the new one). |
| Couple | It is enough for one spouse to be an oleh for the schedule to apply to the joint home, if the couple has no other home. |
On a ₪3M apartment, the oleh pays ₪5,106: ₪0 on the first bracket, 0.5% on ₪1,021,255. An ordinary resident pays ₪45,538 and a non-resident ₪240,000. For a family weighing up buying now as a non-resident or in a year at the time of aliyah, the difference is around ₪235,000 (about $65,000) at that price. The other effects of aliyah on the purchase (75% mortgage, timelines) are detailed in buying as a new immigrant, and the lending conditions in mortgage for new olim.
Non-residents: 8% from the first shekel
A buyer who lives abroad, Israeli or not, falls under the "additional home" schedule: 8% up to ₪6,055,070, 10% above, however many properties they own in Israel. There is no exemption tied to nationality, religion, Jewish ancestry or an aliyah plan that has not been acted on (see can an American buy property in Israel). The short version of this schedule is in purchase tax in Israel for foreigners. The only two exits are the ones described above: becoming a resident within two years (reclassification and refund) or making aliyah within twelve months of the purchase (oleh schedule).
For a non-resident, the tax weighs heavily on the budget: ₪144,000 on a 3-room apartment at ₪1.8M in Ashdod, ₪224,000 on a 4-room at ₪2.8M in Netanya, ₪367,200 on an apartment at ₪4.59M, the average price in Tel Aviv. It is due 60 days after signing, often before the mortgage is funded: plan the cash. The full cost picture for a buyer abroad is in buying from abroad and the financing in mortgages for non-residents.
Off-plan, swaps, gifts: the special cases
- Off-plan purchase. The tax is calculated on the total contract price, future indexation excluded, and it is due within 60 days of signing with the developer, not at delivery. If you are replacing a home, the deadline for selling the old one runs until 24 months after delivery. The price used includes a parking space and storage room bought in the same contract; options and extras signed later are declared in a supplementary return. The rest of the mechanism (guarantees, indexation, payment schedule) is in buying off-plan from a developer, and the new-build versus resale tax comparison in new-build or second-hand.
- Gift between relatives. A gift with no consideration between parents and children, grandparents and grandchildren, spouses, siblings (under conditions) is taxed at one third of the normal mas rechisha, calculated on market value. Between spouses living in the home, the exemption is total.
- Inheritance. No mas rechisha. But the inherited home counts for the "only home" test on a later purchase, unless the heir holds less than 50% of it.
- Swap or partition between co-owners. Dividing a jointly held property between its owners without equalising payment is not taxed; the equalising payment is.
- Pinui-binui and TAMA 38. The new apartment received by an owner in exchange for their old one is exempt up to the floor area set by law; a buyer purchasing a new apartment in the project is taxed normally.
- Building land: 6% (5% if the permit is obtained within 24 months); commercial premises: 6%.
Calculate your tax
Enter the price and your status: the calculator applies the 16 January 2025 schedule and shows the breakdown by bracket. The full version, with the replacement-home cases, is on the purchase tax calculator page.
Breakdown by bracket
| Bracket | Rate | Tax |
|---|
Brackets of 16 January 2025, frozen until 15 January 2028 (Arrangements Law). A non-resident is taxed as an additional-home buyer unless they become an Israeli resident within two years of the purchase. Payment is due within 60 days of signing.
Three worked examples
| 0% on ₪1,978,745 | ₪0 |
| 3.5% on ₪121,255 (from 1,978,745 to 2,100,000) | ₪4,244 |
| Mas rechisha | ₪4,244 (0.2% of the price) |
| The same property for a non-resident | ₪168,000 |
| 0% on ₪1,978,745 | ₪0 |
| 0.5% on ₪1,521,255 (from 1,978,745 to 3,500,000) | ₪7,606 |
| Mas rechisha, oleh | ₪7,606 (0.2% of the price) |
| If aliyah does not happen within 12 months: non-resident schedule | ₪280,000 |
| Saving tied to aliyah | ₪272,394 |
| 8% on ₪6,055,070 | ₪484,406 |
| 10% on ₪944,930 (from 6,055,070 to 7,000,000) | ₪94,493 |
| Mas rechisha | ₪578,899 (8.3% of the price) |
| If it were their only home (sale of the old one within 18 months) | ₪273,886, i.e. ₪305,013 less |
The third example shows why an owner moving home is better off selling the old one within the 18-month deadline than keeping it as a rental: at that price level, the tax difference represents several years of net rent.
Procedure, deadlines, appeals
- Return within 30 days. The buyer’s lawyer files the hatsharat rechisha online on the Tax Authority system, with the contract, the declared status and, where relevant, the undertaking to sell the previous home. The seller files their mas shevach return in parallel.
- Self-assessment. The buyer computes the tax themselves (shuma atsmit). The Tax Authority issues a payment notice within days.
- Payment within 60 days of signing the contract: online, by wire or through the Israeli bank. Past that deadline, interest of 4% a year and CPI indexation, and no payment certificate.
- Certificate (ishur mas rechisha). Issued after payment, it is required to register the transfer at the Tabu. Without it, you remain legally protected by the hearat azhara (caution note) but are not yet the registered owner.
- Review. The Tax Authority has 8 months to accept the self-assessment or issue an assessment (shuma) if it disputes the status or the value. It can also reopen the file within 4 years if an undertaking is not met (sale of the old property, residency within two years).
- Appeals. Hasaga (written objection) within 30 days of the assessment, decision within a year; then appeal to the appeals committee (vaadat irur) within 30 days of the decision, and appeal on points of law to the Supreme Court.
A buyer abroad signs the return under a power of attorney; it is one of the acts that must be listed in it expressly. The lawyer’s full role is described in the real estate lawyer in Israel, and the purchase steps in how to buy property in Israel.
What changes in 2027, and in 2028
Nothing in 2027: the Arrangements Law 2025-2026 froze the indexation of the thresholds until 15 January 2028. The brackets of 16 January 2025 therefore apply to contracts signed in 2026 and 2027. The freeze is a silent tax rise: with inflation at 1.6% over one year, a ₪2M property that would have sat entirely in the 0% bracket after indexation is taxed at 3.5% on the slice above ₪1,978,745.
On 16 January 2028, unless a new provision intervenes, indexation to the consumer price index resumes. The oleh schedule itself (0.5%) is a temporary measure for purchases up to 15 January 2028; its extension will be decided in the 2027-2028 budget. Buyers planning aliyah in 2028 or later should treat the benefit as not guaranteed. The 8% rate on additional homes, raised in 2021 and made permanent in 2024, has no end date. For the wider tax picture (income tax, the aliyah tax holiday, treaties with the US, the UK and Canada), see Shekel Guide.
Frequently asked questions
Who pays mas rechisha, the buyer or the seller?
The buyer, always. The seller pays mas shevach (capital gains tax) and, where applicable, hetel hashbaha (the municipal betterment levy). A contract clause can shift the burden between the parties, but the Tax Authority still looks to the buyer.
Does a foreigner always pay 8%?
Yes at the time of purchase: a non-resident is taxed as for an additional home, 8% up to ₪6,055,070 then 10%. But if they become an Israeli resident within two years of the purchase and it is their only home, they can apply to be reclassified under the "only home" schedule and get the overpayment refunded with interest and indexation.
I am buying before I have sold my previous apartment: which schedule?
The "only home" schedule, provided you sell the previous one within 18 months of buying the new one (24 months after delivery if the new one is bought off-plan). You file at the reduced rate with an undertaking to sell; if the deadline passes, the difference is claimed with interest and indexation from the purchase date.
Do olim still get a benefit in 2026?
Yes, and it is broader than before. Since 15 August 2024, an oleh buying their only home between one year before and seven years after aliyah pays 0% up to ₪1,978,745 then 0.5% up to ₪6,055,070. On ₪3M, that is ₪5,106 instead of ₪45,538 for an ordinary resident and ₪240,000 for a non-resident. Above ₪6,055,070, the 8% and 10% brackets apply.
When do I have to pay?
The return (hatsharat rechisha) must be filed online within 30 days of signing the contract, and the tax paid within 60 days. After that, interest of 4% a year plus CPI indexation is added, and the certificate needed for registration at the Tabu is not issued.
Can the amount be challenged?
Yes. If the Tax Authority rejects the declared status, it issues an assessment (shuma) that can be contested by a hasaga (objection) within 30 days, then by an appeal to the appeals committee within a further 30 days. Disputes most often concern residency, the only-home test and the value used for a gift or a sale between relatives.
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
- Israel Tax Authority – purchase tax (mas rechisha) brackets, thresholds in force since 16 January 2025
- Arrangements Law 2025-2026 – freeze on indexation of purchase tax thresholds until 15 January 2028
- Purchase Tax Regulations – amendment of 15 August 2024 on new immigrants (olim)
- Kol Zchut – purchase tax: only home, sale deadlines, new immigrants
Your status, checked before you sign
Resident or not, only home or not, oleh, mixed couple, previous home still on the market: an English-speaking tax lawyer determines your bracket and prepares the return. Describe your situation in two lines.