Palestinian-territories regime

IL-BTH-02 is not an acquisition pathway but a RESTRICTIVE lex-specialis overlay: the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law (Temporary Order / הוראת שעה), 5782-2022. Per VC-13b it is a TEMPORARY ORDER — time-limited de jure but indefinitely extendable — NOT a 'permanent enactment.' Its §3 bars the Minister of the Interior, notwithstanding Citizenship Law §7, from granting Israeli citizenship or a residence permit to a resident of the Area (West Bank / Gaza, יו"ש/עזה) or to a national/resident of a Schedule (תוספת) state (Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq) (as enacted 2022-03-10). It re-enacts the lapsed Temporary Order 5763-2003, which had been renewed roughly 21 times before LAPSING on 2021-07-06 on a 59-59 tie. The regime overrides BOTH the Law of Return §4A non-Jewish-family extension (IL-HIS-02) and the §7 spousal-naturalization route (IL-MAR-01) where the relative/spouse is a Palestinian-territory resident or enemy-state national (in force 2022-03-15). It is politically charged and constitutionally contested; full 3-tier is mandatory. As of 2026-06-03 the merits challenge (order nisi 2024-07-09) is PENDING.

This regime defines who is BARRED, not who qualifies. The §3 categorical bar reaches (as of 2026-06-03): (1) a resident of the Area — the West Bank or Gaza (תושב אזור = יו"ש/עזה); and (2) a national or resident of a state listed in the Schedule (תוספת) — Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq. For barred persons, the only relief channels are narrow: (a) a §4 renewable STAY PERMIT (היתר שהייה — NOT residence status, never ripening into permanent residence or citizenship while the Order is in force) for a male Area-resident over 35 or a female Area-resident over 25, to prevent separation from a spouse lawfully in Israel; and (b) a §7 humanitarian-committee exception, which itself CANNOT grant permanent residence or citizenship. A §11 security bar excludes any applicant whom the Minister/Area-Commander, on a security-agency opinion, finds (or whose family member is found) to be a security risk. The §11a amendment of 2025-05-09 sweepingly broadened denial/revocation where a family member is linked to security issues, without individualized review, and added a 10-year bar for illegal presence. Note per VC-13b: this §11a is the C&E-Law family section, NOT base Citizenship Law §11.

Documents for the residual §4 stay-permit / §7 humanitarian channels (as of 2026-06-03; preserve Hebrew): a passport valid at least 2 years; the applicable PIBA application form for the Temporary-Order track; proof of the qualifying family relationship (תעודת נישואין / civil certificates) to the spouse or relative lawfully in Israel; the in-Israel relative's status documents (תעודת זהות); residence/center-of-life evidence (חוזה שכירות, חשבונות, אישור רשות מקומית); and, for the §7 humanitarian channel, documentary support of the asserted special humanitarian circumstances. Foreign public documents require apostille (Israel acceded to the Hague Apostille Convention; in force for Israel 1978-08-14) or consular authentication, with certified Hebrew translation by an Israeli notary under the Notaries Law 5736-1976 where the document is not in Hebrew. The bare existence of a spouse/children is NOT itself a sufficient humanitarian document set — the committee requires evidence of special circumstances.

Operational path for a barred-category applicant seeking relief (as of 2026-06-03): the ordinary §7 marriage/family-unification graduated 'spouse track' (PIBA Procedure 5.2.0008) is UNAVAILABLE to a Palestinian-Territory spouse because §3 bars status. Two residual channels run through PIBA (רשות האוכלוסין וההגירה). (A) §4 STAY-PERMIT route: where the Area-resident spouse meets the age threshold (male over 35 / female over 25), the Minister may authorize the Area Commander to grant a renewable היתר שהייה — submit in person at the PIBA bureau by place of residence with passport, the applicable form, and supporting + residence documents (first appointment = submission, second = interview). (B) §7 HUMANITARIAN route: submit to the PIBA bureau, with referral to the Humanitarian Desk Head and the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Humanitarian Affairs, which convenes roughly monthly (composition: Interior, Health, Welfare, Foreign Affairs, Police, plus Nativ); a dedicated sub-committee handles domestic-violence/abuse cases. The Minister must issue a written, reasoned decision within 6 MONTHS of submission of all required documents (3 MONTHS for the dedicated DV committee). Security vetting (§11) applies throughout.

Primary instrument: the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law (TEMPORARY ORDER / הוראת שעה), 5782-2022, enacted 2022-03-10 by a 45-15 vote and published in Sefer HaChukim No. 2968 p. 808 on 2022-03-15. §3 bars the Minister of the Interior — notwithstanding Citizenship Law §7 — from granting citizenship or a residence permit to an Area resident or a Schedule-state (Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq) national/resident; §4 spousal stay-permit age thresholds (male over 35 / female over 25); §7 humanitarian-committee exception; §10 2-year temporary-licence cap; §11 security bar. It re-enacts the lapsed Temporary Order (Temporary Provision) 5763-2003 (enacted 2003-07-31; lapsed 2021-07-06 on a 59-59 tie). The §11a amendment passed 2025-05-09 broadens status denial/revocation tied to a relative's security involvement and adds a 10-year illegal-presence bar. Per VC-13b PRECISION: title is הוראת שעה (Temporary Order), NOT a permanent enactment; and per VC-13b, §11a here is the C&E-Law family-unification section — NOT §11 or §11A of the base Citizenship Law 5712-1952. The regime sits atop the Entry into Israel Law 5712-1952 base framework but is a distinct, time-limited statute (contextual).

Deciding authority (as of 2026-06-03): the Minister of the Interior (שר הפנים) is the statutory decision-maker under §3/§4/§7, exercised operationally through PIBA (רשות האוכלוסין וההגירה) and its Inter-Ministerial Committee for Humanitarian Affairs; under §4 the Area Commander grants the stay permit on the Minister's authorization. PIBA is the operational arm of the Ministry of the Interior, established 2008; it executes ministerial policy and runs Shin Bet security vetting but holds no independent statutory decision power. The drafters of the 2022 re-enactment were Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked and MK Simcha Rothman. The regime is constitutional/declaratory in character at the apex level — its proportionality is governed by the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty §8 limitation clause, the framework under which it has twice survived constitutional challenge.

Appeal chain against a PIBA refusal under the Temporary Order (as of 2026-06-03): (1) internal administrative appeal (ערר פנימי) under PIBA Procedure 1.6.0001, filed in writing within ~21 days of the decision, once; (2) the Appeals Tribunal (בית הדין לעררים) under the Entry into Israel Law §13כג, competent since 2014-06-01 over PIBA decisions on entry, residence and Schedule citizenship matters; (3) administrative petition to the District Court sitting as the Court for Administrative Affairs (בית המשפט המחוזי בשבתו כבית משפט לעניינים מינהליים); (4) the Supreme Court as Court of Appeals in Administrative Matters. CONSTITUTIONAL challenges to the Order itself go directly to the High Court of Justice (בג"ץ) — the venue of Adalah (2006), Gal-On (2012), and the pending HCJ 1777/22. A tertiary source asserting Family Court jurisdiction over citizenship/status appeals is ERRONEOUS — citizenship/status review is an administrative-law matter.

Q: Is this a way to GET Israeli citizenship? A: No — it is a RESTRICTIVE bar that blocks citizenship/residence status for Palestinian-territory residents and Iran/Lebanon/Syria/Iraq nationals/residents (as of 2026-06-03). Q: Is the 2022 Law permanent? A: No — it is a Temporary Order (הוראת שעה), time-limited but indefinitely extendable (VC-13b). Q: Did the Supreme Court ever strike it down? A: No — it was UPHELD twice 6-5 (Adalah 2006, Gal-On 2012-01-11); a third challenge is pending. Q: Can a barred spouse ever live with their Israeli partner? A: Possibly via a §4 stay permit (היתר שהייה, male over 35 / female over 25) or a §7 humanitarian licence — but never automatically, and neither ripens into permanent residence or citizenship while the Order is in force. Q: Does marriage to an Israeli override the bar? A: No — §3 applies 'notwithstanding Citizenship Law §7,' so the marriage-based route (IL-MAR-01) is overridden for barred categories. Q: Which states are on the Schedule? A: Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq. Q: Is a child born in Israel to an Israeli-citizen parent affected? A: No — that is the separate ex-lege §4(a)(1) route (IL-BTH-01) and is not a family-unification grant under this Order (contextual).