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Registering children, and choosing a school

Family and schools

School registration, and the transliteration mismatches between passports and Israeli records that quietly follow a child for years. Get the spelling right once, at the start.

The fees in this area

Every fee, on your own dates

The steps in this domain (1)

  • 1

    Register your children for gan or school

    Registration runs through your municipality on a fixed annual window that can close months before the September start, and the school your child gets depends on your address and the stream.

Resources (9)

Guide6

  • Registering your children for school

    The registration window, the exam fee, when placement letters arrive, and the rule that every city must place your child somewhere. The Haredi sector applies directly to schools instead.

    By Nefesh B'Nefesh · checked 2026-07-27

  • The Israeli school streams explained

    The Ministry of Education’s own explainer of State, State-religious, State-Haredi, recognised-unofficial and exempt institutions, plus the extra Hebrew hours allocated to schools with immigrant students.

    By Ministry of Education · checked 2026-07-27

  • Children with special needs

    How the eligibility committee works, what to file and when, and the separate route for adults over 21. Getting the timing wrong can cost a full school year.

    By Nefesh B'Nefesh · checked 2026-07-27

  • Gifted and talented programs (mechunanim)

    Israel screens most children for giftedness around 2nd to 3rd grade. Those identified join either a dedicated gifted class or a weekly pull-out enrichment day, run by the Ministry of Education’s Gifted and Outstanding Students division.

    By Ministry of Education · checked 2026-08-06

  • University admissions: bagrut, psychometric and olim benefits

    Israeli university admission rests on a bagrut (matriculation) average and the Psychometric Entrance Test, a standardised exam in verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning and English, run by NITE and valid for seven years. Olim receive tuition and preparatory benefits through the Ministry of Aliyah’s Student Authority.

    By NITE (National Institute for Testing and Evaluation) · checked 2026-08-06

  • Mechina programs (pre-academic and pre-military)

    A mechina is a preparatory year. A pre-academic mechina (mechina kdam academit) lifts Hebrew, bagrut and study skills to university-entry level, often at reduced or covered cost for olim. A pre-military mechina (mechina kdam tzvait) is a gap-year framework before the army, built around leadership and integration.

    By Ministry of Aliyah and Integration · checked 2026-08-06

Directory1

  • Beineinu: special-needs support directory

    A parent-run directory of services, funding sources and support groups across Israel, the US and Canada, plus parent matching and an equipment exchange.

    By Beineinu · checked 2026-07-27

Organisation2

  • MASA Israel Journey

    The umbrella funding hundreds of programs for diaspora young adults, roughly 18 to 30: gap-year tracks, academic fellowships that can earn college credit, professional and tech training, volunteering, and Dati Leumi / Modern Orthodox yeshiva and midrasha "year in Israel" options. Programs run 1 to 12 months and are heavily subsidised.

    By Masa Israel Journey · checked 2026-08-06

  • Naale Elite Academy (high school in Israel)

    Jointly funded by the Ministry of Education and the Jewish Agency, Naale lets diaspora Jewish teens complete grades 9 to 12 in Israel for free, in a boarding framework, with a strong graduation record. It is designed to lead toward aliyah.

    By Naale Elite Academy (Ministry of Education and the Jewish Agency) · checked 2026-08-06

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