Last updated: October, 5, 2021
After Registration
It can take up to eight weeks for applications to be processed and for acceptance letters to arrive in the mail. Upon acceptance, visa holders are recognized as members retroactively for up to one year of their visa. They must pay Bituach Leumi membership dues for that time (see “Paying” below) and notify their kupat cholim of their change in status. They are also eligible for a refund on kupat cholim and medical expenses that were incurred during their waiting period. Children who are registered within a few months after birth will be recognized as members retroactively since their birth.
Registering for Kupat Cholim through Bituach Leumi
If you were paying for kupat cholim membership before joining Bituach Leumi, you must re-register as a Bituach Leumi member to complete your coverage and stop paying privately.
Adult members should appear in person at any post office. Present your passports and Bituach Leumi acceptance letters, and pay about 16 NIS for kupat cholim registration. You can bring along your large retroactive Bituach Leumi bill to pay at the same time.
Your new kupat cholim account number will be identical to your Bituach Leumi number.
Make sure to visit your kupat cholim clinic and have them close your old account to avoid double paying. Also confirm that your past medical history has been merged into your new account.
You should receive new kupat cholim cards in the mail within a few weeks.
Reimbursement for Kupat Cholim & Medical Expenses
If you are a foreign citizen and have been accepted as a member of Bituach Leumi, you should be entitled to reimbursement from Bituach Leumi for expenses incurred during your waiting period (this is generally up to one year prior to registration, depending on how long you held residency in Eretz Yisrael). Keep all your receipts of medical expenses incurred during this time.
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After Registration
You will probably be contacted by email with confirmation of your acceptance and your new ID number which will begin with 77. Your kupat cholim will automatically be updated. Contact them to be sure they merge your old account with the new one. You should receive new kupat cholim cards bearing your 77 numbers in the mail within a few weeks.
Upon acceptance, visa holders are recognized as members retroactively for the time they held their student visas, with a maximum of one year. They must pay Bituach Leumi membership dues for that time (see “Paying” below) and be sure their kupat cholim updates their accounts. They may also be eligible for a refund on kupat cholim and medical expenses that were incurred during their waiting period. Children who are registered within a few months after birth will be recognized as members retroactively since their birth.
Reimbursement for Kupat Cholim & Medical Expenses
If you are a foreign citizen and have been accepted as a member of Bituach Leumi, you may be entitled to reimbursement from Bituach Leumi for expenses incurred during your waiting period (this is generally up to one year prior to registration, depending on how long you held residency in Eretz Yisrael). Keep all your receipts of medical expenses incurred during this time.
During the waiting period between getting your visa and being eligible for Bituach Leumi, you are not insured. If you have a private insurance plan in your country of origin it is advisable to keep it for those months. You may choose to sign up for kupat cholim and pay privately for the time being. However, kupot cholim are not complete insurance plans; they cover only certain medical services. Any hospitalization or emergency room care that is pregnancy-related is not covered by kupat cholim without Bituach Leumi. Ask your kupat cholim which hospital services they do cover for uninsured members. Bituach Leumi will reimburse you for basic kupat cholim premiums that were paid for the head of the family during the waiting period. Supplementary insurance fees, such as Meuhedet Adif or Maccabi Sheli, are not included. They will also reimburse certain medical expenses that were incurred during that time.
· Refund of kupat cholim payments is processed by a separate office under the auspices of Bituach Leumi. Write a letter that explains that you have been recognized as a Bituach Leumi member retroactively and are now eligible for reimbursement for kupat cholim payments. Include your name, address, Bituach Leumi number beginning with 77, and your bank account information, and attach receipts of your kupat cholim payments. (Make a copy of the receipts for your records.) Additionally, attach proof of your bank account, such as a void check, a bank statement, or a letter from your bank titled ishur nihul cheshbon.
A sample letter is available through Chaim V’Chessed.
Currently, the office requests that you mail in your letter, receipts, and proof of bank account:
שדרות ויצמן 13, ירושלים 91909
It can take as long as six months to receive the refund. You can follow up with the office at 02-670-9502 (though they are difficult to reach).
· Refunds of select medical expenses are processed through the Ministry of Health. Applications for refunds of medical expenses may be submitted online using the electronic tool on the gov.il website. Alternatively, you may print and fill out the form by hand, then submit with the required attachments by mail or by fax. Be aware that claims generally take about four months to be processed and reimbursed, due to the fact that several offices are involved in making the decision for each case.
If more than one family member incurred expenses that need reimbursement, a separate form should be submitted for each. For more information on the process, visit the gov.il website.
You will need:
(a) A letter that includes your personal information (name, passport number, Bituach Leumi number, contact number) and your request in detail.
(b) All possible supporting documents, including hospital receipts and official lists of exactly which medical services were provided.
(c) A copy of your Bituach Leumi acceptance letter that explicitly states that you are recognized as a Toshav Yisrael from a certain date. This should be uploaded on the final page of the form, where there is an option to add an extra document to your package.
Once you submit your completed form, you will receive an email confirmation that your application was received.
You are also required to mail originals of the receipts you upload to the office.
Mail: משרד הבריאות – נציבות קבילות לחוק ביטוח לאומי,
39 Yirmiyahu Street, Jerusalem
For follow-up inquiries regarding your claim:
Phone: *5400 ext. 5 · Email: kvilot@moh.health.gov.il · Fax: 02-5655981
Accessing Your Account Information
To create an online account for Bituach Leumi follow the instructions here.
Israeli citizens may open an account using their mispar zehut.
If you are a foreigner, and do not possess a mispar zehut, you may create an online account using your Bituach Leumi number instead of a mispar zehut. In lieu of תאריך הנפקת תעודת הזהות, use the date of issue of your most recent visa.
We strongly recommend that all adult family members have their own four-digit phone access code, called a kod ishi, as well as an online username and password. With a kod ishi, you can use self-serve kiosks in the Bituach Leumi office or in the Iriyah to print out various certifications. With an online account, you can directly and securely upload documents and applications, view your resident status, check on various payments and more.
Paying Bituach Leumi
How Much Does Bituach Leumi Cost?
Bituach Leumi premiums vary by individual. Many factors are taken into consideration, including income level, age, Oleh status, and which benefits members receive.
In general, employed adults have Bituach Leumi deducted automatically from their salaries. If both spouses work, the one with the higher income pays Bituach Leumi for the entire family. The student rate for Bituach Leumi is only 128 NIS for a student’s entire family. If the wife of a student works, she will have Bituach Leumi fees deducted from her salary in addition to her husband’s student fee. Unemployed members pay approximately 175 NIS per month.
When a child turns 18, separate payments must be made depending on the child’s personal status. Foreign citizens must update Bituach Leumi with the child’s new adult visa and set up a payment plan via their local Bituach Leumi branch.
How Do I Pay?
When you are first accepted to Bituach Leumi, you will receive a large bill for up to a year retroactively, depending on when your waiting period began. You may pay that bill in any of the ways listed below. After that, your payment schedule will become regular.
At the start of each year, you will receive a Bituach Leumi bill in the mail. The bill is divided into four, each part covering a period of three months. To pay your quarterly bills, choose one of these options:
1. Bring the bills on time to any bank or post office and pay with cash, check or credit card. Some post offices only accept Israeli credit cards.
2. Pay each one by credit card over the phone at *6050. To pay by phone, you will need a PIN code (kod ishi), which can be ordered online, by phone, or at the Bituach Leumi office.
3. Set up an automatic payment plan, called hora’at keva. If you do, you will not receive a bill.
4. Pay your bill online at the Bituach Leumi payment page. Select which payment category you fall under. Note that there is a special category for yeshiva students.
Make sure to pay each quarterly installment by its due date. A delayed payment will result in a reminder in the mail plus interest fees. It may also be subtracted from other benefits, like kitzvat yeladim (child allowance) or dmei leidah (maternity leave). Bituach Leumi payments must be up-to-date in order to register newborn children and receive compensation for a birth. If you did not receive your yearly bill, contact Bituach Leumi so that they do not penalize you for delayed payment.
Visa Expiration & Bituach Leumi
Your visa is your ticket to being recognized as a legal resident of Israel. When your visa expires, you lose your rights to all the benefits that come along with being a resident of Israel – including Bituach Leumi.
When your visa, or one of your children’s visas, nears expiration, you will probably get a warning letter from Bituach Leumi saying that your membership will be suspended shortly. Even if the letter does not come, though, Bituach Leumi benefits – both health insurance and monetary grants – will be cut off soon after visa expiration. After a short grace period, access to kupat cholim services is also cut off.
As difficult as it may be, stay on top of your family’s visas. Visas can be renewed around two months before they expire. Don’t wait until the last minute! Most children’s passports, and therefore visas, last for a maximum of five years. Their passports must be renewed early enough to allow for time to get a new visa before – or soon after – the first one expires. Without a new visa, they will be without health insurance.
After renewing your visas, you must update Bituach Leumi. They will not be notified automatically. Make a copy of each new visa and label each one with the corresponding Bituach Leumi 77 number. Leave these copies in the mailbox outside the Bituach Leumi office located on Rechov Shimon Ben Shetach.
Alternatively, you can submit it online from the העלאת מסמכים section of your online account.
To submit online, choose:
נושא: ביטוח וגבייה
קטגורייה: פרטים אישיים
מסמך: מסמכים מזהים
In either event, be sure to follow up with a query (פנייה) from your online account, to ensure that it was received and updated.
To create an online account for Bituach Leumi follow the instructions here.
If you are a foreigner, and do not possess a mispar zehut, you may create an online account using your Bituach Leumi number instead of a mispar zehut. In lieu of תאריך הנפקת תעודת הזהות, use the date of issue of your most recent visa.
If it has been a significant amount of time since your visas expired, you may be required to send dapei knisot v’yetziot to Bituach Leumi in addition to your renewed visas.