How Much of Israel’s Land Does the State Own? About 70%
The State owns about 70% of Israel’s area and Israel Lands make up about 93%, with the JNF and Development Authority, the State Comptroller stated in 2017.
About 93% of the area of the State of Israel is Israel Lands, the State Comptroller stated in a March 2017 audit report. The report defines Israel Lands as land owned by the State, the Jewish National Fund and the Development Authority together. The State itself owns about 70% of the country’s area on the same report. The Israel Land Authority manages the whole 93% in trust for its three owners.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| About 93% | Share of the area of the State of Israel that is Israel Lands, managed in trust by the Israel Land Authority | Stated in the March 2017 report |
| About 70% | Share of the whole area of the state owned by the State | Same report |
| About 11% | Share owned by the Development Authority, listed separately from the State | Same report |
| About 12% | Share owned by the Jewish National Fund | Same report |
| About 2.5 million dunams | The Jewish National Fund’s land, the area behind its 12% | Same report |
| About one third | Jewish National Fund share of all land in the centre of the country managed by the Authority | Same report |
| About NIS 9.6 billion | Jewish National Fund gross income from its land managed by the Authority | 2011 to 2015 |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, special audit report on the Jewish National Fund’s activities for the development of Israel Lands, March 2017.
About 93% of Israel’s area is Israel Lands, the Comptroller states
The State Comptroller stated in March 2017 that about 93% of the area of the State of Israel is Israel Lands (מקרקעי ישראל). The report defines the term as land owned by three bodies together, so the 93% is a figure for all three owners combined. The Israel Land Authority manages that land in trust, planning, developing and marketing it for the owners.
| Term | What the Comptroller’s report states |
|---|---|
| Israel Lands | Land owned by the State, the Jewish National Fund and the Development Authority together |
| Share of Israel’s area | About 93% |
| Owners | Three: the State, the Development Authority and the Jewish National Fund |
| Manager | The Israel Land Authority, in trust for the owners |
| Manager’s role | Planning, developing and marketing the land |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, March 2017.
The 93% splits into State 70%, Development Authority 11%, JNF 12%
The State owns about 70% of the whole area of the state, the State Comptroller stated in its March 2017 report. The remaining 23 points of Israel Lands belong to two further owners: about 11% to the Development Authority (רשות הפיתוח) and about 12% to the Jewish National Fund. The three shares are the Comptroller’s approximations and sum to the 93% as printed.
| Owner | Share of the state’s area | How the report lists it |
|---|---|---|
| The State | About 70% | Owner in its own right |
| Development Authority | About 11% | A separate owner from the State |
| Jewish National Fund | About 12% | A separate owner from the State |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, March 2017.
Read together, the State owns about 70% of Israel’s area and the Israel Land Authority manages about 93% of it.
The JNF’s 12% is about 2.5 million dunams
The Jewish National Fund’s 12% comes to about 2.5 million dunams, the State Comptroller stated in March 2017. Its weight is greatest in the centre of the country, where about one third of all the land the Authority manages is owned by the Fund. The Fund’s gross income from its land managed by the Authority was about NIS 9.6 billion in 2011 to 2015.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| About 12% | Share of the whole area of the state owned by the Jewish National Fund | Stated in the March 2017 report |
| About 2.5 million dunams | The same holding, in area | Same report |
| About one third | Share of land in the centre of the country, managed by the Authority, that is Fund-owned | Same report |
| About NIS 9.6 billion | Fund gross income from its land managed by the Authority | 2011 to 2015 |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, March 2017.
The report states a dunam figure for the Fund’s share only. The one-third figure is a share of land in the centre of the country, not of the whole country.
Israel Land Authority Procedure 05.02M treats leases over 5 years as rights
The Israel Land Authority published Professional Procedure 05.02M on 19 June 2023, and it defines rights in Israel Lands as ownership, or a lease for periods totalling more than 5 years or with an option to extend beyond 5 years. That is the Authority’s own definition, set in its procedure on granting rights to foreigners under Amendment 3 (2011) to the Israel Lands Law, 5720-1960. The procedure states no standard lease term.
| Term | The Authority’s own procedure |
|---|---|
| Rights | Ownership, or a lease totalling more than 5 years or with an option to extend beyond 5 years |
| Lease of 5 years or less | Outside the definition of rights |
| Foreigner | An individual who is neither an Israeli citizen nor resident, nor entitled to immigrate under the Law of Return, 5710-1950; a company such individuals control; or anyone acting for them |
| Grant to a foreigner | Requires approval by the chair of the Israel Land Council or the director of the Authority |
| Transfer by inheritance | Outside the procedure |
Source: Israel Land Authority, Professional Procedure 05.02M, original 11 September 2017, published 19 June 2023.
The procedure covers Israel Lands only: State, Development Authority and Jewish National Fund land. Privately owned land outside that definition falls outside it. The Authority’s own procedure states no share of Israel’s area that Israel Lands make up. Who counts as entitled under the Law of Return is set by that law, not by the procedure.
No Israeli body here publishes a private land ownership share
The State Comptroller’s March 2017 report states the 93% Israel Lands share and its three owners. It prints no figure for the land outside Israel Lands and gives no breakdown of who owns it. The Israel Land Authority’s own Procedure 05.02M states no land-share figure of any kind.
| Question | State Comptroller, March 2017 | Israel Land Authority, Procedure 05.02M |
|---|---|---|
| Share of Israel’s area that is Israel Lands | About 93% | Not stated |
| Share owned by the State | About 70% | Not stated |
| Share outside Israel Lands | Not stated | Not stated |
| Owners of land outside Israel Lands | Not stated | Not stated; privately owned land outside Israel Lands is outside the procedure |
Which of these figures may not be added or rescaled?
The 93% may not be read as State ownership: the State Comptroller stated that the State owns about 70%, and lists the Development Authority’s 11% and the Jewish National Fund’s 12% as separate owners. All four shares are the Comptroller’s rounded approximations, given in the March 2017 report with no separate reference date. The 2.5 million dunams belongs to the Fund alone and is not a basis for dunam totals for the other two owners. The one-third figure is a share of land in the centre of the country managed by the Authority. Procedure 05.02M is the Israel Land Authority’s own definition of rights and carries no land share.
Questions readers ask
Does the State of Israel own 93% of the land?
The State Comptroller stated in March 2017 that the State owns about 70% of the whole area of the state. The 93% is Israel Lands, which the report defines as land owned by the State, the Development Authority and the Jewish National Fund together.
Who manages Israel Lands?
The State Comptroller stated that the Israel Land Authority manages Israel Lands in trust, planning, developing and marketing them for their owners.
How much land does the Jewish National Fund own?
The State Comptroller put the Fund’s holding at about 12% of Israel’s area, about 2.5 million dunams, in its March 2017 report.
How much land does the Development Authority own?
The State Comptroller put the Development Authority’s share at about 11% of the whole area of the state, listed separately from the State’s own about 70%.
Where is the Jewish National Fund’s land concentrated?
The State Comptroller stated that about one third of all the land in the centre of the country managed by the Authority is owned by the Fund.
How much does the Jewish National Fund earn from its land?
The State Comptroller put the Fund’s gross income from its land managed by the Authority at about NIS 9.6 billion in 2011 to 2015.
How much privately owned land is there in Israel?
The State Comptroller published no figure for land outside Israel Lands in its March 2017 report. The Israel Land Authority states none in Procedure 05.02M.
How long are Israel Land Authority leases?
The Israel Land Authority states no standard lease term in Procedure 05.02M. It sets 5 years as the line: a longer lease, or one with an option to extend beyond 5 years, is a right in Israel Lands.
Is a long lease on Israel Lands treated like ownership?
The Israel Land Authority states in Procedure 05.02M that “rights” covers both ownership and a lease totalling more than 5 years. The procedure’s approval rules apply to both.
Can a foreigner buy a home on Israel Lands?
The Israel Land Authority states that rights may not be granted to a foreigner without approval by the chair of the Israel Land Council or the Authority’s director. An individual buying one residential unit on land zoned for housing, holding no other unit, goes to the director alone.
Are Jews living abroad foreigners under the procedure?
The Israel Land Authority states that a person entitled to immigrate under the Law of Return, 5710-1950, is excluded from the definition of a foreigner.
Who decides other applications from foreigners?
The Israel Land Authority states that every other case goes to a subcommittee of the Israel Land Council, after referral to the Minister of Defence and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Council chair decides.
What does the Council chair weigh?
The Israel Land Authority states five considerations: the public interest and security; the foreigner’s connection to Israel, including residence and family ties; the purpose of the acquisition; the land the foreigner already holds; and the land’s size, location and zoning.
Does approval oblige a sale to go ahead?
The Israel Land Authority states in Procedure 05.02M that approval is discretionary and does not oblige any transaction to proceed.
Does the procedure cover inherited land?
The Israel Land Authority states that the procedure does not apply to a transfer to a foreign individual by inheritance.
Sources
- Israel Land Authority, 2023. Professional Procedure 05.02M: Granting or Transferring Rights in Israel Lands to Foreigners. Legal Department, original 11 September 2017, published 19 June 2023. https://www.gov.il/BlobFolder/policy/procedure-0502m/he/Procedures_05.02M.pdf. Official or primary record, in Hebrew.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2017. Jewish National Fund: Activities for the Development of Israel Lands; supplementary report on the financial management of JNF activity on state-owned land. Special audit report, March 2017, catalogue 001B-2017. https://library.mevaker.gov.il/sites/DigitalLibrary/Documents/special/2017-Kakal-Mar2017/2017-Kakal-Mar17-FullReport.docx. Official or primary record, in Hebrew.
