What Powers Do Sharia Courts Have in Israel? 9 Areas on the Ministry’s List
Israel’s Sharia courts hold 9 listed areas of power over Muslims’ personal status, plus 3 statutory powers and, since 2026, consent-based civil arbitration.
Sharia courts in Israel hold 9 areas of power over the personal status of Muslims, on the list the Ministry of Justice published in its own description of the courts, updated 4 August 2019. The areas run from marriage, divorce and maintenance to custody, paternity and waqf endowments. The Ministry adds 3 powers tied to named statutes. Since the Knesset passed the Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law on 24 March 2026, a Sharia court may also arbitrate a civil matter when every party signs.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Areas of power listed by subject, from marriage to waqf endowments | As at 4 August 2019 |
| 3 | Further powers, each tied to a named law or ordinance | As at 4 August 2019 |
| 4 | Relatives whose maintenance the courts decide: wife, child, father and grandfather | As at 4 August 2019 |
| 1991 | Year of the Prevention of Domestic Violence Law, the source of the protection-order power | Law of 1991 |
| 21 February 2001 | Date the courts moved from the Ministry of Religious Affairs to the Ministry of Justice | 2001 |
Source: Ministry of Justice, Sharia Courts unit, “About The Sharia Courts”, the Ministry’s own description of the courts it administers, updated 4 August 2019.
The Ministry of Justice lists 9 areas of Sharia court power
The Ministry of Justice publishes 9 areas of power for the Sharia courts, in its own description of the courts it administers. Each is set out below in the Ministry’s wording. The list does not state which of these powers belong to the Sharia courts alone.
| Area | What the Ministry includes |
|---|---|
| Marriage | Proof of marriage, marriage permit, confirmation, wedding gift and dowry |
| Divorce | Proof of divorce, arbitration, separation and annulment |
| Maintenance | Of a wife, a child, a father and a grandfather |
| Guardianship | Guardianship and legal capacity |
| Custody | Child custody arrangements |
| Paternity | Paternity of minors |
| Assets | Management of the assets of missing and incompetent persons |
| Domestic relations | Obedience and domestic peace |
| Endowments | Waqf endowments |
Source: Ministry of Justice, “About The Sharia Courts”, the Ministry’s own list, updated 4 August 2019.
Inheritance does not appear among the 9 areas or among the 3 statutory powers on the Ministry’s page. Marriage itself is registered through the religious courts; how couples outside them marry is set out in marriage without a religious ceremony.
Domestic violence, conversion and spouses’ property come from 3 statutes
The Ministry of Justice states 3 further powers on its own list, each tied to a named instrument rather than listed by subject. 2 of the instruments are laws and 1 is an ordinance. The table names each as the Ministry names it.
| Power | Instrument, as the Ministry names it |
|---|---|
| Protection orders | Prevention of Domestic Violence Law, 1991 |
| Conversion to Islam | Religious Community (Conversion) Ordinance |
| Financial relations between spouses | Financial Relations Between Spouses Law |
Source: Ministry of Justice, “About The Sharia Courts”, the Ministry’s own list, updated 4 August 2019.
Mandate law limited the courts to Muslims’ personal status
The Ministry of Justice records, in its own history of the courts, that under the British Mandate their powers “were limited to matters of personal status of Muslims only”. The courts date from the Ottoman period. The State of Israel kept them and enacted the Qadis Law to confirm the appointments of qadis serving before the state’s establishment.
| Period | Status of the courts, on the Ministry’s account |
|---|---|
| Ottoman period | The Sharia courts existed |
| British Mandate | Powers “limited to matters of personal status of Muslims only” |
| State of Israel | Courts kept; Qadis Law confirmed serving qadis’ appointments |
| Founding of the state to 21 February 2001 | Under the Ministry of Religious Affairs |
| From 21 February 2001 | Under the Ministry of Justice |
Source: Ministry of Justice, “About The Sharia Courts”, the Ministry’s own description, updated 4 August 2019.
The 2026 Arbitration Law lets Sharia courts arbitrate civil matters
The Knesset passed the Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law, 5786-2026 on 24 March 2026, and it was published in Reshumot, Sefer HaChukim 3503, on 26 March 2026. It lets a Sharia court, or a rabbinical court, sit as arbitrator in a civil matter. Section 2(d) bars the court from summoning parties or witnesses, or deciding anything of substance, until every party has signed.
Section 2(a) sets 2 conditions, and both apply:
- Every party signs the statutory arbitration form.
- The court has personal-status jurisdiction over at least 1 party, or all parties are corporations.
Section 1 excludes from the power:
- Criminal matters and administrative matters
- Any matter already within a religious court’s jurisdiction
- Proceedings between spouses or former spouses
- Matters to which the state or a local authority is a party
- Most labour matters
- Disciplinary proceedings
The Ministry of Justice’s own description of the courts is dated 4 August 2019 and predates this law, so the arbitration power does not appear on the Ministry’s list.
No Sharia court caseload count appears in these publications
Neither publication carries a figure for Sharia court cases. The Ministry of Justice states the courts’ powers in its own description of them and gives no count of cases filed or decided. The 2026 law gives none for arbitrations.
| Figure | Ministry of Justice page, 2019 | Arbitration Law, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Cases filed | None published | None published |
| Cases decided | None published | None published |
| Civil arbitrations | None published; page predates the law | None published |
The Sharia Courts unit sits within the Ministry of Justice.
Every figure here comes from the Ministry or the 2026 law
The 9 areas, the 3 statutory powers and the history of the courts are the Ministry of Justice’s own description of the courts it administers, updated 4 August 2019. The arbitration conditions and exclusions come from sections 1 and 2(a) to 2(d) of the 2026 law, in its Hebrew text. The Ministry’s list marks no power as exclusive to the Sharia courts, so none of its powers may be read as exclusive. The 9 areas and 3 statutory powers are a list of powers, not a count of cases.
Questions readers ask
Do Sharia courts in Israel try criminal cases?
The Ministry of Justice publishes no criminal power on its own list of the courts’ powers, updated 4 August 2019. Section 1 of the 2026 Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law excludes criminal matters from the courts’ arbitration power.
Are the Sharia courts’ powers exclusive?
The Ministry of Justice states the courts’ powers on its own list without marking any of them as exclusive to the Sharia courts. The list was updated 4 August 2019.
Can a Sharia court decide an inheritance?
The Ministry of Justice published no inheritance power among the 9 areas or the 3 statutory powers on its own list of 4 August 2019.
Whose maintenance can a Sharia court decide?
The Ministry of Justice states that the courts decide maintenance of a wife, a child, a father and a grandfather, on its own list updated 4 August 2019.
Can a Sharia court issue a protection order?
Yes. The Ministry of Justice states, on its own list, that the courts issue protection orders under the Prevention of Domestic Violence Law, 1991.
Can a Sharia court handle conversion to Islam?
Yes. The Ministry of Justice states, on its own list of the courts’ powers, that they deal with conversion to Islam under the Religious Community (Conversion) Ordinance.
Which ministry runs the Sharia courts?
The Ministry of Justice records, in its own history of the courts, that they sat under the Ministry of Religious Affairs from the founding of the state until 21 February 2001, and under the Ministry of Justice from that date.
What is the Qadis Law?
The Ministry of Justice states, in its own account of the courts, that the State of Israel enacted the Qadis Law to confirm the appointments of qadis serving before the state’s establishment.
When did Sharia courts become limited to personal status?
The Ministry of Justice records, in its own history, that under the British Mandate the courts’ powers “were limited to matters of personal status of Muslims only”.
Can a Sharia court arbitrate a business dispute?
Under section 2(a) of the Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law, passed on 24 March 2026, it may do so if every party signs the statutory form and the court has personal-status jurisdiction over at least 1 party, or all parties are corporations. The Ministry of Justice’s own list, dated 2019, predates the power.
Can a Sharia court arbitrate between spouses under the 2026 law?
No. Section 1 of the Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law, published in Sefer HaChukim 3503 on 26 March 2026, excludes proceedings between spouses or former spouses. Marriage and divorce stay on the Ministry of Justice’s own list of the courts’ personal-status powers.
Does the 2026 arbitration power apply to rabbinical courts too?
Yes. The Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law, published in Sefer HaChukim 3503 on 26 March 2026, gives the same arbitration power to a rabbinical court as to a Sharia court.
How many cases do Sharia courts in Israel hear?
The Ministry of Justice published no caseload figure in its own description of the courts, updated 4 August 2019, and the 2026 arbitration law carries none.
Sources
- Knesset, 2026. Religious Courts Jurisdiction (Arbitration) Law, 5786-2026 (חוק שיפוט בתי דין דתיים (בוררות), התשפ״ו-2026). Passed 24 March 2026. Reshumot, Sefer HaChukim 3503, 26 March 2026, p. 320. https://fs.knesset.gov.il/25/law/25_lsr_12846928.pdf. Official or primary record.
- Ministry of Justice, The Sharia Courts unit, 2019. About The Sharia Courts. Updated 4 August 2019. https://www.gov.il/en/pages/about_sharia. Official or primary record.
