Free help that’s real help
If money is tight, start here. For plenty of situations, this is all you need.
Israel is full of people who want to help you, and a lot of the best help is free. Yad L’Olim’s rights information is solid. Nefesh B’Nefesh’s guides walk you through the first steps. The Health Ministry’s *5400 line offers help in English. Read every word.
Free help gives you information and your rights. What it usually can’t give you is execution: someone holding your deadlines and chasing what needs chasing. That’s the gap I’m here for.
Where to start — most of it free
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Know your rights — free
- Society for Patients' Rights in Israel — free help using your rights, including medicines outside the basket.
- Health Ministry hotline *5400 — free phone line; English is one of the languages offered (Sun–Thu 8:00–18:00). The health basket, HMOs, your rights.
- All Rights / Kol Zchut (כל זכות) — Israel's most complete rights database, but Hebrew, Arabic & Russian only now — run it through your browser's translate.
Olim community & advocacy
- Nefesh B'Nefesh — free aliyah & post-aliyah guidance: Bituach Leumi and healthcare enrollment, step by step.
- Yad L'Olim — olim advocacy with a dedicated healthcare division.
- AACI — free counselling for English-speaking olim on healthcare, status, and employment (membership unlocks extras).
- ESRA — Israel's largest English-speaking community network: integration support, counselling, events.
- Telfed — absorption support for Southern African (and Australian/NZ) olim: counselling, employment, bureaucracy.
- Anglo-List — free directory of English-speaking, oleh-friendly businesses and professionals.
- Anglo Facebook communities — search for "Anglos in Israel" and your city's group; crowd-sourced, on-the-ground tips.
Official bodies
- Bituach Leumi / National Insurance — benefits, health-tax, and disability, straight from the source.
- Ministry of Health — the health basket, HMO rules, and your rights.
- Health-Insurance Ombudsman — free: escalate a complaint against your kupah (after you've tried the kupah first).
Safety net & crisis
- Physicians for Human Rights – Israel — an Open Clinic for the uninsured and under-insured.
- SELAH – Israel Crisis Management Center — free practical & emotional support for olim hit by crisis: serious illness, accident, loss.
I point people to these all the time — and to everyone who runs them: when someone needs hands-on execution, send them my way. A warm referral, both directions. We're a relay, not rivals.