Personal Loan
A loan provided by the department for various purposes, through the First International Bank of Israel
What is a personal loan?
Parents and widows can receive loans for various purposes from the First International Bank, according to its agreement with the Ministry of Defense.
What can you receive?
A personal loan of up to 8,064 ₪Last updated on 1.1.2026. The loan option is available once every 3 years.
Additional details regarding the loan:
The loan is provided at a fixed interest rate (not indexed). The interest rate changes every 5 years.
The loan interest rate is determined by the Accountant General and is updated quarterly.
In most cases, the loan repayment schedule is spread out over a period of 24 months. If you need to arrange the payments differently, you can request this from the welfare worker.
The loan terms offered by the department may not differ significantly from the loan terms offered by other banks, so it is advisable to check and compare the terms before taking the loan.
The monthly loan repayment amount will be deducted from the benefits slip.
Parents and widows experiencing a second lossParents who have lost more than one child, or widows who have lost a child, are entitled to 200% assistance.
You can choose between taking one loan at a rate of 200%, meaning 7,875 ₪ multiplied by 2 = 15,750 ₪, and taking a loan at a rate of 100% of the amount every year and a half (instead of every 3 years).
How to apply?
Please submit the relevant form for you through your account:
Form of approval for transferring details to the International Bank for parents - in the case of a couple of parents, both must sign the form
If necessary, we may request additional documents from you to review the application
Stages of loan approval
In the first stage, you need to send us the application and documents through your account.
The application will be reviewed by a welfare worker, who will provide a response within 26 business days regarding eligibility for the loan.
Transferring your details to the bank - after receiving the details, the bank will send you a notification that the loan can be received at any branch of the First International Bank, at your choice.
The referral for the approved loan will be valid for 4 months only, and the loan must be utilized at the bank before it expires.
Loan utilization - the bank will notify you via SMS about the transfer of the loan to your account. From this stage, the loan repayment amount will be deducted monthly from your benefits.
Loan guarantee
In some cases, it is necessary to present guarantors to the bank for the loan. The guarantors will commit to repaying the loan to the bank in case you are unable to pay.
The guarantors can sign the guarantee at any branch of the bank, not just the branch where you chose to apply for the loan.
Modification or cancellation of the loan
If you need to cancel an approved loan, or shorten or extend the repayment term, please inform the welfare worker.
