Israel: Tax incentives offered to aid housing crisis for war evacuees

The Investments Authority of the Ministry of Economy and Industry and the Tax Authority are working to provide individual support to entrepreneurs among the evacuees from the war zones who own residential buildings.

As such, it has already been approved for a company that owns a residential apartment building, which holds written approval from the administration in the "building for rent" route, to contract with a government company for the occupancy of the apartments in this building by the evacuee population.

An entrepreneur who applies to the administration and receives approval will be entitled to tax benefits in accordance with Chapter Seven 1 of the Incentive Law - accelerated depreciation and low taxation on the

income from the building, all subject to compliance with all the conditions in the Incentive Law and the procedures of the Investment Authority.

It was further determined that after the end of the rental period to the government company, the renting of the apartments to other tenants (individuals) will be exempt from tax subject to compliance with the provisions of the VAT Law. The sale of the apartments, insofar as it is done according to the provisions of the Incentive Law and subject to compliance with the other conditions stipulated therein, will be exempt from tax according to the VAT Law.

Following the start of the "Iron Swords" war the government evacuated more than 100,000 citizens from the areas surrounding Gaza and near the Lebanese border, mainly to hotels. This is a temporary solution, which causes significant difficulties and challenges among the evacuees and government officials.

The evacuation requires permanent housing solutions for many of the evacuees, which is why the Tax Authority and the Easy Investments Authority initiated the "apartments for rent" track in the Law to Encourage Capital Investments, with the aim of increasing the stock of rental housing.