Housing Lottery Website Temporarily Closed for Eligibility Updates
Israel's "Apartment for Discount" housing lottery website has been temporarily shut down for "upgrade and maintenance work." This closure is a direct result of a Supreme Court ruling mandating that individuals exempt from military service, particularly from the Haredi community, be excluded from housing lotteries and waiting lists. In April, the court criticized the government for continuing to offer housing benefits to draft evaders and ordered an end to their participation until their status with the IDF is resolved.
Legal counsel for the government has clarified that individuals who had already won lotteries prior to the ruling will retain their eligibility, even if their military service status remains unsettled. However, those on waiting lists for past lotteries, anticipating a winner's forfeiture, will be removed. The Ministry of Housing decided to close the "Apartment for Discount" website to implement these changes, identifying and removing draft-exempt individuals from waiting lists.
The website's homepage states that the Ministry of Construction and Housing is making necessary adjustments to comply with the Supreme Court and Ministry of Justice directives regarding eligibility for the "Apartment for Discount" program, specifically concerning past lottery participants. The ability to issue new eligibility certificates and renew existing ones has been temporarily suspended. Applications submitted after September 17, 2026, at 6:30 PM will be processed only after the system updates are complete. The Ministry expects to announce the completion date for these updates soon and will provide further information on its website. The Ministry of Housing could not provide a reopening date, stating an announcement would be made after Yom Kippur.
