Derech Sheli

Questions and answers for released IDF soldiers

Short, clear answers to what everyone asks after discharge. Every answer has an official source.

• What to do after the army?There's no single right answer, and that's fine. What matters: sort out a few things in discharge week (bank details, Rav-Kav), know which clocks star…
• Released IDF soldier benefits: the full listEveryone who served at least 12 months gets a release grant, a personal deposit, extra tax credit points and a year of free public transport. On top o…
• IDF release grant: how much and when?The release grant (maanak shichrur) is cash for every month you served, if you served at least 12 months. From August 2026: about ₪692 a month for com…
• The personal deposit: what can you spend it on?The personal deposit (pikadon) is money saved for you during service. For 5 years after discharge you can only use it for approved things: studies, pr…
• Preferred work: what is it and how do you get the grant?Preferred work (avoda muadefet, also called "required work") is 6 full months, at least 150 work days, in a field the country needs. When you finish, …
• Mimadim Lelimudim: who gets a free degree?Mimadim Lelimudim ("from uniform to studies") pays up to 100% of university tuition (up to ₪12,017 a year in 2025–26). It's for combat soldiers with a…
• Free public transport for released soldiers: how to activate itYou get a year of free buses, trains and light rail, counted from your discharge date. To get it, load the "discharged" profile on your Rav-Kav or in …
• Tax credit points for released soldiersIf you served 23 months or more (22 for women), you get 2 extra tax credit points every month for 3 years. If you served at least a year, you get 1 po…
• Bituach Leumi after discharge: what do you pay, even abroad?For the 2 months after your discharge month you don't pay national or health insurance, as long as you're not working. After that the minimum is about…
• Unemployment pay for released soldiersYou don't get unemployment pay right after discharge. First you need to work 6 full months in your first year out. If the job then ends, you can get u…
• Lone soldier rights after dischargeOn top of the regular rights, lone soldiers get: an advance on the release grant within about 14 days, up to ₪1,000 a month toward rent for 12 months …
• The psychometric after the army: do you need it, and when are the dates?You don't always need the psychometric. The Open University, many colleges, mechina routes and some reservist tracks accept people without it. But mos…
• The big trip after the army: what to sort out before you flyBefore you fly: load the discharged profile on your Rav-Kav (within 60 days), set up Bituach Leumi payments, give a parent power of attorney for paper…
• A free first year of university in the peripheryIf your registered address was in the Negev, the Galilee or another national priority area for 5 of the 6 years before you start, your first year of a…
• Rights for national-service graduatesIf you finished at least 12 months of national or civic service, you get most of the same rights as released soldiers: a release grant, a personal dep…
• Study benefits for IDF reservistsReservists get academic credit for reserve days, tuition grants for combat reservists, extra scholarships, and sometimes entry without the psychometri…
• Struggling after discharge? Where to get free mental health helpIf you're having a hard time after discharge, you're not alone, and there's free help. You can call Nefesh Achat now (*8944, any hour, anonymous) or E…
• Arnona exemption for released soldiersFor the first 4 months after discharge you pay no arnona (city property tax), on up to 70 m² of an apartment you rent or own (90 m² if 5 or more peopl…