Attendance allowance for the disabled

An attendance allowance is available to men and women up to retirement age, who are insured by the National Insurance Institute and require a great deal of assistance by another person for routine activities (dressing, eating, washing, mobility within the home and control of bodily functions), or who require constant supervision to prevent a danger to their lives or to the lives of others.

This age is not uniform for everyone, but is rather determined in accordance with one's date of birth. For women it ranges from 60 to 64, and for men it ranges from 65 to 67. At this age entitlement to the old-age pension is conditional on one's income from work and other sources. Income from pension is not taken into account.

The insured must meet all the following conditions:

1.   He is covered by National Insurance and is between the age of 18 years and 90 days, and retirement age, and is living in Israel.
2.   He is receiving a disability pension from the National Insurance Institute, which has established a medical disability of at least 60% for him (with regard to the attendance allowance) or he is not receiving a disability pension, but the NII has established a medical disability of 75% for him (with regard to the attendance allowance), provided that he also meets the conditions specified below.
3.   He is not receiving benefits under the Mobility Agreement, except for the cases specified below.
4.   He is not living in an institution that provides medical services, nursing or rehabilitation services.

A claim for an attendance allowance should be submitted to the local branch of the National Insurance Institute closest to the place of residence. The claimant must attach to the form Claim for an Attendance Allowance for Recipients of a Disability Pension any medical and other documents connected with the claim. Before a decision is made, the person applying for the allowance is examined by a doctor on behalf of the National Insurance Institute and afterwards, in certain circumstances, he is examined in his home by a professional who assesses his dependence.

Entitlement to an allowance begins on the 1^st of the month in which the claim is submitted, but not before 90 days have elapsed from the date on which the person became entitled to a disability pension. If he is not receiving a disability pension - from the date on which a medical disability of 75% was established for him (with regard to an attendance allowance for the disabled).

An NII doctor may establish entitlement to a retroactive benefit for a period of no more than 6 months prior to the time of submission of the claim (for claims submitted from January 1, 2006), provided that the person meets all the conditions for entitlement in the benefit.

A man or a woman who has reached retirement age is not entitled to the allowance, unless the claim was submitted, at the latest, 6 months after reaching retirement age and an NII doctor determined that the insured was entitled to an attendance allowance in the period before reaching retirement age.

This age is not uniform for everyone, but is rather determined in accordance with one's date of birth. For women it ranges from 60 to 64, and for men it ranges from 65 to 67. At this age entitlement to the old-age pension is conditional on one's income from work and other sources. Income from pension is not taken into account.

A person who requires a great deal of assistance in performing most routine actions during most hours of the day and night, or someone who requires constant supervision - is entitled to an allowance at a rate of 50% of a full disability pension for an individual (the low rate) - NIS 1,060 (as of 01.01.2012) .

A person who requires a great deal of assistance in performing all routine actions during most hours of the day and night, is entitled to 105% of a full disability pension for an individual (the medium rate) -  NIS 2,225 (as of 01.01.2012) .

A person who is completely dependent on another person to perform all routine actions during all hours of the day and night is entitled to 175% of a full disability pension for an individual (the high rate) - NIS 3,708 (as of 01.01.2012) .

In addition to the basic amount of the allowance, an increment to the allowance is also paid:
To a person receiving attendance allowance at the low rate - NIS 297 (as of 01.01.2012) .
To a person receiving attendance allowance at the medium rate - NIS 604 (as of 01.01.2012) .
To a person receiving attendance allowance at the high rate - NIS 901 (as of 01.01.2012) .

An appeal can be submitted to the attendance allowance appeals committee by someone who is not satisfied with the National Insurance Institute’s decision.
An appeal can be submitted to the medical committee for general disability appeals by a person whose claim was denied due to medical disability percentages that do not entitle the  person to the benefit.
An appeal can only be submitted to the Labor Court on questions of law.

A claimant whose condition has worsened is entitled to request re-examination of his claim 6 months after his claim was denied or a partial benefit was approved for him, provided that he submits medical certification of the worsening of his condition. In a situation in which a person’s condition worsens, even if 6 months have not yet elapsed, a National Insurance Institute doctor may decide that the case should be re-examined in accordance with medical documents that were submitted.

Please note: The National Insurance Institute is entitled to re-examine your medical and functional condition from time to time.

A person who is entitled to receive both an attendance allowance and a long-term care benefit must choose one of the two benefits.

A special benefit for severely handicapped immigrants is composed of two types of benefits:

Attendance allowance for immigrants - Severely handicapped people from 18 years of age to retirement age, from the 91^st day after immigration to the end of the first year after immigration, are entitled to an attendance allowance. Entitlement to the benefit is determined by a test of dependence on others and they are not required to pass the medical threshold test.

General disability for immigrants - from the 181^st day to the end of the first year after their immigration, they are entitled to a disability pension, provided that they were previously found to be entitled to an attendance allowance for immigrants as explained above.

At the end of the first year after immigration, their entitlement is re-examined according to the regular rules of the general disability pension and the attendance allowance.