Qualifying period for a woman


Some women are exempt from the qualifying period and others need to complete a qualifying period in order to receive a pension.

Women exempt from the qualifying period 

A woman who reached retirement age when her marital situation is one of the following, may be entitled to a pension even without accruing a qualifying period:

  • Single
  • Divorced
  • Widow who does not receive a survivors pension or dependents benefit
  • Aguna
  • Married woman whose husband is not  covered in old-age insurance
  • Woman who received a general disability pension during the month preceding the month for which she is entitled to an old-age pension.

Women needing to complete a qualifying period

A married woman (to a man covered with old-age insurance) or a widow who receives a survivors' pension or a benefit to dependents of a work-injured, who reached retirement age – will be entitled to an old-age pension if they have accrued one of the following periods:

  • 60 insurance months within the 10 years that preceded the age entitling you to an old-age pension.
  • 144 insurance months.
  • At least 60 insurance months, provided that the number of months that you were insured, from the date you became an Israeli resident for the first time, exceeds the number of months that you were not insured.

See here a list of insurance periods for completion of the qualifying period.


A woman who did not accumulate one of the insurance periods listed above by retirement age, may still be entitled to an old-age pension upon reaching the age of entitlement to old-age pension, provided that she accrued by then one of the following periods:

  • 60 months out of the last 10 years preceding the age of entitlement to old-age pension.
  • 144 months of insurance.  

Woman born before January 1, 1931

  • She will be entitled to an old-age pension on condition that she has accumulated five years of residency before age 65.
  • A woman that has not accumulated five years of residency and accumulated less than 144 months of insurance period under insurance plan 2, will be able to go on and accumulate insurance periods as an Israeli resident from January 2013 until completion of 144 months of insurance as an Israeli resident of 5 years of insurance as an Israeli resident, whatever is earlier. The old-age pension will be paid to this woman as of the date she has completed the qualifying period.
  • A woman receiving a survivors' pension may choose between an old-age or a survivors' pension.
  • A woman receiving a benefit for dependents on work-injured persons may choose between a full old-age pension and half a benefit for dependents on work-injured persons or half an old-age pension and a full benefit for dependents on work-injured persons.

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