Military service is an important issue in family immigration procedures from Israel to abroad. The duty of IDF military service in Israel is a general obligation that applies to every Israeli citizen, whether he or she lives in Israel or abroad. When they are minors, even if done without their choice, it does not completely exempt them from military service and sometimes the children are committed back to the country for military service even if the parents are not here.
The army has various requirements for granting exemption from military service to Israelis who leave the country abroad. The main one is to leave the country before the age of 16 with both parents. An Israeli citizen who leaves the country with his two parents for immigration purposes before the age of 16 receives “Immigrants son” status
which does not mean immediate exemption but a continuous postponement of recruitment which remains until later ages as long as the son of the immigrants is not in the country for more than 120 days in a calendar year.
It is important to understand that an immigrant son who stays in the country for more than 120 days in a calendar year (or without a sufficient gap between the years) will be required to enlist whether he intended to settle here again or not. Moreover, since the status of the immigrant son is a derivative of his parents’ place of residence, if the immigrant son’s parents return to Israel, even if the immigrant son continues to stay abroad, he will be required to return back to Israel and serve. The immigrants remain the same at least until the immigrant’s son reaches the age of 21, so the connection can be severed and the parents can return to Israel without their return, forcing their child to return to Israel and serve.
This, in short, is the essence of IDF policy regarding the conscription of Israelis who lives abroad in relocation. Of course, every policy has additional exceptions and intermediate solutions, so it is advisable to consult a military lawyer who knows the rules and restrictions in order to find the right solution for your child.
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