New olim
New to Ra'anana? Start here
About 22% of Ra'anana's residents are immigrants, and the city ranks among Israel's top absorbers of olim, with large English-speaking, French-speaking and Latin American communities. The municipality runs an Aliyah absorption unit, English pages for school registration, and official WhatsApp communities in English, French and Spanish.
New olim
Start here
8 steps, in the order most people take them.
- 1
Do the national first steps
NBN's order: Teudat Zehut, bank account, Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, finalise your kupat cholim, child allowance, then school registration.
Go (opens in a new tab) - 2
Contact the municipal absorption unit
The city's Aliyah absorption unit is at 56 Ahuza St (tel. 09-7610766) and publishes English guides for olim.
Go (opens in a new tab) - 3
Claim your arnona discount
New olim can get an arnona discount; register the flat in your name at the Resident Service Center, 2 Klausner St, and bring your Teudat Zehut with its sefach.
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Register the children
The city's English pages explain the documents to email, including a rental contract of at least a year. Gan and Kita Alef registration opens in mid-winter; olim can register any time.
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Start ulpan
The municipal college runs a Hebrew ulpan at 75 Keren HaYesod St (09-7713161), and the Jewish Agency lists Ulpan Etzion Ra'anana.
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Join the English-speakers community
The municipality's English WhatsApp community carries city updates and events in English; there are French and Spanish ones too.
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Get help with work
The municipal employment centre has a career counsellor for new olim and points to Ministry of Aliyah employment centres, Gvanim and Telfed.
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Meet people
ESRA runs a free weekly English-language get-together on Tuesday afternoons at its bookshop at 124 Ahuza St.
Go (opens in a new tab)
Guides
Read next
- Your first week in Ra'anana: what to do, in what orderThe first-week list for new olim in Ra'anana: the order NBN recommends, the municipal absorption unit, the arnona discount, the 107 hotline and the city's English WhatsApp community.
- Schools and gans in Ra'anana: registration, olim, tzaharon and the unique gansHow school and gan registration works in Ra'anana, the 2026-27 dates as a guide while 2027-28 is unpublished, the English pages for olim, and the Batei HaTalmid after-school programme.
- Health funds, doctors and urgent care in Ra'ananaThe four kupot in Ra'anana, the nearest hospital, where to go at night and on Shabbat, duty pharmacies, and English-speaking doctors.
- Renting and buying in Ra'anana: prices, purchase tax and the paperwork orderRough rents and prices by area of Ra'anana, the olim purchase-tax brackets, where listings are posted, and why to sign the lease before you register for school.
- Ra'anana neighbourhoods compared: north and south, old and newHow Ra'anana's neighbourhoods differ, where the religious and English-speaking communities are, and why the city's WhatsApp groups are the best neighbourhood map.
- Getting around Ra'anana: trains, buses, the free weekend bus and taxisRa'anana's two Sharon-line stations, the main bus lines to Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and the airport (from the October 2026 timetable), Rav-Kav and planners, Shabbat, taxis and bike paths.
Good to know
Get the lease signed before you register the children: the city asks for a rental contract of at least one year. Update your address at the Population Authority early, because gan registration checks it.
Community groups
Where people talk
- Centre-south (Brenner to Moshe Dayan) residents (municipal)WhatsApp · Ra'anana Municipality
- City updates from Ra'anana MunicipalityWhatsApp · Ra'anana Municipality
- Courses, workshops, lectures and trainingWhatsApp · Ra'anana Municipality
- ESRA Befrienders weekly meet-up (Ra'anana)Website or forum · ESRA
- ESRA Gold Ra'anana branchWebsite or forum · ESRA
- Emergency and security (Ra'anana)WhatsApp · Ra'anana Municipality
Source
- raanana.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- nbn.org.il (opens in a new tab)
- raanana.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- raanana.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- nbn.org.il (opens in a new tab)
- raanana.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- raanana.muni.il (opens in a new tab)
- en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)
This page was written for Ra'anana from the sources above.
