Emergency protection, transitional accommodation and help renting privately are different housing routes after domestic violence. The appropriate next step depends first on safety and an individual assessment, rather than on finding an ordinary rental listing. An accommodation programme is not a promise of immediate admission, a particular address or payment.
Immediate safety comes first
In immediate danger, call the police emergency number 100. Welfare’s 118 helpline can help identify the appropriate support route. Use a way of contacting services that is safe for you. Do not wait for an ordinary property search or a benefit certificate before seeking urgent help.
The Health Ministry’s domestic-violence guidance describes emergency and welfare support. A social worker can assess the situation and discuss protective responses. This guide cannot determine risk, arrange a safe departure or replace professional safety planning.
What is transitional accommodation?
The Welfare Ministry distinguishes protective shelters from transitional apartments, known as dirot ma’avar (דירות מעבר). It describes transitional accommodation for women and their children who have received treatment in the community or a shelter and need further rehabilitation toward independent living.
Ask the treating social worker or local social-services department about assessment and referral. Do not assume that every applicant must previously have stayed in a shelter, or that this specified programme automatically covers every population needing housing support. Ask the responsible services which route fits your circumstances.
Questions for the referral conversation
- Which service is assessing safety and coordinating the next step?
- What referral, consent and documents are needed, and how can they be supplied safely?
- What accommodation, support, duration and financial contribution apply in this particular programme?
- What happens if no suitable place is immediately available?
- How will children’s needs, treatment and other essential arrangements be coordinated?
- What information may be shared, with whom and for what purpose?
Ask about confidentiality and safe contact arrangements rather than assuming absolute secrecy. Do not publish a protected address or send sensitive personal material to an ordinary property enquiry form. A provider description does not establish current capacity or the terms of an individual placement.
Private-rent assistance is a separate application
The Housing Ministry rent-assistance guide covers the separately administered benefit and its special routes. A social-service referral or a place in transitional accommodation does not by itself establish the amount payable on a private lease. Have the certificate, documents and current conditions checked before relying on a payment.
Keep the actual housing decision, eligibility decision and lease obligations separate. Ask who will help bridge a gap between leaving accommodation and taking a private tenancy. Do not treat an application as an extension of a rent-payment deadline.
Ask about immediate material help separately
The Welfare Ministry’s cross-agency guidance identifies immediate material assistance through domestic-violence prevention and treatment centres for people choosing to separate from the home and the person harming them. It lists this separately from a shelter-leaving adjustment grant and Housing Ministry rent assistance.
Ask the treating centre or social-services department to assess the urgent practical needs and explain the current application and available support. This is a distinct assistance enquiry, not a guaranteed cash amount, immediate housing vacancy or automatic rent award. Keep the safety plan and professional support central when discussing a move.
Legal and longer-term housing questions
For an urgent order, tenancy, ownership or family-property question, seek appropriate legal advice. Our legal-aid guide distinguishes legal assistance, administrative complaints and court remedies. A complaint does not replace urgent protection or suspend a legal deadline.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice; confirm with a licensed professional and the responsible social-service team. Official programme information checked 1 November 2026; no individual placement, fee or benefit amount is certified here.
When an ordinary private-home search is appropriate, agree with your support professional what location, access and contact arrangements are safe before approaching property providers.
