Cross-Border Estate Planning: Coordinated Wills for U.S. and Israeli Assets
Two Coordinated Wills — One for New York, One for Israel. Each will works independently in its own jurisdiction with no apostille burden on your family.
Why Is One Will Not Enough When You Have Assets in Both Countries?
A single will covering assets in two countries creates a documentation burden your family cannot easily resolve.
Dual-jurisdiction estate planning — drafting separate, jurisdiction-specific wills for clients with assets in both the United States and Israel — is not a legal technicality. It is the difference between a clean, efficient administration and a cross-border paperwork crisis.
Most people do not realize that a New York will does not automatically work in Israel. Israeli banks, the Israeli Land Registry (Tabu), and Israeli courts will not act on a foreign will without a formal, protracted validation process. That process involves notarization, apostille authentication under international treaty, translation into Hebrew, and a separate Israeli court proceeding.
That entire chain of procedural steps falls on your beneficiaries at the worst possible time. With a coordinated estate plan, it does not have to.
Why Do You Need an Attorney Licensed in Both the U.S. and Israel?
Experience in both legal systems is what makes a dual-will plan actually work and prevents the two documents from legally invalidating each other.
For more than 35 years, David Shakarchi has drafted wills intended for use in New York or New Jersey courts and wills intended for use in Israeli legal proceedings, handling both sides of the Atlantic for the same client.
This dual capability matters because testamentary formalities — the specific legal requirements for executing a valid will — differ strictly between jurisdictions. A will drafted solely to New York standards may fail Israeli validity requirements. The Israeli Succession Law of 1965, the primary statute governing wills and inheritances in Israel, enforces its own rigid execution and witness requirements. A will that does not meet them cannot be admitted.
David does not coordinate with Israeli co-counsel to handle this. He drafts both documents directly. New York clients in Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn, as well as New Jersey clients in Teaneck and Englewood, have relied on this seamless dual-jurisdiction capability for decades.
What Happens to a Family With a Single Will and Assets in Tel Aviv and New York?
A coordinated estate plan is clearest when you see exactly what a single-will approach leaves behind.
Imagine you own a two-bedroom apartment in Tel Aviv and a brokerage account in New York. You have a carefully prepared New York will. When you pass away, your family begins the New York probate process under the Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act (SCPA) Section 205. That part moves relatively smoothly.
Then they turn to the Tel Aviv apartment.
I have guided families through this exact situation more times than I can count.
The Israeli bank holding the rent payments will not cooperate without a valid Israeli court order. The Israeli Land Registry will not transfer the property title until an Israeli proceeding validates either a will or an inheritance order. Your New York will is not enough on its own.
To use a New York will in Israel, your family must first have it notarized. Then they must obtain an apostille from the New York Secretary of State. Next, they must have it translated by a certified Hebrew translator. Finally, they must submit the apostilled document to an Israeli court or the Registrar of Inheritances for formal recognition. That process takes months. It costs significant money. It requires coordination across two countries during a period when your family is already grieving.
Now change one fact: you have a separate Israeli will drafted strictly under Israeli Succession Law. That will goes directly through the Israeli probate process to obtain a Tzav Kiyum Tzava’a (צו קיום צוואה), or will validation order. There is no apostille. There is no waiting for a New York document to be authenticated in Jerusalem. The Israeli assets move through Israeli courts on Israeli timelines. The New York assets move through New York Surrogate’s Court on New York timelines. It is parallel and clean.
How Does the Dual-Will Strategy Protect Your Beneficiaries?
The dual-will strategy eliminates the cross-border documentation problem before it ever starts.
Here is David Shakarchi’s direct answer to one of the most important estate planning questions our clients ask:
Yes, it is highly advisable to have a separate will for assets located in New York or New Jersey and another for assets in Israel. This dual-will approach streamlines the probate process in each jurisdiction, allowing Israeli assets to be probated under Israeli law with an Israeli will, and U.S. assets to be handled locally with a New York or New Jersey will. It spares your beneficiaries from the burdensome task of notarizing and apostilling numerous documents across borders, making the administration of your estate far more efficient, cost-effective, and legally secure.
The Hague Apostille Convention — the international treaty under which both the U.S. and Israel authenticate official documents for cross-border legal use — exists for situations where a single-will approach forces documents to travel between countries. A properly structured dual-will plan means your family never has to rely on it.
How Do We Structure a Dual-Will Estate Plan for U.S. and Israeli Assets?
Every coordinated estate plan starts with a clear, localized map of where your assets are and which specific legal system governs them.
Here is how our process works:
- 01Asset InventoryWe identify which assets are located in New York or New Jersey and which are in Israel — categorizing bank accounts, real estate, investment portfolios, and business interests.
- 02Jurisdiction-Specific DraftingThe U.S. will covers American assets and is drafted to meet specific New York or New Jersey execution requirements. The Israeli will covers Israeli assets and is drafted to satisfy Israeli Succession Law (1965) validity standards.
- 03No-Conflict CoordinationEach will includes precise legal language confirming it applies only to assets within its defined jurisdiction. This critically prevents the newer will from accidentally revoking the older one.
- 04Cross-Border Tax AssessmentWe assess New York estate tax implications alongside New Jersey inheritance tax considerations and Israeli capital gains exposure simultaneously.
How Do We Plan for New York Estate Tax and Israeli Capital Gains (Mas Shevach)?
Cross-border estate planning is heavily reliant on cross-border tax planning — the two must be handled together, not in sequence.
New York imposes its own severe estate tax. It currently applies above a threshold of approximately $6.94 million, and it carries a “cliff” provision that most clients are never told about: if your estate exceeds 105% of the exemption, the entire estate is taxed — not just the amount above the threshold. We actively plan for this exposure.
While Israel does not levy a traditional estate tax, heirs who inherit Israeli real estate face major tax exposure through Mas Shevach (מס שבח) — the Israeli capital gains and appreciation tax. Generally levied at a standard rate of 25 percent on inflation-adjusted net gains, this tax applies when the inherited property is eventually sold.
During the planning stage, we guide clients through the optimized linear calculation method used for appreciation accrued before and after the 2014 Israeli tax reforms. We also detail the strict eligibility requirements for the single residential apartment exemption available to foreign residents. If appropriate, we structure lifetime gifting strategies to close family members. This can trigger exemptions from Mas Shevach for the gifter while imposing only a reduced Mas Rechisha (purchase tax) on the recipient.
Which Israeli-American Communities Do We Serve in New York and New Jersey?
New York’s Israeli-American community is highly concentrated in the neighborhoods we serve directly. We work closely with clients from Forest Hills, Rego Park, Kew Gardens Hills, Borough Park, and across Manhattan and Brooklyn. Our New Jersey clients come from Teaneck, Fort Lee, Englewood, and Hackensack.
The firm’s primary office at 1 W. 34th Street is located one block from Penn Station, making it highly accessible by subway from every borough and by NJ Transit from across the Hudson River. In-person consultations are prioritized for clients executing testamentary documents.
Are You Ready to Schedule Your Cross-Border Estate Planning Consultation?
A coordinated estate plan takes two legal systems seriously and proactively protects your family from carrying a cross-border administrative burden alone.
If you own property, hold bank accounts, or have business interests in both the U.S. and Israel, a single will is not enough. The solution is specific, highly manageable, and best addressed before it becomes urgent.
Call David Shakarchi directly at 888-414-6685 or email info@lawpracticeusa.com to schedule a consultation. You will speak with the principal attorney, not an intake coordinator.
You reach David Shakarchi directly — not an intake coordinator.
info@lawpracticeusa.comFrequently Asked Questions About Cross-Border Estate Planning
Do I need to translate my New York will into Hebrew for it to be valid in Israel?
If you only have a New York will, yes. Before the Israeli Registrar of Inheritances or Israeli courts will recognize a foreign will, it must be notarized, authenticated with an apostille from the New York Secretary of State, and formally translated into Hebrew by a certified translator. Drafting a separate Israeli will in Hebrew bypasses this entire translation and authentication burden.
Can creating an Israeli will accidentally cancel my New York will?
Yes, if drafted incorrectly. Standard wills often include boilerplate language stating, “I hereby revoke all prior wills and testaments.” If an attorney unfamiliar with dual-jurisdiction planning uses this language in your new Israeli will, it can legally void your existing New York will. A coordinated dual-will plan explicitly limits the geographic and jurisdictional scope of each document so they operate safely in parallel.
Does Israel have an estate or inheritance tax?
Israel does not currently have a direct estate tax or inheritance tax. However, inheriting Israeli real estate comes with significant deferred tax liabilities. When your heirs eventually sell the inherited property, they will be subject to Mas Shevach (Israeli capital gains tax), which is generally 25% of the inflation-adjusted profit. Proper planning can help secure exemptions, such as the single residential apartment exemption.
What is the Hague Apostille Convention?
The Hague Apostille Convention is an international treaty that simplifies the authentication of public documents to be used abroad. Both the United States and Israel are signatories. Under this treaty, a New York court order or notarized will must receive a specific stamp (an apostille) from the Secretary of State to prove its authenticity to the Israeli government. A dual-will strategy eliminates the need for your heirs to navigate this apostille process.