How do I cancel my Israeli phone, internet, TV and gym contracts after moving abroad?

You can do it from wherever you now live, and the business has very little room to drag its feet. Section 13D of the Consumer Protection Law 5741-1981 gives a consumer the right to end a continuing service transaction, such as a mobile plan, home internet, a television package or a gym membership, by giving notice by telephone, by email, by registered post or through the business's website where the contract was made online. From the day the notice reaches the business it must stop charging within 3 business days, or within 6 business days if you used registered post. Anything billed after that date has to be refunded, and the Law allows compensation of up to NIS 10,000 without proof of damage where a business carries on charging after a valid cancellation.

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Detailed Answer

Section 13D exists because leaving an Israeli provider used to mean retention calls, branch visits and forms that seemed to work only by fax. The section fixes the channels. Whatever the contract says, the business has to accept notice through the routes the Law lists, and if you joined on its website it must let you leave the same way. You pay for the service actually supplied up to the cancellation date and no further. Two things survive a cancellation and catch people out. Equipment has to go back: a cable or satellite decoder, a router or similar hardware is normally returned to a service point or authorised dealer, and a provider will bill for it if it never arrives. A handset or television bought on instalments alongside the plan is a separate purchase, so the remaining payments usually keep running on your card after the service itself has ended. Exit penalties in telecom contracts have been heavily restricted since 2011, but read your contract for any cancellation fee and push back on one that bears no relation to what the business actually lost.

From abroad the difficulty is proof, not permission. Retention teams call from Israeli numbers you may not answer in Toronto or Melbourne, and a cancellation made by phone leaves you with nothing in writing when the next charge appears. Send the notice by email, in Hebrew and English if you can, quote your customer number and Israeli identity number, state the date from which the service ends, and ask for written confirmation with a cancellation reference. Then close the payment side separately. Cancel the standing order at your Israeli bank or the recurring charge on your Israeli credit card, because a stopped service with a live direct debit is how small amounts keep leaving your account for months without anyone noticing. If you plan to close the bank account altogether, deal with the subscriptions first, as our answer on closing an Israeli bank account from abroad explains. A provider that ignores a proper notice usually stops once it receives a written demand quoting Section 13D and the dates. If it does not, the Consumer Protection and Fair Trade Authority accepts complaints online, and a small claim is the next step.

In Practice: Under Section 13D of the Consumer Protection Law 5741-1981, a provider must stop charging within 3 business days of a cancellation notice given by phone, email or website, or 6 business days if the notice was sent by registered post. Amounts billed after that date must be refunded, compensation without proof of damage can reach NIS 10,000, and complaints go to the Consumer Protection and Fair Trade Authority. Return decoders and routers promptly, since unreturned equipment is charged separately.

When to Consult a Lawyer

• A provider keeps charging months after a documented cancellation and refuses to refund, since the demand letter and any compensation claim should set out the statutory deadline and the dates precisely.
• The contract bundles a handset or appliance on instalments with the service, and the provider demands the whole remaining balance at once because you have left Israel.
• Unpaid charges have been passed to a collection agency or an enforcement file has been opened, which can turn a small bill into a problem that surfaces on your next visit to Israel.

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Speak With an Israeli Attorney

An Israeli lawyer can send a Section 13D demand in Hebrew, recover charges taken after cancellation and deal with a collection file before it becomes an enforcement problem.

Contact us for a confidential initial consultation.