New ‘Metro Improvement Tax’ on Landowners Near Metro Stations

Jerusalem, 27 August, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich signed regulations governing the method of collecting the metro improvement tax, which will apply to landowners near metro stations and whose role is to finance the construction and development of the project.

In accordance with the Metro Law, a landowner in areas defined as affected by the project will be required to pay the state treasury a tax the amount of which is derived from the improvement tax determined by the local committee within whose jurisdiction the land is located. Payment of the tax is a prerequisite for exercising rights in the land.

The regulations approved today state that the authorized entity to confirm that a landowner has paid the tax will be the Tax Authority. Without such approval, a landowner who has received a notice of liability for the metro improvement tax from the local committee will not be permitted to change the registration in the Land Registry, and will not be permitted to issue a building permit.