99,000 Israelis Left Since 2023

More Israelis have departed their home country over the past three years than at any previous point in history.

A recent study indicates that 99,000 residents left Israel between January 2023 and December 2024. The researchers defined emigration as being away for at least three consecutive months and spending more than 270 days outside the country during the first year of departure. Approximately 50,000 people left in 2023, while 49,000 departed in 2024. Itai Ater, a professor at the Coller School of Management at Tel Aviv University, stated that preliminary figures suggest this pattern continued in 2025.

The exodus coincides with a period of intense turmoil for the nation of roughly 10 million people. The year 2023 marked the Hamas attack on southern Israel, which killed about 1,200 people and resulted in 250 hostages being taken. Israel responded with a major military campaign in the Gaza Strip. Although a fragile ceasefire took effect in October 2025, Israel still controls roughly 60 percent of the enclave and maintains regular military activity there. Ater noted that these events have led many residents to question whether they want to raise children in such a country.

Political uncertainty adds to the pressure on residents. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has led the country for three decades, is seeking power again in next week's national election. Polls indicate his far-right bloc will likely fall short of the 61 Knesset seats required to form a government. A rival bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot of the Yashar party is positioned to win the most seats but is also expected to lack a majority. Because coalitions are usually necessary to govern, the real political maneuvering typically begins after the vote, a process in which Netanyahu has long been considered skilled.

Ater warned that departures could climb sharply if the current political landscape does not change. He stated that emigration numbers will go up dramatically without a shift in direction. Avigail Ben-Porat, a 50-year-old single mother in Kiryat Shmona near the Lebanese border, said she dreams of leaving but lacks the financial means to do so. She still hears rocket fire regularly and noted that many of her friends have moved to Portugal, Canada, Thailand, and India.

The loss of skilled workers is a particular concern for the Israeli economy. The study points to a sharp rise in departures of doctors, Ph.D. holders, and engineers in 2023 and 2024. Net departures included 2,360 engineers and 509 doctors. Ater said Israel's economy depends on this human capital, specifically in the tech industry, academia, and health care sectors.

Businesses are also weighing the impact of the political climate. Liam Schwartz, who heads the corporate immigration department at the Tel Aviv law firm Goldfarb, Gross, Seligman, said some firms face pressure from non-Israeli shareholders and investors. These stakeholders are worried about the viability of operating from Israel. As a result, companies are more willing to shift parts of their workforce to North America or Europe. Schwartz traced the discontent to January 2023, when the government proposed judicial reforms that would have reduced the Supreme Court's powers. He said the companies feel the government is no longer meeting its part of the social contract.

Schwartz called the October vote a potential watershed for whether emigration rises. Ater described the stakes as a strategic risk to Israel as a democracy and a liberal country. He added that the situation is a concern for the Middle East and the wider world as well.