No Romance Allowed for Migrant Workers
- ACRI
- Apr 30
- 1 min read
On April 26, 2026, ACRI, together with Kav LaOved and in joint representation with Kav LaOved and the Privacy Clinic, filed a petition with the District Court regarding the policy of the Population and Immigration Authority to prohibit migrant workers with valid permits from forming romantic partnerships for the entire duration of their stay in Israel, out of concern that they might settle in the country. This essentially strips migrant workers of one of the most natural and personal human needs and the right to form an emotional romantic relationship.
The petition was submitted 15 years after the Supreme Court ruled on a previous petition against the “Foreign Worker Pregnancy Procedure” in which ACRI and Kav LaOved were parties. In that instance, the Court invalidated the Authority’s policy of deporting migrant workers who gave birth in Israel based on the same “concern of settlement,” and held that this constituted a serious and disproportionate violation of the right to family life. The current petition argues, among other things, that the rulings from that case apply. A policy forbidding romantic relationships, even a one-month relationship between two migrant workers, does significant harm to the rights of individuals, especially the right to family life and the right to privacy. Moreover, the people affected by this policy already belong to a marginalized population, and this policy primarily affects women.
Administrative Petition 57961-04-26 Kav LaOved v. Population and Immigration Authority
Attorneys: Michal Tadjer (ACRI), Elad Kahana (Kav LaOved), Noa Diamond (Privacy Clinic, Tel Aviv University)
The petition, April 26, 2026 (Heb)
