Nearly 100,000 shekels a month: These are the top recipients of budgetary pensions

Israel's 2025 financial reports reveal the highest budgetary pension recipients: a retired judge received 99,541 shekels gross per month in September. Second place is a religious court judge with 97,140 shekels. Six of the top ten judges and religious court judges receive over 80,000 shekels. The gap with other state employees is stark: average pension of 45,654 shekels for judges versus 7,220 shekels for other retirees. The Finance Ministry cites different accrual conditions as the source of the gap.

Israel's 2025 financial reports reveal the highest budgetary pension recipients. The top retiree, a judge-ranked individual, received a gross pension of 99,541 shekels in September 2025. Second place is a religious court judge with 97,140 shekels, followed by a judge with 88,707 shekels. Six of the top ten judges and religious court judges receive over 80,000 shekels per month. The gap with other state employees is stark: the average pension for retired judges and religious court judges is 45,654 shekels per month, compared to 7,865 shekels for education retirees, 8,206 shekels for healthcare system retirees, and 7,220 shekels for other civil service retirees. The Finance Ministry explains the gap stems from different rights accrual conditions: while state employees accrue 2% of their qualifying salary per work year up to a 70% cap, judicial office holders can accrue up to 7% per year of tenure in the early years. After judges, defense system retirees follow with a high pension of 81,386 shekels per month. In the police and prison service, exceptional pensions are recorded, led by a retired commissioner-rank officer with 78,465 shekels. Among elected officials, the highest pension stands at 69,659 shekels. Behind these figures lies a long-term commitment: the full actuarial liability is estimated at about 758 billion shekels. The Finance Ministry estimates the pension payment flow will reach 32.1 billion shekels in 2026 and peak at 40.7 billion shekels in 2038.