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2026-08-07 01:42 UTC → 2026-08-07 21:35 UTC ·
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Israel brain drain amid deepens after Gaza conflict war
Between 2023 The exodus of high‑earning Israelis that accelerated after the 2022 political turmoil and 2025 Israel experienced a sharp rise in long‑term emigration, with a the Oct 7 2023 Gaza war has continued to expand. Tel Aviv University University’s 2025 study counting about recorded more than 268,000 long‑term departures – between 2023 and 2025, with roughly 90,000 per year – far above leaving each year, a sharp rise from the pre‑2020 average of 60,000. The outflow, especially of physicians, engineers, academics and other high‑income professionals, was linked to outflow is concentrated in the 2022 political turmoil advanced‑technology and the Oct 7 2023 Gaza war that later expanded regionally. medical sectors, where average pre‑emigration incomes rose from about 125,000 shekels in 2019 to roughly 200,000 shekels by 2024. Internal tax‑authority Tax Authority data released later showed in 2026 show that the emigration rate of affluent, highly‑skilled affluent Israelis has roughly doubled since 2019. Average annual incomes of emigrants rose from 125,000 to 200,000 shekels, while 2019, driving tax‑revenue losses grew from about around 500 million shekels a year to about 1.2 billion shekels annually, with projections in 2023‑2024. Projections warn of a annual shortfalls of up to 3.5 billion‑shekel shortfall within billion shekels over the next five years. The technology sector saw a 150 years if the trend persists. A 50 % jump increase in outflows and departures since the medical sector more than doubled, highlighting COVID‑19 pandemic is evident, with the 40‑50‑year‑old cohort now representing a growing larger share of the outflow. The top‑earning 20 % of emigrants account for roughly two‑thirds of the total tax loss, underscoring concerns that the brain drain that threatens could erode Israel’s high‑tech‑driven economy and security. its security capacity.