Leave and Vacation for Lone Soldiers
The seven leave categories every Lone Soldier (chayal boded or chayelet bodeda) is entitled to during mandatory service — Errand Day, apartment-move leave, leave to visit parents in Israel, leave to visit parents abroad, special economic leave with food allowance, emergency flight funding, and early departure for Shabbat/holiday.
Time Estimate
~3 min read
Priority
Medium
Step-by-Step Instructions
- 1
Errand Day (Yom Sidurim)
Every Lone Soldier is entitled to an Errand Day to handle personal matters.
Frequency:
- Regular service (Shirut Sadir): once every 2 months
- Initial training (Hachshara Rishonit): once every month
Duration: 24 hours at home. The soldier is released the day before the Errand Day and returns the day after — so they are not on base on the day itself.
Important — Errand Day cannot be revoked. It is a Matkal (IDF General Staff) entitlement. The soldier is not obligated to use it, but if they don't, they must sign a waiver with the unit Tash office at the end of the eligibility months.
Soldiers on weekly shifts (mishmarot shvuiot) use their Errand Day during their 'home week'.
An Errand Day is NOT deducted from regular or special leave days, and is not given on Fridays or holiday eves.
- 2
Special leave for apartment move
2 days, once per service year, for the practical work of moving apartments. No specific application criteria listed — coordinate with your unit Tash.
- 3
Leave to visit parents in Israel
4 days, once per service year, to visit parents in Israel.
Extension: can be extended by an additional 4 days with commander approval — for a total of up to 8 days.
During initial training or course: a Lone Soldier in Hachshara Rishonit or a course is entitled to only the 4 days of Matkal-special leave — unless the commander approves a longer leave.
- 4
Leave to visit parents abroad
30 days of special leave per service year to visit parents living abroad.
Splitting: the soldier can split this leave throughout the service year (it does not have to be taken as one block).
Cannot be accumulated. Unused days do not carry over from one service year to the next — use them or lose them.
- 5
Special economic leave
A Lone Soldier who is granted special economic leave (chufsha miyuchedet kalkalit) is automatically entitled to a food allowance (dmei kalkala) of ₪22 per day for the leave days.
Action required: confirm with the unit's Mash'an (Manpower) office that the food allowance has been entered into the system — it is automatic but the entry needs to be made for the payment to go through.
- 6
Emergency flight (death of first-degree relative abroad)
A Lone Soldier whose first-degree relative (parent, sibling, child, spouse) dies abroad is entitled to a flight fully funded by the Ministry of Defense to attend the funeral and observe mourning rites.
Coordinate immediately with your unit Tash — this is the fastest path to authorisation.
- 7
Early departure for Shabbat or holiday
A Lone Soldier leaving the unit for Shabbat or holiday leave is released from base at a time that allows them to arrive home by 10:00 AM.
This is to give the soldier time to prepare for the entrance of Shabbat or the holiday — buying groceries, cooking, cleaning the apartment — which is otherwise difficult when arriving home only in the afternoon.
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Related guides
Other guides in the Lone Soldier lifecycle (IDF / MOD) series:
Useful Hebrew Phrases
- chayal/chayelet boded(a) — Lone Soldier (gender-inclusive form)חייל(ת) בודד(ה)
- yom sidurim — 'Errand Day' (24-hour leave for personal matters)יום סידורים
- chufsha miyuchedet — Special leaveחופשה מיוחדת
- hachshara rishonit — Initial training (basic training period)הכשרה ראשונית
- Mash'an — Unit Manpower office (handles the food allowance entry)משא"ן
- yetzia mukdemet — Early departure (for Shabbat/holiday)יציאה מוקדמת
- mashakit tash — Unit welfare NCO (handles Lone Soldier admin)מש"קית ת"ש
- mishmeret — Shift (e.g. 'weekly shifts' for which Errand Day timing differs)משמרת
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