Nefesh B’Nefesh closes 2025 with over 4,100 North American olim

As 2025 comes to a close, over 4,100 North American olim arrived in Israel this year with the support of Nefesh B’Nefesh, in cooperation with Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael, and Jewish National Fund-USA. This is the highest annual figure in the past four years, representing an increase of over 12% compared to last year.

In total, 4,150 individuals from North America made Aliyah in 2025, the highest figure since 2021. This marks an increase of more than 12% compared to last year, when the number of immigrants stood at 3,706. 

According to the organization, the sense of Zionism and solidarity among North American Jewry has grown significantly since the onset of the Iron Swords War and is among the central factors driving the increase in Aliyah, with over 50% of applicants citing this as their reason for Aliyah. With the outbreak of the war, Nefesh B’Nefesh reported a sharp surge in the opening of Aliyah application files. Between 2022 and 2025, a cumulative increase of approximately 50% was recorded in the number of Aliyah applications opened (8,943 in 2022 compared to 13,389 in 2025), with a particularly sharp rise between 2022 and 2024 (about 43%) and a continued upward trend in 2025 as well. Accordingly, the organization expanded its staff and held dozens of Aliyah events across North America to accompany prospective immigrants and assist them throughout the process.

Among the new immigrants who arrived this year are 297 families, 946 children, 1,476 single men and women, and 548 retirees. The average age of Olim over the last year is 31 years old, with the oldest being 96 years old and the youngest being a four-month-old baby. The Olim come from all over North America, most notably New York, New Jersey, California, Maryland, Florida, and Illinois. 

“As we conclude the year, we are particularly encouraged to have reached a milestone of nearly 4,200 Olim from North America, while continuing to see a daily rise in interest in making Aliyah,” said Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Nefesh B’Nefesh. “These olim underscore that Aliyah is not solely a personal milestone but a national and historic endeavor. Together, these new olim are already helping to address Israel’s national needs and strengthen its future, and we recognize the significance of their decision to establish their lives in the State of Israel at this pivotal moment in the country’s history.”

The olim who arrived in Israel in 2025 hold a variety of occupations, the most prominent of which is the field of medicine. In 2025, 93 physicians arrived in Israel as part of the International Medical Aliyah program, a collaborative program led by Nefesh B’Nefesh and the Ministries of Aliyah and Integration, Health, the Negev, the Galilee, National Resilience, and the Jewish Agency for Israel. In total, 541 physicians from around the world made Aliyah through the initiative in 2025. 

As part of Nefesh B’Nefesh and Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael’s Go Beyond program, which aims to encourage immigrants to move to Israel’s peripheral regions such as in the Negev, the Galilee, and Jerusalem, 1,505 Olim made Aliyah to these regions. Of these, 1,097 chose to live in Jerusalem, positioning the city as the leading destination for Aliyah from North America. Additional leading cities chosen by North American immigrants include Tel Aviv–Jaffa, Beit Shemesh, Ra’anana, Modi’in–Maccabim–Re’ut, Netanya, Herzliya, and Haifa.