The court upheld the claim of the Kibbutz Be’eri printing house, obliging it to hold a tender for the production of “smart documents”

Since 2008 and until now, biometric documents have been produced without any tender by the Patkit printing house (initially as a subcontractor of the American company HP), which received about a billion shekels from the state during this period.

In 2025, after the management published a decision to extend the contract with Patkit without a tender for another ten years in the amount of 240 million shekels.

Dfus Beeri stated that this was a scandalous decision. The company, located in the kibbutz damaged by the October 7 massacre, has the manufacturing capabilities needed for the project, and today blanks for smart ID cards can be produced at a cost significantly lower than what the government is currently paying.

After filing the lawsuit, the management announced a tender, extending the contract with Patkit for only one year. After the pre-selection stage of the tender was published in November 2025, Dfus Beeri stated that the tender was “tailored” to the parameters of a permanent supplier.

Against the backdrop of these claims, the Population Authority’s tender commission met in March 2026 and decided to cancel the tender and stop the preliminary stage. The commission wrote that it intends to “conduct an in-depth study of the issue and make a new decision, including the publication of a new tender.”

In May 2026, Dfus Beeri filed a lawsuit against the management in the Jerusalem District Court, accusing it of delaying time.

In June, the contract with Patkit was automatically extended for another year with the option of two extensions of six months each time.

According to the court decision, the promotion of tender procedures will begin in mid-August, and the target for the start of issuing identity cards after the completion of the tender is June 2027. In addition, the judge ruled that the department will pay Dfus Beeri 25 thousand shekels in legal costs.