Form 13 — Confirmation of a Site File Update: The Complete Guide for Business Owners and Building Managers

What Form 13 is and why it exists

Form 13 — confirmation of a site file update — is an official form used in business-licensing procedures before the National Fire and Rescue Authority. It records that the property's site file has been updated to reflect the changes that have actually taken place. The purpose is simple but critical: to ensure that firefighting crews arriving at an emergency have accurate, up-to-date information about the building — floor plans, the location of firefighting means, the risk level at the site, and the location of hazardous sources such as gas and electricity.

An outdated site file is not a bureaucratic matter — it is a genuine threat to life. A firefighter entering a burning building and relying on incorrect information, on rooms that no longer exist, on passages that were sealed, or on a sprinkler system that was relocated, may lose critical minutes and endanger himself and anyone trapped inside. Form 13 is the bridge between what actually happened at the property and the operational records held by the responsible fire station.

What is a site file and how does it save lives?

A site file is a set of operational information maintained by the fire station about buildings within its area of responsibility — mainly commercial, public and industrial buildings. The file is meant to serve the firefighting forces in real time, and usually includes:

• Floor plans and access routes for firefighting vehicles
• Location of the main electrical panel, main gas valve and fuel tanks
• Types of hazardous materials stored at the property and their quantities
• Location of fire-detection systems, sprinklers, suppression systems and control panels
• Contact details of a responsible person for emergencies

Almost any significant change to the property — a renovation, an expansion of the area, a change in a room's designation, adding a storeroom, or a change to a suppression system — may render parts of the site file irrelevant. Form 13 confirms that the file has been updated and realigned with the situation on the ground.

The regulatory background: where does this fit into the fire requirements?

The Business Licensing Law, 5728-1968, requires a large portion of business types in Israel to obtain a fire approval as a condition for receiving a business license — from restaurants to logistics warehouses and factories. The National Fire and Rescue Authority, operating under the National Fire and Rescue Authority Law, 5772-2012, is responsible for setting the requirements, overseeing their implementation, and managing the operational information about the buildings.

Form 13 is relevant when a change has occurred at the property after the site file has already been opened. It does not replace the initial fire approval given when the file was opened, but rather documents that the existing information has been updated and still reflects reality at the site. It is important to note that the numbering of the forms and the names of the documents may be updated from time to time by the authority, so it is always advisable to verify the required form with the specific fire station.

Who must submit the form and when?

The need to update a site file usually arises in three main situations:

• An application for a new business license at a property for which a site file already exists, where you must ensure the information matches the current use
• Renewal of a business license, when it turns out that changes have occurred since the last visit or update
• A direct demand from a fire inspector — following a routine inspection, a complaint, or an unusual incident at the property

A business owner who has carried out a renovation, changed a room's designation, added a storeroom, or changed a suppression system should initiate the file update on their own — even without an active demand from the fire authority. Waiting for an external demand is precisely what causes licensing delays.

Who is authorized to fill in and sign the form?

This is the nuance that business owners miss most: not every professional can sign a confirmation of a site file update. The confirmation is not given by the contractor and not by the property owner.

The confirmation of the site file update is given on behalf of the National Fire and Rescue Authority — the fire representative who conducted the visit, examined the data, and confirmed that the site file reflects the actual situation. That said, the division of roles around the form is as follows:

• The property owner or business owner is responsible for providing the documents required for the update: up-to-date plans, system certifications and technical specifications
• When the update stems from a change to a technical system (sprinklers, smoke detection, gas system), the professional who performed the work is usually required to provide a certificate or a work-completion confirmation signed by a certified professional
• The confirmation itself is approved by the fire representative — not the contractor and not the property owner

In practice the process looks like this: the business owner coordinates a visit, prepares all the documents in advance, and the fire inspector arrives, checks, and — if everything is in order — approves the file update.

Validity of the confirmation and inspection frequency

The site file is not a one-time document but a living document that should reflect the state of the property at all times. The date of the next update is usually determined by a combination of factors:

• The authority's policy and the timelines of the responsible fire station
• The type of property and its risk level (an industrial building requires closer monitoring than a small office)
• Any physical change to the property — which requires an immediate update, regardless of the routine schedule

There is no fixed "expiry date" set in law for the form itself, but a fire approval that relies on an outdated site file may be disqualified in an inspection and require an immediate update — sometimes at the most inconvenient moment, in the middle of a license-renewal process.

What does the fire inspector actually check?

During a visit to update a site file, the inspector usually examines the following points:

• Correspondence between the plans recorded in the file and the situation on the ground
• Accessibility of the access roads and gates for firefighting vehicles
• Location and soundness of fire hydrants, firefighting stations and detection panels
• Storage of hazardous materials — quantity, location and labeling
• Soundness of the emergency signage and escape routes
• Whether changes that were made received the required approvals (building permit, system certifications)

Common mistakes and pitfalls — the real nuances

These are the mistakes that recur again and again, and that can easily be prevented:

• Renovating without updating the file: a business owner who knocked out a wall, added a storeroom, or changed a room's layout — and forgot to update the fire authority. On the next visit it will emerge that the file does not match, and the process may stall until it is fixed.
• Relying on a contractor who "took care of everything": the contractor is responsible for the construction work, not for updating the site file with the fire authority. The responsibility remains with the property owner and the business owner.
• Confusing the initial fire approval with a file update: the fire approval is given when the file is opened. A site file update is a separate procedure carried out on an existing file.
• Not keeping an approved copy: the property's fire-safety documents — you must keep an accessible copy at the property. An inspector who comes for an inspection will want to see them.
• Lack of coordination between tenant and property owner: in a commercial building with several tenants, a tenant sometimes makes changes and the property owner is unaware. Both parties may be found responsible in an inspection.
• Last-minute submission before license renewal: updating a site file requires advance coordination with the fire station, which is sometimes overloaded. Do not wait for the last week.

Practical tips for the business owner and the building manager

• Maintain a consolidated document file: up-to-date building plans, system certifications (sprinklers, smoke detection, gas) and copies of previous fire approvals — all in one place, accessible and organized.
• Document every change to the property: even a change that seems "small," such as erecting a partition. Ask yourselves: "Does this change affect what is recorded in the fire file?" If so — it must be updated.
• Coordinate an early visit: contact the responsible fire station several weeks to months before license renewal, not in the last week.
• Set an annual reminder in your calendar: even if seemingly nothing has changed, an annual self-check ensures the file still matches reality.
• Know which station you belong to: each area is assigned to a specific fire station. It is worth knowing in advance whom to contact — not in a moment of pressure.

How Domera helps you track this confirmation

With Domera you can store the site file update confirmation and all related fire approvals in the property's digital file, with automatic reminders before license-renewal and site-file-update dates, and with tracking of certified system suppliers — so the building manager does not have to remember everything alone.