In December 2016, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit issued an instruction to Israel's Interior Ministry to consider applications for citizenship by same-sex and opposite-sex couples equally under the same terms. The same-sex spouse of an Israeli will now be able to claim Israeli citizenship at the same speed as an opposite-sex spouse. Previously, same-sex couples had to wait up to seven years, and would generally only be granted permanent residency, rather than citizenship. The process was far quicker for opposite-sex couples. The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed before the High Court of Justice by the Gay Fathers Association.