The foreign ministry appointment committee, headed by the foreign minister Tsipi Livni, has approved Sofer's nomination.
Sofer, currently the deputy director general for Eastern Europe at the Israeli foreign ministry, is a senior career diplomat who has served as Israel's ambassador to Ireland.
He has also served as Israel's deputy consul-general in New York and as the head of Middle East Economic Development division at the ministry.
The nomination requires cabinet's approval, foreign ministry spokesman Mark Regev said.