Last Updated on September 1, 2021

Personal imports to Israel. The planned reform.

Customs Tax, VAT & Purchase Tax on Personal Imports

Online shopping in Israel is growing in popularity.  Whether you are ordering a bottle of nail varnish from Romania, a cover for your smartphone from China or an external hard-drive from the USA it’s important to know the regulations.  Local import duties (meches), VAT ( M’AM), shipping fees (dmei mishloach) and handling fees (dmei tipul) can be applied to your personal import to Israel.

• Israel shipping terminology – learn the words
• What not to bring to Israel in my aliyah shipment
• Oleh duties & rights
• How much does an Aliyah shipment cost?
• Packing & Delivery
• Aliyah shipping FAQs

Current Israel personal import laws & regulations

• On personal imports/purchases up to $75 there are no import duties
  
• On personal imports/purchases between $75 – $500  no import duties will be levied, but VAT and Purchase Tax may apply.  (Prior t  this new legislation the maximum purchase in this category was US$325)
• Any personal imports/purchases over $500 are subject to all taxes: customs, VAT at the current rate as well as Purchase tax.
• Any item with a value of over US$1,000 will require the services of an import agent.

A customs clearance fee of approximately 35 shekels may be placed on items of up to US$75 if shipped with an international delivery service (UPS, Fedex, DHL etc.).  If the value of the item is more than US$75 the clearance fee can be higher.

The purchase tax is based on the value of the item only and not on the cost of shipping.  Therefore, for example, if a $100 dollar item costs $15 to ship, the purchase tax will be levied on $100.

If the item it is found to be taxable, however, applicable taxes will be calculated on the purchase price + the shipping price.

There is no room for a “kombina” (local slang for a way to work the system – a combination) here; don’t think that you can order 3 different items every day to keep the value down. If you order more than one item from the same vendor within 72 hours the orders can be combined and the purchase tax will be based on the value of all 3 items.

If you have ordered an item that is to be shipped by an international delivery service, make sure that you have all your paperwork on hand as you may be asked to come down to the customs office (meches) to prove the value of the item you purchased.  They Israeli customs are vigilant, so be warned if you are ordering electronic devices.