8,55 million people live in Israel. About 1/5 of the population is Arabic, and ¾ is Jewish. It is one of the few Middle Eastern countries that is a low-risk country when it comes to doing business. The country is 31st in the world in terms of GDP. Israel’s largest economic partners are the United States and China. In terms of export to Israel, what should you pay attention to?
Export to Israel – products
In 2019, export from all EU countries to Israel was worth about USD 23,6 billion (€ 20,1 billion). The United States, Israel’s largest trade partner, exported goods worth USD 12,8 billion. Export from the EU to Israel grew until 2017 and fell by 3,2% in 2018. In 2019, it recovered by 3,5%.
The products exported to Israel are mainly:
- machinery and appliances (25,1%)
- transport equipment
- products of the chemical or allied industries
- foodstuffs, beverages, tobacco
- optical and photographic instruments, etc.
For the products to be sold on the Israeli market, they need to meet the requirements. Read about the Israeli market standards here. The goods also need to be appropriately marked.
Products banned from export to Israel
Mind that there are restrictions on shipping products such as:
- fake currency
- gambling equipment
- cordless phones, ranges of 900 MHz and 2.4 GHz
- counterfeit documents
- games of chance
- pornographic material
- drugs and narcotics.
Make sure to check if you do not need a permit for exporting your product.
Shipping products to Israel
Products can be shipped to Israel in two ways: by sea and by air. Shipping by sea is more suitable for large cargo.
Sea freight is the most frequently chosen method. The products are mostly imported to the ports of:
- Ashdod
- Tel Aviv via Ashdod
- Jerusalem via Ashdod
- Haifa
For smaller or fragile shipments, we recommend choosing airfreight. Lufthansa Cargo offers cargo flights from Frankfurt to Tel Aviv.
Documents for shipping to Israel
Required documents when exporting to Israel:
- commercial invoice
- packing list if the invoice does not include details on the shipped products.
Additional documents depending on the type of product are:
- certificate of origin
- fumigation certificate
- CITES certificate for specimens of fauna and flora
- other certificates, permits, and documents.
You can find more documents in the “documents” section on our blog.
