The History of Gold and Silver in Israel
Since Israel’s founding on May 14, 1948, there have never been any ownership or import restrictions placed on private ownership of precious metals. More importantly, Israel has never once instituted any form of wealth confiscation of private assets; even during the hyper inflationary periods in the 70’s and 80’s, when Israel’s currency collapsed several times during very difficult periods of war and a massive wave of Aliyah from Russia.
In the past, Bank of Israel (Israel’s central bank) used to own a small amount of gold reserves to support Israel’s currency, however during the 1980’s central bank Chairman, Stanley Fischer, sold all of Israel’s gold reserves and now, unlike other central banks around the world, which have been accumulating gold to support the value of their currencies, Israel holds no gold reserves at all.
Israel’s commodities industry is still very under developed compared to that of the US and Europe. Our capital markets are still in their infancy and Israelis don’t usually invest in commodities because of the high taxation placed on imported commodities and goods, such and gold and silver.
Most Israelis who do invest in gold do so through foreign Exchange Traded funds (ETF) such as GLD and SLV.
An ETF is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges much like stocks and tracks the price of the underlying asset or index, gold or silver in this case.
Many gold enthusiasts however shun ETFs and prefer to own physical gold and silver in private vaults in Switzerland, Singapore and Hong Kong. Most recently we are seeing many more immigrants asking how they can own physical gold and silver in Israel, because they would like to bring their family wealth with them into the promised land.
Taxation of Precious Metals in Israel
Unlike the United States and Europe, Israel views gold and silver as a commodity having no investment or monetary value and as such, our Tax Authorities have placed significant Customs Taxes on the import of precious metals into the country.
To import any commodity into Israel, one has to send their products through Israeli Customs. Israeli Customs is made up of three taxes; Customs tax (0% for gold/silver), Purchase tax (0% for gold/silver) and the prevailing VAT tax (17% as of October 1, 2015).
Since Israel does not view precious metals as a financial asset like in the USA and Europe; paying VAT taxes to own physical gold for investment purposes in Israel does not make much sense at all, and as such the precious metal industry in Israel has never fully developed.
Can I Bring My Own Private Gold/Silver Into Israel With Me When I Make Aliyah?
Yes you can, it is 100% legal for any private individual to own any amount of precious metals in Israel.
However, since Gold and Silver are viewed as commodities, if you brought your own private gold with you on your Aliyah flight, you would need to declare them in full through the Red Line at Ben Gurion Airport when you enter Israel (even if you own only a single coin). Israeli Customs will require you to pay the prevailing VAT tax on the gold and silver content of your coins or bars.
Can I Make Aliyah With Gold and Silver Without Paying Customs Taxes?
No. In Israel, gold and silver are viewed as commodities and you will need to pay VAT taxes to import them when you land in Ben Gurion Airport.
What Options Are There to Own Gold and Silver In Israel Free of Taxes?
There are two options available for individuals making Aliyah to own Gold and Silver in Israel Tax Free.
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Purchasing Gold and Silver through an Israeli precious metal retailer.
iGold was founded by Joshua Feldman in 2012 (a new immigrant from South Africa in 2009) and is the first and only company in Israel, able to sell physical gold and silver tax free for investment purposes.
Investment precious metals are gold and silver stored in a vault for a period of three months in the following forms, as;
(a) legal tender gold and silver bullion coins; and
(b) gold bullion rounds and bars (in an investment form) of at least 99.5% fineness; and
(c) silver bullion rounds and bars (in an investment form) of at least 99.9% fineness.
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Purchasing second hand Gold and Silver in Israel.
If you purchase Gold and Silver from a private individual who has already imported his gold into Israel, then the transaction is also VAT free.
If I Inherited Gold and Silver and my Coins Have Sentimental Value to Me, Is There A Way To Import Them Tax Free?
Unfortunately Israel Customs no longer allows the import of private gold and silver duty free, even if they have sentimental value attached to them.
Where Should I Store My Gold and Silver In Israel?
Most individuals store their gold and silver in their home, in a private safe which they fully insure.
If you own an investment amount of gold and silver, then iGold would advise individuals to rather store their gold in a third party fully insured, private bullion vault in Israel.
Currently there are 3 companies which provide this service to the public: Brinks Israel and Brickstone Israel in Tel Aviv; and through iGold in the South of Israel in Eilat, using A-Team Security vault services.
Joshua Feldman, Bsc (Acc), is founder of Israel Gold and Silver Coins Ltd (iGold), Israel’s first and only tax free precious metal retailer. iGold has been assisting private individuals import precious metals discreetly and securely into Israel since 2012. iGold also provides segregated, fully allocated, secure storage to our customers.You can visit us at www.iGold.co.il or email us at [email protected] or call us directly on 058-66-777-45.
Updated on May 13, 2019!
