Despite Israel’s cut in the VAT exemption threshold from $130 to $75, shopping from the U.S., Britain, Europe and China can still be worthwhile, the article argues. Amazon has moved its Prime Day earlier and stretched it to four days, while AliExpress has countered with coupons. Amazon’s sale began today at 10:00, and Prime membership is free for the first month, after which it can be canceled. The regular price is $14.99 a month or $139 a year. Israeli shoppers do not get all Prime benefits, but they do get exclusive deals and sometimes expanded free shipping.
The piece says it can make sense to join Amazon Prime in Britain, Germany, Italy and France if buying electronics, because some items ship to Israel. It advises checking Amazon’s dedicated deals page and using a search tool that surfaces items with direct shipping to Israel, free on purchases above $49. If an item ships for a fee, it can still be worth it if the final price is lower than in Israel or if the product is unavailable locally. For items not shipped to Israel, the article suggests using forwarding services such as Dealtas and Red Box. It also notes that Amazon charges import tax at checkout for items above $75, while forwarding service users pay when the parcel arrives in Israel.
The article warns that U.S. power voltage is higher than Israel’s, so appliances are better bought from Amazon Europe. It recommends paying with a card with low foreign-exchange fees, ideally 0% to 1%, and always charging in dollars, euros or pounds rather than shekels to avoid an extra conversion fee. It also points readers to Facebook and Telegram shopping groups, including AliBuy, Ra’ut Tiken Li, Salamatak and Ineedit. Delivery times are longer than before because of the war.
Examples of deals cited include a Kindle Colorsoft international 16GB version for $159.90, or about 650 shekels with VAT and shipping; a Marshall fire truck toy for 15.50 dollars, versus 69 to 99 shekels in Israel; a GoHero children’s lab set for $32.29 instead of $49.39; a MAM baby set for 157 shekels; a Medicube Pro Booster for about 560 shekels after tax, compared with 800 shekels and up locally; a Swissdigital 31-liter laptop bag for $63.99; and a Wacaco Minipresso NS for about 112 shekels versus 179.90 in Israel. On Amazon Britain, it highlights an Oral-B iO5 two-pack for 665 shekels, a Breville toaster for 215 shekels, and a DeLonghi Nespresso Vertuo for 539 shekels. On Amazon France, a Philips Series 5400 coffee machine costs 1,862 shekels delivered, while in Germany a Nespresso Inissia costs 285 shekels delivered.
The article also says ASOS UK is selling New Balance 204L shoes for about 194 to 196 shekels depending on color, about 2.5 times less than in Israel. AliExpress has launched Brand Day as a rival to Prime Day, and the reader is urged to compare prices with Temu and Shein, which are also offering heavy coupons and, on Shein, up to 70% off summer fashion.
