# The US-Israel free trade agreement > The oldest US free trade agreement: the 35% value rule for Israeli goods, the IL claim and affidavit, the 2026 farm quotas and the duties a claim won't lift. Source: https://border.bot/docs/guides/countries/united-states/trade-agreements/israel Last updated: 2026-10-30 > Documentation index: https://border.bot/llms.txt. Every page is Markdown at its URL + `.md`. The United States-Israel Free Trade Area has applied since 1 September 1985, the oldest of the US free trade agreements. A product of Israel that meets its 35% value rule and is shipped directly enters at the rate marked `IL` in the HTS special column, often Free, when the importer claims it with the SPI `IL`. Rules as of 30 October 2026. > [!IMPORTANT] In effect since 24 July 2026 > Most products of Israel pay a 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty on top of the applicable rate, including goods entered free under the US-Israel FTA. > [!CAUTION] Farm quotas run to 31 December 2026 > Duty-free access for set quantities of Israeli farm goods is extended only through the end of 2026, while the two governments finish a permanent agreement. Check for a new proclamation before pricing 2027 shipments. ## What makes a good a product of Israel? A good is a product of Israel under the agreement when it is grown, produced or made in Israel, or turned there into a new and different article, is imported directly from Israel, and Israeli materials plus the direct costs of processing in Israel make up at least 35% of its appraised value at entry (HTS General Note 8). Three details decide most cases: - Materials and processing in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip or a qualifying industrial zone count toward the 35%, and goods shipped directly from there qualify too. - US-made materials can count toward the 35%, up to 15% of the appraised value. - Simple combining or packaging, or diluting with water or another substance that doesn't change the goods' character, never makes a product of Israel. Direct costs of processing include the labor of making the goods, with supervisors, engineers and quality control staff, and the dies, molds, tooling and depreciation on machinery used for them. Profit and general business costs such as administrative salaries, insurance, advertising and sales commissions don't count. Here is the rule on an article appraised at $100. Israeli materials are worth $20 and direct processing in Israel costs $12, so the Israeli share is 32%: short of 35%. Add $5 of US-made materials, which may count up to $15, and the share is 37%, so the article qualifies. ## How do you claim the US-Israel FTA on entry? A US-Israel FTA claim is made by putting `IL` before the HTS number on the entry summary. No certificate of origin goes with it: CBP can instead ask the importer for a signed affidavit that the goods meet the agreement's origin and shipping rules. Goods of Israel are exempt from the merchandise processing fee whether or not they qualify. A claim missed at entry is made through a post-entry amendment or a post-summary correction, not through the one-year post-importation refund procedure the newer agreements use. Keep the costing that shows the 35%, because the affidavit only states the result. ## Which Israeli farm goods have quotas? Some Israeli farm goods enter duty free only within yearly quantities set by the 2004 Agreement on Trade in Agricultural Products. Proclamation 10999 of 29 December 2025 extended that duty-free access for specified quantities through 31 December 2026, while the two governments finish a permanent replacement for the 2004 agreement. CBP notes that Israel FTA goods may be subject to reduced tariff-rate quotas, for dairy and peanuts, and that fill levels are in its quota status reports. The in-quota rates sit in subchapter VIII of HTS chapter 99, under 9908 numbers, and goods are entered under those numbers to get them. ## What do Israeli goods pay in 2026 with an IL claim? Israeli goods with an IL claim still pay chapter 99 duties. Since 24 July 2026 most products of Israel pay a 12.5% Section 301 forced-labor duty on top of the applicable rate, claim or not, and Section 232 duties on metals and other goods apply on top of the IL rate as well. Products on the forced-labor action's exemption list, and goods under the main Section 232 actions, don't pay the 12.5%. For $10,000 of precious metal jewelry under HTS 7113.19.50 (5.5% general, Free under IL), assuming it isn't on the exemption list, the entry pays $1,800 without the claim ($550 plus $1,250) and $1,250 with it. The [Section 301](https://border.bot/docs/guides/countries/united-states/section-301) guide covers the action, and the [US duty calculator](https://border.bot/tools/landed-cost-calculator/united-states) works out your own product. ## How do US exporters prove origin in Israel? US exporters prove origin to Israel with an invoice declaration on the commercial invoice: since 30 June 2018 Israel has accepted only invoice declarations for goods under the agreement, after phasing out the old Form A certificate. Israel's import tax and rules for buyers are on the [Israel](https://border.bot/countries/israel) page. ## Common questions ### Do I need a certificate of origin for Israeli goods? No. CBP no longer asks for one; it can ask the importer for a signed affidavit that the goods meet the agreement's origin and shipping rules. ### Can US content count toward the 35% rule? Yes, up to 15% of the article's appraised value. The rest of the 35% must come from Israeli materials and processing, or from the West Bank, Gaza or a qualifying industrial zone. ### Are Israeli goods exempt from the merchandise processing fee? Yes. CBP exempts goods of Israel from the fee whether or not they meet the agreement's terms. ## Sources - [Israel Free Trade Agreement](https://www.cbp.gov/trade/free-trade-agreements/israel), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, updated 2026-08-31 - [Israel FTA: Certificate of Origin Requirements](https://www.cbp.gov/trade/free-trade-agreements/israel/certificate-origin-requirements), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, updated 2026-08-06 - [Implementation and Expiration Dates, Selected FTAs and Preferential Trade Legislation](https://www.cbp.gov/trade/priority-issues/trade-agreements/fta-ptl), U.S. Customs and Border Protection, updated 2026-05-05 - [Harmonized Tariff Schedule, 2026 Revision 21, General Note 8 and chapter 99](https://hts.usitc.gov/), U.S. International Trade Commission, effective 2026-10-09 - [Proclamation 10999: To Implement the United States-Israel Agreement on Trade in Agricultural Products](https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2026-00245), Federal Register, 2026-01-08 - [Memorandum on Section 301 actions on 60 economies (forced labor)](https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2026-15274), Federal Register, 2026-07-28