FREE help with your Israeli taxes! (for tax year 2024)

Every year, many of us have to file a yearly tax report with the Israel Tax Authority.

(Are you looking for info about filing US taxes as a dual Israeli-American citizen? Check HERE: https://www.kosherfrugal.com/2025/03/us-expats-tax-season-is-here-and-i-have.html)

Many, many people pay an accountant to handle this report, but did you know that in some cases you can also get FREE help?

Here's the deal:

The Israel Tax Authority runs Free Clinics for filing yearly tax reports: this year, assistance is available for Atzmaim (freelancers/self employed people) with income up to 60,000 NIS using Form 137, people who need to file a tax report using Form 1301, and employed individuals requested a refund using Form 135.

Find this help at all regional tax offices:

Regional Tax Offices will operate these services between May 4, 2025 and June 25, 2024, Sundays and Wednesdays from 1pm - 6:00pm.

Some offices may be closed on certain days of the week. I recommend calling before you go to verify they are open!

In Eilat, the service will be available only on Mondays and Wednesdays. In Um Al Fahem and Holon, the service is only available on Sundays. 

NOTE: These clinics are for getting help filing your yearly tax report if you're self-employed, or to request a refund for employed people (only forms 1301 and 137).

Bring ALL your relevant paperwork with you so you can get the most accurate assistance.

Good luck!

Here's info about filing US taxes as an expat/dual citizen!

Follow me on Facebook for more tips and info!

Please share this with anyone who will appreciate this info!

 

FREE on Pesach 2025

I just HAD to take a break from Pesach cleaning to share this with you all!

Here's the list of Bank Hapoalim's free attractions for Pesach 2025. I have linked to websites in English, whenever possible. I hope you find this list helpful, and that you get to have some super-frugal fun over Pesach!

*Please note that I put a lot of effort into this post, tracking down websites in English for your convenience. I know the Bank Hapoalim info and other info is available to the public in Hebrew, but this blog post has added benefits for the English-speaking community. Because it was so much work, I request that you link back to this post if you share this information. Thank you!*

Please leave a comment with your favorite place to visit!

If you haven't already, go ahead and like my Facebook page so you don't miss out on deals and great info all year round!

The following are free to the public (April 14-18) courtesy of Bank HaPoalim. Pre-registration is required, and will open on Sunday, April 9. Click here to register

North:

Ancient Katzrin Park

Dubrovin Farm

Homa V'Migdal - Kibbutz Chanita Museum

Hula Valley Lake 

Mt. Hermon

Umm El-fahem Art Gallery

Regba Aqueduct

Botanical and Zoological Garden Nahariya

Druze Heritage Center

The Wilfrid Museum

Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod

The Ghetto Fighters' House Museum

The Golan Archaeological Museum

The Treasures in The Walls Museum

Yigal Allon Center

The National Maritime Museum

The Haifa Museum of Art

The Janco-Dada Museum 

Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art

The Haifa City Museum

Hermann Struck Museum

Central Israel & The Sharon Region:

Beit HaGalgalim - House of Wheels

Planetanya

The Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art

Yaacov Agam Museum of Art

The Yemenite Jewry Heritage Museum

The Tel Aviv Museum of Art

The Nachum Gutman Museum of Art

Anu Museum of the Jewish People

The Rabin Center Israeli Museum

The Israeli Cartoon Museum

The Ramat Gan Museum of Israeli Art

The Rubin Museum

Bialik House

Jerusalem Area: 

Hasmonean Aqueduct in Armon Hanetziv

Israel Museum

Jerusalem Walls Tour

The Bible Lands Museum

The Hasmonean Heritage Museum (Modiin)

Museum of Islamic Art

South:

Meshek 77 (Strawberry picking and more)

Kibbutz Chatzerim Visitors Center

The Tzon Barzel Heritage Museum

Meshek Haviv

The Dolphin and Sea Center, Ashdod

Lunada Children's Museum

Park Timna

Ben Gurion's Hut

Beta Israel Village

The Joe Alon Center for Bedouin Culture

The Legends of Yamit Visitors' Center

The Corinne Mamane Museum of Philistine Culture

The Salad Trail

Chavat HaDekalim Petting Zoo

Ron Art Judaica Studio

The Sea Museum, Palmachim

Other venues that are also FREE:

April 15-16, 10:00AM - 3:00PM: Register in advance

Dubrovin Farm

The Valley Train Site - Kfar Yehoshua
Old Courtyard - Kibbutz Ein Shemer

Herzliya City Museum

The Story of a Kibbutz, Yad Mordechai

Israel Parks and Nature: free guided tours at various sites. Register HERE 

More coming soon, as I find them!

5 ​ 6
Have a great time!

Please share this with your friends, so everyone can plan a fun and frugal Pesach!

Find me on Facebook

If you want to find (and share!) shopping deals, please join my deals groups on Facebook: 

Kosher Frugal

Israeli Shopping Overseas 

Live in Israel, Shop Online 

Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) 

I'm also on WhatsApp with an opt-in group where you'll get links to deals I find. Only admins can post.

US expats: tax season is here and I have a discount for you

this post contains affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Americans in Israel, this is for you!

If you're an American ex-pat like me, you probably get an annual headache when thinking about filing your US tax return. What an absolute pain, am I right?

Currently, this is something most of us MUST do, even if we don't like it. There's just no getting around it for now - no matter how much we complain (maybe one day it will change!). And because of the complexity of navigating tax documents issued to comply with Israeli tax law (as opposed to US tax law), it is usually NOT recommended to use automated software for filing your overseas tax return.

But now there's SimpleTax, have you heard of them? I've had a long chat with the founder of the company, and they've worked so hard to make this service available (it's designed to work in a way that standard tax software doesn't). Basically, you upload files and answer questions, and their team will put your tax return together for you for your approval.

SimpleTax will usually save you money on fees - I've gotten multiple quotes for taxes and almost all were much higher than Simpletax.

If your taxes are complicated, you will still pay a higher rate than the lowest one listed on their site, but it will most likely still be MUCH lower than the quotes I've gotten from accountants recently.

This is a game changer. 

I invite you to find more details at SimpleTax. If you use my referral link (the links to SimpleTax on this site are referral links), you'll get 10% off your first tax return! If for some reason you can't open the link, simply copy-paste this link to go to their site: https://simpletax.co.il/register?referral=KOFRU. Or go to their site on your own and be sure to enter my referral code (KOFRU).

So spread the word that this year, we'll all be doing our taxes smarter and cheaper! Use my referral code to get a great 10% discount: 

MY-CODE: KOFRU

OR CLICK HERE

SimpleTax is also on Facebook and has plans to help US citizens in Israel navigate financial issues better. You can be sure I'll be following them and waiting for more helpful developments. 

מידע חשוב עבור אזרחים אמריקאים שגרים בארץ: הגיע פתרון שיחסוך לנו הרבה כסך!

גם השנה, אפשר למלא דו"ח מס אמריקני עם חברת סימפלטקס - ותראו חסכון אמיתי!

אפשר לחסוך עוד יותר עם הקוד שלי בעת ההרשמה. ההרשמה ללא עלות - רק תצטרכו לשלם עם משתמשים במערכת לדווח. השתמשו בקוד KOFRU ותקבלו 10% הנחה.

או הקליקו כאן: https://simpletax.co.il/register?referral=KOFRU

Food vouchers from Misrad Hapnim

To combat food insecurity in Israel, Misrad Hapnim is distributing hundreds of thousands of shekels worth of food vouchers right now (February 2025). Many people have been automatically admitted to the program through their revacha services, but some eligible people may not be on the list.

If you think you might be eligible but aren't on a list to receive it, check out the Eligibility Simulator at https://govforms.gov.il/mw/forms/PopulationWithOutMunicipalityGalilArea@MOIN.gov.il 

After checking the simulator, clicking on the "Next Stage" button will take you to the "Submit Request" page. If you don't want to submit a request, don't click Next. If you do want to submit a request, be sure you have the required documentation available (a scan of your Teudat Zehut, including the "sefach", and income documentation).

Hope this helps someone out there get extra help when they need it! Feel free to share this post with anyone who might find it helpful!

If you need more financial assistance, you may find these posts helpful:
Click here to see posts labeled "financial assistance": https://www.kosherfrugal.com/search/label/financial%20assistance

Find me on Facebook

If you want to find (and share!) shopping deals, please join my deals groups on Facebook: 

Kosher Frugal

Israeli Shopping Overseas 

Live in Israel, Shop Online 

Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) 

I'm also on WhatsApp with an opt-in group where you'll get links to deals I find. Only admins can post.

Cashback sites for Israeli shoppers

This post contains referral and/or affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase or register, I may receive a payment or commission or something of the sort, but it will never cost you extra!

If you're here you probably shop online, right? 

And you probably like to save money, right?

So here are some great ways to save: 

Cashback sites you should know about:

Cashdo - this cashback site is Israel-based. You can use it to get cashback at Superpharm online and Steimatzky, and other Israeli websites, including Lastprice, Delta, and Hamashbir and many more. Definitely worth checking out! I like this one because if you get your cashback as a Gift Card, they add a little extra!

Cashback.co.il -  Another Israel-based site. If you sign up now using this link, you'll get a 10 shekel bonus in your account! This site has a lot of Israeli websites available, and some international ones too.

Rakuten (may require a US-based Paypal account) - you will be eligible for a $30 bonus when you use my referral link (click here). This is mostly for US based purchases.

Hope this helps you keep more money in your pocket!

Find me on Facebook

Want more deals? Join my groups!

• Great Deals Israel WhatsApp group
• Kosher Frugal Facebook Group
• Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) Facebook Group
• Live in Israel. Shop Online Facebook Group

Deals I found today!

Sometimes, I go to supermarket websites and only decide to actually place an order if I find a GREAT sale on something that justifies the 30 NIS delivery fee.

Usually, I do this on Saturday nights, but for some reason, today I decided to check, even though it's Thursday.

And that, my friends, is how I found this markdown:

As you can see, the Carmel "Excellence" wines are marked down to 9.90 NIS! You might know that if I buy wine, I really really don't buy expensive wines -- not that I have a problem with anyone who does, it's just not a priority in my budget, so I don't. Anyhow, once I found that wine price and justified my purchase, I looked around for other good prices and placed an order.

I didn't actually find that many super awesome markdowns besides the wine, but here are some of the ones I found:

Small packs of tomato paste, 8 for 7.70 NIS - under 1 NIS! This made me feel nostalgic for the early days of our Aliyah journey, when I routinely found tomato paste for under 1 NIS each...

They also had several vegetables for under 5 NIS/kilo, which is getting harder to find around here.

They also had several fruits for under 4 NIS/kg.

And they had Noam cheese deeply discounted - 10 NIS off the regular price!

Did you find other great deals?

Let me know!

Find me on Facebook

If you want to find (and share!) shopping deals, please join my deals groups on Facebook: 

Kosher Frugal

Israeli Shopping Overseas 

Live in Israel, Shop Online 

Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) 

I'm also on WhatsApp with an opt-in group where you'll get links to deals I find. Only admins can post.

iHerb sale! Code inside

This post contains affiliate or rewards program links. This means I may receive a small commission if you click on a link and place an order, never at any additional cost to you

עברית למטה

Before it ends, take advantage of the  iHerb year-end sale with this link: https://www.iherb.com/c/iherb-brands?soa=true&sr=2&pcode=20FRESH25&rcode=QEJ101

And get 20% off everything on the site! (just about)

Please note: Offer valid for select markets only. Exclusions apply. Can't be combined with other offers. Offer ends 1/2/25 at 10:00 AM PT.

קבלו 20% הנחה על כל האתר של אייהרב עכשיו! הקליקו כאן:

https://www.iherb.com/c/iherb-brands?soa=true&sr=2&pcode=20FRESH25&rcode=QEJ101

אם הקודים לא עולים אוטומטי לסל הזינו את הקודים

QEJ101

ואז

20FRESH25

ותקבלו את ההנחה המרבית!

רק וודאו שהסל הסופי יוצא ללא מיסים - צריך להיזהר מאוד שאחרי הקודים הסל יורד למתחת ל$75 - סף המע"מ

(ולרוב גם תקבלו משלוח חינם עם גלובל אייר לוקר עם מוסיפים מוצרים כדי שסכום הרכישה

יגיע ל$60)!

תהינו!

iHerb is one of my favorite ways to find products that I can't get in Israel. Or products that may be available in Israel, but at inflated prices.

Need some ideas for your iHerb order?

Here are just a few things I recommend - several of these are eligible for the extra discount! I'd love to hear what your favorites are:

Teas

Witch Hazel Toner 

Vitamin E Moisturizing Cream 

Plant-based (coconut milk based) Caramel 

Hand Sanitizer (great size for your bag!)

Lip balm 

Concentrated Laundry Detergent 

Unscented Compostable Dryer Sheets

Witch Hazel Cleansing Pads 

Stridex acne control pads 

Cocoa Butter Lotion 

Dental Floss 

Pain Relief Cream (herbal) (the athletes in my house like this one a lot) 

Aspercreme pain relief products (conventional)

Makeup Remover

Aquaphor 

Scar gel

Maple Syrup Granules 

Made Good Granola Bars (allergy friendly!)

Cheddar Cheese Powder

Your order of $60 and up will usually qualify for FREE Global Air Locker shipping!

Don't forget these important, basic principles of shopping online from Israel:

• Keep your order under $75 to avoid paying VAT!!
• Spread out your orders. If you want to buy more than $75 worth of items from one website, and you have the option of splitting your order - DO IT. BUT don't order more than $75 worth on any given day to the same shipping name/address/ID. If you do, customs may combine your orders and charge you. Give it about 3 days between orders. Best to ship to a different name using a different ID for customs, so you can order it all on the same day.
• Always look for the free shipping option - usually, it's to a pickup spot.

I love to see how close to $75 I can get without going over, and get free delivery to maximize savings while avoiding import taxes!

Enjoy and happy savings!

If you want to shop more locally, you should also check out Superpharm's SALE page!

INFO: Israel has a new ETA-IL requirement for visitors

UPDATED!!

This is BIG, important news for anyone planning to visit Israel who holds a passport that doesn't require applying for a visa in advance.

Israel is instituting a new ETA (Electronic Travel Authorization) requirement.

This means that while you don't need to apply for a visa at the embassy/consulate, you DO need to apply for an ETA before you book your flight. You will NOT be able to get on a flight to Israel without a valid ETA-IL.

This requirement goes into effect on January 1, 2025

(If you have a teudat zehut or Israeli passport, this DOES NOT apply to you!)

Click here to learn all about it: https://israel-entry.piba.gov.il/home-page/

In short, you now need to apply for an ETA-IL before you book a flight - it remains valid for 2 years from the date of issue. The ETA costs 25 NIS. If someone tries to charge you more than 25 NIS, they aren't the official site and you should NOT use their services. Do it yourself here: https://israel-entry.piba.gov.il/home-page/

Hope this helps your trip go smoothly! 

Be sure to support all the businesses in the North of Israel when you come. Many have been struggling to survive since the onset of the war in October 2023. Now that things are quiet - everyone needs your support!

Come find me and my family at the Safed Puzzle Room, Tzfat's flagship escape room game! Find out more at https://safedpuzzleroom.com 

Find me on Facebook

If you want to find (and share!) shopping deals, please join my deals groups on Facebook: 

Kosher Frugal

Israeli Shopping Overseas 

Live in Israel, Shop Online 

Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) 

I'm also on WhatsApp with an opt-in group where you'll get links to deals I find. Only admins can post.

Subsidized Glasses

Residents of Northern Israel - it's back! Here's another chance to get a really affordable eye exam and glasses!

This week - Thursday, December 5, 2024 from 11:00AM - 7:00PM, you have a chance to get subsidized eye exams and glasses, this time at the Kinar Hotel in "Ulam Golan" (on the Kinneret). You'll be able to get a pair of glasses: frames + lenses - for just 150 shekels, and sunglasses for 50 shekels! Note: additional fees will be charged for complicated prescriptions, multifocals, etc (but will still be much less than the standard cost for these glasses). 

FREE sunglasses are available for chayalim (no need for an ishur/asmachta)!

Please bring your glasses if you just need new glasses with the same prescription as your old ones, OR if you have a written script for your new prescription, bring that in order to save time. If you don't have an up-to-date prescription, you can have an eye exam done there, but there may be a line. Children under 12 should bring their prescription.

Please note: Glasses are not made on the spot. You will receive a text message when they are ready to be picked up.

Hope this helps some of you out there! 

Be sure not to miss out on more ways to save money - find me on Facebook!

P.S. I am not affiliated with the organizations sponsoring this or any similar events. I was not compensated to post this information. I received a press release, and have passed this information on as a public service.

Games I found on Sale - check 'em out!

This post contains affliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. This will not cost you any extra.

Looking for ways to connect with friends, family, and others?

It's a great day to buy those games on your wish list! Games are a really great way to spend time together as a family, or with friends, or even with a group of people you need to get to know better. 

(Prices can change at any time) At the time of posting, all of these games participated in FREE shipping to Israel with a $49 order, and all are marked down. But prices can change at any time.

Exploding Kittens 

Don't Flock Up

Wizards, Dragons, and Unicorns

Who Can Do It

Outrageous

The Super Fun Family Time Game

Letterpool

Yell Spell

Spill

Pick Six

Banned

Kids Against Maturity

Murder of a Millionaire

Snatching Pears

Charty Party

Cancelled

Werewords

Dead Grandma (card game)

Reigning Unicorns

Trekking the National Parks

Evenfall strategy game

Throw Throw Burrito

Taco vs. Burrito

Hues & Clues

And so many more!

More deals coming later - let me know what you're looking for! I love to hear from you!

Find me on Facebook

If you want to find (and share!) shopping deals, please join my deals groups on Facebook (Kosher Frugal is a public group with limited moderation, Live in Israel, Shop Online is a moderated group, and Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) is also moderated) and WhatsApp (the WhatsApp group is an opt-in group where you'll get links to deals I find. Only admins can post).