Overview

The Standards Institution of Israel (SII) is the sole statutory body for developing and establishing standards, as mandated by the Standards Law of 1953. It integrates standardization, testing, conformity assessment, certification, and training under one roof, operating laboratories across most technological fields and serving industry, commerce, and government. Policy oversight is provided by the Commissioner of Standards at the Ministry of Economy and Industry.

The SII’s General Assembly comprises 70 representatives from manufacturing, construction, commerce, services, trades, consumers, professional associations, academia, and government. It elects a Board of Directors and President annually. Hundreds of standardization committees staffed by volunteer representatives from across the economy, prepare standards. Most standards are voluntary, but relevant ministries may declare them mandatory for public health, safety, environmental, or market compatibility reasons.

Israel’s standards policy calls for adopting proven international standards whenever possible, but it historically favors European standards through its affiliation with CEN and CENELEC, which can disadvantage U.S. exporters.

Reform Update:
In 2021, a major import standards reform was initiated and expanded through the “Not Stopping at the Port” and “What’s Good for Europe Is Good for Israel” initiatives, which shifted many products from mandatory Israeli laboratory testing to a declaration-based import system. Importers can declare compliance based on test reports from International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) accredited foreign laboratories. Products meeting approved international standards and posing no safety risk can enter through an “international track,” while a limited list of high-risk products remains subject to full Israeli lab testing. The reform was implemented in phases: declaration-based entry began on July 1, 2024, and from January 1, 2025, Israel began recognizing dozens of EU standards (initially 43, with more to follow), reducing clearance times and compliance costs for EU-approved goods. In March 2025, Israel’s Economy and Industry Minister Nir Barkat announced plans to expand existing import reforms by recognizing U.S. standards in addition to EU standards. The move aims to reduce barriers for American goods entering Israel while maintaining health, safety, and environmental protections. For more information, please contact Commercial Specialist Christina Azar at Christina.azar@trade.gov.

Standards and Technical Regulations

The SII develops voluntary national standards but allows ministries to declare them mandatory when required. While Israel’s system is top-down and government-driven, non-manufacturers—including foreign companies—can participate in standards development through SII committees. The SII publishes an annual standards work plan. 

Israel uses a mix of international standards. While it favors EU norms, occasionally it accepts U.S.-based standards (e.g., ASTM, ASME, API, SAE) when they meet equivalence criteria or under Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs).Testing, Inspection and Certification

Israel follows a risk-based approach. Most low-risk products enter without pre-shipment testing in Israel if they comply with recognized standards. Products under mandatory standards, particularly in health, safety, and environmental categories will require testing and certification.

High-risk products (e.g., certain electrical appliances, toys, PPE, construction materials) must still undergo full Israeli lab testing and model approval. Enforcement is maintained through customs inspections, post-market surveillance, and audits.

Dept. of Defense    QPL AND QML for Electronic components
ETL    Standards Mark recognition - Electrical and energy products
FCC    Recognition
IAPMO    Hydraulic products Standards Mark
NSF    Food Safety, HACCP-9000, HACCP
UL    Mutual recognition in fields of: Electricity, electronics, hydraulics, mechanics, fire.  Standards Mark supervision in fields of: Electricity, electronics, hydraulics, mechanics, fire.

Publication of Technical Regulations

New and revised standards are published in the official gazette Reshumot (Hebrew only), available in hard copy via subscription from the Commissioner of Standardization or in legal bookstores. Proposed standards are open for 30 days of public comment and 60 days for ministerial review (with a possible 60-day extension). Lack of ministerial response within the timeframe is deemed approval. 

Under the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement), Israel as a member country must notify the WTO of proposed technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures that may affect trade. Notify U.S. is a free, web-based email subscription service that provides access to these draft measures for review and comment. Subscribers can receive customized alerts based on selected countries and industry sectors and may request full texts of the proposed regulations. The service is managed by the U.S. WTO TBT Inquiry Point, located at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) within the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Contact Information:
U.S. Department of Commerce EMEA Regional Standards Attache
Cara Lofaro; Cara.Lofaro@trade.gov
Standards Institution of Israel 
Mrs. Dalia Yarom, Director, Standardization Division
Tel: +972-3-6465180 | Email: dyarom@sii.org.il

Use ePing to review proposed technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures. 

The ePing SPS&TBT platform, or “ePing”, provides access to notifications made by WTO Members under the Agreements on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), distributed by the WTO from January 16, 1995 to present. ePing is available to all stakeholders free of charge and does not require registration unless the user wishes to receive customized e-mail alerts. Use it to browse notifications on past as well as new draft and updated product regulations, food safety and animal and plant health standards and regulations, find information on trade concerns discussed in the WTO SPS and TBT Committees, locate information on SPS/TBT Enquiry Points and notification authorities, and to follow and review current and past notifications concerning regulatory actions on products, packaging, labeling, food safety and animal and plant health measures in markets of interest. 

Notify U.S., operated and maintained by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) since 2003 to distribute and provide access to notifications (and associated draft texts) made under the WTO TBT Agreement for US stakeholders, has reached its end of life. Per obligation under the TBT Agreement, each WTO Member operates a national TBT (and an SPS) Enquiry Point. National TBT Enquiry Points are authorized to accept comments and official communications from other national TBT Enquiry Points, which are NOT part of the WTO or the WTO Secretariat. All comment submissions from U.S. stakeholders, including businesses, trade associations, U.S domiciled standards development organizations and conformity assessment bodies, consumers, or U.S. government agencies on notifications to the WTO TBT Committee should be sent directly to the USA WTO TBT Inquiry Point. Refer to the comment guidance for further information. This guidance is provided to assist U.S. stakeholders in the preparation and submission of comments in response to notifications of proposed foreign technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures.