The Palestinians do not have a port. Goods imported from abroad and meant for the Palestinians are received by Israeli authorities. The crated goods are offloaded from ships. The Israelis consult the manifests given to them by the Palestinian importer, which claims that some, or most, of the goods are destined for the Palestinian Authority, and then the Israelis collect an import tax based on that information. That entire tax is then transferred by Israel to the PA. Israeli investigators have now discovered that the taxes it collected, and transferred to the PA, were part of a grand swindle of the state. The manifests lied; a very large part of those goods were never intended for delivery to the PA. The crates are loaded onto trucks, supposedly to be delivered to the Palestinian Authority. But once on the trucks, some of those goods are then delivered not to the PA, but are sold inside Israel. And no import tax is ever paid on those goods to the government of Israel.
More on this tremendous swindle of more than a billion dollars is reported on here: “Figures show Palestinian importers game system, deny Israel billions in tax revenue,” bIsrael Hayom, May 4, 2023:
Netael Bandel,Figures released by the Israel Tax Authority reveal that in recent years, Israel has failed to properly validate manifests of imports it processes on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, resulting in billions of shekels being paid to Ramallah without justification, including 1.5 billion shekels ($411 million) in 2021 alone.
Since the Palestinian Authority does not have its own ports, Israel collects the various import taxes and levies on its behalf when they arrive in Israeli ports. The goods then get transferred via trucks to the Palestinian Authority and the taxes are also transferred by Israel. However, the amount of taxes Israel collects and then hands over is determined by the manifests declared by the Palestinian importer.
Israel Hayom can report that in most cases, the crates that contain Palestinian imports are emptied in Israeli ports and much of the content does not reach its final destination but is rather sold in Israel itself, but none of the taxes stay in Israel.
As a result, Israel loses twice: First because it transfers the tax for the entire crate to the Palestinians, and second, because it never collects the import taxes it could have received for the goods that stay in Israel….
According to a report issued by Israel Tax Authority, in 2016, Israel lost 450 million shekels ($123 million) as a result of this sting. The comptroller further noted that law enforcement agencies have not sufficiently cracked down on this….
The Lavi organization, which seeks to promote proper governance, filed a freedom of information request. Israel Hayom can report that as a result of this request, figures have been released and they show that the situation has gotten worse in recent years. In 2019, 66% of the PA-destined goods never made it there, with Israel losing 543 million shekels ($148 million). In 2020, this rose to 70% (695 million shekels or $190 million), and in 2021 it rose to 83% (1.5 billion shekels or $411 million). Even if the Israel Tax Authority assesses that the actual sums are lower because half of the goods do eventually make it there, the loss would still be huge: 750 million shekels in 2021 ($205 million) alone….
The Israel Tax Authority told the organization that it did not punish importers who engaged in that scheme despite the recommendations of the state comptroller. Likewise, a special electronic monitoring system bought by the agency has not been phased into service. A law-enforcement source told Israel Hayom that Israel’s ability to enforce is limited because of the Paris economic agreement with the PA from 1994. Under that agreement, Israel must transfer the taxes it collects on its behalf based on the manifest declared by the importer rather than based on the actual delivery of the goods.
The Kohelet Policy Forum petitioned the High Court of Justice in order to force the state to change its enforcement and tax collection practices. The request also includes a demand that the state take back in taxes the billions of shekels it handed over to the PA in recent years for goods that were never delivered to importers. “The money transfers are illegal and deplete the public coffers,” they wrote.
The Israel Tax Authority said in a statement: “The Israel Tax Authority has been active on this issue of transferring import taxes to the Palestinian Authority as stipulated under the Paris Agreement. We carry out routine oversight over the crossings between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, including as a means of cracking down on criminal activity where goods declared for the Palestinian Authority are in fact for Israeli importers. The authority has been using the means at its disposal under the law, including through the seizure of monetary deposits of importers in cases where the goods don’t arrive in the PA-held areas.”
The disturbing laxity of the Israeli tax authorities, which has continued at least since 2016, is now at an end. It is to be hoped that Israel will, from now on, recoup its own losses on import taxes never paid. It should do this not all at once, but over time, by holding onto more of the import taxes it collects for the PA – in addition to the amount it withholds because of the “Pay-For-Slay” program – until finally the full amount of lost revenue has been paid back by the PA. Just in three years – 2019, 2020, and 2021 – the Israeli tax authorities lost a total of $750 million USD.
You have to hand it to the Palestinians – when they set their minds to it, they are master swindlers. Someone should write up the whole cautionary tale. I suggest, as the working title, Swindlers’ List.
Fitna says
You invent a religion which dehumanizes your fellow man and this is the end result. These filthy maggots preying on the good/decent people.
What’s worse is Israel is allowing itself to be exploited like this. Of this is one of scams they’ve uncovered, who knows what other clever schemes the Fakestinians invented to defraud Israel.
Isn’t Israel providing water and power (for free in some cases) to these same vermin that want to see their destruction? Imagine what Israel could do to them, if they decided to no longer be their willing tools.
At the very least Israel should do everything they can to stop supporting Palestinians or allow them to be dependent on Israel for anything.
I’ve seen plenty of videos of ordinary Palis and what they really think about Jews/Israel and the vast majority hate them and want to see them destroyed.
This is the fantasy world leaders have cooked up? Two states living side-by-side in imaginary harmony and peace? How’s that possible when one state just wants to obliterate the other? It’s all a big joke.
Israel you owe nothing to these parasites, let them sink or swim on their own. Let them open up their own ports and shut the doors on them…you don’t need Arabs/Palis on your land…they’re nothing but a form of rot in your country, the same way Muslims (in general) are in the West.
Ofc we’ve all heard of the scams Muslims are running in our own countries to defraud taxpayers out of millions of dollars…this is what Muslims do and have done to non-Muslims for centuries…we need to wise up and throw them out.
Fitna says
Correction:
*Of course this is one of the scams…..
James Lincoln says
Fitna says,
“…you don’t need Arabs/Palis on your land…”
Correct.
They add no real value – and are a constant terrorist threat.
The IDF should expel all of them – permanently.
Fitna says
Thanks James totally agree. The trouble is the leadership in Israel which is too eager to placate their enemies, including anti-semitic European and Arab states.
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Well said Molly…the mentality of the West includes kindness and giving people respect and second chances, which our enemy just sees as a weakness to exploit, which ofc they do.
Until we learn we cannot live alongside such people then nations like Israel, the US and others will continue to be used and robbed of money while they continue their endless jihad against us.
Molly says
In the end, it is Israel who once again is found to be “stupid”.
Have we not yet learned that appeasement is seen as weakness; and that they take advantage of kindness and aid.
Gaza an example.
Who would have thought that Israel would disengage from Gaza hoping that insane 7th century insanity would be ever be oh, so “nice” to Israel?
We fool ourselves thinking that Islamic terrorists with their 7th century ideology, could actually become civilized enough to understand how friendship, life and love works.
VictorMc says
YES to all that BUT it’s all been said a zillon times before.
What we want is real action not words any more.
When is real ACTION going to happen in the Israeli political/civil service setup? They have MY vote.
Gandalfs Trouserpress says
Hi Fitna, thank you for your post. You did a great job unpicking the twists and turns of this fraud and its abuses. I’m not great with balance sheets etc. but you have helped me understand the magnitude and audacity of this nefarious scheme.