A lot of travelers love using their payment cards while traveling, especially in countries where it’s widely common and various types are accepted.
It’s comfortable and easy to use and there’s no money withdrawal commission (that can be pretty high in another country).
The use of paying cards is very common in Israel and one of Israeli’s preferred ways to make a payment.
Almost all shops, restaurants and services accept payment cards and ATMs are spread throughout the entire country, be it in big central shopping malls or small villages and settlements.
So, are you planning a trip to Israel and wonder if your visa debit card will be accepted? Well, read no further!
Visa debit cards are accepted in Israel. You can use them to withdraw money at ATMs and to pay at supermarkets, shopping malls and sometimes even at the local falafel stalls.
Below you will find information about using Visa debit cards in Israel, as well as a few helpful notes.
Before your arrival to Israel
Before you arrive in Israel, it is advised to contact your bank or credit provider and inform them that you’re going to be here, so they won’t block your card. When a bank receives information of purchases made by your card in a different country, they might think that the card got stolen and therefore might block it.
To avoid this inconvenience, it might be a good idea to let the bank know of your upcoming trip. Also, you might ask for information about how to lower transaction fees while being abroad.
Do ATMs accept visa debit cards in Israel?
You can definitely use your Visa debit card to withdraw money from ATMs in Israel! Most of them should work and if you encounter one that doesn’t accept your card, try a few more, until you find one that works.
ATMs are widely spread in Israel. You can find them outside of bank offices, near shopping malls, trade centers, and local main areas.
Most ATMs have English translations. Typically, ATMs have printed labels on the side, that indicate what credit cards they accept, so you might also look for them to see if the ATM works with your card’s network.
*note: Most Israeli cards come with a 4-digit PIN. While 5-6 digits might still be ok, if you have a PIN with more digits than that you may encounter problems, so take that into consideration.
Places in Israel that may not accept Visa debit cards
Something that you might want to know regarding this matter is that most of the paying cards issued in Israel are credit cards and as such, most of the businesses have machines that are designed to read and work with credit cards.
It’s a bit uncommon, but you may encounter places that won’t be able to read your card.
Since most of Israeli cards have a 4-digit PIN, like I’ve mentioned before, some of the payment machines might not be able to read a PIN code longer than that.
Besides that, most of the street food; stalls, carts and small local shops choose to work with cash only. Some allow the use of cards, but only if your total purchase is bigger than a certain price (usually around 20 NIS), so expect this if you want to try some authentic Israeli street food.
Credit vs debit in Israel
As mentioned before, most of the payment cards in Israel are credit and as such, the systems here operate better with credit rather than debit.
While debit cards are used and accepted and most of the tourists report that their Visa debit cards work in Israel, there are a few reports of tourists having problems with their debit cards, while their credit cards are working smoothly.
You might want to take this into consideration when choosing the card to take with you to Israel, or a better idea might be taking 2 ????
Conclusion
Though debit cards are not common in Israel, you can definitely use yours here! Most places will accept them and you’ll be able to withdraw money from ATMs.
Having said that, you might consider what card you want to bring, because you might encounter payment machines that operate on systems designed for credit cards, with a 4 digit PIN. Using a debit card, especially if its PIN code is longer than 4 digits, might have issues.
Additionally, if you think there’s a good chance that you’ll make expensive purchases, you might also consider using a credit card. This way it’ll be easier to get your money back and cancel a deal in case you get overcharged, or cancel your card if it gets stolen.
In general, as I’ve mentioned before, most of Israeli payment cards are credit and the systems here work better with these cards. Though Visa debit cards are accepted and typically work, you still might want to be aware of that.
I aspire to live an adventurous life and have always been attracted and curious about the unusual and the different. After discovering a sort of talent for writing I decided to start playing with words and from then on, I’m feeling the need to express myself to the world, through the written word.
