How do you actually move your money from South Africa to Israel?
Not the way you would move money inside the European Union or between US states. South Africa still runs exchange control, so sending rands to your new Israeli account is a regulated cross-border transfer: it goes through an Authorised Dealer (a bank licensed by the South African Reserve Bank, the SARB), and once the amount climbs above R1 million in a calendar year you need clearance from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) before a single rand leaves4. That clearance is the Approval for International Transfer (AIT), and getting it is the part that catches new olim off guard.
Not advice
Almost every new South African oleh assumes the hard part is the Israeli side. It is the opposite: Israel does not tax you for bringing in your own capital, but South Africa decides how much you may take out, on what paperwork, and how fast. This article covers the SARB and SARS side first (the two allowances, the AIT, source-of-funds, and what ceasing residency changes), then the Israeli receiving-and-reporting side, then the foreign-exchange cost of the conversion itself. It does not cover how to invest the money once it lands; because this is purely about moving cash and not about holding pooled funds, the US PFIC regime is out of scope here and is handled in our investing articles.
South African side: the two allowances every oleh has to choose between
SARB gives every South African resident adult two annual channels for sending money out of the country. Which one you use is decided entirely by the rand amount, and the difference in paperwork between them is large.
What is the single discretionary allowance (the easy R1 million)?
The single discretionary allowance lets each South African resident over 18 transfer up to R1 million per calendar year abroad for any legal purpose, including simply moving it to your Israeli bank account4. You do not need a SARS tax-clearance PIN for it, and you do not have to produce source-of-funds documents to the bank (the one carve-out is travel outside the Common Monetary Area, which has its own declaration)4. For an oleh who is moving a modest amount, or splitting a larger move across two calendar years, this is the clean route: instruct your SA bank, the rands convert to shekels (or to a hard currency first), and the funds land in Israel.
What is the foreign investment allowance, and why does it need an AIT?
Above the R1 million line, you move into the foreign capital / foreign investment allowance, which covers up to R10 million per calendar year4. This is the allowance most olim selling a house or a business will actually need. Here SARB requires that, before the Authorised Dealer moves anything, you present an Approval for International Transfer (AIT) PIN obtained from SARS on eFiling14. The AIT is the function SARS rebuilt out of what used to be called the Foreign Investment Allowance TCS PIN and the old emigration clearance: SARS merged and renamed them, so older guides that tell you to apply for an "FIA PIN" or an "emigration TCS" are describing the same door under its previous name3.
Beyond R10 million in a calendar year you cannot rely on the standard AIT at all: you must apply to SARS for a separate manual letter of compliance for the larger transfer1. For most olim the R10 million ceiling is comfortably above what they are moving, so the AIT is the relevant step.
What does the AIT application actually require?
Two things, broadly. First, you must be tax-compliant: your returns filed, your account in good standing, no outstanding debt to SARS. Second, you must prove the source of the funds you want to send, with documents such as the proof of the asset you sold, bank statements, or a statement of assets and liabilities12. SARS treats anyone moving more than the R1 million single discretionary allowance as a sophisticated taxpayer who should be able to evidence where major assets came from, so a thin paper trail is the most common reason an AIT stalls2. Build that file before you list the house, not after.
How does ceasing SA tax residency change this?
"Financial emigration" in the old sense no longer exists as a separate exchange-control event; SARS replaced it with a tax process called ceasing to be a tax resident, declared to SARS (via the RAV01 form on eFiling) with the date your residency ended5. Ceasing residency matters for two reasons an oleh should keep apart. It changes how SARS taxes your worldwide versus SA-source income going forward, and it is the trigger for the three-year lock on retirement funds: a full pre-retirement withdrawal of a retirement annuity (and of preservation funds) is only available once you have been non-resident for an uninterrupted period of three years5. So your house-sale proceeds can move now under the AIT, while your retirement annuity stays locked in South Africa until that three-year clock runs out. Two different timers, often confused as one.
| Feature | Single discretionary allowance | Foreign investment / capital allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Annual ceiling (per adult, per calendar year) | R1 million4 | R10 million (above this: manual letter of compliance)14 |
| SARS tax clearance (AIT PIN) required? | No | Yes, an Approval for International Transfer PIN1 |
| Source-of-funds documents to the bank? | Not generally (travel outside the CMA has its own rule)4 | Yes, proof of source plus tax compliance2 |
| Typical oleh use | Smaller moves; splitting a transfer across two calendar years | House-sale or business-sale proceeds |
| Former name | (unchanged) | Foreign Investment Allowance / emigration TCS PIN3 |
Allowances can move
Worked example: moving R4 million of house-sale proceeds
Suppose you sell your Johannesburg home, clear the bond, and have R4 million to bring to Israel in a single calendar year. Here is how the South African side and the Israeli side differ.
South African side. R4 million is above the R1 million single discretionary allowance, so you cannot just instruct the bank. You apply to SARS on eFiling for an Approval for International Transfer PIN, attaching proof you are tax-compliant and documents showing the R4 million came from the verified sale of your home12. One efficient structure many olim use: send the first R1 million under the single discretionary allowance immediately (no clearance), and route the remaining R3 million under the foreign investment allowance once the AIT PIN issues, all within the R10 million annual ceiling4. Your Authorised Dealer then converts and remits.
Israeli side. Israel imposes no tax on you for bringing in your own capital, and as a new oleh your foreign-source income enjoys a 10-year exemption6. The R4 million arrives, converts to shekels, and sits in your Israeli account. There is no Israeli "transfer tax" on the move itself. What Israel does want is the paperwork: your bank will run its anti-money-laundering and FATCA checks on the inbound funds, and if you are also a US person it collects a W-9 at account opening7. The contrast is the whole story: South Africa gates how much leaves and on what evidence; Israel asks who you are and where the money is from, then lets it in.
Israeli side: receiving the funds and what you must report
Bringing your own savings into Israel is not a taxable event. The 10-year new-resident regime means foreign-source income (rent on a property you kept, dividends, interest abroad) is generally exempt from Israeli מס הכנסה (mas hachnasa) for your first ten years as an עולה חדש (oleh chadash)6. One change to flag: from 1 January 2026° a reporting reform makes some of that still-exempt foreign income reportable to the Israel Tax Authority. It stays exempt from tax for the affected years; you simply now have to declare it rather than stay silent6. Do not confuse "exempt" with "invisible" under the new rules.
Note the asymmetry that trips up olim: income that is Israel-exempt under the 10-year rule is not automatically South-Africa-exempt. SA-source income can remain taxable in South Africa depending on your residency status there, which is exactly why ceasing SA residency cleanly is worth getting right5.
What does the conversion actually cost?
The fee you see is rarely the real cost. The expensive part of a ZAR-to-ILS transfer is the exchange-rate margin: the gap between the mid-market rate and the rate your bank or transfer provider gives you. A South African retail bank can quietly take a couple of percent on the spread, which on a R4 million move is tens of thousands of rands, far more than any flat wire fee. Because you are sending rands abroad through an Authorised Dealer, you cannot avoid the regulated channel, but you can compare the all-in rate (margin plus fees) the Authorised Dealer offers against specialist foreign-exchange brokers that are also registered to handle SA outbound transfers. Ask for the rate including margin, not just the headline fee, and compare it to that day's mid-market rate before you commit מטבע חוץ (matbea chutz).
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a SARS clearance to send money to Israel?
Only above R1 million per calendar year. Up to R1 million you use the single discretionary allowance with no tax-clearance PIN4. Above that, and up to R10 million, you need an Approval for International Transfer (AIT) PIN from SARS, which requires tax compliance and proof of the source of funds12.
Is the AIT the same as the old Foreign Investment Allowance?
Effectively, yes. SARS consolidated the Foreign Investment Allowance TCS PIN and the old emigration clearance into a single Approval for International Transferprocess. Guides that say "apply for an FIA PIN" are describing the AIT under its former name3.
Can I take my retirement annuity out when I move?
Not immediately. A full pre-retirement withdrawal of a South African retirement annuity is only available once you have ceased SA tax residency for an uninterrupted three years5. That is a separate clock from the transfer allowances: your cash savings and house-sale proceeds can move now under the AIT, but the retirement fund stays locked until the three years are complete. (The full RA lock-in is covered in its own article on this site.)
Will Israel tax the money when it arrives?
No. Bringing your own capital into Israel is not a taxable event, and a new oleh has a 10-year exemption on foreign-source income6. From 1 January 2026 some still-exempt foreign income becomes reportable to the Israel Tax Authority; it remains tax-exempt for the affected years but must be declared6.
Why is my bank's exchange rate worse than the rate online?
Because the bank builds its profit into the rate. The mid-market rate you see online is the reference point; the rate you are quoted includes a margin on top of any stated fee. On a large transfer that margin usually dwarfs the wire fee, so always compare the all-in rate (margin plus fees) across your Authorised Dealer and registered FX brokers before you commit.
What paperwork will the Israeli bank want?
Standard anti-money-laundering and FATCA checks on the inbound funds, plus, if you are a US person, a W-9 at account opening7. Have your proof of the source of funds (the same documents SARS asked for) ready, because the Israeli bank may also ask where a large inbound transfer came from.
Moving rands from South Africa to your new Israeli account is a regulated cross-border transfer, not a plain bank wire, because South Africa still runs exchange control. Every remittance goes through an Authorised Dealer bank under South African Reserve Bank (SARB) rules. Each SA resident adult can send up to R1 million per calendar year on the single discretionary allowance with no SARS tax-clearance PIN and no source-of-funds documents to the bank. From R1 million to R10 million you must first obtain an Approval for International Transfer (AIT) PIN from SARS, which requires you to be tax-compliant and to prove the source of the funds; above R10 million you need a separate manual letter of compliance. Ceasing SA tax residency runs on a separate clock and only unlocks a full retirement-annuity withdrawal after three uninterrupted years of non-residence. On the Israeli side there is no tax on bringing in your own capital, a new oleh has a 10-year exemption on foreign-source income (some of it becoming reportable from 1 January 2026, though still tax-exempt), and the Israeli bank runs anti-money-laundering and FATCA checks, collecting a W-9 if you are also a US person. On a large move, the exchange-rate margin, not the wire fee, is the real cost.
Only above R1 million per calendar year. Up to R1 million you use the single discretionary allowance with no SARS tax-clearance PIN and no source-of-funds documents to the bank (the one carve-out is travel outside the Common Monetary Area). Above R1 million and up to R10 million you must first obtain an Approval for International Transfer (AIT) PIN from SARS on eFiling, which requires you to be tax-compliant and to prove the source of the funds. Above R10 million you cannot rely on the standard AIT and must apply to SARS for a separate manual letter of compliance.
SARB gives every South African resident adult two annual channels, and the rand amount decides which one you use. The single discretionary allowance covers up to R1 million per calendar year for any legal purpose, with no SARS clearance PIN and no source-of-funds documents to the bank; it suits smaller moves or splitting a larger transfer across two calendar years. The foreign capital / foreign investment allowance covers up to R10 million per calendar year but requires a SARS Approval for International Transfer (AIT) PIN plus proof of source of funds; this is the route most olim selling a house or business will need.
Effectively, yes. SARS consolidated the Foreign Investment Allowance TCS PIN and the old emigration clearance into a single Approval for International Transfer (AIT) process. Older guides that tell you to apply for an FIA PIN or an emigration TCS are describing the same door under its previous name.
Two things, broadly. First, you must be tax-compliant: your returns filed, your account in good standing, and no outstanding debt to SARS. Second, you must prove the source of the funds you want to send, with documents such as proof of the asset you sold, bank statements, or a statement of assets and liabilities. SARS treats anyone moving more than the R1 million single discretionary allowance as a sophisticated taxpayer who should be able to evidence where major assets came from, so a thin paper trail is the most common reason an AIT stalls. Build that file before you list the house, not after.
Not immediately. A full pre-retirement withdrawal of a South African retirement annuity (and of preservation funds) is only available once you have ceased SA tax residency for an uninterrupted period of three years. That is a separate clock from the transfer allowances: your cash savings and house-sale proceeds can move now under the AIT, but the retirement fund stays locked in South Africa until the three years are complete. Ceasing residency is now declared to SARS via the RAV01 form on eFiling with the date your residency ended.
No. Bringing your own capital into Israel is not a taxable event, and a new oleh has a 10-year exemption on foreign-source income such as rent on a property you kept, dividends, or interest abroad. There is no Israeli transfer tax on the move itself. From 1 January 2026 a reporting reform makes some of that still-exempt foreign income reportable to the Israel Tax Authority; it remains tax-exempt for the affected years but must now be declared rather than left silent. Note also that income exempt in Israel under the 10-year rule is not automatically exempt in South Africa, which is why ceasing SA residency cleanly matters.
The bank builds its profit into the rate. The mid-market rate you see online is the reference point; the rate you are quoted includes a margin on top of any stated fee. On a large ZAR-to-ILS transfer that margin usually dwarfs the wire fee (a couple of percent on a R4 million move is tens of thousands of rands), so always compare the all-in rate (margin plus fees) across your Authorised Dealer and registered FX brokers before you commit, against that day's mid-market rate. On arrival, the Israeli bank runs standard anti-money-laundering and FATCA checks on the inbound funds, collects a W-9 at account opening if you are also a US person, and may ask where a large inbound transfer came from, so keep your source-of-funds documents ready.
