Netherlands imposes far-reaching ban on goods from territories

The ban covers the Golan Heights, and purchases by any Dutch citizen. Israel fears damage to relations with an important trading partner.

Within the past few days, the Netherlands has joined the list of European countries banning goods from Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. The Dutch law, however, is more severe than those adopted by other countries - Spain, Belgium, and Ireland - and could set off a chain reaction that will deter Dutch companies from doing business with Israeli companies, according to conversations with sources familiar with the situation. The law passed with broad agreement in the center-left coalition that governs the country as an ordinance, without a debate in the States General (the Dutch parliament), and it will come into force on September 22.

The Dutch law is particularly severe in that the ban on goods applies not just to settlements beyond the Green Line in Judea and Samaria, as the bans imposed by other countries do, but also to the Golan Heights.

In addition, the law not only bans imports of products from these areas, but also their purchase or sale. The aim is to prevent circumvention of the sanctions by importing products into another European country and then selling them in the Netherlands. The law includes products of which only parts or ingredients originate in Judea or Samaria or the Golan Heights.

Another strict provision is that the law applies to all citizens of the Netherlands, even when they are not in the country. So, for example, a Dutch citizen visiting Israel who knowingly buys goods produced beyond the Green Line could be prosecuted on his or her return home. The maximum penalty under the law is six years imprisonment.

The law applies to goods only, not to services. This will enable travel platform Booking.com, which is based in the Netherlands, to continue publishing advertisements for hotels and guesthouses beyond the Green Line and on the Golan Heights.

Economic damage

It is difficult to estimate the direct economic damage. According to reports from the Ministry of Finance and market estimates, about 1% of Israel’s exports originate in settlements in the territories. Since the EU is Israel’s largest trading partner, accounting for about a third of Israel’s exports, exports to the EU from settlements in the territories can be estimated at about 0.3% of the total, roughly $200 million annually. At this stage, however, only four EU member countries have imposed bans, so the immediate harm is not great.

On the Israeli side, however, the Dutch ordinance is seen as "a very worrying development", mainly because of the fear that it will signal to Dutch companies that they should avoid doing business with Israeli companies, out of a desire to reduce risk. The Netherlands is currently one of the top destinations for Israeli exports, accounting for about 5% of the total, according to the UN trade database Comtrade. The fear is of punctilious implementation of the ordinance, or of petitions by pro-Palestinian organizations to courts in the Netherlands to apply a strict interpretation of it that will deter companies from doing business with Israel. The Dutch law, it is feared, could also serve as a model for laws in other countries.

"The Netherlands is a very important country in the European landscape, precisely because it was not originally extreme concerning Israel like Ireland and Spain," Dr. Maya Sion-Tzidkiyahu, director of the Israel-Europe Relations Program at the Mitvim Institute and a lecturer in the European Forum at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told "Globes". She explains that public opinion in the Netherlands has taken a sharp turn against Israel because of the war, which has put pressure on the government to take steps, and the settlements in the territories are a top consensus target. "This is a combination of a political step originating in public opinion in the country and compliance with an opinion of the International Court of Justice of July 2024."

One of the big questions, according to Israeli sources, is to what extent the ordinance will be enforced and whether the Netherlands will introduce a regime of close inspection of the origin of goods. "There are countries in Europe that hastily take the step of banning products of the settlements as a declarative measure, and don’t really pay attention to what happens on the ground," says Sion-Tzidkiyahu. "That was the case in Spain, for example, which rushed through a royal decree." In Ireland, the relevant law has still not been signed by the country’s president and so has not yet come into force.

Nevertheless, Israeli sources expressed concern over the cumulative effect, since the Netherlands is also one of the European countries in which academic institutions have imposed an almost total boycott of their Israeli counterparts. The Dutch are also pushing behind the scenes for Israel to be expelled from the EU’s Horizon program for collaboration on research and innovation. It is feared in Israel that the combination of an academic boycott and a ban on goods from certain areas could have an altogether chilling effect on trade relations between the two countries.

Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on July 29, 2026.

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