The US-Israel free trade agreement, signed in 1985, was the first FTA the United States ever ratified. It removed tariffs on most goods between the two countries and set a legal foundation that still holds today. The harder part for Israeli businesses has never been the trade law. It is getting onto the approved vendor lists of US corporations and federal agencies.
This guide covers the specific channels, portals, and registrations that move an Israeli business from "interested in US buyers" to "active vendor."
The trade relationship in numbers
US-Israel bilateral trade in goods and services reached approximately $50 billion in 2022, according to the Office of the US Trade Representative. Israel exported roughly $22 billion in goods and $10 billion in services to the US that year. The tech sector drives most of it. Israel has over 500 multinational R&D centers — Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Intel, and Apple all operate research labs there — and the country's public and private tech companies carry a combined market cap above $350 billion.
On the defence side, the relationship is structural. Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Elbit Systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) all operate US subsidiaries (Rafael USA, Elbit Systems of America, IAI's ELTA North America) and hold active US Department of Defense contracts. Israeli companies supplied over $3.8 billion in defence exports to the US in fiscal year 2022.
For non-defence tech, the pattern is different: Israeli SaaS founders routinely incorporate a Delaware C-corp, raise US venture capital, and run US sales from there while keeping engineering in Tel Aviv. That structure is deliberate — it makes procurement simpler for US buyers and opens access to certifications that require a US legal entity.
What US certifications are actually available to Israeli businesses
Most US supplier diversity certifications require the business to be at least 51% owned and controlled by people who are US citizens or permanent residents. That is a hard requirement, not a gray area.
The SBA's 8(a) Business Development program, HUBZone, WOSB, SDVOSB, and state-level MBE/WBE certifications all require US ownership and, in most cases, a principal place of business in the United States. An Israeli-owned business with no US entity cannot obtain these certifications.
The practical path: if you form a Delaware C-corp or LLC with 51% ownership held by a US citizen or permanent resident, that US entity can pursue standard supplier diversity certifications. Many Israeli founders do exactly this when targeting the US market seriously.
One certification that is genuinely accessible to internationally-based women business owners is WEConnect International. It certifies women-owned businesses globally, does not require a US entity, and is recognized by Fortune 500 supplier diversity programs. Several hundred US corporations, including Boeing, IBM, ExxonMobil, and Procter & Gamble, accept WEConnect certification as evidence of women-owned status for their supplier diversity reporting.
WEConnect International: the clearest path for women-owned businesses
WEConnect International certifies that a business is at least 51% owned, managed, and controlled by one or more women. The certification is accepted in over 130 countries and is explicitly designed for businesses that want to sell into US and multinational corporate supply chains without forming a US entity first.
The certification process: - Apply at weconnectinternational.org - Submit documentation proving ownership percentage, control, and management authority - Pay a sliding-scale fee (currently starting around $350 for businesses under $500K in annual revenue) - Complete a site visit or virtual review depending on your location
Once certified, your business is listed in WEConnect's global supplier database, which Fortune 500 procurement teams search when building supplier diversity pipelines. This is a direct channel into corporate purchasing — not a theoretical one.
WEConnect also runs a direct-to-buyer matchmaking program. Their annual Global Summit connects certified women-owned suppliers with procurement officers from member companies. In 2023, member companies reported over $1 billion in sourcing decisions influenced by WEConnect certification.
Registering in US corporate supplier portals as a non-US vendor
Three platforms dominate enterprise procurement: SAP Ariba, Coupa, and Jaggaer. Each accepts non-US vendors. Here is what the registration process looks like for each.
SAP Ariba (Ariba Network) Most Fortune 500 companies use Ariba as their procurement backbone. You can register as a supplier at supplier.ariba.com without a US entity. You will need: - A DUNS number (now replaced by a Dun & Bradstreet D-U-N-S number, obtainable free at dnb.com) - Bank account information for payment setup - Tax identification — for non-US entities, this is typically your home country tax ID plus a W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E form for the purchasing company's tax compliance
Registration on Ariba is free at the basic level. Many companies require their suppliers to upgrade to a paid "full" account ($50–$500/year depending on transaction volume) before issuing purchase orders.
Coupa Coupa's Coupa Business Network (formerly Coupa Supplier Portal) works similarly. Register at supplier.coupahost.com. Non-US vendors follow the same onboarding flow as US vendors — the system does not treat them differently at the registration stage. You will need a valid email domain, business registration documents, and banking details.
Jaggaer Jaggaer is common in manufacturing, healthcare, and higher education procurement. Supplier registration is at portal.jaggaer.com. Like Ariba and Coupa, Jaggaer accepts non-US entities; individual companies set their own vendor qualification requirements beyond basic registration.
One practical note: getting into a portal does not mean you get purchase orders. Most large companies require vendors to pass a qualification review — financial stability checks, insurance certificates, sometimes an on-site audit. Israeli businesses with no US entity should prepare English-language versions of their Israeli business registration, financial statements, and any relevant certifications before starting these applications.
The BIRD Foundation
The US-Israel Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation provides funding for joint R&D projects between US and Israeli companies. Established in 1977, it has supported over 1,000 projects with more than $400 million in total investment.
BIRD grants are structured as conditional loans: funding is repaid from royalties only if the project generates commercial revenue. If the project fails commercially, the debt is forgiven. For Israeli businesses trying to build their first deep US corporate relationship, a BIRD-funded joint project with a US partner company is one of the most direct paths available. The US partner gains access to Israeli technology; the Israeli company gains a US corporate reference customer and co-development history.
Current BIRD focus areas include cybersecurity, agriculture technology, energy, and medical devices. Apply at birdf.com. Grant cycles open twice per year, with typical project funding in the range of $1 million split between the two partners.
US-Israel Business Council and other formal channels
The US-Israel Business Council (USIBC) is the primary bilateral business advocacy organization. Membership provides access to procurement events, introductions to US corporate members, and lobbying support on trade policy. Annual membership fees vary by company size, starting around $2,500. Membership is worth considering if you are actively working multiple US corporate targets — it provides direct access to procurement officers who attend USIBC events and reduces the cold-outreach problem.
The American-Israel Chamber of Commerce operates several regional chapters (Southeast, Pacific, Midwest) and runs matchmaking programs between Israeli businesses and US corporate buyers. These chapters are more operationally useful than they might appear. The Midwest chapter, for instance, has active relationships with manufacturing procurement teams at major Illinois and Indiana companies.
What US companies are buying from Israel
In defence and aerospace, the relationship is established and growing: Rafael's Iron Dome components are produced in the US through a joint venture with Raytheon, and Elbit Systems of America holds hundreds of millions in active DoD contracts for surveillance systems, training platforms, and communications equipment.
Outside defence, the clearest US corporate buying patterns in Israeli goods and services are:
Cybersecurity: Israeli cybersecurity companies — Check Point, CyberArk, Wiz, Claroty — are standard vendors in large US corporate tech stacks. Fortune 500 procurement teams are actively sourcing Israeli cyber tools, often through US-incorporated subsidiaries but sometimes through direct vendor relationships.
Agricultural technology: Israeli drip irrigation technology (Netafim) and precision agriculture software are purchased by US food and beverage companies and agricultural producers. Nestlé, Coca-Cola, and major US commodity processors source Israeli ag-tech.
Medical devices and diagnostics: Given Israel's strong medtech sector (Given Imaging, Medigus), US hospital systems and group purchasing organizations (GPOs) actively source Israeli diagnostics and imaging equipment.
Software and SaaS: US enterprise procurement teams routinely buy Israeli-originated SaaS through US corporate entities (the Delaware C-corp structure described above), often without realizing the underlying engineering is Israel-based.
Practical first steps
- Determine whether you need a US entity. If your primary buyers are US federal agencies or companies requiring US-based diverse certification, form a Delaware C-corp or LLC first. If you are targeting Fortune 500 corporate procurement directly, you can often register as a non-US vendor.
- Register on Ariba Network and Coupa Business Network regardless of where you are in the sales process. Both are free at the basic level and both are searched by procurement teams actively looking for new suppliers.
- If the business is women-owned, apply for WEConnect International certification before approaching Fortune 500 procurement. The certification directly feeds into how large companies count and report their supplier diversity spend.
- Look at the BIRD Foundation if your product involves technology and you need a US corporate co-development partner. A BIRD project with one US corporate partner is a faster path to a second and third than cold outreach alone.
- Contact the American-Israel Chamber of Commerce chapter nearest to your target US market. The Midwest chapter (Chicago) and Southeast chapter (Atlanta) have active manufacturing and logistics procurement relationships.
The US-Israel trade relationship is mature, the legal framework is solid, and the demand for Israeli technology in US supply chains is real. The gap is usually operational: knowing which portals to use, which certifications apply, and which organizations actively run matchmaking between Israeli suppliers and US buyers.
