Editing Debit card (section)

===Israel===

{{Update|section|date=April 2024}}

The Israel bank card system is somewhat confusing to newcomers, comprising a blend of features taken from different types of cards. What may be referred to as a credit card, is most likely to be a deferred debit card on an associated bank current account, the most common type of card in Israel, somewhat like the situation in France, though the term "debit card" is not in common usage. Cards are nearly universally called ''cartis ashrai'' (כרטיס אשראי), literally, "credit card", a term which may belie the card's characteristics. Its main feature may be a direct link to a connected bank account (through which they are mostly issued), with the total value of the transactions made on the card being debited from the bank account in full on a regular date once a month, without the option to carry the balance over; indeed certain types of transactions (such as online and/or foreign currency) may be debited directly from the connected bank account at the time of the transaction. Any such limited credit enjoyed is a result of the customer's assets and credibility with the bank, and not granted by the credit card company.<ref>{{cite web|last=Szajnbrum |first=Tzvi |title=Credit Cards and Lines of Credit |url=http://lawadv.com/credit-cards-and-lines-of-credit/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131113174410/http://lawadv.com/credit-cards-and-lines-of-credit/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-11-13 |access-date=2013-11-13 }}</ref> The card usually enables immediate ATM cash withdrawals & balance inquiries (as debit cards do), installment & deferred charge interest free transactions offered by merchants (also applicable in Brazil), interest bearing installment plans/deferred charge/revolving credit which is transaction specific at the point of sale (though granted by the issuer, hence the interest), and a variety of automated/upon request types of credit schemes including loans, some of which revolve or resemble the extended payment options sometimes offered by charge cards.
Thus the "true" debit card is not so common in Israel, though it has existed since 1994. It is offered by two credit companies in Israel: One is ICC, short for "Israeli Credit Cards" (referred to as "CAL", an acronym formed from its abbreviation in Hebrew), which issues it in the form of a Visa Electron card valid only in Israel. It is offered mainly through the Israel Post (post office) bank<ref name="israelpost">{{cite web |url=http://www.israelpost.co.il/postshirut.nsf/misparide/140?opendocument&L=EN |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100309061344/http://www.israelpost.co.il/postshirut.nsf/misparide/140?opendocument&L=EN |archive-date=2010-03-09 |url-status=dead |title=Visa CAL Debit Card - Israel Postal Company |access-date=2015-12-01 }}</ref> (which is not allowed, by regulation, to offer any type of credit) or through [[Israel Discount Bank]], its main owner (where it is branded as "Discount Money Key" card). This branded Israel Discount Bank branded debit card also offered as valid worldwide card, either as Visa Electron or MasterCard Debit cards.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.discountbank.co.il/wps/wcm/connect/75378f004263537dbf0cff4b2936df85/tarifon_private_chapter_D.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=898880976&CACHEID=75378f004263537dbf0cff4b2936df85|title=פרטיים - בנק דיסקונט|work=discountbank.co.il|access-date=2014-09-05|archive-date=2015-02-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216134017/https://www.discountbank.co.il/wps/wcm/connect/75378f004263537dbf0cff4b2936df85/tarifon_private_chapter_D.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&lmod=898880976&CACHEID=75378f004263537dbf0cff4b2936df85|url-status=live}}</ref> The second & more common debit card is offered by the [[Isracard]] consortium to its affiliate banks and is branded "Direct". It is valid only in Israel, under its local private label brand, as "Isracard Direct" (which was known as "Electro Cheque" until 2002 and while the local brand Isracard is often viewed as a MasterCard for local use only). Since 2006, Isracard has also offered an international version, branded "MasterCard Direct", which is less common. These two debit card brands operate offline in Israel (meaning the transaction operates under the credit cards systems & debited officially from the cardholder account only few days later, after being processed—though reflected on the current account immediately). In 2014 the Isracard Direct card (a.k.a. the valid only in Israel version) was relaunched as Isracash,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www1.isracard.co.il/isracash|title=isracash|work=isracard.co.il|access-date=2014-09-05|archive-date=2015-02-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216134331/https://www1.isracard.co.il/isracash|url-status=live}}</ref> though the former subbrand still being marketed and replaced ICC Visa Electron as Israel Post bank debit card.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.israelpost.co.il/content.nsf/pages/isracard_direct|title=כרטיס ישראכרט דירקט - דואר ישראל|work=israelpost.co.il|access-date=2014-09-05|archive-date=2014-09-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140906192423/http://www.israelpost.co.il/content.nsf/pages/isracard_direct/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Overall, banks routinely offer deferred debit cards to their new customers, with "true" debit cards usually offered only to those who cannot obtain credit. These latter cards are not attractive to the average customer since they attract both a monthly fee from the credit company and a bank account fee for each day's debits. Isracard Direct is by far more common than the ICC Visa Electron debit card. Banks who issue mainly Visa cards will rather offer electronic use, mandate authorized transaction only, unembossed version of Visa Electron deferred debit cards (branded as "Visa Basic" or "Visa Classic") to its customers—sometimes even in the form of revolving credit card.

Credit/debit card transactions in Israel are not PIN based (other than at ATMs) and it is only in recent years that [[EMV]] chip smart cards have begun to be issued, with the Bank of Israel in 2013 ordering the banks and credit card companies to switch customers to credit cards with the EMV security standard within 3.5 years.<ref>{{cite news|last=Avissar |first=Irit |title=BoI requires switch to smart credit cards |url=http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000873790 |access-date=2013-11-13 |newspaper=Globes |date=2013-08-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113184415/http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000873790 |archive-date=2013-11-13 }}</ref>