Nvidia and Google have formally asked Israel’s Tax Authority to let them settle their tax obligations in US dollars rather than shekels. The reason is straightforward: the shekel has appreciated roughly 20% against the dollar over the past year, and paying taxes in a strengthening local currency is getting expensive fast.
The Israeli shekel now trades at approximately 2.89 per dollar. For companies that earn revenue primarily in dollars but face local expenses, primarily salaries, denominated in shekels, that currency math is brutal.
A $32 billion precedent
This isn’t entirely uncharted territory. In March 2026, Israeli authorities approved dollar-denominated tax payments totaling $32 billion, including approximately $2.5 billion from founders involved in Google’s acquisition of Wiz. That decision was made specifically to avoid potential market disruption, since converting that volume of dollars to shekels could have sent the exchange rate haywire.
Nvidia’s most recent tax payment to Israel came in at around $1.287 billion. The companies initiated their request to the Israel Tax Authority around June 2, 2026. Their argument centers on operational stability and certainty, two things that are hard to maintain when the currency your taxes are denominated in keeps climbing against the currency your customers pay you in.
