Pay this charge directly to the Department of Home Affairs
When import charges apply
Import charge applies to forest products imported into Australia.
Exemptions
Import charge does not apply if the total combined levies and charges the importer would have to pay in a financial year is less than $330 for:
- forest products import charge
- forest industries export charge
- forest industries products levy.
Records must be maintained to confirm that the exemption applies.
Who collects and pays
The import charge may be paid via a third party (collection agent) or directly to the Department of Home Affairs. This depends on whether a collection agent is involved in the import of the forest products.
Collected and paid via a third party (collection agent)
The import charge is collected by the importing agent who imports forest products for the importer. We call this person the collection agent.
This person deducts or recovers the import charge from the importer and then pays that amount to the Department of Home Affairs.
Paid directly to the Department of Home Affairs
The import charge is paid by the importer who imports the forest products into Australia.
The importer pays and submits information directly to the Department of Home Affairs if they import forest products themselves.
Visit the Department of Home Affairs website ‘Paying invoices to the department’ for more information.
You must keep records with details of the imported forest products for five (5) years. This must be set out for each financial year and include details of each transaction.
Rates - logs
| Product – class of logs Where more than one item covers a class of logs, apply the first item that covers that class of log | Import charge rate |
|---|---|
| Cypress sawlogs for making timber products | 22 cents per m3 |
| Export woodchip hardwood pulplogs for producing woodchips for export | 3.5 cents per m3 |
| Hardwood sawlogs for making timber products | 29 cents per m3 |
| Low grade softwood sawlogs for making packaging or horticultural products or tile battens | 8 cents per m3 |
| Plywood and veneer logs for making plywood and veneer products | 15 cents per m3 |
| Softwood roundwood logs for treating with preservative and using as poles or posts | 8 cents per m3 |
| Softwood sawlogs other than cypress sawlogs, low grade softwood sawlogs or softwood roundwood logs | 29 cents per m3 |
| Wood panels pulplogs | 10 cents per m3 |
GST is not applied to Australian Government export charges.
See full details of the levy and export charge rates.
Rates – forest products that are not logs
The import charge rate for forest products that are not logs is worked out by multiplying:
- the rate in cents per m3 that applies to that class of logs if they had been imported into Australia and the product made here, and
- the number (or conversion factor) in the table for that class of logs below.
Step 1: identify the classification under the Customs Tariff Act 1995 that applies to the logs the product is made from if it were made in Australia from imported logs. For example, would it have been imported under 4403 or 4410.
Step 2: multiply the rate for logs in cents per m3 (above) by the number in column 2 in the table below:
| Forest products that are not logs (Schedule 3 to the Customs Tariff Act 1995) | Number (Column 2) |
|---|---|
| 4403 | 2 |
| 4407 | 2.5 |
| 4408 | 2 |
| 4409 | 2.5 |
| 4410 | 1.5 |
| 4411 | 1.7 |
| 4412 | 2.5 |
For more information contact the Department of Home Affairs at Tariff Classification or call 1800 053 016.
Home Affairs can help you understand how the tariff classification codes and conversion factors will affect the total amount of charge applied to an imported forest industries product.
Payment dates
Payment must be received by the day forest products are imported into Australia.
Record keeping
You must keep records relating to each return for five (5) years. The records must:
- be set out for each financial year
- include details of each transaction.
Heavy penalties could apply if you fail to meet the record keeping requirements.
Who uses this import charge
Recipient body for the forest products import charge is:
Definitions
Cypress sawlogs
Cypress logs that are intended and suitable for making timber products.
Export woodchip hardwood pulplogs
Hardwood logs that are intended and suitable for the production of woodchips for export.
Export woodchip softwood pulplogs
Softwood logs that are intended and suitable for the production of woodchips for export.
Forest products
Logs or other goods that are classified to heading 4403, 4407, 4408, 4409, 4410, 4411 or 4412 of Schedule 3 to the Customs Tariff Act 1995.
Hardwood sawlogs
Hardwood logs that are intended and suitable for making timber products.
Low-grade softwood sawlogs
Softwood logs that are intended and suitable for making:
- packaging products including timber packing, pallets and crates, or
- horticultural products including trellises, stakes, sleepers, fence posts and palings, or
- tile battens.
Paper pulplogs
Logs that are intended and suitable for making paper or pulp products.
Plywood and veneer logs
Logs that are intended and suitable for making plywood or veneer products.
Softwood sawlogs
Softwood logs (other than cypress sawlogs) that are intended and suitable for timber products, other than:
- packaging products including timber packing, pallets and crates
- horticultural products including trellises, stakes, sleepers, fence posts and palings
- tile battens, or
- softwood roundwood logs, intended and suitable for treating with preservative and using as poles or posts.
Softwood roundwood logs
Softwood logs that are intended and suitable for treating with preservative and using as poles or posts.
Wood panels pulplogs
Logs that are intended and suitable for the manufacture of panel board products.
Levies and related legislation
This information is a guide only. You must be aware of your obligations under relevant levy and export charge laws.
This includes:
- Primary Industries (Customs) Charges Act 2024
- Primary Industries Levies and Charges Collection Act 2024
- Regulatory Powers (Standard Provisions) Act 2014
See more on levy and export charge laws.
Stay updated
Check latest updates in our levy notices.
Contact us
For more on levies and export charges, levies accounts or how to lodge your return, contact the Levies team.