9 January 2025
Who does this notice affect?
Persons under an approved arrangement class 19, including customs brokers and self-reporting importers, who are interested in accessing on-demand details of entries that have been referred to the department.
What has changed?
The department is pleased to announce that the Biosecurity Cargo Status Tracker reporting is now available via the Biosecurity Portal to all persons under an approved arrangement class 19.
This release follows on from information sessions held between 24 September and 9 October 2024 and commencement of the staged roll out on 11 November 2024.
The interactive online reports provide details of all entries in progress that have been referred to the department for biosecurity assessment or management under an approved arrangement class 19. The report includes the following:
- Cargo status: search an Entry ID to see a summary and detailed view of that entry’s status
- Brokerage overview: view all in-progress entries that have been referred to the department
Some of the potential benefits include:
- Up-to-date visibility: track in-progress consignments, reducing the need to call DAFF for updates.
- Self-service functionality: quickly print final or inspection directions through the Biosecurity Portal, avoiding long hold times during peak periods.
- Consolidated status view: access a clear overview of directions applied to an entry.
- Document clarity: easily identify assessed documentation and its status.
- Customisable reporting: view all in-progress consignments by various filters, enhancing operational visibility.
Improved access to consignment data will support both the department and industry to better monitor emerging and changing biosecurity risks.
The reports deliver on commitments to improve consignment visibility for industry and were developed as part of the Simplified Targeting and Enhanced Processing Systems (STEPS) Program. STEPS is an investment in the department’s imported cargo Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems and business processes to enhance Australia's biosecurity risk management by creating a faster, simpler and more integrated cargo clearance system.
How to access the reports
The reports are available via the Biosecurity Portal for eligible myID users via a new ‘Industry Reporting’ tile.
Biosecurity Portal Administrators within organisations can manage their team’s access to the reports.
Further information
Help cards and training material have been developed and can be accessed via Learnhub or the Biosecurity Portal. More information about the STEPS program can be found on the department’s webpage.
If you have any questions, please contact STEPS@aff.gov.au