Alerts
Help protect Australia by following biosecurity requirements when travelling or returning to Australia from FMD risk countries. See our current traveller advice.
Harmful pests and diseases may arrive with travellers coming to Australia.
We screen incoming air and sea travellers and baggage to protect against this risk. We use X-ray machines, detector dogs, physical inspection and questioning.
If you are travelling to Australia, check what to do:
Be prepared. Know what you have to do before you travel to Australia.
Check what goods you can bring into Australia. Import conditions can change, so check each time - even if you travel regularly.
Read our traveller advice and alerts. We publish:
- alerts on pest and disease risks
- advice on how to manage those risks.
We also have useful tips for:
If you are bringing alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, electronic equipment and valuable items (including jewellery and currency), check with the Australian Department of Home Affairs.
Watch our videos to learn more about Australian biosecurity requirements.
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Your airline or cruise line will give you an Incoming Passenger Card before you arrive in Australia.
You must correctly fill out your Incoming Passenger Card and either:
- declare any risk goods including food, animal products and plant material (including wooden articles)
- dispose of any risk goods in the bins at the airport or sea port.
Declared risk goods will be inspected by a biosecurity officer. They may direct the goods for treatment, export or destruction. Goods that do not pose a biosecurity risk will be returned to you.
If you provide false or misleading information to a biosecurity officer or on your incoming passenger declaration, or if you fail to answer questions about the goods or comply with directions given by a biosecurity officer, you may be:
- given an infringement notice specifying a penalty amount of up to A$2,664
- subject to civil penalty proceedings, and/or
- prosecuted for a criminal offence. If convicted, you could face a maximum penalty of A$1.1 million and/or be imprisoned for up to 10 years.
Your visa may also be cancelled and, if so, you will be refused entry into Australia.
For faster border clearance:
- do not carry any fresh fruit or vegetables, plants, seeds, meat and animal or wood products
- ensure that your footwear, sporting and recreational equipment is dry and soil free — including golf clubs, bikes and prams.
Passport scanning
The department is rolling out a new smartphone app at all international airports which biosecurity officers will use as part of their duties. The rollout will streamline the biosecurity clearance process, however may initially have a slight time impact on travellers. Traveller processing through biosecurity channels at international airports has not changed. Biosecurity officers have been using an app on official Government-issued smartphones to securely scan traveller passports since 2020 at all international airports.
All travellers arriving in Australia should have their passports ready for scanning upon request.
For information about the rollout, please email the department.
Privacy notice
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry is authorised to collect your personal information by the Biosecurity Act 2015. The department uses a mobile passport scanner device to collect some of this personal information. Personal information that is collected under or in accordance with the Biosecurity Act 2015 is also ‘protected information’ under that Act. The department collects your personal information for the purpose of assessing and managing biosecurity risk. Personal information collected by the department will only be used or disclosed as authorised under the Biosecurity Act 2015. The department may disclose your personal information to the Department of Home Affairs and Australian Border Force. Your personal information will not usually be disclosed overseas.
In every case it will only be disclosed if authorised by the Biosecurity Act 2015.
To find out more, please refer to the department’s privacy policy.
Some states do not allow you to bring goods from other parts of Australia.
Check the requirements between states. Read travelling within Australia.
Each country sets their own requirements for goods you are allowed to bring.
We do not keep a record of other countries’ requirements.
Before you travel to another country from Australia, check what you can take. Contact the country’s consulate or embassy in your nearest capital city.