Fact Sheet Chinese New Year: important biosecurity information

Chinese New Year is a time when you may be sent or receive gifts from overseas that may contain items of risk to Australia’s biosecurity. To prevent the possibility of your goods being delayed or seized it is important that you and your overseas family and friends are familiar with Australia’s biosecurity import conditions. Items that contain food, animal or plant materials could pose a biosecurity risk.

How do you stop biosecurity risk items from entering Australia?

All incoming mail and passengers are assessed and may be screened using x–ray, detector dogs or inspected by Biosecurity officers to ensure items that could harm Australia’s agricultural industries and environment do not enter the country. To help protect Australia from items that could pose a risk, remind overseas friends and family that some items shouldn’t be mailed or brought into Australia.

Some Chinese New Year gifts that are commonly intercepted that should not be mailed or brought into Australia include:

• chicken and preserved pork sausages and dried beef  
• products containing eggs, especially duck eggs
• citrus, persimmons and  fresh bamboo shoots
• lychee nuts and lotus nuts
• fresh and dried fruit including lychees and longans
• dairy products such as milk and yoghurt
• Chinese herbal medicines containing ganoderma or cordyceps

What happens to my mail article if it is inspected?

Officers will check that your mail article does not contain items of biosecurity concern and in most cases it will be released after inspection. However, if risk items are found they will be seized and the recipient will be notified. Depending on the risk, the recipient will be given three options:

• pay for the item to be treated and then sent out to them
• pay to export the item back to the sender
• have the item destroyed at no cost.

What happens when I bring items into Australia through the airports or seaports?

Items such as food and gifts made from animal or plant material brought into Australia through airports or seaports must be declared on the Incoming Passenger Card (IPC). A Biosecurity officer will inspect your goods to determine the level of risk. Many items are able to be released after inspection but some items may require treatment to make them safe. Other items that pose an unacceptable pest and disease risk will be seized and destroyed.

You can dispose of risk items in amnesty bins located in the airport terminal. If you are departing a cruise ship, you can either leave items that may be a biosecurity risk onboard the ship or deposit them in amnesty bins available as you disembark.

What can I do to ensure that I receive my Chinese New Year gifts?

Tell your friends and family overseas to visit daff.gov.au for information on import conditions in Australia. You should also encourage them to list all contents of each parcel and correctly fill out the Postal Declaration Label or Incoming Passenger Card.

Failure to declare items of biosecurity concern could result in a fine or possible prosecution.

For more information:

• download the brochure ‘What can’t be mailed to Australia?’ or ‘What can’t I take into Australia’
• call 1800 020 504 (free call in Australia)