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AQIS At a Glance
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- About AQIS
- Types of quarantine
- Facts and figures
- Export and market access
- Working with industry
- Quarantine and Exports Advisory Council
- Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy
- Quarantine Matters!
- Contact AQIS
About AQIS
The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) is part of the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF).
AQIS manages quarantine controls at our borders to minimise the risk of exotic pests and diseases entering the country. AQIS also provides import and export inspection and certification to help retain Australia’s highly favourable animal, plant and human health status and wide access to overseas export markets.
Australia is free from a number of biological threats, such as foot and mouth disease, that have had major economic and environmental consequences for other countries.
As international travel has become easier, the job of keeping Australia free of unwanted pests has become more demanding. AQIS continuously looks to improve the effectiveness of the quarantine effort by working closely with other areas within DAFF to manage Australia’s biosecurity system; as well as other Australian Government agencies such as Australian Customs Service, Department of Health and Ageing, Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ), and state/territory governments to support their management of post-border detections and incursions of quarantine pests and diseases and to support its own verification and certification activities for agriculture and food products.
Types of quarantine
Quarantine at the border
Passengers, cargo and mail arriving at Australia’s main entry points are required to meet quarantine conditions. AQIS officers use a number of techniques including assessment of declarations, X-ray machines, detector dogs, visual inspection and surveillance supported by scientific expertise at international airports, seaports, mail exchanges and container depots to detect items of quarantine concern.
A nose for trouble
Quarantine beagles are a familiar sight at Australia’s international airports. With their friendly nature and excellent sense of smell—said to be at least 100 times greater than that of humans—beagles make the ideal dog for the job of sniffing out quarantine trouble. When beagles detect a target odour in luggage they simply sit next to the source and await their food reward from a handler.
Other breeds of dog also work for AQIS at international mail exchanges. They are trained to paw or nuzzle a target item and are rewarded with a game of tug-of-war.
Animal quarantine
All animals, including insects, fish, birds and larger agricultural animals, as well as animal products, are subject to quarantine laws. Most animals coming into Australia must spend time at specially equipped quarantine facilities to make sure they are free of disease before being released. Not all animals are permitted to enter Australia because the pest or disease risk may be considered too great.
Plant quarantine
All plants or parts of plants such as fruit, seeds, cuttings and bulbs must be examined and, if necessary, treated by AQIS officers. Items made from plants, such as wood or bamboo, are also inspected. Live plants arriving in Australia are kept at plant quarantine stations where they are monitored and cleared for pest and disease risks.
Human quarantine
Captains of aircraft and ships arriving in Australia report to AQIS officers about passengers’ health status. This helps guard against diseases such as SARS and yellow fever.
Some infectious diseases are spread by insects and if allowed into Australia would be very difficult to eradicate. To prevent disease-carrying insects from entering Australia, AQIS sprays international aircraft passenger compartments with a World Health Organization approved insecticide—a process called disinsection. Disinsection is carried out on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing.
The word quarantine comes from the Italian quaranti giorni, meaning ‘40 days’. When the bubonic plague swept through Europe in the 14th century the government of Venice required ships to anchor away from the city for 40 days before they could unload passengers.
The authorities thought 40 days would be enough time for any disease to be identified and either treated or run its course. All ships under quarantine had to fly a yellow flag.
Facts and figures
| Description | Number |
|---|---|
| Staff numbers | 3300 |
| Revenue AQIS expects to receive in 2007/8 | 353 million |
| Mail items screened each year | 150 million |
| Air passengers and crew screened each year | 11.9 million |
| Cargo containers inspected in one year | 1.8 million |
| International vessels inspected in one year | 13,000 |
| Number of quarantine items seized at airports each month | 45,000 |
| Per cent of these items that are undeclared | 25 per cent |
As part of Australia’s $32 billion a year export industry,
AQIS provided certification and inspection services for:
$5.8 billion in meat exports
$1.8 billion in seafood exports
$2.4 billion in dairy exports
$5 billion in grain exports
$3.6 billion in horticulture exports
$2.7 billion in food exports
Export statistics courtesy of ABARE Commodity Statistics 2006
Export and market access
AQIS supports Australian agricultural food exporters by providing information, inspection and certification to meet the import requirements of overseas countries.
Exports including fish, dairy products, eggs, meat, dried fruits, fresh fruit and vegetables and some processed fruits and vegetables are regulated by AQIS.
Working with industry
AQIS works closely with industry through its industry consultative committees (ICCs). ICCs contribute to effective and practical operational responses to government policy for AQIS import and export programs.
Australian Government policy states that wherever possible the cost of providing services to industry is recovered from the industry benefiting from these services. Apart from border protection activities, which are covered by the federal budget – AQIS services are cost-recovered through fees and charges.
Quarantine and Exports Advisory Council
The Quarantine and Exports Advisory Council is an independent advisory council that provides advice to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry on major quarantine and export issues. The Council maintains effective consultation between AQIS, industry and stakeholders, and helps AQIS evaluate its performance.
QEAC members have skills in quarantine services, animal and plant health, importing and exporting, business management, the environment, and communication.
Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy
Quarantine in northern Australia is critical because of its proximity to Southeast Asia and the Pacific, which have many pests and diseases not present in Australia. The region from Cairns to Broome, including the Torres Strait, is the focus for many important quarantine activities.
Early detection of exotic pests and diseases provides the best chance of eliminating them or reducing their impact. The NAQS program works to develop and implement measures for the early detection of targeted pests and diseases in coastal northern Australia.
NAQS staff manage the quarantine aspects of border movements through the Torres Strait and undertake pest and disease surveillance in coastal northern Australia and in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Timor Leste. The NAQS program also aims to strengthen Australia’s quarantine through collaborative capacity-building activities with these countries.
Top Watch is the quarantine awareness campaign run by NAQS. It encourages local communities to keep a ‘top watch’ and report to quarantine any unusual pests and diseases, or sickness in animals and plants.
Quarantine Matters!
Quarantine Matters! is AQIS’s national campaign designed to encourage all Australians to take responsibility for quarantine. The campaign includes tailored strategies for important segments of the target audience including youth, international travellers and people from non-English speaking backgrounds.
What’s the difference between Customs and Quarantine?
AQIS is Australia’s first line of defence, reducing the risk to our agriculture industries and environment against exotic pests and diseases. The Australian Customs Service intercepts illegal goods such as drugs and weapons. AQIS and Customs work together at airports, seaports and mail centres to detect the unlawful movement of goods into Australia.
Contact AQIS
National office postal address:
GPO Box 858
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Free call from within Australia: 1800 020 504
National office switchboard: 02 6272 3933
AQIS Redline: 1800 803 006 (contact us, anonymously if you wish, about breaches of quarantine laws and other compliance issues)
