Progress Reports

Export reform for the Non-Prescribed Goods industry

The Government has funded the Export Certification Reform Package worth $127.4 million. 

Key reform priorities include developing a new service delivery models, reviewing fees and charges to align with the new service delivery models, and developing sophisticated IT systems to support the new service delivery models.

Benefits from the reform will include:

- reforms to service delivery
- upgraded IT systems
- maintaining and improving market access.

Together, these changes will ensure Australia’s position at the forefront of export inspection and provide greater assurance to our international markets of the integrity of our agricultural exports.

Service delivery model

The Non-Prescribed Goods service delivery model will include consistent delivery of certification to underpin the integrity of certification and improved Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) work practices.

Revised fees and charges

As part of the Export Certification Reform Package there has been $85.3 million for fee rebates to assist exporters transition to new fees and charges. This funding has been used to provide a 40 per cent offset of the full cost impact on export industries to 30 June 2011. The rebates have been automatically applied to all invoiced to fees and charges.

The Non-Prescribed Goods fees and charges model will see industry return to full cost recovery, as agreed in 2009, on 1 July 2011. The 40 per cent rebate ceases at this time.

More information on fees and charges is available on the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) website. 

New IT systems

Audit Management System

An Audit Management System (AMS) is an interactive web portal that will support the revised service delivery model for export certification. It will streamline data entry, analysis and reporting and replace current disparate manual systems. The AMS is being developed to span the dairy, fish, grain, horticulture, meat and meat animal by-product export industries. This will assist in maintaining our export partner’s confidence in our certification systems.  AQIS is currently investigating options to add Non-Prescribed Goods to the AMS to cover audits that do not sit under any of the other commodities.

Manual of Importing Country Requirements (MICoR)

A new IT system (called MICOR) is being developed to include all known importing country requirements for dairy, fish, grain, horticulture, live animal, meat and meat animal by-product exports. The data in existing databases (PHTYO for horticulture, grain, ANIMEX for live animal, Vol II for meat and meat animal by-product) is now being reviewed for currency to ensure it will translate easily into the new system. MICoR will be adapted to include known importing country requirements for Non-Prescribed Goods on 01 July 2011.

More information is available in the meat MICoR fact sheet.

About the Export Certification Reform Package (ECRP)

The $127.4 million ECRP aims to deliver more efficient export certification and inspection services, and reduce AQIS fees and charges for exporters. This reform will result in a world-class export certification system based on improved Australian legislation, developed in partnership with industry and government.

Continuing to meet importing country requirements, and facilitating market access to grow Australia’s $32 billion agricultural export industry, are priorities under the package.

Current fees and charges were agreed with industry in 2009 and were associated with the reform package which included a 40 per cent rebate until 30 June 2011. This is in line with the Beale Review, which recommended export certification functions should return to full cost recovery.

More information is available on the DAFF website.