Mutual Recognition Initiative - Used Cars from Japan

Notice to Industry 72/2010

24 December 2010

What is the initiative?

In August 2009, the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Biosecurity New Zealand (MAFBNZ), signed a Letter of Agreement to implement a Mutual Recognition Initiative between Australia and New Zealand (the Initiative).

The Initiative allows for MAFBNZ to undertake inspections on behalf of AQIS, of used cars intended for export from Japan to Australia, to ensure those vehicles satisfy AQIS biosecurity requirements.

Originally this Initiative was implemented for pre-inspected vehicles entering Australia through the Port of Brisbane only. Due to the success of the Initiative, it was extended to all Australian proclaimed ports from 1 July 2010.

The inspection process

All vehicles, whether bound for New Zealand or Australia, undergo a process of cleaning and inspection managed between MAFBNZ and Industry in Japan.

A green sticker is attached to the right windscreen wiper of an inspected vehicle to indicate that it has been inspected and passed by MAFBNZ in Japan for export to New Zealand and Australia.

Where a vehicle is not approved for export, a red sticker is applied and the vehicle is directed to be re-cleaned using methods approved by both countries. Once re-cleaned, the vehicle must be re-inspected by MAFBNZ. At this point the import requirements and treatments for New Zealand and Australia differ, please see below for further details.

All used vehicles under this Initiative are subject to a surveillance inspection by AQIS on arrival into Australia, to verify that the vehicles are free of quarantine risk material.

New Zealand import requirements

MAFBNZ biosecurity legislation and Import Health Standard allow vehicles known to be contaminated to be shipped to New Zealand, provided the outside of the vehicle is clean and all indications of contamination have been removed. In these cases, a red sticker will have been applied and the vehicle will also require mandatory treatment upon arrival into New Zealand, at an additional cost to the importer. The importer has a choice of heat treatment or fumigation.

Australian import requirements

Australian quarantine legislation and import conditions do not allow vehicles known to be contaminated to be shipped to Australia. Under the current AQIS/MAFBNZ initiative, the process in Japan will manage any known contaminated vehicles by re-cleaning using AQIS approved treatment options which include:

• steam cleaning;
• high pressure cleaning;
• disinfecting; or
• vacuuming.

Vehicles without green stickers cannot be loaded onto a vessel for export to Australia. If contamination/infestation cannot be cleaned satisfactorily, vehicles are not to be shipped to Australia.

What will change?

Under the current Initiative, any contaminated vehicles are applied with a red sticker and are unable to be shipped to Australia in accordance with MAFBNZ treatment options. However, unlike MAFBNZ, AQIS does not recognise heat treatment or fumigation as a treatment option.

We advise that the current mutual recognition initiative guidelines have been amended. The amendment recognises the difference in treatment requirements and removes MAFBNZ treatment options of heat treatment and fumigation for contaminated vehicles that are to be exported to Australia. The following paragraph now applies:

For vehicles that are to be exported to Australia, insect contamination should be treated by spot treatment (Pyrethrin based knockdown spray or high volume spray) and all residual contamination is to be removed and cleaned. In the case of Asian Gypsy Moth, all egg masses should be removed and the affected area is to be steam cleaned or sprayed with a residual insecticide, such as Bifenthrin.