Commercial operators and individuals moving plants and produce

Take the right quarantine actions when moving plants and plant products within Australia. An outline of the actions you need to take is provided below. These actions will help you to be successful when moving your goods within Australia.

Plant quarantine entry conditions apply to the movement of plant goods, including fruit, vegetables, nursery stock, flowers, plants, and seeds. Regulations may also apply to the movement of soil, timber, vehicles and machinery.

Domestic quarantine…check, comply, certify

1. Check the relevant quarantine conditions

What you need to do

Check the plant quarantine entry conditions for the state, territory or pest free production area that you intend to move your goods to.

Note that if you intend to move goods:

• into more than one state or territory, you must check the quarantine conditions for each, and
• that have arrived in Australia from an overseas country, you still need to check the relevant quarantine conditions to move these goods within Australia.

Why you need to do it

All of Australia’s states and territories apply quarantine conditions on the entry of plant goods. Conditions for particular plant goods may differ between the states and territories.

How you do it

Check to find out what quarantine conditions apply to your goods either by:

• contacting the plant quarantine regulator in the state or territory that the plant item is being moved to, or
• checking the website of the state or territory that the plant item is being moved to. Links to websites are provided on the plant quarantine regulator contacts page.

Note that if you are importing goods into the state or territory you are in, you need to check the quarantine conditions with your local regulator.

If you have an issue in relation to a particular plant quarantine condition, call the plant quarantine regulator contact in the state or territory that you intend to move your goods to.

For national issues contact the Domestic Quarantine and Market Access Working Group by using one of the ways to engage the group.

2. Comply with the relevant quarantine conditions

What you need to do

If plant quarantine entry conditions do apply to the goods that you intend to move, you must meet the conditions specified.

Why you need to do it

So that you can get approval to move your goods into a particular state, territory or production area.

How you do it

Comply with the plant quarantine entry conditions relevant to your goods in the state or territory that you intend to move goods to. These conditions can be found at the websites contained on the Plant quarantine regulator contacts page.

3. Certify your plant goods

What you need to do

For plant material restricted under quarantine conditions that you intend to move interstate, you need to get a Plant Health Certificate or Plant Health Assurance Certificate.

Why you need to do it

Because the Certificate certifys that the plant material you intend to move interstate is free of pests, diseases and weeds. And therefore can be permitted to enter the state or territory that you intend to move your goods to.

How you do it:

You can either get a government inspector to certify that your goods to be moved within or across state or territory borders meet specified quarantine conditions. To do this, contact your local state or territory quarantine...

Alternatively, you can accredit your business under the Interstate Certification Assurance (ICA) Scheme to certify that your goods to be moved within or across state or territory borders meet specified quarantine conditions.

What to do if you have an issue

If you have an issue in relation to the ICA, you can raise your issue with the Domestic Quarantine and Market Access Working Group by using one of the ways to engage the group.