Consignments are to be free from pests, soil, weed seeds and extraneous material.
It is the exporter's responsibility to ensure that the phytosanitary certificate is issued not more than 15 days prior to the consignment being exported from Australia.
Packaging and shipping requirements
A typed or legibly printed list/invoice must accompany each shipment and must contain the name of the collector/shipper, the botanical names (genus and species) listed alphabetically, as well as the country of origin and the country of export for each taxon.
Consignments being shipped by mail or courier must be labelled as below:
- Correctly and plainly addressed and mailed to the Plant Protection and Quarantine Program at one of the Approved Ports of Entry to receive plants for planting for import;
- Accompanied by a separate sheet of paper within the package, plainly and correctly bearing the name, address, and telephone number of the intended recipient
- Plainly and correctly on the outer container, have the following information:
- General nature and quantity of the contents;
- Country and locality where grown;
- Name and address of shipper, owner, or person shipping or forwarding the plants for planting; and
- Number of the written permit authorizing the importation, if one (written permit) is required under 7 CFR § 319.37-5.
Consignments being shipped by mail must bear a green and yellow shipping label (PPQ Form 508).
Consignments being shipped by other means (e.g. full containers) must be labelled on the outer container with the below:
- General nature and quantity of the contents;
- Country and locality where grown;
- Name and address of shipper, owner, or person shipping or forwarding the plants for planting;
- Name and address of consignee;
- Identifying shipper's mark and number; and
- Number of written permit authorizing the importation, if applicable.
Shipments that are deemed to prevent adequate on-arrival inspection or treatment (i.e. wrapped, coated, dipped or sprayed, or otherwise packaged in impermeable material) may be refused entry.
Small lots of seed permit conditions
If stated on the import permit (small lots of seed permit), small lots of seed may be imported without an accompanying phytosanitary certificate, provided that the following conditions outlined in the
USDA Plants for Planting Manual in the Small lots of Seeds Permit section are met in addition to the packaging and shipping requirements outlined above.
If small lots of seeds are exported without an accompanying phytosanitary certificate as per the import permit conditions, no Authorised Officer inspection and issuance of an export permit is required for the consignment.
For seed to be re-exported back to Australia after coating/taping, the seed lot number/s must be entered in the "lot number" field of the EXDOC Request for Permit (RFP)".
Seed Lot number are to be endorsed on the phytosanitary certificate in the lot number field for traceability.
Some seeds require mandatory import permit before imported into Australia. Exporters must contact Plant Import Operations (imports@awe.gov.au) before importing seeds back into Australia.
Note:- The MICoR case was created to facilitate trade based on available information. Exporters are encouraged to confirm the import requirements in case these may have changed without a formal notification to Australia.
- Seed lot number is not required for seeds that will not be re-exported back to Australia after coating or taping.
