8 August 2018
Who does this notice affect?
Clients in the import and shipping industries—including freight forwarders, importers and customs brokers—associated with importing goods that require increased intervention during the BMSB risk season (shipped between 1 September 2018 and 30 April 2019 inclusive).
What has changed?
To manage the risk posed by BMSB to Australia, the department has finalised the measures for the 2018-19 BMSB risk season for goods shipped to Australia between 1 September and 30 April inclusive. The final measures including the list of the target goods is available on the Seasonal Measures for BMSB webpage.
For the 2018-19 BMSB season, certain goods manufactured in, or shipped from France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Russia, and the United States of America, as sea cargo will be subject to BMSB measures.
Goods that are categorised as high risk will require mandatory treatment for BMSB, and in many cases, these will require offshore treatment prior to arrival into Australian territory.
In addition to measures applicable to goods, there will be heightened vessel surveillance on all roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) and general cargo vessels through additional pre-arrival reporting with a BMSB questionnaire and daily checks conducted by vessel masters. This measure will apply to vessels that tranship or load goods from France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Romania, Russia, and the United States of America.
More information of the measures including import and treatment requirements is available on the Seasonal Measures for BMSB webpage.
Approved offshore treatment providers
The Offshore BMSB Treatment Providers Scheme (the scheme) sets out the department’s registration and compliance requirements for BMSB treatment providers.
For certain target high risk goods, mandatory offshore treatment applies and may require an approved offshore treatment provider to be used. Details of this requirement can be found on the Preparing to import during the BMSB season webpage.
All treatment providers in France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Russia and the United States of America that intend to conduct BMSB treatments must register under the scheme. The application form and instructions for registering for the scheme is available on the Offshore BMSB Treatment Providers Scheme.
Treatment providers in other countries who intend to conduct BMSB treatments for goods that are manufactured in France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Romania, Russia, Italy or the United States of America are also encouraged to register.
The approved list of offshore BMSB treatment providers is available on the Offshore BMSB Treatment Providers Scheme. This list will be updated as treatment providers are approved.
Industry information sessions
The department will conduct further information sessions in preparation for the 2018-19 BMSB season. These sessions will clarify any questions industry may have on the final measures.
If you have previously registered with us, you will be notified when the sessions will occur.
To register for the BMSB information sessions, please send an email to Air and Sea Cargo nominating the session you will attend and the details of any stakeholders attending with yourself.
Further information
For further information regarding BMSB measures, visit the Seasonal Measures for BMSB webpage or contact Air and Sea Cargo.