12 June 2024
Who does this notice affect?
All foreign force personnel, brokers, commercial operators, and biosecurity industry participants involved with the onshore clearance of foreign force military equipment imported via air or sea freight for use in the Pitch Black 2024 (PB24) Combined Military Activity (CMA).
What has changed?
The department no longer facilitates the clearance of foreign force military equipment imports through the creation of manual entries in the Agriculture Import Management System (AIMS). This approach is consistent with current Australian Border Force (ABF) lodgement requirements.
All imported foreign force military equipment for PB24 should be lodged by a licensed customs broker in the Integrated Cargo System (ICS) under a Full Import Declaration (FID). When lodging the FID, customs brokers should ensure that the correct tariff codes are used so that the appropriate concessions and Community Protection Profiles (CPPs) are applied to the consignments.
All documentation relevant to the shipment must be submitted to the department for assessment via the Cargo Online Lodgement System (COLS).
Normal assessment periods apply for military equipment imported for use in PB24. Customs brokers should ensure shipment documentation is lodged with a minimum of five (5) business days prior to arrival of goods for sea freight and two (2) business days for air freight to avoid clearance delays.
Offshore Pre-shipment Inspected Cargo
All offshore biosecurity inspected cargo will be subject to a verification inspection on arrival in Australia. Verification inspections will need to be booked as per the process outlined below.
Inspection Bookings
Brokers should email a copy of the inspection directions to the department’s Northern Territory Cargo Inspections Team (nt.cargo@aff.gov.au) once they are issued by the department via AIMS. Brokers should nominate when the goods are likely to be available for inspection in the email.
Customs brokers should ensure that directions are submitted with sufficient lead time to avoid delays. An inspection appointment will not be confirmed without a valid AIMS direction.
Further information
If you require further information, please contact the Military Section via email (military@aff.gov.au). Additional information about biosecurity requirements for visiting foreign forces is available on the department’s website.