What preparations are needed to send food products to Australia?

The Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR) has control over imported food products under the Biosecurity Act 2015 and the Imported Food Control Act 1992. For this reason, please review and prepare the following when shipping food products to Australia.

Step 1
Please check to see if the food items you are shipping are acceptable by FedEx.

The following foods are not handled by FedEx:

• Alcohol for which both the exporter and importer lack a license to handle alcoholic beverages.
• Fresh and perishable foods (including foods that require refrigeration or freezing)
• Dairy products (except New Zealand products)
• Beef and meat products (including ingredients and fats)
• Popcorn
• Foods containing honey (e.g. propolis)

Step 2
An import permit (license) must be prepared.

Please confirm that the consignee is able to prepare the import license.

In most cases, an import license is not required for gifts from individuals to individuals (total declared value of less than 1,000 AUD), but this is at the discretion of the local customs office. If requested, the consignee will be required to provide this information.

Step 3
Please confirm the purpose of the shipment. Depending on the purpose of the shipment, the following preparations may be required.

If the shipment is for the purpose of sale, a country of origin label issued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) must be attached to the food package.

In the case of personal effects, we do not provide import customs clearance services for personal effects, so you will need to select a customs broker other than ours before shipping your package. Please use the FedEx Broker Selection Option by making arrangements with the consignee in advance to determine the customs broker to be used.

Step 4
Please make the necessary preparations for shipment.

Required documents and other shipping preparations:

1. Air waybill
2. Commercial invoice
3. Original import license (see Step 2)
4. Country of origin label (see Step 3)
5. Designation of customs broker (See Step 3)
6. Packing

External Sites
Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources
Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) - Country of origin food labeling

Related questions
What is an air waybill?
What is a commercial invoice?
How should I package my shipment?
Can I send personal effects to Australia?