Meat Products 🇦🇺 Australia
Fresh, dried, and most cooked meat products are prohibited. Biosecurity risk.
Can I bring Meat Products into Australia?
Fresh, dried, and most cooked meat products are prohibited. Biosecurity risk.
Generally zero for meat; trace quantities in manufactured products may be assessed case by case
- Declaration on Incoming Passenger Card is mandatory
Required at the destination customs authority
Full details
Australia prohibits the importation of virtually all meat and meat products under the Biosecurity Act 2015, due to the risk of introducing exotic animal diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and African swine fever (ASF). This includes fresh, frozen, dried, cooked, and canned meat. Commercially manufactured, shelf-stable products with a total meat content of less than 10g may be permitted if declared and cleared by biosecurity officers. Some specific products (e.g., commercially canned pet food, certain shelf-stable products) may be cleared after inspection. Penalties for failing to declare prohibited goods include fines up to AUD 222,000 and up to 10 years imprisonment.
PENALTIES
- Fine: 66600–1665000 AUD
- Imprisonment up to 120 months
- Criminal penalty
Active — Customs actively enforces this rule.
Leaving Australia with meat products
Personal-use quantities of processed, cooked, or shelf-stable meat products (jerky, cured meats, canned meats) may generally be exported from Australia for personal consumption; destination-country biosecurity restrictions on arrival are typically the binding constraint. Raw meat, poultry, and offal require a veterinary-issued Export Health Certificate for commercial or above-personal-use export. Many destinations (Australia, New Zealand, Japan, US, EU) restrict or prohibit personal-import of raw and cooked meat regardless of origin-side export permissions.
Do not bring meat to Australia. Eat or discard all meat products before landing, including airline snacks. Always declare on the incoming passenger card — penalties for non-declaration are severe.
Generally zero for meat; trace quantities in manufactured products may be assessed case by case
- Declaration on Incoming Passenger Card is mandatory
Biosecurity Act 2015; Biosecurity (Prohibited and Conditionally Non-Prohibited Goods) Determination 2016
This page covers destination customs rules in Australia. Whether you can carry meat products through security, in carry-on, or in checked baggage depends on airline and screening rules — see air travel rules.
Related rules
Meat Products rules in other countries
Meat Products
🇳🇿 New Zealand
Almost all meat products are prohibited. New Zealand has strict biosecurity controls.
Meat Products
🇺🇸 United States
Most fresh and cured meats prohibited from most countries
Meat Products
🇧🇷 Brazil
MAPA inspection required for most animal products
Meat Products
🇨🇳 China
Most meat products prohibited under GACC regulations
Meat Products
🇮🇩 Indonesia
Halal certification required for meat imports
Meat Products
🇭🇰 Hong Kong
Most meat requires AFCD import permit