Pome fruit budwood is classified as high security due to the risk of the introduction of fireblight and other exotic pests & diseases. This material can only enter the country through one of the four post entry quarantine stations listed below. A review of the pome fruit budwood protocols was completed in February 2002. Changes in the importation protocols following the review resulted in a reduction of the post entry quarantine time from 4 years to 15 months.

The review can be viewed on the DAFF website by visiting this link.

A permit is required for importation to proceed. Permits can be obtained from the the DAFF web site by visiting this link or via your local AQIS office. The completed permit can be lodged with your local AQIS office or through one of the stations listed below.

From a logistics point of view it is important to contact the station you are going to use to ensure that they know when the material will arrive and that they have the space in the station to accommodate it. It is also important to maintain contact with the PEQ station following importation to ensure that you are kept abreast of progress through the testing so you can plan for the release of the material. It is possible to have the virus indexing to meet the APFIP certification requirements completed whilst new introductions are in the PEQ system. This is a separate issue to quarantine indexing and needs to be arranged directly with the station manager. Please contact the General Manager via our contact page if you require any assistance with this or advice on the process. This will result in new introductions meeting the virus status requirements upon release. Importers need to manage the new material once released in accordance with the certification system to ensure that they are not infected by uncertified material.