Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Issued by Authority of the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Biosecurity Act 2015

Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026

Legislative Authority

The Biosecurity Act 2015 (the Act) provides the regulatory framework for the management of diseases and pests that may cause harm to human, animal or plant health, or the environment.

Section 645 of the Act provides that the Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters that are required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed or that are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.

Section 592 of the Act provides that the Biosecurity Regulation 2016 (the Principal Regulation) may prescribe fees that may be charged in relation to activities (fee-bearing activities) carried out by, or on behalf of, the Commonwealth in performing functions and exercising powers under the Act.

Paragraph 593(b) of the Act provides that the Principal Regulation may prescribe one or more persons who are liable to pay a specified cost-recovery charge.

Subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 provides that where an Act confers a power to make, grant or issue any instrument of a legislative or administrative character (including rules, regulations or by-laws) the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions (if any) to repeal, rescind, revoke, amend or vary any such instrument.

Purpose

The purpose of the Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026 (the Amendment Regulations) is to ensure that the fees that may be charged in relation to fee-bearing activities are effective and fit-for-purpose and allow the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (the department) to seek to recover fees for fee-bearing activities that are commensurate with the complexity of the work involved.

The Amendment Regulations amend the Principal Regulation to remove fees that are no longer required and implement new and amended fees from 1 July 2026. The amendments enhance the fairness and transparency of cost‑recovery charges by:

• removing fees for out of ordinary hours of duty and weekend and public holidays assessment of permit applications which are rarely utilised;

• removing the fee for husbandry activities in relation to a horse in a post-entry quarantine facility for each day after the initial 14-day period which is rarely utilised;

• increasing the fee beyond existing indexing provisions for husbandry activities in relation to an animal not covered by another item of the table at subsection 106(1) in a post-entry quarantine facility, to support the recovery of the additional costs incurred by the department when delivering husbandry activities;

• amending the manner in which fees relating to husbandry activities provided for birds and birds’ eggs for hatching are charged to ensure the department is recovering appropriately for the level of work involved with managing the biosecurity risk associated with these imports; and

• introducing new fees relating to husbandry activities provided for consignments of live snails, to support the recovery of the department’s costs in managing these imports.

Background

The department administers the Act to manage biosecurity threats that may cause harm to human, animal or plant health, or the environment. The department recovers the costs of undertaking these regulatory functions through fees and charges, imposed in accordance with the Australian Government Charging Framework. It sets the rules and requirements about how a regulator determines costs and sets charges, and how it will charge for regulatory activities.

The Principal Regulation prescribes fees for undertaking biosecurity regulatory functions by reference to specific fee-bearing activities (for example, in subsection 106(1)). The fees are charged on different bases, including time, and by reference to the completion of tasks.

Impact and Effect

The Amendment Regulations provide for the removal of fees that are no longer required, add new fees regarding the importation of live snails, increase fees for miscellaneous husbandry activities and amend the manner of charging fees for husbandry activities provided in relation to the importation of birds and birds’ eggs for hatching. The new and amended fees commence on 1 July 2026.

The amendments ensure that the fee structure for fee-bearing activities remains fit‑for‑purpose and allow the department to seek to recover fees for fee-bearing activities that are commensurate with the complexity of the work involved. While the majority of the fees in the Principal Regulation increase in line with indexation on 1 July 2026 under section 107A of the Principal Regulation, one specific fee for husbandry activities in a post‑entry quarantine facility in relation to an animal not covered by another item of the table at subsection 106(1) is increasing beyond the rate of indexation to account for the level of effort involved with those activities.

The new and revised fees are set out in the 2026-27 Biosecurity Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (CRIS) as required by the Australian Government Cost Recovery Policy overseeing charging of regulatory government activities. The new and revised fees are no higher than the department’s likely costs of delivering the relevant fee-bearing activities. The CRIS sets out the anticipated costs to be recovered in delivering regulatory activities, and the fees and charges to be applied to those activities. The final CRIS was certified by the Secretary of the department and approved by the Minister. The final CRIS is published on the department’s website.

Consultation

Widespread consultation with industry stakeholders on all proposed changes occurred from April 2026. This involved targeted industry engagement via email communication, detailed explanatory material, import industry advice notices, attendance at industry consultative committees, updates to the department’s website and direct engagement with industry stakeholders. Public consultation was conducted through the department’s online consultation platform from 13 April to 5 May 2026. Industry stakeholders had no concerns with the amendments, and their feedback was considered by the department.

The Department of Finance was also consulted on the proposed changes.

Details and Operation

The Amendment Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.

The Amendment Regulations commence on 1 July 2026.

Details of the Amendment Regulations are set out in Attachment A.

Other

The Amendment Regulations are compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared under section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. A full Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights is set out in Attachment B.

ATTACHMENT A

Details of the Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026

Section 1 – Name

This section provides that the name of the instrument is the Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026 (the Amendment Regulations).

Section 2 – Commencement

Subsection 2(1) provides that the Amendment Regulations commence on 1 July 2026.

The note below the table provides that the table relates only to the provisions of the Amendment Regulations as originally made. The table will not be amended to deal with later amendments of the Amendment Regulations. The purpose of this note is to clarify that the commencement of any subsequent amendments will not be reflected in this table.

Subsection 2(2) provides that any information in column 3 of the table is not part of the Amendment Regulations. Information may be inserted in that column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of the Amendment Regulations.

Section 3 – Authority

This section provides that the Amendment Regulations are made under the Biosecurity Act 2015 (the Act).

Section 4 – Schedules

This section provides that each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to the Amendment Regulations is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this instrument has effect according to its terms. This enables the amendment of the Biosecurity Regulation 2016.

Schedule 1—Amendments

Part 1—Amendments

Biosecurity Regulation 2016

Item [1] – Section 5

Section 5 of the Biosecurity Regulation 2016 (the Principal Regulation) provides for definitions of terms used throughout the Principal Regulation.

This item inserts a new definition, as follows:

“biocontainment unit means an isolation unit in a post-entry quarantine facility in which a consignment, or part of a consignment, of birds, or birds’ eggs for hatching, is kept to minimise the risk that the birds or eggs spread, or become infected with, a disease or pest while in the facility.”

The term “biocontainment unit” is used in table items 19 and 20 in subsection 106(1) of the Principal Regulation in relation to fees associated with birds and birds’ eggs for hatching (see related items 4 and 5 of Part 1 of this Schedule below). Section 106 is in Part 2 of Chapter 9 of the Principal Regulation, which includes provisions relating to cost recovery fees and charges.

Item [2] – Subsection 106(1) (table items 10, 11 and 16)

This item repeals table items 10, 11 and 16 from the table at subsection 106(1) of the Principal Regulation.

Table items 10 and 11 prescribe fees that apply to the assessment of an application for the grant or variation of an import permit, or the variation of a condition of an import permit (permit application) referred to in any of items 4 to 8 of the table at subsection 106(1), where that assessment is provided on a weekday outside of ordinary hours of duty (item 10) or on a Saturday, Sunday or a departmental holiday (item 11). These fees apply in addition to the fees for assessments of permit applications prescribed in table items 4 to 9. These activities are rarely carried out by the department and therefore the fees are rarely utilised in practice, so they are being repealed. If the situation did arise, the department could utilise the charges in items 2 or 3 of the table in subsection 106(1) to recover for the activity carried out.

Table item 16 prescribes fees that apply to husbandry activities in relation to a horse in a post-entry quarantine facility, for each day after the initial 14-day period during which the horse stayed at the post-entry quarantine facility. Husbandry activities in relation to a horse are rarely undertaken by the department in practice, as groomers provided by the importer are usually used to undertake that activity, so the provision is being repealed. The effect of the repeal would be that no fee for husbandry activities is charged after a horse’s initial 14-day stay.

Item [3] – Subsection 106(1) (table item 17, column 2)

Table item 17 prescribes fees that apply to husbandry activities in relation to an animal not covered by another item of the table at subsection 106(1) in a post-entry quarantine facility.

This item omits the dollar figure of $50 (for each animal for each day) in table item 17, column 2, and substitutes a new dollar figure of $56 (for each animal for each day).

This reflects an increase beyond the rate of indexation to account for the level of effort involved with those activities. The substituted fee amount is set at a level that is no higher than the department’s likely costs of delivering the fee-bearing activity.

Item [4] – Subsection 106(1) (table item 19, column 2)

Table item 19 in subsection 106(1) of the Principal Regulation prescribes fees that apply to husbandry activities in relation to a consignment of birds in a post-entry quarantine facility.

This item amends table item 19, column 2 by omitting the word “consignment” and substituting the words “biocontainment unit occupied by the consignment, or part of the consignment,”. The term “biocontainment unit” is defined in section 5 of the Principal Regulation, as inserted by item 1 of Part 1 of this Schedule. The effect of this amendment is that the fee will apply in relation to the number of biocontainment units occupied by a consignment, or part of a consignment, per day in the post-entry quarantine facility rather than by the consignment per day.

In practice, birds are generally imported into Australian territory in consignments and the space required at a post-entry quarantine facility varies based on the size of the consignment and may result in the housing of those birds in more than one biocontainment unit at the facility. Due to the risk profile involved with avians, consignments of birds (in addition to birds’ eggs for hatching) must be housed in purpose‑built biocontainment units in the department’s post-entry quarantine facility.

This amendment ensures that the fees remain fit-for-purpose noting that the effort of the department to manage a consignment of live birds differs significantly depending on the number of biocontainment units that it occupies in the post‑entry quarantine facility.

Item [5] – Subsection 106(1) (table item 20, column 2)

Table item 20 in subsection 106(1) of the Principal Regulation prescribes fees that apply to husbandry activities in relation to a consignment of birds’ eggs for hatching in a post-entry quarantine facility.

This item amends table item 20, column 2 by omitting the word “consignment” and substituting the words “biocontainment unit occupied by the consignment, or part of the consignment,”. The term “biocontainment unit” is defined in section 5 of the Principal Regulation, as inserted by item 1 of Part 1 of this Schedule. The effect of this amendment is that the fee will apply in relation to the number of biocontainment units occupied by a consignment, or part of a consignment, per day in the post-entry quarantine facility rather than by the consignment per day.

In practice, birds’ eggs for hatching are generally imported into Australian territory in consignments and the space required at a post-entry quarantine facility varies based on the size of the consignment and may result in the housing of those eggs in more than one biocontainment unit. Due to the risk profile involved with avians (including avian eggs), consignments of birds’ eggs for hatching must be housed in purpose-built biocontainment units in the department’s post-entry quarantine facility.

This amendment ensures that the fees remain fit-for-purpose noting that the effort of the department to manage a consignment of birds’ eggs for hatching differs significantly depending on the number of biocontainment units that it occupies in the post‑entry quarantine facility.

Item [6] – Subsection 106(1) (after table item 20)

Subsection 106(1) of the Principal Regulation prescribes, amongst other things, fees for husbandry activities in relation to particular animals or plants.

This item inserts, after table item 20, a new item 20A which prescribes fees for husbandry activities in relation to a consignment of live snails in a post-entry quarantine facility operated by the department. The new fee of $2,470 applies on the basis of each consignment for each month or part of a month that the husbandry activities are provided.

Item [7] – Subsection 106(1A)

Subsection 106(1A) of the Principal Regulation provides that if an amount of a fee specified in paragraph (a) of certain items of the table in subsection 106(1) is increased under the indexation provision contained in section 107A, the increased figure is to be used for the purposes of working out the amount of the fee under subparagraph (b)(i) of the item.

This item omits from subsection 106(1A) the reference to item 10 of the table in subsection 106(1), as item 10 is repealed from the Principal Regulation by item 2 of Part 1 of this Schedule.

Item [8] – Subsection 106(1B)

Subsection 106(1B) of the Principal Regulation provides that if an amount of a fee specified in paragraph (b) of certain items of the table in subsection 106(1) is increased under the indexation provision contained in section 107A, the increased figure is to be used for the purposes of working out the amount of the fee under paragraph (a) of the item.

This item omits from subsection 106(1B) the reference to item 11 of the table in subsection 106(1), as item 11 is repealed from the Principal Regulation by item 2 of Part 1 of this Schedule.

Item [9] – Subsection 106(2)

Subsection 106(2) of the Principal Regulation provides that if a person asks for a fee-bearing activity to be carried out at a particular time, and the carrying out of the activity at that time would mean that the person would be liable to pay a fee under certain items in the table in subsection 106(1), the activity must not be carried out until the person has been informed about the fee.

This item omits from subsection 106(2) the reference to items 10 and 11 of the table in subsection 106(1), as items 10 and 11 are repealed from the Principal Regulation by item 2 of Part 1 of this Schedule.

Item [10] – Subsection 107(4)

Subsection 107(4) of the Principal Regulation provides that a fee may not be charged under any of items 4 to 11 in the table in subsection 106(1) in relation to the assessment of an application for an import permit to bring or import goods in circumstances set out in paragraphs 107(4)(a) to (c).

This item omits from subsection 107(4) the reference to items 10 and 11 of the table in subsection 106(1) by omitting the text “to 11” and substituting “to 9”. This amendment is consequential to the repeal of items 10 and 11 by item 2 of Part 1 of this Schedule.

Item [11] – After subsection 107A(1)

Subsection 107A(1) of the Principal Regulation provides for the indexation of fees mentioned in items 1 to 23 of the table in subsection 106(1) and paragraphs 106A(3)(a) and (b).

This item inserts a new subsection 107A(1A) after subsection 107A(1) which excludes table items 17 and 20A from indexation for the financial year beginning 1 July 2026.

The reason for excluding table item 17 from indexation is because the figure will increase to $56 from 1 July 2026, as a result of the amendment in item 3 of Part 1 of this Schedule. The revised dollar amount includes an amount equal to indexation that would have otherwise applied. Excluding this item from indexation ensures that the dollar amount in that item is set at a level that is no higher than the department’s likely costs of delivering the fee-bearing activity.

The reason for excluding item 20A from indexation for the financial year beginning 1 July 2026 is because this would be a new fee commencing on 1 July 2026, as a result of the amendment in item 6 of Part 1 of this Schedule, so it includes an amount equal to indexation that would have otherwise applied. Excluding this item from indexation ensures that the dollar amount in that item is set at a level that is no higher than the department’s likely costs of delivering the fee-bearing activity.

Item [12] – Subsection 107A(8)

Subsection 107A(8) of the Principal Regulation provides that if a dollar amount (the old fee) mentioned in items 1 to 14 and 16 to 21 of the table in subsection 106(1) is replaced under section 107A on an indexation day, the old fee applies instead of the replacement amount in relation to a fee-bearing activity that is carried out on or after the indexation day if:

1.    an invoice was issued by the department in relation to the fee-bearing activity before that day; or

1.    demand for payment had been made in relation to the fee-bearing activity before that day.

This item omits the reference to item 16 of the table in subsection 106(1) by omitting the text “16” and substituting “16A”. This amendment is consequential to the repeal of item 16 by item 2 of Part 1 of this Schedule.

Item [13] – Paragraph 109(4)(e)

Subsection 109(4) of the Principal Regulation prescribes, for the purposes of paragraph 593(b) of the Act, persons who are liable to pay a cost recovery charge in relation to a biosecurity matter prescribed by the table in subsection 9(1) of the Biosecurity Charges Imposition (General) Regulation 2016 (the General Regulation) or the table in subsection 9(1) of the Biosecurity Charges Imposition (Customs) Regulation 2016 (the Customs Regulation).

Paragraph 109(4)(e) of the Principal Regulation provides that in relation to a biosecurity matter prescribed by item 14 of the table, the person liable to pay the charge is the operator of the vessel to which the charge relates.

The Biosecurity Charges Imposition (General) Amendment (2026 Measures No. 1) Regulations 2026 and the Biosecurity Charges Imposition (Customs) Amendment (2026 Measures No. 1) Regulations 2026 insert a new table item 15 at the end of the table at section 9(1) in each of the General Regulation and the Customs Regulation. This new table item 15 prescribes charges for the carrying out of diagnostic activities for goods on board a vessel, where those goods are not intended to be unloaded from the vessel in Australian territory. The charge only applies once per vessel, once there is a need to perform diagnostic activities.

This item omits from paragraph 109(4)(e) the reference to “item 14” and substitutes the words “either item 14 or 15”. The reason for this amendment is to prescribe that it is the vessel owner that is liable to pay a charge in relation to a biosecurity matter prescribed by either table item 14 or 15 of the table in subsection 9(1) of the General Regulation or the table in subsection 9(1) of the Customs Regulation.

Part 2—Application and saving provisions

Biosecurity Regulation 2016

Item [14] – In the appropriate position in Chapter 10

Chapter 10 of the Principal Regulation provides transitional provisions in relation to amendments that have been made to the Principal Regulation.

This item inserts a new section 126 in Chapter 10 to provide application and saving provisions in relation to amendments made by Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Amendment Regulations.

Subsection 126(1) provides that, subject to subsection 126(2), the amendments of items 17, 19 and 20 of the table in subsection 106(1) of the Principal Regulation apply in relation to a fee-bearing activity carried out on or after 1 July 2026. This ensures that the amendments apply prospectively.

Subsection 126(2) provides that items 17, 19 and 20 of the table in subsection 106(1), as in force immediately before 1 July 2026, continue to apply on and after that day in relation to a fee-bearing activity:

1.    that is commenced, but not completed, before 1 July 2026; or

1.    that is carried out on or after 1 July 2026 if:
   1.      an invoice was issued by the department in relation to the activity before 1 July 2026; or
   2.   demand for payment had been made in relation to the activity before 1 July 2026.

Subsection 126(3) provides that item 20A of the table in subsection 106(1), as inserted by Part 1 of Schedule 1 to the Amendment Regulations, applies in relation to husbandry activities carried out on or after 1 July 2026. This ensures that the new fee set out in new table item 20A applies prospectively.

ATTACHMENT B

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

The Biosecurity Amendment (Fees) Regulations 2026 (the Amendment Regulations) amend the Biosecurity Regulation 2016 (the Principal Regulation) to provide that certain fee-bearing activities undertaken in order to assess biosecurity risk and inform appropriate biosecurity measures, can be charged.

The Amendment Regulations are made under the Biosecurity Act 2015 (the Act). Section 592 of the Act provides that regulations may prescribe fees that may be charged in relation to fee‑bearing activities carried out by, or on behalf of, the Commonwealth in performing functions and exercising powers under the Act. Paragraph 593(b) of the Act provides that the Principal Regulation may prescribe one or more persons who are liable to pay a specified cost-recovery charge.

The purpose of the Amendment Regulations is to ensure that the fees that may be charged in relation to fee-bearing activities are effective and fit-for-purpose and allow the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (the department) to seek to recover fees for fee-bearing activities that are commensurate with the complexity of the work involved.

The Amendment Regulations amend the Principal Regulation to remove fees that are no longer required and implement new and amended fees from 1 July 2026. The amendments will enhance the fairness and transparency of cost‑recovery charges by:

• removing fees for out of ordinary hours of duty and weekend and public holidays assessment of permit applications which are rarely utilised;

• removing the fee for husbandry activities in relation to a horse in a post-entry quarantine facility for each day after the initial 14-day period which is rarely utilised;

• increasing the fee beyond existing indexing provisions for husbandry activities in relation to an animal not covered by another item of the table at subsection 106(1) in a post-entry quarantine facility, to support the recovery of the additional costs incurred by the department when delivering husbandry activities;

• amending the manner in which fees relating to husbandry activities provided for birds and birds’ eggs for hatching are charged to ensure the department is recovering appropriately for the level of work involved with managing the biosecurity risk associated with these imports; and

• introducing new fees relating to husbandry activities provided for consignments of live snails, to support the recovery of the department’s costs in managing these imports.

Human rights implications

This Legislative Instrument does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms.

Conclusion

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

The Hon. Julie Collins MP

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry