Sending wooden box to Australia

[Dave D]

I have nearly finished a jewelry box as a present for my sister in law in Australia and it has just occurred to me (a bit late I know) that the Oz customs might be upset about importing wood.

Of course they are right to be fussy about rough timber but are there regulations about finished items?

Has anybody here or there got any experience of this issue?

 

[Max Power]

Wouldnt have thought there would be a problem. They must get loads of imports with a wood content, think furniture etc

 

[stevebuk]

if they ask what it is say its an 'issue box'.. :lol: :lol:

 

[devonwoody]

Mine have gone back OK with Aussie visitors through their customs but they must declare it on return or they face a hefty fine if they don't and get caught. .

 

[George_N]

I've just come to Australia from Scotland to work for a couple of months and I can tell that Aussie customs are indeed very sensitive about any plant or animal material being imported into the country. A finished wooden item should be fine but you must declare what it is on the customs form or they will confiscate it and incinerate it. The very worst they might do is to spray it with some disinfectant (not ideal for a jewelry box, I admit).

 

[TonyF]

I'm a kiwi, not an aussie, but our Agriculture authorities view biological hazards similarly (for good cause ...).

However have had no difficulty hand-carrying wooden items into NZ ... the key is to declare it and show it for inspection. I imagine a suitable declaration on the Customs label on the outside of the package would be fine. If you want to be ultra-cautious and have not yet applied finishing compounds, a dose of good wood fumigant may be helpful (with an appropriate additional declaration).

However, a quick search on Ministry of Agriculture Australia (or similar search terms) would probably provide you with "contact us" details ... and you could ask directly.

Cheers