Euro Plant Finder
Free buyer's guide · Australia
Before you buy — questions to settle first
- Confirm the machine's year of manufacture. If it was built before approximately 1990, asbestos must be assessed as a live question before shipment (see below).
- Confirm the country of origin of the machine — UK-manufactured vs continental European manufacture matters for BMSB risk and potentially for UK FTA duty preference.
- Confirm the planned shipping season — if the machine is from a continental European origin and ships during the Northern Hemisphere winter months (roughly September to April), BMSB seasonal measures will likely apply.
Who handles what at the Australian border
- DAFF (Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) — biosecurity inspection and compliance.
- Australian Border Force — customs, import declarations, duty and GST.
- Your Australian customs broker — lodges the import declaration, advises on HS classification, duty and GST; appoint one who handles machinery regularly.
Customs, duty and GST
- Confirm the correct HS classification for your machine with your Australian customs broker.
- Confirm whether UK-origin preference applies under the UK–Australia FTA. Machines manufactured elsewhere and merely shipped through the UK may not meet origin rules — confirm machine by machine.
- Import GST: 10% applies to most machinery imports.
- Duty rates on most common construction and agricultural machinery classifications are low or zero — confirm the exact rate for your HS code.
- For a clean, duty-free machine, total initial border cash outlay is typically in the range of 11–18% of machine value, driven mainly by GST plus broker, port and biosecurity fees. If BMSB treatment applies or DAFF issues arise, costs can rise materially above that range.
Costs: varies — confirm with your Australian customs broker before committing.
DAFF biosecurity — what inspectors look for
DAFF inspectors are looking for contamination that could introduce pests or disease to Australia. On used machinery, target contaminants are:
- Soil and organic matter — the primary vector. Found in: track frames, wheel arches, belly plates, linkage pins, under mudguards, engine bays, cab floor mats, bucket teeth, blade faces.
- Plant material — seeds, leaves, bark, straw, hay residue. Particularly relevant for agricultural equipment.
- Insects and larvae — live insects in any life stage, including eggs and pupae. Machines stored outdoors or with gaps in cab seals present higher risk.
- Animal-derived material — manure, blood, animal residue. Relevant for livestock-handling and agricultural equipment.
The standard: DAFF requires used machinery to arrive visibly free of soil, plant material, insects and other organic contamination — applied to the whole machine, including every trap point.
Pre-export cleaning checklist
A professional machinery cleaning contractor — not a hand car wash or a basic pressure wash — is required.
- Undercarriage and tracks: water at pressure plus manual attention to track links, rollers, sprockets, idler wheels and track frame internals.
- Wheel arches and mudguards: remove all soil build-up behind tyres and under mudguards on wheeled machines.
- Engine bay: clean dust and soil from engine bay, hydraulic lines and fittings.
- Cab interior: floor mats, cab floor seals, air filter housings — particularly thorough on agricultural machines.
- Buckets, blades and attachments: clean to bare metal, not just wiped. All ground-engaging tools.
- Hollow sections and cavities: chassis rails, A-frames, lifting beams and any hollow structural member — inspect and seal or treat if BMSB-sensitive.
- Obtain a cleaning record from the contractor documenting what was done.
A proper pre-export clean costs a fraction of a DAFF-ordered remediation at an Australian port. Port cleaning is expensive — both in the rates charged and the storage costs that accumulate while the machine is being dealt with.
BMSB — Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
This is a separate requirement from general cleaning. It applies when a machine comes from a BMSB-risk country (primarily continental Europe) during the risk season (broadly September to April — Northern Hemisphere winter, when bugs seek overwintering sites in machinery, cab seals and hollow sections).
What to do about it
- Confirm with your freight forwarder whether BMSB measures apply to your machine's origin country and shipping season — the country and commodity list is maintained by DAFF and can change.
- If BMSB measures apply: treatment (heat treatment or methyl bromide fumigation) must be completed before the machine is loaded for shipment.
- Obtain a treatment certificate from an approved provider — this is the document DAFF requires to confirm compliance.
- Unlike some treatments, BMSB treatment in Australia is generally required pre-departure for affected origins. A machine arriving without treatment from an affected origin may not be allowed to unload until treatment is arranged at Australian port pricing — at your cost.
Machines sourced from the UK only (not via continental Europe) are lower BMSB risk — confirm with your freight forwarder.
Asbestos — pre-1990 machines
Australia has a strict and enforced ban on the importation of asbestos. Used machinery manufactured before approximately 1990 commonly used asbestos in gaskets, brake linings, clutch facings, and heat shields and insulation.
A machine containing asbestos components can be seized, ordered to be exported at your expense, or destroyed
- If buying a machine manufactured before approximately 1990, commission a pre-export asbestos survey by a qualified assessor in the UK before the machine ships.
- This is not optional — it is the cheapest insurance against a very expensive problem at the border.
Export from the UK
- UK export declaration lodged.
- Commercial invoice prepared: accurate machine description and declared value — wrong descriptions or values cause delays and penalties.
- Bill of lading obtained.
- Packing details prepared.
- BMSB treatment certificate (if required) prepared for Australian customs broker.
- Cleaning record prepared for Australian customs broker.
Summary — consequences of non-compliance
If DAFF identifies contamination on arrival:
- Inspection charges and supervised port clean at your cost, plus storage costs while being dealt with.
- Mandatory fumigation or treatment at your cost.
- Mandatory export at your expense.
- In cases involving prohibited material (including asbestos): destruction.
Port storage at a major Australian port accumulates quickly. Prevention is always cheaper.
The safe pre-export sequence
- Confirm HS code, duty rate and UK FTA preference eligibility.
- Check manufacture date — asbestos survey if pre-1990.
- Confirm BMSB applicability for origin country and shipping season.
- Commission professional cleaning to DAFF standard; obtain cleaning record.
- If BMSB treatment required: book approved provider, obtain treatment certificate.
- Ensure commercial invoice is accurate.
- Appoint an Australian customs broker who handles machinery regularly.
Prefer a PDF you can print or send on? Download the original checklist.
Or — hand the whole thing to me
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635 machines sourced. 23+ years in the used-machinery market. Buyers looked after across 8 countries and 3 continents, on top of three decades in senior commercial and sales-leadership roles. I know what these machines are worth, who is really selling, what to walk away from, and how to get one from a yard in Britain to your door without a nasty surprise at the border.
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europlantfinder.co.uk/contact · rob@europlantfinder.co.uk · +44 (0)7498 794304