Australia Travel Forum

I am bringing ready to eat indian food that is licensed and packaged professionally.is this permissable?
vpas

It depends on what the food is - some processed foods are permitted.

What you can/cannot take with you into OZ

Excellent government sites. Do be sure to use them if you don't want trouble entering Australia. www.customs.gov.au

I wanted to take a special local snack food with for a friend that lives in Adelaide but spent some years in Israel. Wrote to them and got permission – with the addendum that the airport authority had the last word.
airports@aqis.gov.au

For a comprehensive overview and planning your trip do visit the ATC website.
They will also send you a free Guide.
www.australia.com

Most food is not permitted due to the risk of bringing disease i.e. plant and animal disease into the country. Be very sure to tick Yes on the immigration card where it asks if you have food with you. Most Indian food is readily available in Australia especially the larger cities so I,m sure you will be able to buy what you want in Sydney.

Yes, absolutely tick the box on the immigration card that you bring food when you enter Australia.

If you don't you do not only risk the food being destroyed but also pay a fine of A$ 220. If they have their nice day you only get a warning but I would not count on that.

However, I think you are funny. There are so many Indians and Indian shops in Oz, so you would most probably get everything you want on site without having the hassle at immigration and risking to spend money on your food and then possibly get it confiscated.

Australia is extremely strict with what you can bring in and what you cannot. and they can fine you on the spot if you dont mark it on the form. I arrived from Hokkaido via Tokyo to Cairns and there was a forgotten pine nut from some forest in Hokkaido. The customs agent found it and told me I am liable to be fined for brining in a pine nut without declaring it. As a courtesy he let me off not before entering that fact in the computer so each time I enter the country, they ask me, sometimes jovially and other times not so jovially, do you have any pine nuts?
Best not to bring anything, and if you do, just declare it.

thank you everyone,
i am bringing it so that i dont have to buy it in sydney(even if it is available,it would be expensive for me)I am coming there to do a short intensive course and i have to be cost effective while there!
regards,
vpas

If you intend bringing it anyway why ask on this forum if it is allowed?

For food stuffs you should check on the quarantine website, www.aqis.gov.au, this will give you the run down on most things you can or cant bring in. Make sure when you arrive that you declare any foodstuffs, even if you cant bring it in you won't be fined but if you dont declare and you have prohibited stuff you can be fined alot of money.

Yes, why do you bother to ask?

I do not consider it very cost effective if you buy food that could be confiscated, you could be fined A$ 220, and you would have to buy food a second time in Sydney.

You can get very cheap food in Sydney (Asian food court for example).

Thank you everyone.
Regards,
Vpas