Country Conditions for Mailing — Australia

Prohibitions (130)

Antiquities, art fossils, historical documents, numismatic material, specimens of flora and fauna, and similar cultural heritage objects that are significant to a nation’s identity.

Coins; bank notes; currency notes (paper money); securities of any kind payable to bearer; traveler’s checks; platinum, gold, and silver (except for jewelry items meeting the requirement in “Restrictions” below); precious stones (except when contained in jewelry items meeting the requirement in “Restrictions” below); and other valuable articles are prohibited.

Dog collars with protrusions designed to puncture or bruise an animal’s skin.

Drugs. Additional information is available at www.abf.gov.au/importing-exporting-and-manufacturing/prohibited-goods/list-of-items.

Fruit cartons (used or new).

Fur, including raw, tanned, or processed furs or pelts, and goods that may contain such fur that are derived from domesticated cat and dog breeds.

Goods bearing the name “Anzac.”

Goods produced wholly or partly in prisons or by convict labor.

Laser pointers and similar handheld devices designed or adapted to emit a laser beam with an accessible emission level greater than 1 megawatt (MW).

Most food, plant, and animal products, including the use of products such as straw and other plant material as packing materials.

Perishable infectious biological substances.

Radioactive materials.

Registered philatelic articles with fictitious addresses.

Replica firearms, including any article that has the appearance of a firearm that could reasonably be mistaken as a firearm.

Seditious literature.

Signal jammers capable of preventing or disrupting mobile telephone and satellite navigation services.

Silencers for firearms.

Tobacco products, including cigarettes and loose-leaf tobacco. Exception: Cigars. Note: Although Australia also permits chewing tobacco and oral snuff in amounts up to 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg), the U.S. Postal Service does not permit these types of smokeless tobacco in international mail — see 136.4. Additional information is available at www.abf.gov.au/importing-exporting-and-manufacturing/prohibited-goods/list-of-items.

Untreated wood.

Used bedding.

Restrictions

Airsoft (BB) guns that do not have the appearance of fully automatic firearms require prior approval granted by relevant police representatives. The addressee must submit an application to import the item via the police certification test.

Drugs, medicines, and therapeutic substances such as antibiotics, growth hormones, kava, psychoactive substances, and steroids require an import permit from the Australian Department of Health, Office of Drug Control.

Fish or parts of fish, including all species of bony fish, sharks, rays, crustaceans, mollusks, and other marine organisms (but not including marine mammals, marine reptiles, or toothfish), whether fresh, frozen, smoked, or preserved in airtight containers, require an import permit from the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA).

Jewelry is permitted only when sent as an insured parcel using Priority Mail International service. In addition, Australian Customs regulations prohibit importation of jewelry that is made with ivory or from endangered species, such as snake, elephant, or crocodile, that does not have an accompanying Import/Export Permit in relation to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Knives (such as daggers and throwing knives), throwing blades, or throwing axes require written Police Certification (B709B form or B709X form) from the Australian Police Firearms Registry.

Meat and other animal products; powdered or concentrated milk; and other dairy products requires permission to import from the Australian quarantine authorities.

Permission of the Australian Director-General of Health is required to import medicines.

Raw forms of beans, grains, nuts, rice, and seeds are temporarily banned by the government of Australia. Note: Exceptions include the following: Goods that are thermally or chemically processed and preserved; fresh vegetables; oils derived from vegetables or seed; and plant-based raw materials, such as starch, sugar, and pigment. Seeds that may be imported — including flower or food seeds and plant products and seeds for sowing — must comply with importation conditions or be covered by a valid import permit (i.e., a phytosanitary certificate) from the Australian Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (AWE) before arriving in Australia. The Australian customs and border authority requires that the phytosanitary certificate must include the following additional declaration: “Representative samples were inspected and found free from evidence of any species of Trogoderma (whether live, dead, or exuviae) in Australia’s list of Trogoderma species of biosecurity concern.” This requirement applies to items arriving via all mail classes, including EMS. For additional information, see Australia’s Biosecurity Import Conditions system at https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/import/online-services/bicon and https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-trade/pests-diseases-weeds/plant/khapra-beetle/urgent-actions.

Observations

Duty may be levied on catalogs, price lists, circulars, and all advertising introduced into Australia through the mail, regardless of the class of mail used.

Global Express Guaranteed (210) Price Group 6

Note: Global Express Guaranteed service is suspended as of September 29, 2024.

Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the applicable retail, Commercial Base, or Commercial Plus price.

Weight Limit: 70 lbs.

Size Limits (211.22)

The surface area of the address side of the item to be mailed must be large enough to completely contain the Global Express Guaranteed Air Waybill/Shipping Invoice (shipping label), postage, endorsement, and any applicable markings. The shipping label is approximately 5.5 inches high and 9.5 inches long.

Maximum length: 46 inches

Maximum width: 35 inches

Maximum height: 46 inches

Maximum length and girth combined: 108 inches

Value Limit (212.1)

The maximum value of a GXG shipment to this country is $2,499 or a lesser amount if limited by content or value.

Insurance (212.5)

See Notice 123, Price List, for the fee schedule for GXG document reconstruction insurance and non–document insurance.

Priority Mail Express
International (220) Price Group 12

Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the applicable retail, Commercial Base, or Commercial Plus price.

Weight Limit: 66 lbs.

Priority Mail Express International — Flat Rate Envelopes

Flat Rate Envelopes: The maximum weight is 4 pounds.

Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the applicable retail, Commercial Base, or Commercial Plus price.

Size Limits (221.42)

Maximum length: 36 inches

Maximum length and girth combined: 97 inches

Insurance (222.7)

Available for Priority Mail Express International merchandise shipments only

See Exhibit 322.2 for individual country merchandise insurance limits. See Notice 123, Price List, for the fee schedule for Priority Mail Express International merchandise insurance coverage.

Customs Forms Required (123)

Articles Admitted	Required Customs Form/Endorsement
Business and commercial papers.	PS Form 2976-B placed inside PS Form 2976-E (plastic envelope). Endorse item clearly next to mailing label as BUSINESS PAPERS.
Merchandise samples without commercial value microfilm, microfiche, and computer data.	PS Form 2976-B placed inside PS Form 2976-E (plastic envelope).
Merchandise and all articles subject to customs duty.	PS Form 2976-B placed inside PS Form 2976-E (plastic envelope).

Note: For mailers completing PS Form 2976-B or an online combined shipping label and customs form that electronically transmits customs-related data, no additional customs form is required because customs information is incorporated into the form that the mailer must complete.

Notes:

Coins; banknotes; currency notes, including paper money; securities of any kind payable to bearer; traveler’s checks; platinum, gold, and silver; precious stones; jewelry; watches; and other valuable articles are prohibited in Priority Mail Express International shipments to Australia.
Priority Mail Express International With Money-Back Guarantee service — which offers a date-certain, postage-refund guarantee — is available to Australia.

Reciprocal Service Name: Express Post

Country Code: AU

Areas Served:

All except Lord Howe Island and the Australian Antarctic territories.

Priority Mail International (230) Price Group 12

Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the applicable retail, Commercial Base, or Commercial Plus price.

Weight Limit: 66 lbs.

Priority Mail International — Flat Rate

Flat Rate Envelopes or Small Flat Rate Priced Boxes: The maximum weight is 4 pounds. Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the applicable retail, Commercial Base, or Commercial Plus price.

Flat Rate Boxes — Medium and Large: The maximum weight is 20 pounds, or the limit set by the individual country, whichever is less. Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the retail, Commercial Base, or Commercial Plus price.

Size Limits (231.22)

Maximum length: 42 inches

Maximum length and girth combined: 97 inches

Insurance (232.91)

Available for Priority Mail International merchandise only (see for markings)

See Exhibit 322.2 for individual country merchandise insurance limits. See Notice 123, Price List, for the fee schedule for Priority Mail International merchandise insurance coverage.

Customs Forms Required (123)

All Priority Mail International items:

PS Form 2976-A inside PS Form 2976-E (envelope)

First-Class Mail International (240) Price Group 3

Refer to Notice 123, Price List, for the applicable retail price.

Weight Limit: 3.5 oz. for letters and postcards;

15.994 oz. for large envelopes (flats).

Size Limits

Letters: See 241.212

Postcards: See 241.221

Large Envelopes (Flats): See 241.232

Customs Form Required (123)