Licences are no longer required for the majority of goods exported from Australia. However there are exceptions for categories of certain goods which may be prohibited either absolutely or conditionally. The Australian Customs Service is responsible for the enforcement of laws and policies regarding exports and for recording international trade flows.
The exporting of protected wildlife, heritage items, weapons and dangerous goods is prohibited. Some other categories require the issuing of export licences and these include:
Certain primary products e.g. meat, wheat and wine
Materials covered by international agreements e.g. uranium
Products where quality needs to be controlled
Australian fauna and items of cultural significance
Resources such as certain minerals and merino sheep
Goods may not be exported or loaded for transportation unless they have been entered for export and customs has given approval to export by means of a “cleared” Export Declaration Number (EDN).
Australian authorities administer a number of schemes which allow the importation of goods at free or concessional rates and the deferment of duty payment. These include;
Administered by the Australian Customs Service. It enables exporters to obtain refunds of customs duties paid on imported goods where those goods are to be reprocessed into other goods for export or are re-exported unused.
Administered by AusIndustry. It allows duty drawback users to gain up-front exemption from import duties on goods imported for re-export either in original or modified form. Tradex has no requirement for goods to undergo processing in Australia.
Further information is available from the Australian Customs Service and AusIndustry