Australia · BMSB 2026 to 2027

BMSB season checker for Australian imports

Know about the BMSB treatment before the container is loaded.

Enter the shipped on board date, the countries, the tariff chapter and how the goods travel to see whether the 2026 to 2027 BMSB measures apply and what they require.

Last updated 2026-09-28. Math runs in your browser, no data leaves your computer.

Have the bill of lading, the commercial invoice and the tariff classification in front of you. The season test runs on the shipped on board date, and the goods test runs on the tariff chapter, so a guess at either one gives a wrong answer.

Pick the country list entry that matches the goods. Countries that are not on the department lists are grouped under the last option, and the measures still reach those goods if they were made in or shipped from a listed country.

Read it from the ocean bill of lading, since the department does not accept a gate in date or container tracking as proof of shipment.

Use the first two digits of the classification your broker will declare, for example 73 for articles of iron or steel.

The measures cover goods manufactured in a target risk country even when they ship from somewhere else, so check where the factory is.

Take the port of loading from the bill of lading, because a transhipment through a target risk country can bring the goods into the measures.

The mode decides where treatment can happen, because break bulk must be treated offshore and a sealed container can be treated on arrival.

Before the booking, screen the name on the invoice. Shipment pre-check is on the paid plans, from USD 59 a month.

General guidance only. Verify against the cited primary sources before you commit to a shipment, declaration, or contract.

What the department page says for 2026 to 2027

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry applies the BMSB seasonal measures to target goods manufactured in or shipped from target risk countries and shipped between 1 September and 30 April inclusive. The page was last updated on 15 September 2026, carries the 2026 to 2027 industry presentation, and its most recent changes are dated 5 August 2026. Factsheet 2 repeats the same dates.

Target risk countries are Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czechia, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Moldova, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Türkiye, Ukraine, the United States of America and Uzbekistan. China, Japan and the Republic of Korea are listed for heightened vessel surveillance only, and with the United Kingdom they are the emerging risk countries whose goods may be picked for random onshore inspection.

Target high risk goods need mandatory treatment and fall in chapters 44, 45, 57, 68, 69, 70, 72 to 76 and 78 to 89. Target risk goods face random inspection only and fall in chapters 27, 28, 29, 38, 39, 40, 48, 49 and 56. Any other goods sit outside the measures unless they share a container or consignment with target goods, and goods in iso tanks or bulk in the hold are not subject at all.

The four approved treatments are heat, methyl bromide, sulfuryl fluoride and, from the 5 August 2026 update, ethyl formate. Heat means 56°C or higher at the coldest surface of the goods for at least 30 minutes, while methyl bromide and sulfuryl fluoride both call for a dose of 24 g/m³ or more at 10°C or above. The page sets the end point readings, the exposure times and a 120 hour window to seal the container after an offshore treatment done before 1 December in a target risk country.

Worked example. Italian steel racking packed in August

The booking. A Sydney importer buys steel pallet racking, chapter 73, from a factory near Milan. The factory promises the goods for a Genoa sailing on 29 August 2026, two days before the season opens, so the importer books it as a normal shipment with no treatment, which looks fine on paper.

The failure. Production runs late, the container is packed on 1 September, and the goods are shipped on board on 4 September 2026, which is the date the department reads. Italy is a target risk country and chapter 73 is a target high risk chapter, so the container needs treatment, and the importer now has to choose between onshore treatment at the container level on arrival or a delay while the goods are treated in Italy.

The fix. The importer checks the shipped on board date in this tool before the booking is confirmed, sees that any date from 1 September falls in season, and books heat treatment with an AusTreat approved provider in Italy. The container is sealed within 120 hours of the treatment, the certificate travels with the documents, and the goods clear without an onshore treatment direction.

Need the certificate itself laid out with the fields the department checks? The fumigation certificate template lists each required field with the policy section it comes from, ready to print for the treatment provider.

Frequently asked

When is BMSB season for imports into Australia?

The department applies the BMSB seasonal measures to target goods shipped between 1 September and 30 April inclusive. For the current season that runs from 1 September 2026 to 30 April 2027, on the DAFF BMSB page last updated 15 September 2026.

Which date decides whether my goods are in season?

The shipped on board date on the ocean bill of lading. The department says gate in dates and times will not be accepted, and container tracking is not accepted as evidence of when goods were loaded either.

Are goods from China subject to BMSB treatment?

On the 2026 to 2027 lists, China is on the target risk list for heightened vessel surveillance only, and it is one of four emerging risk countries with the United Kingdom, Japan and the Republic of Korea. Goods shipped from those four between 1 September and 30 April face random onshore inspection of target high risk goods and of chapters 39, 94 and 95, with no mandatory treatment named on the page.

Which goods need mandatory BMSB treatment?

Target high risk goods from target risk countries, which the department lists by tariff chapter: 44, 45, 57, 68, 69, 70, 72 to 76, 78 to 89. Chapters 27, 28, 29, 38, 39, 40, 48, 49 and 56 are target risk goods and face random inspection only.

Do BMSB measures apply to iso tanks and bulk cargo?

They do not, because the department page says goods shipped in iso tanks and as bulk in the holds of cargo vessels are not subject to the measures, which matters for bulk chemical cargo that would otherwise fall in chapters 28, 29 or 38.

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Related tools

Sourzi shows what official files say. It is not customs or legal advice. For a binding answer, ask a licensed customs broker, a CBP ruling or an Australian Border Force Tariff Advice.

File dates and links are on Data sources.