Agricultural items

Any pests or diseases that come in with your items could cause serious damage to New Zealand’s environment and economy.

You must declare all risk items that you are carrying in your hand luggage and checked-in bags on your arrival declaration.

Risk items include:

• food
• fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, poultry, honey, ingredients used in cooking, and all dairy products
• alive or dead plants and seeds
• wooden items
• alive or dead animals
• alive or dead animal products
• traditional/herbal medicines
• any shoes, sports or outdoor equipment you’ve used.

If you’re unsure, declare your items when you arrive or put them in the marked amnesty bins, otherwise may you can get a fine or be prosecuted if you haven’t declared a risk item.

Once MPI officers have inspected your items, they may return them to you. Some items will not be permitted to enter New Zealand. In other cases, MPI officers will need to treat your items first – you will have to pay for this service.

Find out more about what you can bring into NZ, and what you must declare on the Ministry of Primary Industries website

• Check if you can bring or send an item to NZ
• How to declare items when arriving in NZ

Importing animal or plant products

Find out how importing to New Zealand works, including how to import food, animals, wood products, plants, soil, vehicles and machinery. Border clearance helps to keep out unwanted pests and diseases.

Import | NZ Government (mpi.govt.nz)