Requirements For Clearance Of Air Passengers, Aircrew And Baggage
June 2002
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Table of Contents
Review
This MAF Biosecurity Authority (MAF Biosecurity) Standard is subject to periodic review. Amendments will be issued to holders of controlled copies to ensure the standard continues to meet current needs.
Last Review: May 2002
Next Review: Three years, or after 10 amendments
Date: 11 June 2002
Introduction
The Biosecurity Act 1993 prescribes requirements for the exclusion, eradication and effective management of pests and unwanted organisms. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) is responsible for administering the Act. The Biosecurity Authority within MAF is responsible for developing and administering standards to ensure the requirements of the Act are met.
This document sets out the requirements for the clearance of air passengers, aircrew and their baggage on arrival in New Zealand.
Definitions
The terms used in this standard have the same meaning as in the Biosecurity Act 1993, and in addition:
Baggage
The personal effects of passengers or crew not included on the cargo documentation
Biosecurity declaration
The section of the NZ arrival card where passengers are required to declare biosecurity risk goods in their baggage or on their person
Crew
Any person, including the pilot in command, involved in the operation of that aircraft
Diplomatic Agent
As defined in the Diplomatic Privileges and Immunities Act 1969 (Schedule 1, Article1)
Passenger
Any person on board a craft who is not a member of the crew
Secondary processing
The area where passengers/crew baggage is examined, either by physical search or by x-ray screening
Requirements
1.0 General
1.1 The MAF Quarantine Service (MQS) is required to undertake biosecurity clearance of all air passengers/crew baggage arriving in New Zealand, in accordance with this document, other relevant standards and import health standards issued by the Director-General of MAF.
1.2 New technology, detection methods and passenger processing systems are to be approved by the Programme Manager - Border Management (PM BM), MAF Biosecurity, before implementation by the MQS.
1.3 Annex 9 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation recommends as a goal "the clearance within forty-five (45) minutes of disembarkation from the aircraft of all passengers requiring not more than normal inspection". The MAF passenger clearance process (although only a part of the whole process) should routinely facilitate passengers through secondary processing.
2.0 Disembarkation
2.1 Passengers and crew must not disembark an aircraft until permission is given by an inspector. The permission may be oral, tacit or in writing.
3.0 Declaration Required
3.1 All passengers and crew aged over 17 years must complete a biosecurity declaration.
3.2 Passengers under 17 may have their biosecurity declaration completed by a parent or guardian accompanying them on the flight, or if able complete the declarations themselves.
3.3 All biosecurity declarations should be in writing. Oral declarations must only be accepted if outlined in the MQS process procedure.
4.0 Biosecurity Detector Dogs
4.1 The Biosecurity Detector Dog Programme must have accredited procedures that outline dog welfare, dog and handler training, use of dogs at the airport, declaration coding and baggage searching.
4.2 Only dogs and handlers that have gone through and passed training in the MQS Quarantine Detector Dog Programme may be used around passengers, crew or their baggage.
4.3 Handlers are to mark declaration cards according to pre-determined codes specified in the process procedures.
4.4 Manual search of baggage in the baggage collection areas should mainly be limited to hand luggage. Any inspected hand luggage with positive results must be noted on the biosecurity declaration.
4.5 The use of the dogs must be targeted at flights where their use is optimal. Targeted flights must be listed in the approved MQS process procedures. Quarantine Detector dogs must be present at 98% of all flights arriving in NZ.
5.0 Passenger Profile
5.1 In the biosecurity control area an inspector must examine all passenger/crew biosecurity declarations for declared risk goods. Brief questions may be used to clarify answers.
5.2 MQS is to develop and maintain a risk profile of passengers/crew based on analysis of interceptions, and other directives such as disease status of overseas countries.
5.3 The answers to the declaration and the passenger/crew risk profile are to be used to select passengers/crew likely to be in possession of risk goods and require manual searching and inspection.
5.4 Inspectors directing passengers/crew into the secondary processing area must mark the card according to MQS process procedures. The pre-determined codes must define the level of inspection required by the secondary inspector and what items were declared and require inspection, if any.
6.0 Manual Baggage Inspection
6.1 Baggage must only be inspected by an inspector or an assistant working under the direct supervision of an inspector. Before inspection the baggage must be linked to the passenger and the passenger to the relevant biosecurity declaration.
7.0 X-Ray Requirements
7.1 All baggage not manually searched by an inspector must be examined by x-ray technology
NB. The diplomatic bag is not considered "baggage".
7.2 X-ray machines must only be operated by inspectors who have passed the internal MQS x-ray training. Inspectors undergoing training must be under the direct supervision of a qualified x-ray operator.
8.0 Risk Goods
8.1 Inspectors must determine whether imported goods are risk goods. MAF Standard 152.01.01S outlines the requirements for giving biosecurity clearance, biosecurity directions, and the tracking of seized items
8.2 Where there are reasonable grounds to suspect a person may be in possession of any uncleared risk goods on their person, the person may be detained under sections 34, 107 and 108 of the Biosecurity Act 1993.
8.3 An inspector may use any reasonable force necessary to stop a moving person outside of the biosecurity control area suspected of having risk goods in their possession.
8.4 An inspector may use any reasonable force necessary to bring the person to the biosecurity control area if outside of the biosecurity control area.
8.5 An inspector may use any reasonable force necessary to stop the detained person leaving the biosecurity control area.
8.6 Undeclared risk goods must be processed as outlined in MAF Biosecurity Standard BMG-LEG-INFRI Requirements for Enforcement Activities at the Border.
9.0 Heads Of State, Diplomatic Agents And Diplomatic Bags
9.1 When undertaking biosecurity clearance for Diplomatic and Consular persons the MFAT "Guidelines for the Diplomatic and Consular Corps in New Zealand" is to be followed.
9.2 Diplomatic bags (the packages constituting the diplomatic bag must bear visible external marks of their character, must be officially sealed, and may contain only diplomatic documents or articles intended for official use) are exempt x-ray examination if requested by the Diplomatic courier.
10.0 Reporting
10.1 Collection of information as outlined in Requirements for Statistics and Seizure Reporting Section 5.2 must be reported quarterly to the PM BM
11.0 Charges
11.1 Charges as per the Biosecurity Cost Regulations 1993.
Page last updated: 30 April 2008