Australia’s biosecurity is vital to safeguarding our economy, environment and way of life.
Everyone has a role to play in strengthening Australia’s biosecurity system, including contributing to its cost. That’s because biosecurity is a shared responsibility. To complement the government’s decision to lock in permanent increases in biosecurity funding, risk creators and those who benefit from strong biosecurity protection are being asked to make modest additional contributions to these costs.
The Australian Government’s Sustainable Biosecurity Funding Budget package is delivering more than $1 billion over 4 years, and $267 million per year ongoing from 2027-28 to strengthen Australia’s biosecurity system for the future. The Budget fact sheet is available for download.
Biosecurity Protection Levy
Primary producers, whether growing for the domestic market or exporting into premium overseas markets benefit considerably from our strong biosecurity status. This is reflected in the high returns being secured from our export markets, with over 70 per cent of all Australian agricultural production being exported.
The Biosecurity Protection Levy will ensure that those who directly benefit from Australia’s strong biosecurity make a modest and direct contribution to ensure the biosecurity system is sustainably funded into the future.
Following passage through Parliament, primary producers will contribute to the cost of Australian Government biosecurity activities through the introduction of a new Biosecurity Protection Levy. The new levy is intended to collect around $50 million per year. This amount is equivalent to 6 per cent (on an annual basis) of the Commonwealth biosecurity funding in 2024-25.
Consultation
The Australian Government has engaged widely through a public consultation process, and meetings with industry representative bodies and stakeholders, and the valuable feedback received has been carefully considered.
A summary paper is available, providing an overview of the issues raised through consultation and how the government is addressing them. Written responses received through the public consultation have been published where permission was granted to do so.
Thank you for your feedback and engagement during this consultation period.
Implementation
Further details on the implementation of the Biosecurity Protection Levy, and broader Biosecurity Sustainable Funding package are available on our website at agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity-funding.