Amendments to inspection and treatment locations under approved arrangement class 19

Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) and the Australian Peak Shippers Association (APSA) have received advice from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) in relation to amendments to inspection and treatment locations under approved arrangement class 19.

Effective 11 December 2025, accredited persons operating under Approved Arrangement Class 19 will be able to amend approved arrangement locations without triggering an ICS major amendment direction or biosecurity-held status.

Once a location amendment is made, a new direction will be issued automatically, removing the need to contact the department for manual intervention.

This change reflects long-standing advocacy by FTA on behalf of members.

For several years, we have emphasised that well-trained and audited accredited persons can be trusted to manage low-risk administrative adjustments without unnecessary regulatory friction.

FTA also continues to engage closely with DAFF's Simplified Targeting and Enhanced Processing Systems (STEPS) Program as well as other areas of the department, to explore similar opportunities for modernisation beyond the Class 19 environment.

There remains strong potential to streamline processes in other operational scenarios where accredited industry participants can safely undertake low-risk updates without triggering avoidable delays.

FTA welcomes this step forward and looks forward to further collaboration with DAFF to build a more efficient, trusted and risk-based biosecurity system.

Further information

For additional information please refer to Import Industry Advice Notice 412-2025 or email Class19@aff.gov.au