Ordering Pluslife Tests to Australia: Unofficial FAQ

Yes.

Pluslife tests require an import permit to legally enter the country.

Pluslife Tests are a type of Nucleic Acid Amplification test, which the Australian government has determined have a potential biosecurity risk to Australia. The vast majority of test kits for viruses and diseases require an import permit - Rapid Antigen Tests are an exception to this rule.

You can read more about import conditions for test kits, including which types require permits, on the Australian Biosecurity Import Conditions website here.

According to the Australian Government, there has been no change in the law; Pluslife tests have always required an import permit to legally enter the country.

I contacted the Department of Agriculture directly to ask if there had been any recent change to the import conditions to Pluslife tests. Their response was a very concrete “no”; legally, an import permit has always been required for Pluslife tests. You can read our full email chain here.

This statement can be confirmed by looking at the Australian Biosecurity Import Conditions website here. Clicking on the "history" button on the left-hand side of the page will let you click back through past versions of the import conditions for Nucleic Acid Amplification tests (which is what Pluslifes are), showing that a permit has been required for them since at least 2015.

Whilst Pluslife tests have always required an import permit to legally enter the country, it seems this law was mistakenly not enforced on small personal orders until now. This is why I and the Pluslife distributors were not aware of it.

After my order was stopped at the border, I contacted Ngaio Diagnostics, an Aotearoa Pluslife distributor (who I do not speak on behalf of), to discuss using a permit to bring tests into Australia. They told me they were already aware of the issue I was calling them about, as orders they had shipped to Australia after late April 2025 had been stopped too.

Given that the Department of Agriculture has clearly told me that there had been no change in import requirements for Pluslife tests, my personal interpretation of these events is that as of late Aprtil 2025, parcels are being examined at the border in a way that means this law is now able to be properly upheld.

To my non-professional understanding: yes, bringing Pluslife tests into the country without a permit is illegal.

I am not a lawyer so I'm going to quote the exact wording stated on the letter I received from the government when my Pluslife tests were stopped at the border without an import permit.

"As the person bringing or importing goods into Australia, it is your responsibility to comply with relevant legislative requirements. Bringing or importing goods into Australia in contravention of the Act may constitute a criminal offence or civil breach. These breaches carry a number of penalties including conviction, fines and/or a term of imprisonment. A failure to comply with the law may be investigated and may result in the commencement of legal proceedings."

Bringing Pluslife tests into Australia without an import permit would indeed be in "contravention of the [Australian Biosecurity] Act" and therefore "may constitute a criminal offence or civil breach."

The specific law this refers to is Section 186 of the Australian Biosecurity Act.

I personally do not know of anyone who has faced investigation or the commencement of legal proceedings for mistakenly bringing Pluslife tests to Australia without a permit.

If your order is stopped at the border:

• You will receive a letter notifying you that your order is being held at the border, and will be sent to you if you are able to provide a valid import permit. You can see the exact letter I was sent here, certain parts omitted for privacy reasons.

If you do not have a valid import permit:

• It will not be possible to receive your order. (source)
  
  • You’ll need to send an email to the address listed on your letter telling them whether you’d like your order returned to the sender or destroyed.
  
  
  • This is because “the [Australian Biosecurity] Act does not allow for permits to be issued for goods that have already been brought into Australian territory” (source).
  
  
  • Therefore, permits granted after the date that your order entered the country cannot be used on that order. If you present a Pluslife import permit that was issued to you after the date that your order was stopped at the border, they will reject it.


• You may lose the money you spent on the order.
  
  • If your order doesn’t make it back to the business you bought it from (eg. due to getting lost on its return, or destroyed by the Australian government at customs), it is unlikely you will be refunded. The government is unlikely to destroy your order, but my understanding is that they have the legal right to do so if they want.


• You'll have to send some emails.
  • Adding this here because I know many folk who use Pluslife tests have energy-limiting illnesses. If you want your order returned to sender so that you might receive a refund, you'll have to:
    
    
    1. Email the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (vicdgo@aff.gov.au) asking them to return your goods to sender. If you want to copy-paste the email I wrote, you can find it here.
    
    
    2. Email Altruan/whoever you bought your order from asking them for a refund. If you want to copy-paste the email I wrote, you can find it here.


• You could potentially face legal repurcussions.
  • Importing nucleic acid amplification tests into Australia without a permit may constitute a criminal offence (see: I successfully imported Pluslife tests into Australia - was that illegal?). I am unsure if these laws apply only to goods that make it past customs, or whether they apply to any goods that enter the Australian land/sea/air-space.
  
  
  • Either way, as far as I know, no one that has had their Pluslife order stopped at the border and returned to sender has faced any kind of legal action against them. I had conversations with multiple people from the Department of Agriculture about my lack of import permit, and they were all very sympathetic to me.
  
  
  • However, I imagine that after you have been told in writing that a permit is required for Pluslife tests, there may be legal repercussions in the event that you are discovered having made a second order without a permit.

I cannot definitively say whether or not all orders have been stopped.

What I do know is that as of late April 2025 onwards:

• My order from Altruan of $1006AUD (including shipping) was stopped and returned to sender.


• Orders from Ngaio Diagnostics under $1000AUD (including shipping) have been stopped and returned to sender.

Considering that holding a valid import permit is a legal requirement for bringing Pluslife tests into Australia, I'd assume the intention is for all orders without a permit to be stopped from entering the country, even though some orders may still be accidentally overlooked.

No.

The Australian Biosecurity Act does not allow for permits to be issued for goods that have already been brought into Australian territory (source). By the time your parcel is stopped at the Australian border, it will have already entered Australian territory.

If you present a Pluslife import permit that was issued to you after the date that your order was stopped at the border, they will reject it.

I will try! Again, I’m not a legal professional, but I can relay what I have learned from speaking with the Department of Agriculture, Forestries and Fisheries and asking them to explain it to me.

The import conditions for nucleic acid amplification tests can be seen on the BICON website here. They’ll also appear identically on any import permits that are issued for nucleic acid amplification tests.

Assuming you’re buying Pluslife tests from a reputable vendor (such as Altruan or Ngaio Diagnostics) and are following the instructions on the test when using them (ie. not using the liquid acid in the test kits for things other than testing), the only import conditions that you won’t already be meeting by just doing a normal order of Pluslife tests from Altruan/Ngaio Diagnostics are:

• you need to possess a valid import permit (sub-section (a) in the import permit conditions), and


• your package must enter the country accompanied by a letter from the manufacturer of the tests stating that they meet Australia’s biosecurity standards for nucleic acid amplification tests (sub-section (b) in the import permit conditions)
  
  This letter is called a Manufacturer’s Declaration (explained in the next FAQ entry).

For a comprehensive breakdown of every single import condition on the permit, I have a longer explanation here.

A manufacturer’s declaration is a statement written by the seller of the tests (NOT you) that states that the tests meet Australian biosecurity standards. This declaration must be attached to the outside of your Pluslife order box.

As stated in section (b) of the nucleic acid test kit import conditions on the BICON website, the manufacturer’s declaration attached to your order:

1. must state that the goods
   • are Nucleic Acid Amplification (NAA) test kits only (or individual components specifically designed for use with kits eligible for import under these conditions)
   
   
   • contain nucleic acid up to 1000 nucleotides, enzymes and chemical buffers only.


2. must also meet the general requirements for Manufacturer's Declarations for import into Australia, as can be found here.

This is something that the business you are buying the tests from will handle writing for you: however, it is your responsibility to tell them that you need them to attach this document to your order.

Ngaio Diagnostics is already on top of this, so they’ll know exactly what to do if you order from them. Altruan has as of yet not responded to my inquiry about this; I will update this section if I hear back from them.

Yes, you can order tests to give to your family, friends, community etc using your import permit. They are allowed to reimburse you for the cost of the order. I have confirmed this by email and phone call with the Department of Agriculture.

However, the name and address of the recipient of the parcel of tests should match the name and address listed on the import permit. This means if you’re ordering tests for other people, the tests should be going to your house, not theirs.

Two my knowledge, there are two main Pluslife distributors that will ship to Australia: Ngaio Diagnostics and Altruan.

Ngaio Diagnostics are already entirely across the import permit process, and will be able to help you apply for an import permit and do their best to ensure your order enters Australia.

Altruan have yet to reply to my email asking them if they are able to attach import permits and Manufacturer's declarations to orders. I'll update this section if they do, or if someone else contacts me letting me know that they've been able to get in contact themselves.

This actually isn't to do with import permits, and is instead due to tax.

Most packages or shipments entering Australia that are valued at less than $1000 are exempt from needed to pay an import tax (source). This means that if your Pluslife order is over $1000, it may be held at the border and you may be required to pay an import tax to the government before receiving it.

Keeping your order under $1000AUD is the best way to avoid this - although historically I know of orders that have reached $1000-$1050 with shipping that have been let through without being taxed.

If your question is related to using or applying for an import permit, make sure to check out the relevant pages on this website - the answer may be there. If you still have questions, you can reach out to:

• me, at happyfuntimeswoo@gmail.com, or


• the team at the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry that is responsible for imports by calling 1800 900 090 or submitting an enquiry on their website.


• if you have questions unrelated to importing Pluslife tests and instead want information about the tests themselves and how to use them, check out virus.sucks.

Yep!

(deep sarcasm:) I simply love to spend my days deciphering legal import requirements to help us survive a horrifying global pandemic that everyone's ignoring!! Happy fun times, woo !!!!!