A Spanish tourist arrived in Australia, however the authorities sent him back and ordered him to pay a heavy fine. It turned out that the man did not declare 300 grams of cheese and 1 kilogram of jamon in his luggage.
According to Australian media, the incident took place last Tuesday at Perth International Airport (Western Australia). A 20-year-old traveler was detained for smuggling 275 gr. pork pancetta, 665 gr. jamon and about 300 gr. goat cheese as the country tightened biosecurity laws. As a result, his visa was canceled and he was fined $ 3,300 (228 thousand rubles).
Based on the rules, travelers whose visas are canceled are expelled from Australia on the earliest available flight, while they may face a three-year ban on entry before they can reapply for permits.
According to local publications, the country's Minister of Agriculture, Murray Watt, criticized the Spanish tourist for bringing almost raw meat. “If he had declared these products, other actions would have been taken, but the problem was that he did not. We are serious about keeping foot-and-mouth disease and other diseases out of the country and travelers should keep this in mind when they try to enter Australia,” the official said.
Recently, the Australian government has announced an increase the number of violations for tourists caught carrying prohibited foods and things. Strict measures have been put in place to prevent diseases and pests from entering Australia, authorities explained. Recall that in the summer, the mainland country announced an increased risk of introducing the FMD virus into the country after the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture reported new outbreaks on the resort island of Bali. Experts have proposed strengthening biosecurity measures at airports. Experts estimate that foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks in Australia have cost the local economy more than $80 billion over 10 years.
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