Aircraft

Most visitors to New Zealand arrive by commercial air travel, however if you are arriving on a private aircraft you should be aware of the following information.

General Requirements

Please refer to the Standards and Regulation, Cargo and Containers for information about items arriving by Air Freight. It is necessary to insure that the contents of any cargo complies with What you must declare and does not contain restricted items. Additionally, general information for those arriving by air can be found in the Personal Travellers section of our site.

Before leaving

The minimum requirements for aircraft and airports undertaking international travel are set out in the standard titled Requirements for Places of First Arrival.

If you plan to "land an international flight at an airport not approved as a place of first arrival" you MUST first apply to MAF and receive approval. Applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Airports currently approved as a place of first arrival are:

• Kerikeri Airport (restricted to a maximum of 12 pax and crew)
• Auckland International Airport *
• Hamilton International Airport
• Rotorua International Airport
• Hawkes Bay Airport (restricted to a maximum of 15 pax and crew)
• New Plymouth Airport
• Palmerston North International Airport
• Wellington International Airport *
• Nelson Airport (restricted to a maximum of 12 pax and crew)
• Christchurch International Airport *
• Dunedin International Airport
• Queenstown International Airport
• Invercargill International Airport
• Whenuapai Air Force Base (Military)
• Ohakea Air Force Base (Military)

* Airports approved to receive commercial cargo (including pets)

Disinsection of aircraft

MAFBNZ and the Ministry of Health require aircraft to be "disinsected" for invertebrates that may be pests or carriers of animal, plant or human disease. Surveys have conclusively shown that international aircraft present a pathway for hitch-hiking invertebrates.

Australia and New Zealand have a joint procedure for the disinsection of aircraft arriving from overseas.

• Schedule of Aircraft Disinsection Procedures
• Disinsection of small aircraft entering New Zealand (40 KB)

Refuse disposal

Several operational standards have been developed relating to the disposal or sterilisation of refuse from aircraft.

• Draft Standard for General Transitional Facilities for Uncleared Goods (BNZ-STD-TFGEN) (143 KB)
• Guidance Document to the Standard for General Transitional Facilities for Uncleared Goods (1416 KB)
• List of Approved Disinfectants for Incineration/Sterilisation Facilities

Our qualified clearance officers will respond to your enquiries as soon as possible. For general enquiries phone +64 9 909 8614 - this number is staffed 7 days a week - or email your enquiries to MAFBNZ Clearance.

Page last updated: 19 October 2011