As of 19 September 2023, the National Management Group (NMG) as peak decision body for the National Varroa mite Emergency Response have reached a decision to shift the focus of the response from eradication to transitioning to management of Varroa Mite.
This transition to the new focus will take time and we will continue to update the information on these pages as the plan progresses.
We value the sacrifice of every beekeeper and thank everyone for their cooperation during the Varroa mite response and this evolving situation.
The emergency order only regulates bees of the species Apis mellifera L. Bees may be managed bees or feral bees.
You must not move bees (clause 11(1)), unless the answer to a question in the Table is “yes”. You must comply with any conditions in the Table.
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational beekeeper | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
I am a registered beekeeper. Can I move my bees? Clause 11(1)43, Clause 41, Clause 46 | No | You can move a hive that has had contact with bees for limited reasons, including:
The hive must remain within the Purple zone. It may be possible to apply for a Movement Permit to move your bees and hives for other reasons. Call the Hotline on 1800 084 881 to discuss. | Yes, if your bees have not been:
You may only move the bees to another location in the general zone. You must
The hives must be transported in a bee-proof manner, and should not transit through a Red or Purple zone. | ||
Can I move bees to undertake surveillance by:
(Clause 11(2)) | Yes, but:
| ||||
Can I move my hive when splitting? | No | Yes, within a single property. | |||
Can I move bees within my property for the purposes of disposal or destruction? (clause 11(3) | Yes, if directed to by an authorised officer. | ||||
Can I allow someone to move bees onto my property? (clause 11(8), clause 46(6)) | No | Yes if the person has applied for and been granted a Movement Permit. | Yes, if the person is moving the bees from another location in the general zone, and the person has:
|
A hive is an artificial receptacle designed to house living bees and the contents of the hive.
You must not move hives (clause 10(1)) unless the answer to a question in the Table is “yes”. You must comply with any conditions in the Table.
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
I am a registered beekeeper. Can I move my hives that have had contact with bees? (clause 43) | No | No | Yes, if your hives have not been in the eradication zone:
You may only move the bees to another location in the general zone. You must
The emergency order imposes other requirements for transport and record keeping. | |
Can I move a new hive, that has never had contact with bees? (clause 8) | Yes | |||
Can I move a hive within my property for the purposes of disposal or destruction? (clause 10(6)) | Yes, if directed to do so by an authorised officer. | |||
Can I move my hive when splitting it? (Clause 38, 44) | No | Yes, but you can only move your hive within a single property, apiary site and apiary range when splitting. | Yes. The emergency order imposes other requirements for transport and alcohol washing. | |
Can I move hives so that they can be irradiated? (cl 14) | Yes, if:
Before transporting the hive, you must clean any apiary equipment that had contact with the hive or its contents. The apiary equipment must remain in the zone in which the hive was located. | |||
Once my hive has been irradiated, can I move it? (clause 8) | Yes, but only if it has not had contact with bees since the treatment was carried out. | |||
I have hives in other states. Can I transit through NSW (clause 46) or permanently move hives to NSW? (clause 47) | No | No | Yes, you can move hives into NSW or transit through NSW. If you move hives into NSW, you must:
The emergency order imposes other requirements for transport and record keeping. You may only transit through the General zone. This does not apply if any hive was in:
| No. Call 1800 084 881 |
Can I allow a beekeeper to move hives onto my property? (clause 44) | No | No | Yes, if the person has:
| |
Can I move queen bees? (clause 11(4), clause 42, clause 46, clause 47, clause 51) | No | Yes, within a single premises. | Yes, if your bees have not been in the:
You may only move the bees to a location in the general zone. You must
The hives must be transported in a bee-proof manner, and should not transit through a Red or Purple zone. Additionally you may move a queen and her escorts from the Blue to the Purple zone. | |
I have hives in other states. Can I transit through NSW? (clause 46) | No | No | Yes, you can move hives into NSW or transit through NSW. If you move hives into NSW, you must:
The hives must be transported in a bee-proof manner, and should not transit through a Red or Purple zone. You may only transit through the General zone. This does not apply if any hive was in:
| No |
I have hives in other states. Can I move hives into NSW? (clause 50, clause 46) | No | No | Yes, if your bees have not been in the:
You may only move the bees to a location in the general zone. You must
The hives must be transported in a bee-proof manner, and should not transit through a Red or Purple zone. |
A hive is an artificial receptacle designed to house living bees and the contents of the hive.
You must not move hives (clause 11(1)) unless the answer to a question in the Table is “yes”. You must comply with any conditions in the Table.
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) - Registered Commercial Beekeepers | General Zone (Blue) - Registered Recreational Beekeepers |
---|---|---|---|---|
I am a registered beekeeper. Can I move my hives that have had contact with bees? (Clause 46) | No | Yes, you can move a hive that has had contact with bees for limited reasons, including:
The hive must remain within the Purple zone. It may be possible to apply for a Movement Permit to move your bees and hives for other reasons. Call the Hotline on 1800 084 881 to discuss | Yes, if your hives have not been in the
You may only move hives with bees to another location in the general zone and you must
The emergency order imposes other requirements for transport and record keeping. | |
Can I move a new hive that has never had contact with bees? (clause 8) | Yes | |||
Can I move a hive within my property for the purposes of disposal or destruction? (clause 10(6)) | Yes, if directed to do so by an authorised officer. | |||
Can I move hives so that they can be irradiated? (clause 14) | Yes, if:
Before transporting the hive, you must clean any apiary equipment that had contact with the hive or its contents. The apiary equipment must remain in the zone in which the hive was located. | |||
Once my hive has been irradiated, can I move it? (clause 8) | Yes, but only if it has not had contact with bees since the treatment was carried out. | |||
Can I allow a beekeeper to move hives onto my property? (clause 11(8), 46)) | No | Yes, you can move a hive that has had contact with bees for limited reasons, including:
The hive must remain within the Purple zone. It may be possible to apply for a Movement Permit to move your bees and hives for other reasons. Call the Hotline on 1800 084 881 to discuss | Yes, if the person has:
|
You may only use a permitted bee feeder that the bees in the hive can access from inside the hive (clause 9). A permitted bee feeder must be new or must not have had contact with bees for 10 days before it is installed (clause 9).
You must not move a bee feeder unless the answer to a question in the Table is “yes”. You must comply with any conditions in the Table.
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I move a permitted bee feeder onto my property or apiary site/apiary range? (clause 11(5)) | Yes | |||
Can I move a permitted bee feeder within my property or apiary site/apiary range? (clause 10(5)) | Yes | |||
Can I move a permitted bee feeder within my property for the purpose of destruction or disposal? (clause 10(6)) | Yes, if directed to do so by an authorised officer. |
A swarm of bees is a natural assemblage of feral bees in a migratory state that has separated from a hive or wild nest with the intention of establishing a new colony at another location. Clause 9)
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I take actions to prevent swarming at one of my hives? (clause 28, 45) | Yes, but only if the Department has not advised you that your property is an Infected Premises or Suspect Premises. You may place an empty honey super on the hive to create space. You must:
| Yes | ||
Can I capture a swarm of bees? (clauses 42 and 43) | Yes, a registered beekeeper may catch a swarm of bees, but only for the purposes of destroying that swarm.Yes | Yes | ||
Can I move the swarm of bees that I have captured? (clause 18, clause 42 and 43) | Yes, if you are a registered beekeeper or a qualified pest controller. You may:
You must destroy the bees as soon as possible. | Yes, if you are a registered beekeeper you may capture and move feral bees, including a swarm, for the purpose of managing bees as a hive. You may move the bees to another location in the General Zone (Blue) and if you:
| ||
Can I keep a swarm of bees I have caught, to manage as a managed hive? (clauses 42 & 43) | No | Yes |
A feral bee is a bee of the species Apis mellifera L. (European honey bee) in the wild, in a wild state. (Clause 9)
Generally, you must not interfere with or move feral bees (clause 16(1)).
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I interfere with or move feral bees? (clause 16, 42, 43) | Yes, if you are a registered beekeeper or a qualified pest controller. You may:
You must destroy the bees as soon as possible. | Yes, if you are a registered beekeeper you may capture and move feral bees, including a swarm, for the purpose of managing bees as a hive. You may move the bees to another location in the General Zone (Blue) and if you:
| ||
Do I have an obligation to advise the Department if I see a colony of feral bees? ((clause 18 (2) &(3), clause 34 (2) & (3)) | Yes, if the feral bees are at your property. Yes, if you see the colony of feral bees when undertaking work in your professional capacity. Notifications can be made:
| No |
A queen bee is a reproductive single female bee or a female bee that is capable of reproduction (clause 9).
A queen cell is a pupating queen bee (clause 9).
An escort bee is a bee that accompanies a queen bee (clause 9).
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I raise queen bees and queen cells and move those bees with escort bees? (clause 42, clause 47) | No | Yes, but you can only move a queen bee and her escorts and queen cells within the same premises. | You can move a queen bee and her escorts within General Zone. You can move a queen bee and her escorts from the General Zone into the Surveillance zone. Before you move a queen bee and escort bees or a queen cell you must:
You must also keep movement records.
| |
Can I import a queen bee or queen cell into NSW from another State or Territory? (clause 51) | No | Yes, as long as:
|
Outside the Eradication Zone (Red), a beekeeper may tamper with a hive and interfere with bees for the purpose of managing the bees and hives.
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I move tamper with a hive or disturb or interfere with bees in the hive? (clause 24) | Only as set out in this table. | Yes | ||
Can I tamper with a hive or disturb bees if directed by an authorised officer? (clause 25) | Yes | |||
Can I tamper with a hive or disturb bees to carry out surveillance? (clause 26) | Yes | |||
Can I tamper with a hive or disturb bees if the hive is queenless? (clause 30) | Yes, but only once and you cannot tamper with the hive again. You may only:
| Yes | ||
Can I tamper with a deadout hive? (clause 31) | Yes, but only once and you cannot tamper with the hive again unless directed to do so by an authorised officer. You may only:
| Yes | ||
Can I tamper with a hive and interfere with bees to manage American Foulbrood or Small Hive Beetle? (clause 32) | Yes, but only once and you cannot tamper with the hive again. You may:
| Yes |
A honey super is the component of the hive that is used to store bees’ honey and includes the frames and honey (clause 9).
An empty honey super is a honey super with empty frames that has been kept in an enclosed, bee-proof space for 21 days or in cold storage at -15 degrees Celsius for 72 hours and has had no subsequent contact with bees. (Clause 9)
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I extract honey from my hives? | Yes, but only as set out in this table. | Yes | ||
Can I remove the honey super from a hive and move the honey super so that I can extract the honey? (clause 27, clause 29, clause 37) | Yes, but:
You must
Any hive material removed during decontamination of the vehicle must be stored for 21 days in disposable garbage bags and then disposed of. After you have finished extracting honey, you can directly return the honey super to the hive it came from. OR You may store the honey supers in a bee-proof manner for 21 days or stored in cold storage at -15 degrees Celsius for 72 hours, then these empty supers can be moved anywhere within the Eradication Zone. | Yes, but only to a destination in the Surveillance zone for the purpose of honey extraction. You must ensure the honey super is empty of bees and wrapped in a bee-proof manner that also ensure apiary products do not leak out. You must transport the honey supers in a bee-proof and secure manner and decontaminate any vehicle used for transport and any apiary equipment used for the extraction. Any hive material removed during decontamination of the vehicle must be stored for 21 days in disposable garbage bags and then disposed of. After you have finished extracting honey, you can directly return the honey super to the hive it came from (within the surveillance zone) OR You may store the honey supers in a bee-proof manner for 21 days or stored in cold storage at -15 degrees Celsius for 72 hours, then move the empty super anywhere within the Surveillance Zone or to a property, apiary site or apiary range in the General zone. | Yes | |
Can I remove honey from a flow hive? (clause 27 (2)) | Yes. The honey extracted from a flow hive must never be exposed to bees. | |||
Can I move an empty honey super? (clause 27 and 37) | Yes, you can move an empty honey super within the Emergency Zone To be an empty honey super, the super must be:
After transporting the empty super you must decontaminate any vehicle used for transport. Any hive material and debris must be stored for 21 days in disposable garbage bags and then disposed of. After 21 days, you may dispose of the garbage bag at a waste management facility or in a way that ensures that its contents do not come into contact with bees. | Yes, you can move an empty honey (as defined) super:
or
You can then place the empty honey super on any hive. Before moving an empty honey super you must ensure it is wrapped in a bee-proof manner. After transporting the empty super you must decontaminate any vehicle used for transport. Any hive material and debris removed during decontamination of the vehicle must be stored for 21 days in disposable garbage bags and then disposed of. | Yes |
Apiary equipment is anything that has been used or is designed to be used for the acquisition or keeping of bees or for processing, handing or storing apiary products.
Apiary equipment does not include:
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Can I move apiary equipment? (clause 19 and 37) | You can only move apiary equipment into or within the Eradication zone – including on your property - to undertake a surveillance action in the Eradication zone. You must not move apiary equipment out of the Eradication zone. | Yes, as long as it remains within the Surveillance zone You can only move apiary equipment into or out of the Surveillance zone if you need that equipment to undertake surveillance. | Yes |
Question | Eradication Zone (Red) | Surveillance Zone (Purple) | General Zone (Blue) – Registered commercial Beekeeper | General Zone (Blue) – Registered recreational Beekeeper |
---|---|---|---|---|
Am I required to notify the Department if I think I have Varroa Mite in my bees? (Section 30, Biosecurity Act 2015) | Yes | |||
Am I required to conduct alcohol washing on my bees? (clause 13) | Yes You must conduct an alcohol wash on the bees in your hives at least once every 16 weeks and notify the Department of the results at http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/alcohol-wash. If you have hives at more than one site, you must meet the alcohol washing requirement at each of those sites. The number of hives you must alcohol wash depends on the number of hives you have at each site:
| |||
Am I required to advise the Department of the location of my bees? (clause 18(1), clause 36(1)) | Yes | No | ||
Do I have an obligation to advise the Department if I see a colony of feral bees? ((clause 18, clause 36) | Yes, if the feral bees are at your property. Yes, if you see the colony of feral bees when undertaking work in your professional capacity. | No | ||
Can I remove or interfere with any testing material or equipment placed in a hive by an authorised officer as part of surveillance for Varroa mite (clause 11) | No |