Rules and Regulations

• Main rules
• Acts, Regulations and Orders

• Some registered agricultural chemicals are prohibited from use in certain circumstances.
• Off-label use is the use of a product in a manner that is not exactly specified on the label. Off-label use is not illegal in Victoria within certain limits.
• Off-target damage and spray drift is the use of agricultural chemicals that causes damage to, or results in contamination of, plants or stock outside the target area. Causing off-target damage is an offence.
• There are laws regarding giving advice on agricultural and veterinary chemical use.
• There are laws regarding withholding periods and the post harvest treatment of agricultural produce.
• There are laws relating to the supply and use of veterinary chemicals.
• Legislation requires certain notifications when applying agricultural chemicals by air or mister within 200 metres of a school, hospital, aged care service or children’s service such as a kindergarten or child care centre. See spraying chemicals for details.
• Regulations specify certain equipment (relating to wind speed and direction) must be used immediately before and during aerial spraying.

The main items of legislation relating to agricultural and veterinary chemicals in Victoria are:

• Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Control of Use) Act 1992 (external link)
• Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Control of Use) Regulations 2007 (external link) (search Victorian Law Today, Statutory Rules)
• Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Control of Use) (Fertiliser) Regulations 2005 (external link) (search Victorian Law Today, Statutory Rules)
• Orders regulating agricultural and veterinary chemical and stock food:

  19950309 G009 Order - HGP ear punching implanted cattle
  19960606 G022 Order - Contaminated stock (regulation of sale, dispatch and use)
  19960729 S086 Notice - Decision to recommend an Order to prohibit specified agricultural spraying in Agricultural Chemical Control Areas (ACCAs)
  19960801 G030 Order - Prohibit specified agricultural spraying in ACCAs
  19960801 G030 Order - Off-label use of veterinary chemical products
  19980709 G027 Order - Prohibiting or regulating the use of certain agricultural chemical products
  20010823 G034 Order - Prohibition of use of endosulfan Ultra Low Volume (ULV) insecticides
  20011129 G048 Order - Prohibiting the use of specified chemical product containing bioresmethrin as a grain protectant
  20011213 G050 Order - Exemptions under section 5 (relating to scientific use, off-label use by vets and commercial use in a residential garden)
  20011213 G050 Order - Regulating the use of agricultural chemical products by authorised personnel (licences and permits)
  20021017 G042 Order - Regulating the use of certain agricultural chemical products containing pindone
  20030313 G011 Order - Regulating the off-label use of insecticides on harvested grain
  20040212 G007 Order - Regulating the use of certain agricultural chemical products containing diphenylamine (Lady Williams apples)
  20040713 S165 Order - Prohibiting the feeding of poultry litter to livestock
  20051215 G050 Order - Prohibiting feeding stock food containing restricted animal material to ruminants
  20060223 G008 Notice - Incorporating material - Extended Mallee ACCA (spray equipment)
  20060223 G008 Order - Prohibiting the spraying of specified agricultural chemical products by specific spraying equipment in the Extended Mallee ACCA
  20071220 G51 Order - Regulating the use of perishable pest animal baits containing sodium fluoroacetate (1080)
  20080508 G019 Order - Regulating the sale or use of certain veterinary chemical products
  20090108 G2 Notice - Specification and method of measurement for tallow and used cooking oil for the ruminant feed ban