PERTH airport rolled out the red carpet - in sanitation mat form - last week, to welcome passengers arriving from Indonesia.
The mats were designed to dislodge any dirt from the footwear's sole and cover it with citric acid.
It is the Federal government's latest attempt at preventing foot and mouth disease (FMD) from spreading to Australia.
A Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) spokesperson said there had been full compliance and a real willingness from travellers to use the mats.
Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said Australia's biosecurity system was already one of the strictest in the world, and mats would add yet another layer of defence on flights from Indonesia.
"I directed my department to look at what could be done around footwear to complement the other measures in place and after careful consideration, we have decided to deploy sanitation foot mats in Australia's international airports," Mr Watt said.
"The fact is, there is no biosecurity silver bullet - our biosecurity controls rely on a multi-layered approach to mitigate the risk of FMD."
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As well as cleaning shoes, the sanitation mats are set to serve as a physical reminder for passengers to do the right thing.
The mats complement a suite of enhanced biosecurity measures at the border including:
100 per cent profiling of all passengers entering on flights from Indonesia.
Increased capacity to question and assess passengers.
Assessments of the need for footwear treatment.
Meeting all flights from Indonesia to play a FMD specific broadcast before passengers disembark the plane.
Increased signage and public awareness programs.
Increased intervention at mail centres.
The mats have also been introduced for all passengers arriving from Indonesia to Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Darwin and Brisbane.
A DAFF spokesperson said they were not deployed to other flights.
Travellers will still be asked to declare contact with farms and livestock, and those with visibly contaminated shoes will be taken to the airport's biosecurity area.
Additionally, the spokesperson said biosecurity response zones had been established at international airports.
The purpose of these would be to strengthen and widen the powers of biosecurity officers to order passengers to use foot mats and other control measures, such as cleaning shoes.
