Big tablet haul at Sydney Airport

Customs officers have issued a warning about importing Xanax and Valium after more than 86,000 tablets were found in the luggage of an Australian man returning from Fiji.

The tablets were seized at Sydney Airport on Monday after Australian Customs and Border Protection Service officers selected the 29-year-old for a luggage examination.

They detected and seized 43 bottles filled with 86,000 Xanax tablets and 342 Valium tablets, Customs said in a statement on Thursday.

National Manager Airport Operations, Craig Sommerville said the use and importation of Valium and Xanax was legal when appropriate documentation was provided but smuggling them in without a permit was strictly prohibited.

"The maximum penalty for importing substances, such as prescription drugs, without a permit is a fine of $170,000 and up to five years in prison," he said.

The man has been questioned and now faces the prospect of prosecution.