Johnny Depp’s dogs may have escaped a death sentence, but the Hollywood star could still be in the doghouse with Australian authorities for bringing his pet pooches into the country.

Government officials have confirmed that the Pirates Of The Caribbean actor could face up to 10 years in prison or a maximum fine of 340,000 Australian dollars (£171,803) for illegally bringing his two canine companions – Boo and Pistol – into Australia earlier this month.

Johnny’s pilot could also face up to two years in prison for his role in the undeclared importing of the dogs, bypassing the country’s strict quarantine laws, with the details revealed at a Senate committee hearing in Canberra, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.

The country’s Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce threatened to have the actor’s two Yorkshire terriers put down after they were illegally brought into the country with him and his wife Amber Heard, and gave them a two-day deadline for the dogs to leave Australia.

A Senate member said: “The dog thing – we’ll get that out of the way quickly,” as Agriculture Department officials presented themselves at Parliament House to answer questions from the committee and find out who let the dogs in.

Politicians and public servants agreed that the matter “is very serious.”

An ongoing investigation by the department understands that Johnny, his fellow passengers and the flight crew all failed to declare the presence of the dogs.

Customs officers did not find the terriers when they boarded the aircraft before the passengers disembarked.

The dogs – who have safely evacuated to the US – were only discovered and apprehended after they became “film stars on Facebook”, when they visited a dog grooming salon.

“Did the dog clipper ring the alarm bell?” a committee member asked.

Senator Richard Colbeck said: “A celebrity brought their dogs in to be pampered. The dogs were duly pampered and that pampering was put onto social media.”

The matter subsequently came to the attention of the authorities.

Johnny and Amber were in Australia for the shooting of the fifth instalment of Pirates Of The Caribbean, Dead Men Tell No Tales, in which the star reprises his role as pirate Captain Jack Sparrow.