The body of a woman has been found in a suitcase by the side of a road in regional New South Wales south of Goulburn.

NSW police said they were called to Wolgon Road, near Oallen Ford Road, in Oallen at about 12.50pm on Sunday “following reports a body had been located”.

Officers travelled to the remote location 40km south of Goulburn and located the body in the suitcase.

It was yet to be formally identified but was “believed to be female”, a police spokesperson said on Sunday night.

A crime scene was established and the suitcase was “seized to undergo forensic examination while detectives commence an investigation into the incident”.

Police did not immediately reveal how long the body may have been at the location.

The area is 70km east of Canberra and 180km south-west of Sydney.