Customs Officer

Introduction

Revenue and Customs officers work at seaports and airports. They make sure that rules are followed concerning what can be brought into or taken out of the country. They calculate and collect duty on imports. They may search cargo, vehicles and passengers.

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Work Activities

Customs officers work at airports and seaports. They make sure that people passing through follow the rules about what they can import (bring into the country) or export (take out of the country). They protect society by stopping people from bringing in illegal items, which may be dangerous (like firearms or drugs) or obscene.

Passengers must go through customs before leaving a seaport or airport. If someone states that they have goods to declare, the customs officer works out how much the goods are worth and collects customs duty as appropriate. Duty is a payment made on goods brought into the country. Sometimes, when faced with unusual or difficult to value goods, the customs officer will have to get specialist advice.

Officers have the power to search anyone suspected of drug trafficking and to hold them in custody for up to 36 hours. When customs officers charge someone with drug trafficking, the officer involved in the arrest may have to go to court to give evidence.

Customs officers can board aircraft and ships to search for undeclared or illegal imports like alcohol, tobacco, firearms and drugs. They may search vehicles, such as cars and vans, as they leave ferries and may use x-ray scanners to check contents. Some officers work with specially trained sniffer dogs and fibre optic cameras.

Searching, especially on board a ship, can be a dirty and physically demanding task. Customs officers may also board aircraft to enforce health regulations.

In cargo control, customs officers check paperwork that relates to the import or export of commercial goods.

Customs officers may also carry out immigration control on behalf of the Home Office. This involves checking that people entering the country have relevant and valid paperwork such as passports, visas and work permits.

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Personal Qualities and Skills

As a customs officer, you must have good communication skills to relate well to a very broad range of people. You need to be observant and confident.

The ability to remain calm is important; there may be times when you will have to deal with conflict.

Customs officers collect revenue on imported goods and collect statistics (for example, on the amount of drugs or undeclared alcohol that they have seized over a certain period), so you must have good numeracy skills.

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Pay and Opportunities

Salaries vary depending on role and responsibilities.

The pay rates given below are approximate.

Customs officers earn in the range of £19,500 - £29,000 a year, rising to around £24,500 - £35,500 a year. Senior officers earn around £32,000 - £41,000 a year. Fast Stream entrant salaries start around £24,000 a year, rising to around £39,000 after four years.

Customs officers usually work a 36-hour week. They are required to work shifts, evenings and weekends (for which additional allowances are payable).

Officers in customs duties work at seaports and airports in regions throughout the UK. Competition for all posts is fierce.

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Adult Opportunities

It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.

If you do not have the academic entry requirements to enter at administrative assistant level, (Standard Grades in English and Maths at grade 3 or above), you may be able to take a test instead. This option will be mentioned on the advertisement if it is available. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) may only recruit at administrative assistant level, so entrants would need to work their way up to officer level.

• 3% of people in occupations such as customs officer work part-time.
• 28% have flexible hours.

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