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Customs and Border Protection Officers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Investigate and inspect persons, common carriers, goods, and merchandise, arriving in or departing from the United States or between states to detect violations of immigration and customs laws and regulations.

Related: Compliance Officers Customs Brokers Detectives & Criminal Investigators Police & Sheriff's Patrol Officers Transit & Railroad Police

Industries: Government

Summary
Details

Testify regarding decisions at immigration appeals or in federal court.
Institute civil and criminal prosecutions and cooperate with other law enforcement agencies in the investigation and prosecution of those in violation of immigration or customs laws.
Detain persons found to be in violation of customs or immigration laws and arrange for legal action, such as deportation.
Examine immigration applications, visas, and passports and interview persons to determine eligibility for admission, residence, and travel in the U.S.
Examine immigration applications, visas, and passports and interview persons to determine eligibility for admission, residence, and travel in the U.S.
Investigate applications for duty refunds and petition for remission or mitigation of penalties when warranted.
Record and report job-related activities, findings, transactions, violations, discrepancies, and decisions.
Interpret and explain laws and regulations to travelers, prospective immigrants, shippers, and manufacturers.
Determine duty and taxes to be paid on goods.
Institute civil and criminal prosecutions and cooperate with other law enforcement agencies in the investigation and prosecution of those in violation of immigration or customs laws.
Inspect cargo, baggage, and personal articles entering or leaving U.S. for compliance with revenue laws and U.S. customs regulations.
Locate and seize contraband, undeclared merchandise, and vehicles, aircraft, or boats that contain such merchandise.
Locate and seize contraband, undeclared merchandise, and vehicles, aircraft, or boats that contain such merchandise.
Collect samples of merchandise for examination, appraisal, or testing.

Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.

Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

102640/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

49.34/hr

Currently Employed

11,100

Yearly Projected Openings

1020

Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines. They do well at jobs that need:

Integrity
Self Control
Dependability
Stress Tolerance
Adaptability/Flexibility
Attention to Detail

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Binocular light compound microscopes
Biometric identification equipment
Calipers
Convex security mirrors
Desktop computers
Digital camcorders or video cameras
Hand sprayers
Handcuffs
Handguns
Hydrometers
Magnetic stripe readers and encoders
Mainframe console or dumb terminals
Notebook computers
Personal computers
Police or security shotguns
Radiation detectors
Riot batons
Spectrometers
Speed stoppers
Two way radios
Videoconferencing systems
Weapon or explosives detectors and supplies
X ray radiography examination equipment

Cloud-based management software
Data base user interface and query software
Electronic mail software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Mobile location based services software
Office suite software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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Customs and Border Protection Officers

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