Customs and Border Protection Officers

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

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

Skills

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

Abilities

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

Knowledge

• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• 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.
• 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.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• 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.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

Education

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

×

Education and Training Opportunities

• Big Bend Community College
  7662 Chanute St NE, Moses Lake WA 98837-3299
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 509-793-2222
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  https://www.bigbend.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree
  Save

  ---

• Centralia College
  600 Centralia College Blvd., Centralia WA 98531-4099
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 360-736-9391
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  http://www.centralia.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree
  Save

  ---

• City University of Seattle
  521 Wall Street, Suite 100, Seattle WA 98121
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 888-422-4898
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.cityu.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Everett Community College
  2000 Tower Street, Everett WA 98201
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 425-388-9100
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  http://www.everettcc.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree
  Save

  ---

• Grays Harbor College
  1620 Edward P Smith Drive, Aberdeen WA 98520-7599
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 360-532-9020
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  http://www.ghc.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree, Award of at least 1 but less than 2 academic years
  Save

  ---

• Green River College
  12401 SE 320th St, Auburn WA 98092-3622
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 253-833-9111
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  https://www.greenriver.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  At least one but less than two years
  Award Level
  Award of at least 1 but less than 2 academic years, Associate's degree, Certificates of at least 12 weeks but less than 1 year
  Save

  ---

• Seattle University
  900 Broadway, Seattle WA 98122-4340
  School Type

  Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 206-296-6000
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  http://www.seattleu.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminalistics and Criminal Science
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Skagit Valley College
  2405 E. College Way, Mount Vernon WA 98273
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 360-416-7600
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  http://www.skagit.edu/
  Program Name
  Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree, Certificates of at least 12 weeks but less than 1 year
  Save

  ---

• Spokane Community College
  1810 North Greene Street, Spokane WA 99217-5399
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  5,000 - 9,999

  Financial Aid 509-533-8400
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  https://scc.spokane.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree
  Save

  ---

• University of Washington-Tacoma Campus
  1900 Commerce St, Tacoma WA 98402-3100
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 253-692-4400
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,Graduate degree or certificate offering
  Website

  https://www.tacoma.uw.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  4 years
  Award Level
  Bachelor's degree
  Save

  ---

• Wenatchee Valley College
  1300 Fifth St, Wenatchee WA 98801-1799
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 509-682-6800
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  http://www.wvc.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  2 years
  Award Level
  Associate's degree
  Save

  ---

• Yakima Valley College
  South 16th Ave. & Nob Hill Blvd., Yakima WA 98907-2520
  School Type

  Public, 4-year or above

  Admissions
  School Size

  1,000 - 4,999

  Financial Aid 509-574-4600
  Other Degrees Offered

  Undergraduate degree or certificate offering,No graduate offering
  Website

  https://www.yvcc.edu/
  Program Name
  Criminal Justice/Police Science
  Length
  Certificates of less than 12 weeks
  Award Level
  Certificates of less than 12 weeks, Certificates of at least 12 weeks but less than 1 year
  Save

  ---

Close

Pay

Washington Annual Salary

102640/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

49.34/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

11,100

Yearly Projected Openings

1020

Personality

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

• Perseverance
• Stress Tolerance
• Self-Control
• Cautiousness
• Integrity
• Attention to Detail

Tools

• Bar code reader equipment
• 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

Technology

• 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