Many types of customs broker jobs are available as career paths for an individual who wishes to work with shipping, imports/exports and agencies that regulate customs laws and policies. An individual might start at an entry-level position such as a customs clerk and progress to becoming a customs officer or manager. All customs broker jobs involve the international movement of items from one location to another and require agents to monitor shipments and adhere to governmental customs regulations.
One type of customs broker job is the customs clerk. Depending upon the size of her organization, this individual might check packages, complete paperwork, and perform computer data entry duties. She may not have much independence and freedom to make calculations and determinations regarding shipping parameters, but she will likely be an integral part of the team that ensures customs compliance.
Licensed customs brokers or agents monitor and evaluate the movement of international packages, ensuring that items moving from one country to another follow the guidelines of both countries. A customs broker may work in various capacities depending upon his international location and the profile of his organization. In most cases, a person who works in this area of customs broker jobs is tasked with supervising routine customs checks, international shipping guidelines, and customer service. Some customs brokers are licensed by a government agency that oversees their specific location or industry. In other cases, a customs broker may work with a focus on sales by managing client accounts and developing new business.
A customs specialist or compliance officer may have a bit more experience in international shipping than the customs clerk or others in customs broker jobs and may be responsible for ensuring conformity and measuring statistics. This type of customs broker job involves work with customs agencies, knowledge of laws and regulations and communicating information contained in reports to others. He may also perform more strategic duties such as writing customs procedures and other legal documents and coordinating with and managing several departments or shipping facilities.
With experience in customs broker jobs, an individual may also become a customs manager. She will likely work with others either in a collaborative setting or a supervisory one. She will probably be responsible for supervising those checking, tracking, and marking packages. A customs manager may be responsible for entry- to mid-level employees and may run a shipping department or division. This representative may work mostly with shippers and receivers, but may also be in charge of strategic planning and procedure creation depending upon her seniority in her organization.