United States Customs Service

The United States Customs Service (now part of U.S. Customs and Border Protection or "CBP") was the portion of the US Federal Government dedicated to keeping illegal products outside of US borders. It also regulated what could leave the United States and was partially responsible for who could enter the United States.

Related Topics:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection - US Federal Government - Illegal - Borders

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Operations are divided into two separate sections - the first of which is the Office of Field Operations (OFO) which handles duties and tax penalties along with helping to prevent contraband from entering the United States. It is primarily made up of Officers that serve as the "front-line" of CBP by monitoring and policing all international ports of entry into the United States, whether they be land, sea or air; by screening incoming and outgoing international shipments of cargo; as well as inspecting informal entries of dutiable goods by individuals through personal transport or shipment through international postal carriers (government and private). CBP Officers also handle operations regarding smuggling of contraband into the United States and control the exportation of controlled or strategic resources from the United States. Other OFO personnel include Import Specialists, CBP Intelligence Officers, and other contracted personnel responsible for record keeping, handling protest and tax penalty arbitration along with other record support functions.

Related Topics:
Duties - Contraband - Informal entries - Strategic resources - Import Specialists - Intelligence Officers - Protest - Tax penalty

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Import Specialists provide the backbone of OFO by providing expertise concerning proper classification of goods for the purpose of charging duties. The primary resource for determining duty classifications is the two volume Harmonized Tarrif Schedule for the US or HTSUS, which is updated annually. Import Specialists are divided into Commodity Teams (CTs) which are assigned specific types of goods to specialize in. For example: one team may be assigned vehicles, vehicle components and ball bearings and another may be assigned clothing, textiles and toys. Each CT is assigned a more senior Import Specialist whose job it is to train Import Specialists that are new to a particular Commodity Team. These individuals are usually defacto experts in the analysis of goods that they are assigned and are often called upon to physically inspect goods entering (or petitioning to enter) the United States. They are primarily enagaged in activities concerning Formal Entries which are handled by Customs Brokerage Houses, but they also provide assistance in Informal Entries.

Related Topics:
Harmonized Tarrif Schedule for the US - HTSUS - Commodity Teams - Formal Entries - Customs Brokerage Houses - Informal Entries

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The other half of the United States Customs and Border Protection Service is the Office of Investigation or "OI." The Office of Investigation consists of specialized sections of Special Agents that are divided by common crimes regarding international affairs. Primary sections include Financial Crimes, Narcotics, Strategic, and Computer Forensics. The Office of Investigation also includes an Internal Affairs section that monitors and investigates allegations of misconduct and criminal activity within both the Office of Investigation and the Office of Field Operations.

Related Topics:
Special Agents - Financial Crimes - Narcotics - Strategic - Computer Forensics - Internal Affairs

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