What does a Customs Broker do?

Prepare customs documentation and ensure that shipments meet all applicable laws to facilitate the import and export of goods. Day to day that includes work like prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures and Clear goods through customs and to their destinations for clients.

What skills should a Customs Broker put on a resume?

O*NET rates Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, and Speaking among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Customs Broker list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Automated commercial environment software ACE, Automated system for customs data ASYCUDA, Customs records databases, Electronic data interchange EDI software, and Materials requirement planning MRP software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Customs Broker work?

O*NET records 32 titles for this occupation, including Corporate Licensed Broker, Air Export Agent, Air Export Operations Agent, and Cargo Broker. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Customs Broker need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 45% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Customs Broker role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Customs Broker resume example

A resume for a Customs Broker needs to show the work itself: prepare customs documentation and ensure that shipments meet all applicable laws to facilitate the import and export of goods. Day to day that means work like this: prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures; clear goods through customs and to their destinations for clients. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Corporate Licensed Broker
Air Export Agent
Air Export Operations Agent
Cargo Broker
Customs Agent
Customs Brokerage Agent
Customs Brokerage Coordinator
Customs Brokerage Entry Writer
Customs Brokerage Representative
Customs Brokerage Specialist
Customs Compliance Analyst
Customs Consultant
Customs Entry Writer
Customs House Broker
Entry Writer
Export Administrator
Export Agent
Export Operations Agent

O*NET records 32 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures.
Clear goods through customs and to their destinations for clients.
Pay, or arrange for payment of, taxes and duties on shipments.
Calculate duty and tariff payments owed on shipments.
Request or compile necessary import documentation, such as customs invoices, certificates of origin, and cargo-control documents.
Classify goods according to tariff coding system.
Stay abreast of changes in import or export laws or regulations by reading current literature, attending meetings or conferences, or conferring with colleagues.
Sign documents on behalf of clients, using powers of attorney.
Advise customers on import and export restrictions, tariff systems, insurance requirements, quotas, or other customs-related matters.
Post bonds for the products being imported or assist clients in obtaining bonds.
Quote duty and tax rates on goods to be imported, based on federal tariffs and excise taxes.
Arrange for transportation, warehousing, or product distribution of imported or exported products.

23 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Clear goods through customs and to their destinations for clients, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Pay, or arrange for payment of, taxes and duties on shipments, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Calculate duty and tariff payments owed on shipments, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Automated commercial environment software ACE
Automated system for customs data ASYCUDA
Customs records databases
Electronic data interchange EDI software
Materials requirement planning MRP software
Microsoft Access
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Office software
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft Word
Operating system software
Optical character reader OCR software
Parts classification databases

18 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Computer data input scanners
Desktop computers
Laser facsimile machines
Multiline telephone systems
Personal computers
Tablet computers

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

SAP
Automated commercial environment software ACE
Automated system for customs data ASYCUDA
Customs records databases
Electronic data interchange EDI
Materials requirement planning MRP

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Active Listening
02Reading Comprehension
03Complex Problem Solving
04Critical Thinking
05Speaking
06Writing
07Active Learning
08Judgment and Decision Making
09Monitoring
10Service Orientation

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Transportation
English Language
Administrative
Law and Government
Customer and Personal Service
Computers and Electronics
Administration and Management
Geography

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

45%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
20%Post-Secondary Certificate, awarded for training completed after high school
20%Bachelor's Degree

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Medium Preparation Needed”. Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Common questions

What does a Customs Broker do?: Prepare customs documentation and ensure that shipments meet all applicable laws to facilitate the import and export of goods. Day to day that includes work like prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures and Clear goods through customs and to their destinations for clients.
What skills should a Customs Broker put on a resume?: O*NET rates Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, and Speaking among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Customs Broker list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Automated commercial environment software ACE, Automated system for customs data ASYCUDA, Customs records databases, Electronic data interchange EDI software, and Materials requirement planning MRP software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Customs Broker work?: O*NET records 32 titles for this occupation, including Corporate Licensed Broker, Air Export Agent, Air Export Operations Agent, and Cargo Broker. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Customs Broker need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 45% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Customs Broker role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.