International Customs Day: Why is it celebrated and how their work helps in general?

The International Customs Day is celebrated on January 26 every year. The World Customs Organization (WCO) in 1953 held its maiden session. And to commemorate the occasion the day is celebrated every year to spread awareness and honour the work and duties carried out by the Customs authorities to ensure smooth across the border movement of goods.

While everyone is aware that while traveling abroad the entire luggage and documents are verified before boarding the plane. All this comes under the duty of a customs officer. Apart from them, they also perform many other duties.

Duties and responsibilities of Customs Officer

The Customs officers prevent the importation of dangerous or illegal goods like firearms, alcohol, drugs, endangered animals, and tobacco. They must stop the banned items from making cross-border transitions entering or leaving a country. Their rules and regulations are dictated by the government and the country they serve.

Custom services are the cross-border control agencies that are mostly situated at the cross-border of a nation. The officers have a right to question and even stop a person from boarding or carrying suspicious things with them on the plane. They can question people based on their previous offenses as well as search baggage and even pat them down for carrying smuggled items.

The Customs officers have the right to arrest if they find a criminal traveling or carrying something suspicious. It is a part of their duty to stop cross-border smuggling and arrest the smugglers smuggling the banned goods. These officers play an important role in fighting the illegal trade of endangered species of animals worldwide.

Another part of their duty is to ensure that appropriate revenue on the imported goods is paid by the owner. With the cross-border transitions becoming a regular thing, the burden on the Customs officers has increased in the last few years. In the wake of wars and criminal activities peaking across the world, they have to be extremely cautious to ensure that the weapons and ammunition do not travel across the border.