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Customs and Border Protection

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection
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Total employed:60,000
Year created:2003
Official website:https://www.cbp.gov



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U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is a division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). CBP contributes to the mission of DHS by screening the people and goods entering the country and by patrolling the border.[1]

History

According to its website, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) was formed on March 1, 2003, it became the first comprehensive border security agency focused on securing national boundaries and ports of entry in U.S. history. CBP took over the responsibilities of several other agencies:[2]

  • One department that Congress merged into CBP was the U.S. Customs Service. The U.S. Customs Service traced its functions to an act of the first Congress in 1789 that provided for the administration of customs tariffs and the collection of duties. Once the CBP was established, the U.S. Customs Service commissioner became the leader of CBP.[3]
  • Immigration inspectors, first established by the Office of the Superintendent of Immigration in 1891, work for CBP.
  • When Congress passed the Plant Quarantine Act on August 20, 1912, it established agriculture inspectors to monitor incoming cargo. At CBP, agriculture inspectors examine shipments of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and herbs entering the United States to ensure that those shipments are free from pests, invasive species, and toxins.[4]
  • Congress first authorized the hiring of Border Patrol personnel in May 1924; since 2003, those agents have worked for CBP.
  • In 2006, CBP formed the Office of Air and Marine to monitor the borders from the sky and the water.

Structure

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Mission

According to its official website, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has the following mission:

“ Protect the American people, safeguard our borders, and enhance the nation’s economic prosperity.[5] ”
—U.S. Customs and Border Protection[6]


Its website states that CBP works to prevent terrorists and their weapons from entering the country and to facilitate legitimate international travel and trade. To meet this goal, the department enforces many U.S. laws and regulations and on a typical day, CBP screens more than 1 million visitors, processes more than 74,000 cargo containers, and arrests more than 1,000 individuals.[6]

In a publication detailing the vision and strategy of CBP for 2020-2025, the agency listed three main goals:[7]

  • "Protect the American people and facilitate trade and travel"
  • "Build a capable and resilient workforce ready for anything"
  • "Invest in technology and partnerships to confront emerging threats"

Statistics

CBP published a report detailing several operational facts from the 2025 fiscal year:[8]

CBP Fiscal Year 2025 Statistical Highlights on a Typical Day
Total employees 65,620
Pedestrians and passengers processed 1.15 million
Duties, taxes, and other fees processed $241 million
Ports of entry encounters conducted 3,682
Drugs seized 1,571 pounds

Leadership

A commissioner and a deputy commissioner run CBP. As of June 2025, the CBP Commissioner was Rodney Scott, and the Deputy Commissioner was John Modlin.[9][10]

Organizational Chart

Click here to view the CBP's organization chart.

Employment

The Best Places to Work in the Federal Government is a website that tracks workforce trends in federal agencies. According to its 2015 analysis, CBP ranked number 314 out of 320 federal sub-agencies. The metrics used in this ranking included leadership, pay, innovation, and support for diversity.[11]

Responsibilities

Travel

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) screens foreign visitors and U.S. citizens who travel into the United States. It offers different services to facilitate cross-border travel for citizens, international visitors, and "trusted travelers" whom CBP deems low-risk. According to its website, CBP examines all people entering the United States except diplomats, using conversations with travelers and the condition of their documentation to determine how much scrutiny each individual requires.[12][13]

Trade

CBP is responsible for "enforcing trade laws against counterfeit, unsafe, and fraudulently entered goods." By policing these goods, CBP aims "to enable legitimate trade, contribute to American economic prosperity, and protect against risks to public health and safety." The agency runs a "penalties program" that aims to ensure that the penalties it imposes effectively deter noncompliance with U.S. trade law. The program promotes uniformity among the 326 ports of entry.[14][15]

The CBP focuses on Priority Trade Issues (PTIs), which are practices representing a high risk to the U.S. economy and population. For instance, the agency employs "antidumping" measures to address situations where imported goods are sold for a subsidized price in the United States. The CBP charges companies a duty in order to counteract the foreign subsidies it thinks might injure U.S. companies.[16][17]

Border security

CBP manages several aspects of border security for the federal government. Its Office of Field Operations oversees ports of entry while the Office of Border Patrol polices the borders and the Office of Air and Marine secures the borders from the air and the sea. In addition, CBP employs agriculture specialists to make sure pests and diseases do not enter the United States. Following a memorandum from the secretary of homeland security in November 2014, CBP prioritizes "threats to national security, public safety, and border security" when deciding whether to remove person who entered the country illegally.[18][19]

Border Patrol

Originally established to combat illegal immigration in 1924, the mission of the Border Patrol changed after September 11, 2001. While it still polices illegal immigration, the border patrol also works to prevent terrorists and terrorist weapons from entering the country. The Border Patrol monitors all 6,000 miles of the Mexico and Canada borders in addition to the 2,000 miles of coastal waters near Florida and Puerto Rico.[20]

The number of border patrol agents grew from a handful in 1924 to over 21,000 by the end of the 2012 fiscal year. These agents maintain checkpoints along the U.S. borders with Mexico and Canada in addition to traffic checkpoints on nearby major highways in order to detect unauthorized people or illicit cargo that may have evaded detection at the border. Once those entering the country illegally are apprehended by the border patrol, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement determines how to proceed.[20]


Noteworthy events

Corruption reporting (2016)

The Texas Tribune, a nonpartisan online news website, published a report in July 2016 describing a series of corruption cases against 140 U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents filed since 2004.[21] In response to incidents like those reported by The Texas Tribune, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security convened the CBP Integrity Advisory Panel to make recommendations based on best practices regarding the use of force, corruption, transparency, and stakeholder outreach. The panel issued its final report, including recommendations such as expanding programs focused on officer integrity, on March 15, 2016.[22]

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Department of Homeland Security, "Mission," accessed June 9, 2016
  2. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "CBP Through the Years," accessed June 7, 2016
  3. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "1789: First Congress Provides for Customs Administration," accessed June 9, 2016
  4. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Protecting Agriculture," accessed August 9, 2016
  5. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "About CBP," accessed February 26, 2024
  7. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Strategy 2020-2025," accessed February 26, 2024
  8. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Snapshot A Summary of CBP Facts and Figures," accessed June 19, 2025
  9. ↑ The Guardian, "Rodney Scott confirmed as head of CBP by US Senate despite ‘cover-up’ claim," June 18, 2025
  10. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Deputy Commissioner John Modlin," accessed June 19, 2025
  11. ↑ The Best Places to work in the Federal Government, "Agency Report: Customs and Border Protection (CBP)," accessed June 9, 2016
  12. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Travel," accessed June 8, 2016
  13. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "CBP Search Authority," accessed August 10, 2016
  14. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Trade," accessed June 8, 2016
  15. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Penalties Program," accessed August 10, 2016
  16. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Priority Trade Issues," accessed August 10, 2016
  17. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Priority Trade Issue: Antidumping and Countervailing Duties," accessed August 10, 2016
  18. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Border Security," accessed June 9, 2016
  19. ↑ U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Immigration Action," accessed June 10, 2016
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 U.S. Customs and Border Protection, "Along U.S. Borders," accessed June 9, 2016
  21. ↑ The Texas Tribune, "Cracks in the Wall: When Border Watchdogs Turn Criminal," July 7, 2016
  22. ↑ U.S. Department of Homeland Security, "Final Report of the CBP Integrity Advisory Panel," March 15, 2016
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