Customs Officers

Looking for a job where you can make a real impact?
- Join us and play a vital role in securing our maritime border

The Maritime Group has been established to protect and promote New Zealand's interests in the maritime border environment; working in partnership to provide the highest level of integrity and security across the maritime border system. Our actions are informed by Rautaki Mana Ārai (Customs Strategy), the Maritime Security Strategy and the Transnational Organised Crime Strategy.

Our four pillars of intent are:

- Understand the maritime border environment and systems
- Engage and work collaboratively with our partners, industry, iwi and communities
- Prevent the exploitation of the maritime border system
- Respond with the right tools and levers

New Zealand Customs Service | Te Mana Ārai o Aotearoa is looking for people to join our maritime team based out of Auckland. This maritime role provides the opportunity to work on land and on the water where you'll be an ambassador for Customs and border security. Your work will help keep our communities safe from organised crime, drugs, terrorism and smuggling.

**About the role | Mō tēnei tūranga mahi**

When you're not in the office, you could be facilitating cruise ship passenger arrivals and departures, clearing vessels and assessing them for risk, be at sea, investigating suspicious activity and undertaking targeted searches. The key activity for the Customs Maritime Unit is to respond to any risk to the New Zealand maritime border.

You will have the opportunity to:

- Process passengers/crew/craft and goods into/out of Aotearoa which can include search activities
- Facilitate legitimate trade and travel, collect import and export duties
- Intercept contraband (such as drugs and weapons), investigate and prosecute offences through sea and land patrol, surveillance and search activity
- Conduct operational activity within the port and maritime environments
- Understand supply chain and maritime travel risks and vulnerabilities, and assess and identify opportunities for further activity
- Crew our maritime vessels during on-water activity, or skipper our vessels if/when you hold the appropriate qualifications*

The Customs Maritime Unit provides coverage 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, all year round so there will be regular weekend work involved. The work is varied, sometimes you may be on the water undertaking patrols or operational activity, other times processing passengers and crew on all types of vessels or assisting with ship search activity at any port around New Zealand. Our flexible working arrangements mean you will have huge variety in your working day and time off to suit as well.
- Please note, while there are opportunities for on-water work, as a Customs Officer in the Maritime team there is a strong emphasis on land-based functions such as cruise ship processing and other shipping functions for commercial vessels and small craft.

**What you'll do | He aha tāu e mahi ana**

Based in Auckland, this role involves working closely with the team and other agencies in achieving positive outcomes for Customs. In this role you will:

- Assess and search for available information to formulate an accurate risk assessment and recommend risk management activity
- Undertake activity to provide assurance of compliance with legislation, policy and procedure which may include:
- Searching
- Interviewing and/or questioning
- Profiling of persons and/or documentation
- Patrolling and surveillance
- Ship servicing
- Primary processing
- Addressing non-compliance and taking appropriate actions.

Working as part of a tight-knit and busy team, you will focus on maritime activity, including all craft types (commercial, yachts, cruise ships and fishing vessels), as well as operational activity within the port environment itself.

The starting salary for this role is $59,364 plus an annual allowance of $16,286 for working unpredictable hours.

**About you | Ko wai koe**

To be successful in this role you will ideally be able to demonstrate the following:

- A passion for protecting our borders and affinity with what Customs does
- Excellent communication skills
- High level of attention to detail and the ability to make sound judgments
- Integrity and the confidence to uphold laws, policy and procedures
- Ability to adapt quickly and work in an often fast-paced environment
- A level of physical fitness to enable you to undertake the full range of duties (see below re fitness testing requirements)
- Be able to work flexible hours - the work will require you to be flexible and be able to be away from home from time to time
- Hold or have an interest in attaining maritime qualifications

**What's involved**

This role will require you to have a range of vaccinations from time to time as advised by Ministry of Health to protect you against 'at risk' situations.
- Please note, we are recruiting for a training intake commencing in late October/early Novembe