U.S. Customs and Border Protection Aviation Enforcement Agent Jobs

The United States faces threats from criminals every day, including criminals who try to enter and smuggle people, goods, weapons, and drugs into the country. Many of them attempt to sneak in through the land, air, and sea. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Aviation Enforcement Agents work to help curb illegal immigration and smuggling through aerial surveillance and enforcement. 

What Do CBP Aviation Enforcement Agents Do?

Customs and Border Protection aviation enforcement agents are uniformed law enforcement officers work alongside the CBP's pilots, known as aviation interdiction agents, to enforce laws related to immigration, customs, smuggling, and counter-terrorism.

Aviation enforcement agents serve on board CBP Office of Air and Marine aircraft as the primary law enforcement agent on CBP missions. They work closely with state, local and other federal law enforcement partners to coordinate enforcement and surveillance efforts.

As criminal investigators, CBP aviation agents lead criminal investigations, interview and interrogate witnesses and suspects, and provide courtroom testimony during trials related to their cases.

Agents also conduct research and analysis, looking into trends to forecast future criminal activity related to their mission to stop the smuggling of goods and people, fight terrorism and curb illegal immigration.

CBP aviation enforcement agents travel extensively and even serve overseas to curb smuggling from regions like the Middle East and to protect U.S. border interests. As the job title suggests, these agents spend much of their time in the air and onboard OAM aircraft. They are also subject to relocation based on on the needs of the Office of Air and Marine.

What is the Salary for U.S. CBP Aviation Enforcement Agents?

Depending on what step in the federal pay scale you are eligible to be hired at, starting salary for CBP aviation enforcement agents is between about $50,00 and $81,000, with the opportunity to promote to over $90,000 per year. The starting base salary does not include federal locality pay.

What Are the Requirements to Be a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Aviation Enforcement Agent?

Before you apply for a job as a CBP aviation enforcement agent, you need to make sure you meet the minimum qualifications.

According to Customs and Border Protections Office of Air and Marine, aspiring agents must be younger than 37 years old (with exceptions for military veterans and some other federal civilian law enforcement workers), You must be a U.S. citizen, have lived in the United States for at least the past 3 years and hold a valid driver license issued in the U.S.

Job announcements for CBP Aviation Enforcement Agents are often internal and only open to current Custom and Border Protection employees, which means to be eligible to apply you will need to have first spent time working as a Customs and Border Protection agent.

Once you've applied, you need to be able to pass a pre-employment physical fitness evaluation. You also need to be able to pass a very thorough background investigation, which will include a polygraph exam. Finally, you need to pass a medical and pre-employment drug screen.

If you're at all interested in working as a CBP aviation enforcement agent - or any other law enforcement career for that mater - you need to make sure to avoid behaviors that could keep you from passing a background check. These can include prior arrests, drug use, poor employment history, and past due debts.

Once hired, you will train at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, Ga.

Why Should You Consider Working as a U.S. CBP Aviation Enforcement Agent?

If you are interested in aviation and enjoy spending time in the air, and would like to combine that interest with an exciting career in law enforcement, working as a customs and Border Protection Aviation Enforcement Agent may just be the perfect job for you.