Skills it runs on
The capabilities O*NET rates most important for this occupation — the human ground the work is built on.
See all skills →Customs Brokers
Occupation · SOC 13-1041.08
Prepare customs documentation and ensure that shipments meet all applicable laws to facilitate the import and export of goods. Determine and track duties and taxes payable and process payments on behalf of client. Sign documents under a power of attorney. Represent clients in meetings with customs officials and apply for duty refunds and tariff reclassifications. Coordinate transportation and storage of imported goods.
Also called: Corporate Licensed Broker · Customs Broker · Air Export Agent · Air Export Operations Agent · Air Import Agent · Boarding Agent · Cargo Agent · Cargo Broker · Cargo Office Agent · Customs Agent · Customs Analyst · Customs Brokerage Agent
Job family: Business and Financial Operations Occupations
Take this to your AI
A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch
/roles/role-13-1041-08/context.md directly.
AI work map
A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.
Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+3.0% by 2034)
- 33,300 openings/yr
- High AI exposure
- Median pay $78,420/yr
- Can largely be done remotely (teleworkable)
- A reversal from 2013 — rated low automation risk then (26th), high AI task-overlap now (76th)
76th-percentile task overlap — yet about 33,300 openings a year (+3% projected, BLS) . What exposure means →
AI & job outlook
What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.
Exposure to current AI
Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.
| Measure | Rank vs all occupations | Percentile | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) Moderate | 64th | 0.7 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) High | 95th | 1.0 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) High | 67th | 0.2 |
OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.3), with simple added tooling (β 0.6), and including AI-powered software (γ 1.0). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.
Most of this job's tasks can be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman), which tends to track with higher digital and AI exposure.
Historical automation estimate (2013)
A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.
Frey–Osborne probability 0.1 · 26th percentile among occupations · Low
How AI is actually used in this job
Among measured AI assistant conversations mapped to this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15), these task types came up most. These are shares of observed AI conversations — not shares of the job, of worker time, or of what could be automated.
| Provide advice on transportation options, types of carriers, or shipping routes. | 2.2% | |
| Stay abreast of changes in import or export laws or regulations by reading current literature, attending meetings or conferences, or conferring with colleagues. | 1.4% | |
| Prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures. | 0.6% | |
| Monitor or trace the location of goods. | 0.4% | |
| Suggest best methods of packaging or labeling products. | 0.2% |
Job outlook
Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.
| Outlook | About average · +3.0% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 33,300 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 418,000 → 430,300 |
“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.
Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient
The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international 3 occupations below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.
Customs Brokers sits at the 74th percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure eased from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation or jobs lost.
38% mean task exposure (2025)
74th percentile of 427 placed occupations
−7 pts shift 2023 → 2025
| International occupation (ISCO-08) | Task exposure (2025) | Most tasks fall in |
|---|---|---|
| Government Social Benefits Officials · 3353 | 45% | Gradient 2 |
| Government Licensing Officials · 3354 | 43% | Gradient 2 |
| Customs and Border Inspectors · 3351 | 32% | Minimal |
Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.
Tasks
All 23 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- Clear goods through customs and to their destinations for clients. Core · importance 4.8
- Prepare and process import and export documentation according to customs regulations, laws, or procedures. Core · importance 4.8
- Calculate duty and tariff payments owed on shipments. Core · importance 4.8
- Pay, or arrange for payment of, taxes and duties on shipments. Core · importance 4.8
- Request or compile necessary import documentation, such as customs invoices, certificates of origin, and cargo-control documents. Core · importance 4.7
- Classify goods according to tariff coding system. Core · importance 4.6
- Sign documents on behalf of clients, using powers of attorney. Core · importance 4.5
- Stay abreast of changes in import or export laws or regulations by reading current literature, attending meetings or conferences, or conferring with colleagues. Core · importance 4.5
- Advise customers on import and export restrictions, tariff systems, insurance requirements, quotas, or other customs-related matters. Core · importance 4.3
- Post bonds for the products being imported or assist clients in obtaining bonds. Core · importance 4.2
- Quote duty and tax rates on goods to be imported, based on federal tariffs and excise taxes. Core · importance 4.1
- Arrange for transportation, warehousing, or product distribution of imported or exported products. Core · importance 4.0
- Monitor or trace the location of goods. Core · importance 4.0
- Confer with officials in various agencies to facilitate clearance of goods through customs and quarantine. Core · importance 4.0
- Inform importers and exporters of steps to reduce duties and taxes. Core · importance 3.8
- Obtain line releases for frequent shippers of low-risk commodities, high-volume entries, or multiple-container loads. Core · importance 3.5
- Provide advice on transportation options, types of carriers, or shipping routes. Core · importance 3.5
- Contract with freight forwarders for destination services. Core · importance 3.4
- Apply for tariff concessions or for duty drawbacks and other refunds. Core · importance 3.3
- Insure cargo against loss, damage, or pilferage. Core · importance 3.3
- Prepare papers for shippers to appeal duty charges. Core · importance 3.0
- Suggest best methods of packaging or labeling products. Supplemental · importance 2.9
- Maintain relationships with customs brokers in other ports to expedite clearing of cargo. Supplemental · importance 2.8
Work activities
- Prepare documentation for contracts, transactions, or regulatory compliance.
- Advise others on logistics topics.
- Pay charges, fees, or taxes.
- Obtain documentation to authorize activities.
- Negotiate contracts with clients or service providers.
- Coordinate logistics or other business operations.
- Advise others on business or operational matters.
- Coordinate regulatory documentation activities.
- Update knowledge of legal or regulatory environments.
- Estimate costs of goods or services.
- Prepare regulatory or compliance documentation.
- Monitor inventories of products or materials.
- Develop business relationships.
- Advise others on financial matters.
- Examine product information to ensure compliance with regulations.
- Calculate data to inform organizational operations.
- Submit financial applications.
- Advise others on legal or regulatory compliance matters.
- Oversee business processes.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Knowledge
| Transportation | 4.2 | |
| English Language | 4.1 | |
| Administrative | 4.0 | |
| Law and Government | 4.0 | |
| Customer and Personal Service | 4.0 | |
| Computers and Electronics | 3.5 | |
| Administration and Management | 3.4 | |
| Geography | 3.4 | |
| Mathematics | 3.3 | |
| Economics and Accounting | 3.1 |
Essential skills
| Active Listening | 4.0 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.9 | |
| Writing | 3.8 | |
| Speaking | 3.8 | |
| Critical Thinking | 3.8 | |
| Active Learning | 3.3 | |
| Monitoring | 3.3 | |
| Learning Strategies | 3.1 | |
| Mathematics | 3.0 |
Abilities
| Written Comprehension | 3.9 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.9 | |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.8 | |
| Oral Expression | 3.8 | |
| Written Expression | 3.8 | |
| Near Vision | 3.8 | |
| Speech Clarity | 3.6 | |
| Information Ordering | 3.5 | |
| Category Flexibility | 3.4 | |
| Speech Recognition | 3.4 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.3 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.3 | |
| Selective Attention | 3.1 |
Transferable skills
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.8 | |
| Service Orientation | 3.3 | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.3 | |
| Time Management | 3.3 | |
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.0 | |
| Coordination | 3.0 | |
| Negotiation | 3.0 | |
| Instructing | 3.0 |
Skills in demand
Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.
Tools & technology
Work context
How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.
How to get in
- Job zone
- Zone 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Education
- Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
- Typical entry-level education
- Bachelor's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
- Related experience
- 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.
- Preparation level
- SVP (6.0 to < 7.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.
What to study: Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services , Health Professions and Related Programs , Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services , Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies , Natural Resources and Conservation . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.
Education of current workers
Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.
| High School Diploma | 45.0% | |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 20.0% | |
| Bachelor's Degree | 20.0% | |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 10.0% | |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 5.0% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Conventional | 6.1 | |
| Enterprising | 5.0 | |
| Realistic | 2.4 | |
| Social | 2.2 |
Interest areas
| Office Work | 5.6 | |
| Law | 3.9 | |
| Accounting | 3.8 | |
| Management/Administration | 2.9 | |
| Finance | 2.5 | |
| Business Initiatives | 2.2 | |
| Sales | 2.1 | |
| Mathematics/Statistics | 1.9 |
Work styles
| Dependability | 4.0 | |
| Attention to Detail | 3.0 | |
| Integrity | 2.7 | |
| Cautiousness | 2.4 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $46,230 |
| 25th percentile | $59,130 |
| Median (50th) | $78,420 |
| 75th percentile | $104,800 |
| 90th percentile | $130,030 |
| People employed | 397,770 |
Wages and employment are reported by BLS for the broader occupation group this specialty belongs to (SOC 13-1041), not for the specialty alone.
Industries that employ this occupation
Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.
| Industry | Workers | National median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Finance and Insurance · Sector | 46,410 | $79,920 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 38,020 | $90,990 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector | 32,070 | $68,590 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector | 22,870 | $89,740 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 18,660 | $60,800 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 18,630 | $85,040 |
| Educational Services · Sector | 15,080 | $74,650 |
| Transportation and Warehousing · Sector | 14,480 | $63,430 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 10,460 | $80,660 |
| Temporary Help Services · National industry | 7,260 | $56,880 |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing · Sector | 7,040 | $65,310 |
| Information · Sector | 6,310 | $92,300 |
Where this work is most concentrated
Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).
| Industry | Concentration | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Hydroelectric Power Generation · National industry | 7.37× | 130 |
| Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers · National industry | 4.96× | 5,750 |
| Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation · National industry | 3.26× | 600 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector | 3.16× | 22,870 |
| Finance and Insurance · Sector | 2.89× | 46,410 |
| Utilities · Sector | 2.8× | 4,180 |
| Testing Laboratories and Services · National industry | 1.8× | 790 |
| Residential Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities · National industry | 1.6× | 1,070 |
Related occupations
Part of the Energy & Natural Resources , Financial Services , Management & Entrepreneurship and Public Service & Safety career clusters.
- Freight Forwarders · 43-5011.01 Compare →
- Cargo and Freight Agents · 43-5011.00 Compare →
- Customs and Border Protection Officers · 33-3051.04 Compare →
- Brokerage Clerks · 43-4011.00 Compare →
- Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers · 11-3071.00 Compare →
- Procurement Clerks · 43-3061.00 Compare →
- Compliance Officers · 13-1041.00 Compare →
- Government Property Inspectors and Investigators · 13-1041.04 Compare →
- Regulatory Affairs Specialists · 13-1041.07 Compare →
- Environmental Compliance Inspectors · 13-1041.01 Compare →
- Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products · 13-1023.00 Compare →
- Buyers and Purchasing Agents, Farm Products · 13-1021.00 Compare →
Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.
What you can do with this
Options the data surfaces for Customs Brokers — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.
Skills that travel
Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.
Adjacent roles
Occupations O*NET rates as related — the nearby moves on the map.
Paths in
How people typically prepare for this work.
- Bachelor's degree · typical entry level
- Job zone 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed · preparation tier
- Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services · field of study
- Health Professions and Related Programs · field of study
Zoom out
On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 74th percentile of 427 international occupations.
Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation
Customs Brokers show 76th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 33,300 annual U.S. openings
- Customs Brokers rank in the 76th percentile (High band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
- The occupation is projected to see about 33,300 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- BLS projects employment to be about average (+3%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $78,420, across about 397,770 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
Customs Brokers show 76th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 33,300 annual U.S. openings • Customs Brokers rank in the 76th percentile (High band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE) • The occupation is projected to see about 33,300 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • BLS projects employment to be about average (+3%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $78,420, across about 397,770 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "Customs Brokers". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-13-1041-08 Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom
Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Plain
Singulariki. "Customs Brokers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-13-1041-08
APA
Singulariki. (2026). Customs Brokers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-13-1041-08
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-13-1041-08,
title = {Customs Brokers},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-13-1041-08}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.