Education · 1 of 4

The path

No degree is required. One federal exam is the gate, and it is a hard one.

1. 1

   High school diploma or GED (General Educational Development certificate)

   Grade 12

   Enough to get an entry level job in a brokerage. Being organized and precise matters more than your transcript.

2. 2

   Get into a brokerage

   1 to 3 years

   Start as an entry writer, import clerk or operations assistant. You learn tariff classification, valuation and country of origin rules on real freight.

3. 3

   Study for the exam

   3 to 9 months

   It is open book, on the tariff schedule and the customs regulations, but the books are enormous. Courses run through the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America and private providers.

4. 4

   Sit the examination

   One day

   The Customs Broker License Examination runs twice a year, on the fourth Wednesday of April and October. 80 questions, and you need 57 right to pass.

5. 5

   Apply for the license

   Several months

   You must be at least 21, a United States citizen, not a federal employee, and of good moral character. Then a background investigation and fingerprinting.