Customs and Border Protection

What the Numbers Say About Customs and Border Protection

1.1% of the federal civilian workforce (2,289,472 employees total, March 2025) works in the Customs and Border Protection occupation (OPM code 1895): 26,205 people, headcount up 0.2% versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.

Average tenure in Customs and Border Protection runs 14.2 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career. Pay averages $110,965 per year, 1.0% above the $109,869 federal civilian average and up 2.0% from the prior period, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce.

The Investigation Group family (code 18) groups Customs and Border Protection together with 19 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Customs and Border Protection postings should also review these sibling occupations, since federal hiring managers often cross-post positions across closely related codes when recruitment is difficult. All figures here come directly from OPM FedScope Employment Cubes, the same official source referenced in federal workforce planning, budget justifications, and GAO reports.

Within the Investigation Group family, Customs and Border Protection ranks #4 of 20 by headcount, accounting for 12.4% of the family's combined 211,925 employees. Its average salary ranks right at the midpoint of pay among Investigation Group occupations.