How to hire a customs collector

How to hire a customs collector, step by step

Here's a step-by-step customs collector hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a customs collector job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new customs collector
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a customs collector, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect customs collector also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of customs collector salaries for various roles:

   Type of Customs Collector	Description	Hourly rate
   Customs Collector	Police officers protect lives and property. Detectives and criminal investigators, who are sometimes called agents or special agents, gather facts and collect evidence of possible crimes.	$12-18
   Customer Service Representative	Customer service representatives are the first point of contact of the customers, acting as the frontiers of the company and help in driving customer loyalty and retention by leaving a great impression and resolving all of their concerns. They accommodate customer queries by providing useful and comprehensive information about any products or services... Show more	$12-19
   Collections, Customer Service	A collections customer service or collections agent is the person who is in charge of collecting past-due bill payments. Collections agents establish a list of individuals who failed to make their payments... Show more	$12-18

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Payment Arrangements
   • Delinquent Accounts
   • Past Due Accounts
   • Customer Accounts
   • Process Payments
   • Debt Repayment
   • FDCPA
   • Outbound Collection Calls
   • Inbound Calls
   • Outbound Calls
   • Collection Issues
   • Past Due Balances
   • Customer Complaints
   • Customer Inquiries

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage all VIP clients of the company.
   • Experience at working towards set quality standards and achieving SLA during monthly quality audits.
   • Lead a team of first line supervisors who are tasked with managing various enforcement programs for CBP.
   • Manage VIP visits and deal with all areas of logistics including event management and corporate hospitality
   • Prevent impeding loss and increasing profitability through negotiation and enforcement of schedule collection campaigns, consistently achieving high success standards.
   • Experience with CBP computer systems, OPSEC information, and DHS computer policies.

   More customs collector duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your customs collector job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A customs collector can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, customs collectors' average salary in florida is 41% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level customs collectors 29% less than senior-level customs collectors.
   • Certifications. A customs collector with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a customs collector's salary.

   Average customs collector salary

   $15.68hourly

   $32,623 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level customs collector salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 20, 2026

   Average customs collector salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Colorado	$38,301	$18
   2	Nevada	$34,277	$16
   3	Oregon	$33,959	$16
   4	Massachusetts	$33,708	$16
   5	South Dakota	$32,940	$16
   6	Illinois	$32,574	$16
   7	Arizona	$32,074	$15
   8	Texas	$32,033	$15
   9	Minnesota	$31,982	$15
   10	New York	$31,532	$15
   11	Tennessee	$31,315	$15
   12	Alabama	$29,242	$14
   13	Georgia	$26,119	$13
   14	Florida	$25,253	$12

   Average customs collector salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	CarMax	$35,779	$17.20	2
   2	American Leak Detection	$35,042	$16.85	17
   3	Sanofi US	$34,876	$16.77	2
   4	U.S. Bank	$33,763	$16.23
   5	Park Nicollet Medical Center Inc	$33,506	$16.11
   6	Nexamp	$33,098	$15.91	1
   7	Baptist Health Home Care	$32,983	$15.86	1
   8	Security Finance	$32,765	$15.75	137
   9	Capital Management Services	$32,735	$15.74	1
   10	Randstad North America, Inc.	$32,231	$15.50	29
   11	Memorial Healthcare System	$32,157	$15.46
   12	Travel and Transport	$32,034	$15.40	4
   13	Robert Half	$31,892	$15.33	162
   14	Sanford Health	$31,669	$15.23	3
   15	Kelly Services	$31,576	$15.18	15
   16	All Medical Personnel	$31,457	$15.12
   17	Aerotek	$30,456	$14.64	3
   18	RemX	$30,425	$14.63

4. Writing a customs collector job description

   A customs collector job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a customs collector job description:

   Customs collector job description example

   Oversees the day to day operations in the Customer Service area of Patient Financial Services ensuring service standards, policies and procedures are upheld.
   Competencies and skills:
   
   Essential:
   
   * STANDARDS OF BEHAVIOR: Acts in a manner that supports the standards of communication, respect, privacy, and teamwork by demonstrating a commitment to professional and ethical conduct.
   
   * CUSTOMER SERVICE: Demonstrates commitment to service excellence by promptly addressing internal/external customer issues/requests, resolving concerns while maintaining a professional image and behavior to build and enhance the patient/family/customer experience.
   
   * ACCOUNTABILITY: Accepts ownership of job roles and specific assignments/goals; works independently, takes responsibility for own actions; admits mistakes and judgment errors; and accepts constructive feedback. Connects personal work results to the accomplishment of team and organizational goals.
   
   * RESPONDING TO CHANGE: Accepts change and adapts in a positive and productive manner; handles unexpected situations and changes in direction calmly and with confidence. Views new assignments and job responsibilities as an opportunity for growth.
   
   * EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION: Communicates effectively with various audiences using the most appropriate method for the situation.
   
   * LEADING BY COACHING: Knowledge of coaching approaches, tools, and techniques that improve individual performance and foster development.
   
   * MANAGING PEOPLE: Uses HR/Performance Management processes and systems to align individual performance to achieve organizational results.
   
   Education:
   
   Essential:
   
   * High School Diploma or Equivalent
   
   Credentials:
   
   Education equivalent experience:
   
   Essential:
   
   *
   
   Other information:
   
   Complexity of Work: Requires critical thinking skills, decisive judgment and the ability to work with minimal supervision. Must be able to work in a stressful environment and take appropriate action.
   
   Required Work Experience: One (1) year related experience with progressive leadership responsibilities required.
   
   Working conditions:
   
   Essential:
   
   * Keyboard Entry 60.00%
   
   * Lifting or Carrying 0 - 25 lbs Non-Patient 60.00%
   
   * Reaching 40.00%
   
   * Sitting 20.00%
   
   * Seeing - Near 60.00%
   
   * Dust 20.00%
   
   * Computer Monitor 60.00%
   
   Organizational Profile:
   
   Memorial Healthcare System, consisting of 6 acute care hospitals, a nursing home, outpatient facilities, home health services and physician practices, provides quality, comprehensive care to the residents of the surrounding communities. We invite you to join one of the nation's leading healthcare systems, recognized for use of advanced technology and clinical informatics.
   
   Memorial Support Services provides a variety of business services to support our facilities. The main offices are located in Miramar with satellite offices located throughout our system.
   
   **_Disclaimer:_** _This job description is not intended, nor should it be construed to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, skills, efforts or working conditions associated with the job. It is intended to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification._
   
   Memorial Healthcare System is proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to workplace diversity. Memorial Healthcare System recruits, hires and promotes qualified candidates for employment opportunities without regard to race, color, age, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or any factor prohibited by law. We are proud to offer Veteran's Preference to former military, reservists and military spouses (including widows and widowers). You must indicate your status on your application to take advantage of this program.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right customs collector for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with customs collectors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit customs collectors who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your customs collector job on Zippia to find and recruit customs collector candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit customs collectors, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new customs collector

   Once you've found the customs collector candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new customs collector. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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