The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS) (
German ''Bundesamt für Zoll und Grenzsicherheit'' (BAZG);
French ''Office fédéral de la douane et de la sécurité des frontières'' (OFDF);
Italian ''Ufficio Federale della dogana e della sicurezza dei confini'' (UDSC);
Rhaeto-Romanic ''Uffizi federal de la duana e de la segirezza dals cunfins'' (UDSC)) is a
federal agency of the
Swiss Confederation. It is an office of the
Federal Department of Finance.
Prior to 1 January 2022, it was known as the Federal Customs Administration.
Tasks
Several thousand tones of goods cross the Swiss border every day. The FOCBS experts check whether the goods have been registered correctly, set taxes and duties, and ensure compliance with regulations to protect the population and the economy. Together with domestic and foreign partner authorities, the FOCBS also fulfills tasks in the area of security and migration in the border area, as well as in rail traffic and at airports.
Organization and responsibilities
The headquarters of the Federal Office of Customs and Border Security is in
Bern
Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...
. The is divided into six regions.
* Customs North: Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft, Aargau
* Customs Northeast: Schaffhausen, Thurgau, Zurich, Zug, Schwyz, Lucerne, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Glarus
* Customs East: St. Gallen, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Appenzell Outerrhoden, Graubünden, Principality of Liechtenstein
* Customs South: Uri, Ticino
* Customs West: Geneva, Vaud, Valais
* Central Customs: Jura, Nauenberg, Bern, Freiburg, Solothurn
The Federal Office of Customs and Border Security is not only responsible for Switzerland but also for the German municipality and
exclave
An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...
of
Büsingen am Hochrhein and the
Principality of Liechtenstein. Until the end of 2019, the Italian municipality and exclave of
Campione d'Italia was also a ''de facto'' Swiss customs area.
Transformation
As part of the DaziT transformation program, the FOCBS will gradually develop further until 2026. In addition to process simplification and digitization, the legal basis will also be adjusted (total revision of the customs law). The previous professions of "customs specialist" and "
border guard
A border guard of a country is a national security agency that ensures border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Germany, Italy or Ukraine) and rescue service duties.
Name and uniform
In diff ...
" will be combined in the new job profile of "customs and border security specialist", and work equipment and infrastructure will be geared towards greater flexibility and mobility. As part of this, the authority was renamed from Federal Customs Administration into its current name on 1 January 2022.
The reform efforts are sometimes sharply criticized. In particular, the planned expansion of powers, armament and uniforms were questioned.
See also
*
Swiss Border Guard
*
References
External links
*
Commons: Federal Office of Customs and Border Security - Collection of images, videos and audio files
{{Authority control
Federal administration of Switzerland
Federal Department of Finance