Customs training

Pages in this section

Enjoying the Evening Cool Along the Sumida River, Kitagawa Utamaro (c. 1797–98)

Identification of cultural propertyRecognising an archaeological object, a mask, a painting or a manuscript: methods, clues and tools for the field officer.›

Landscape with Saint John the Baptist, Herri met de Bles (c. 1540)

Border controlsExport documents, inspection, seizure, conservation and judicial follow-up: the module devoted to controls.›

Ships near the Trieux River, Paul Signac (1925)

International customs cooperationWCO, INTERPOL, BIOP, focal points: learning to cooperate with foreign services and heritage institutions.›

The first line of defence

Bookplate: Boylston Medical Library, George Girdler Smith (1806–39)

Customs officers are often the first to see a looted or stolen object pass. A trained officer can distinguish a suspect object in a few minutes, consult the BIOP database, check an export document and seize. The Academy has trained 8,940 customs and law-enforcement officers from 61 States.

The training is designed with the World Customs Organization and INTERPOL. It is free for Member States and delivered on the three campuses and on site.

This section presents identification of goods, controls and cooperation.

Customs
Identification
Controls

Customs training in figures

8,940Officers trained

61States

142Identification sheets

23Joint operations in 2024

Source: OIMAP Academy.

Three modules

The Storm, James McNeill Whistler (1861)

IdentifyIdentification of property

Recognising an object.

›

ActingControls

Procedures and seizures.

›

A Boat That Has for Sails the Wings of a Huge Bird, Filippo Morghen (about 1769)

NetworkCooperation

WCO, INTERPOL, BIOP.

›

Breakdown

Customs58%

Police26%

Gendarmerie and border guards10%

Other administrations6%

Officers trained by administration.

A Lady Reading, Francis Seymour Haden (1833–1910)

Bridge of Shops, Srinagar, Kashmir, Samuel Bourne (1864)

Training suited to the field

Sessions are short (three to five days), concrete and practical. They use seized objects entrusted to the Academy, mock-ups of parcels, software for consulting the BIOP database and control simulations.

A pocket guide, given to each participant, summarises the essential actions and useful contacts.

Three levels

Level 1 teaches how to spot a suspect object and react. Level 2 trains detailed identification (materials, techniques, styles) and seizure procedure. Level 3, intended for trainers, prepares officers to pass these skills on within their administration.

An officer can follow all three levels in two years. A national diploma is issued by the Academy.

A cascade system

Level 3 officers in turn train their colleagues: each trained officer trains twelve on average. The Academy supports them with materials, updates and field visits. This system multiplies the impact of the training tenfold.

National focal points ensure coordination with the Academy.

Partnership with administrations

Training is organised at the request of customs administrations, which appoint the participants and supply the cases. Framework agreements provide for a multi-year programme. The Academy adapts to the language, the types of trafficking and the constraints of each country.

A one-year follow-up measures the impact: seizures made, reports in the database, training delivered.

Levels in detail

Three levels
Level	Duration	Audience
1 Awareness	3 days	All officers
2 Identification	5 days	Specialised officers
3 Trainers	10 days	Trainers

Milestones

2009
First officers
Customs.
2016
WCO agreement
Cooperation.
2020
Cascade
Trainers.
2024
8,940 officers
Review.

St. Anthony Reading, Albrecht Dürer (1519)

Sweet Melancholy, Joseph-Marie Vien (1756)

Operational confidentiality

On-site or campus training

A Rocky Cove with Fishing Boats, Allart van Everdingen (late 1650s)

On site

In the administration

Real context
Large groups
Fewer international exchanges

To reach many officers.

High Class Students and Teachers at Bishop Cotton School, Shimla (verso), Raja Deen Dayal (c. 1882–87)

On campus

Nairobi, Paris, Singapore

Immersion
International network
Travel

For trainers.

Training an administration

Need
Analysis.
Agreement
Agreement.
Session
Levels 1 and 2.
Cascade
Level 3.
Tracking
At one year.

A brigade chief

Boating in Moonlight (1600s) — **Captain Joseph Kone**, customs

Customs vocabulary

Seizure: Taking possession of property.
Cascade: Chain training.
Focal point: National contact.
BIOP database: Database of protected works.

Results

States whose officers have followed the training record on average 2.4 times more reports in the BIOP database. Seizures of cultural objects have risen 38% in ports where an identification unit has been created.

These results encourage extending the programme to new States and administrations.

Frequently asked questions

Is the training free?

For Member States.

Is there a diploma?

Yes.

Are there sessions in my language?