This campaign is closed: view our current live campaign for Officers and Apprentices.
Border Force is the part of the Home Office responsible for securing the UK border 24 hours a day, 365 days a year by enforcing immigration and customs regulations.
Around 10,000 people work for Border Force, with the majority working in frontline roles in airports and seaports across the UK and overseas. Some officers will work at only one location, while others are mobile, working across a number of ports or other locations in a region. We’re recruiting for officers and apprentices to join our brilliant teams across the UK.
The closing date for applications is Wednesday, 26 October at 23:55.
You can also view a version of this video with audio description.
The roles we’re advertising are:
What does Border Force do?
Our work includes checking all passengers and freight arriving in the UK by air and sea and conducting intelligence-led searches for drugs, cash, tobacco, alcohol, firearms, offensive weapons, prohibited goods and counterfeit goods.
We also support the wider department on high-profile issues such as counter terrorism, organised crime, tackling modern slavery and human trafficking. This is some of the most important and challenging work in Government, and its impact can be felt in communities across the UK.
The nature of the work we do and the locations we work at means that officers are sometimes required to operate in difficult and pressurised environments where priorities change quickly and where flexibility is key.
What you could be doing
Once trained as a Border Force Officer or Apprentice you could be performing tasks including:
- Operating primary control points that make decisions whether or not to admit passengers to the UK; profiling people, goods and vehicles for border offences, making referrals to senior staff, conducting and noting interviews as necessary;
- detecting and investigating offences arising from the movement of prohibited and restricted goods; supporting aviation, maritime and international rail operations; and arresting people and searching premises or vehicles.
- Our borders operate 24/7 and our officers do too. This means officers work a variety of rostered shifts which include nights and public holidays. Officers are compensated for working unsociable hours through receipt of additional allowances which vary depending on the level of flexibility and unsociable hours required at that location. The job adverts for each role will provide further details on what those payments are likely to be.
Benefits
We offer competitive starting salaries and an Annual Hours Allowance of between 27% and 49% of your salary depending on location and role, which is paid on top of your monthly salary. As set out above, this is to compensate for working shift patterns which can include: night shifts, early morning starts, late night finishes, as well as weekend and public holidays.
We also offer a Civil Service Pension with employer contribution rates of at least 26.6%, as well as a range of other brilliant benefits including flexible working and 25 days annual leave on appointment, rising with service.
Find out more about some of the other benefits we offer.
Eligibility
In order to be eligible for this role, you must
- be a UK national
- be at least 18 years old
- be able to provide all of the ID documents we need to complete your pre-employment screening and security clearance.
- complete a Personal Safety Training health declaration and, if necessary, attend a medical examination.
- be able to work flexibly within a team environment, as priorities can change rapidly.
In some of our roles you may be required to drive official vehicles so you will need a Full Manual Driving Licence. If you do not currently have a licence, we would expect you to obtain one at your own expense within a 12-month period
Meet the Team Events
If you want to learn more about these roles you can join one of our free online live events, during which you will hear from current Border Force staff about what the job is like, what opportunities and career prospects you will have and why the job matters. We will also talk about the recruitment and security vetting processes, and you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions from our friendly and experienced team members.
The events will be on the following dates. Register by clicking on the date and time you want to attend. There’s no requirement to attend in order to apply.
Border Force Apprentice Events
- South
- Heathrow
- Central
- South-East, Europe & International
-
Location Venue Date Deal The Royal Hotel CT14 6JD 07/10/2022 Dover Best Western Plus Dover Marina Hotel CT17 9BP 08/10/2022 Ashford Ashford International Hotel TN24 8UX 18/10/2022 Canterbury Canterbury Cathedral Lodge CT1 2EH 19/10/2022 Ramsgate Comfort Inn CT11 8DT 20/10/2022 Folkestone Basepoint CT19 4RH 21/10/2022 All events will run from 9-4 on an informal drop-in basis
Border Force Officer Events
- South region
- Heathrow
- Central region
- South-East, Europe & International
-
Location Venue Date Deal The Royal Hotel CT14 6JD 07/10/2022 Dover Best Western Plus Dover Marina Hotel CT17 9BP 08/10/2022 Ashford Ashford International Hotel TN24 8UX 18/10/2022 Canterbury Canterbury Cathedral Lodge CT1 2EH 19/10/2022 Ramsgate Comfort Inn CT11 8DT 20/10/2022 Folkestone Basepoint CT19 4RH 21/10/2022 All events will run from 9-4 on an informal drop-in basis
Border Force Apprentices
We’re advertising 211 roles across the UK.
-
- Aberdeen/ Inverness
- Belfast
- Bristol
- Dover/Folkestone
- Felixstowe
- Heathrow
- Horley (Gatwick)
- Hull
- Immingham
- Liverpool
- London Gateway
- Manchester
- Slough
- Stansted
- Tilbury
-
- National spot rate: £22,400
- London spot rate: £26,400
- Gatwick spot rate: £23,400
These roles also attract an Annual Hours Allowance of between 27% and 49% of your salary depending on location and role, which is paid on top of your monthly salary.
-
An apprenticeship with Border Force gives you an opportunity to:
- Positively affect some of the challenges facing the UK today
- Gain nationally recognised qualifications including Level 3 Award in Operational Delivery
- Develop a wide range of skills and experience that will prepare you for a career both inside and outside the Civil Service
Your apprenticeships will take up to 18 months to complete and will include a period of probation. If you complete the apprenticeship, you will be offered a permanent contract with the Home Office at AO grade.
To prepare you for your career as a Border Force Apprentice, you will learn about immigration and customs legislation, procedures, personal safety and how you will be deploying your powers. Once you understand the theory, you will be able to put it into practice in our classrooms as well as operational areas. The course is modular, with the longest section being 5 weeks. The training will be supplemented by ongoing support from your manager, mentors and colleagues.
Your training will take place in one of our regional hubs in Heathrow, Manchester, Folkestone, Stansted, Tilbury or Gatwick. You will also be asked to attend an induction week in the region where you have accepted a role. You will receive full joining instructions closer to your start date.
-
Successful candidates will need to demonstrate:
- excellent interpersonal skills, and enjoy interacting with colleagues, members of the public and external stakeholders
- flexibility, adaptability and creativity in solving problems and dealing with change
- a strong sense of personal ethics and integrity
- the ability to confidently manage potentially difficult and challenging situations
- leadership potential
- objective and analytical thinking
- professionalism and sensitivity whilst robustly enforcing UK law
- at some locations, a full valid UK manual driving licence is essential
- You must hold GCSE Grade 9-3 (A-D) in Maths and English. We accept equivalent qualification at the same level. See the full advert for details.
-
This vacancy uses Success Profiles and will assess your Strengths, Ability and Experience. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.
You will submit your application through the online civil service recruitment portal: Civil Service Jobs.
1. Online tests
After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete the Civil Service Verbal Test. If you pass this test, you will be invited to complete the next stage of the application, submitting your CV. Find out more about Civil Service Online tests
2. CV
You should submit a CV in which you detail your qualifications and previous skills/experience aligned to the essential criteria set out in the job advert. All CVs received will be sifted.
3. The interview
If you are successful at sift stage, you will be invited to attend a pre-recorded video interview which will use strength-based questions. A full explanation of how this works will be provided to you, but you will need to have access to a laptop or computer with a working webcam and good Internet access.
Strength-based questions seek to find out what people enjoy and when they are at their best. They are less about what they can do. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. It is important that you answer the questions as openly and honestly as you can, thinking about the kind of work that you enjoy doing and the Border Force role you are applying for.
-
If you are interested in a Border Force Apprenticeship, please apply using the button below.
Border Force Officers
We’re advertising 1,754 roles across the UK.
-
- Bristol
- Coventry
- Dover/Folkestone
- Felixstowe
- Heathrow
- Horley (Gatwick)
- Liverpool
- London
- London Gateway
- Luton
- Manchester
- Milton Keynes
- Newhaven
- Poole
- Portsmouth
- Slough
- Southampton
- St Pancras
- Stansted
- Tilbury
-
- National: £25, 750 – £27,650
- London: £29,750 – £31,950
- Gatwick £26,750 – £28,730 max.
These roles also attract an Annual Hours Allowance of between 27% and 49% of your salary depending on location and role, which is paid on top of your monthly salary.
-
Successful candidates will need to demonstrate they:
- Can demonstrate sound interpersonal, communication and relationship building skills and thrive working as part of a team
- Are flexible, adaptable and creative in solving problems and dealing with change
- Are able to confidently manage potentially difficult and challenging situations
- Have leadership potential or demonstrated leadership ability
- Have a strong sense of integrity and ethics
- Think in an objective and analytical manner with an inquisitive and open mind
- At some locations, a full valid UK manual driving licence is essential
You must hold 5 GCSEs at Grade 9-4 (A-C), including in English and Maths. We accept equivalent qualification at the same level. Or, if you don’t have the relevant qualifications, you must have relevant experience. See the full advert for details.
-
This vacancy uses Success Profiles and will assess your Strengths, Ability and Experience. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.
You will submit your application through the online civil service recruitment portal: Civil Service Jobs.
1. Online tests
After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete the Civil Service Verbal Test. If you pass this test, you will be invited to complete the next stage of the application, submitting your CV. Find out more about Civil Service Online tests
2. CV
You should submit a CV in which you detail your qualifications and previous skills and experience aligned to the essential criteria set out in the job advert. All CVs received will be sifted.
3. The interview
If you are successful at sift stage, you will be invited to attend a pre-recorded video interview which will use strength-based questions. A full explanation of how this works will be provided to you, but you will need to have access to a laptop or computer with a working webcam and good Internet access.
Strength based questions seek to find out what people enjoy and when they are at their best. They are less about what they can do. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. It is important that you answer the questions as openly and honestly as you can, thinking about the kind of work that you enjoy doing and the Border Force role you are applying for.
-
If you are interested in becoming a Border Force Officer, please apply using the button below.
Readiness Task Force
We’re advertising 35 roles based in Birmingham.
-
- £25,750 – £27,650
These roles also attract an Annual Hours Allowance of between 27% and 49% of your salary depending on location and role, which is paid on top of your monthly salary.
-
You will be part of a multi-skilled, mobile team deployed to high priority activity including freight, primary control point and tasks that support other Home Office strategic objectives. These may require you to deploy away from your base location, including overseas, on a regular basis so you will need to be flexible about overnight stays within your shift roster.
-
Successful candidates will need to demonstrate they:
- Can demonstrate sound interpersonal, communication and relationship building skills and thrive working as part of a team
- Are flexible, adaptable and creative in solving problems and dealing with change
- Are able to confidently manage potentially difficult and challenging situations
- Have leadership potential or demonstrated leadership ability
- Have a strong sense of integrity and ethics
- Think in an objective and analytical manner with an inquisitive and open mind
- Hold a full, valid UK manual driving licence
You must hold 5 GCSEs at Grade 9-4 (A-C), including in English and Maths. We accept equivalent qualification at the same level. Or, if you don’t have the relevant qualifications, you must have relevant experience. See the full advert for details.
-
This vacancy uses Success Profiles and will assess your Strengths, Ability and Experience. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, drives up performance and improves diversity and inclusivity.
You will submit your application through the online civil service recruitment portal: Civil Service Jobs.
1. Online tests
After submission of the first stage of your application you will be invited to complete the Civil Service Verbal Test. If you pass this test, you will be invited to complete the next stage of the application, submitting your CV. Find out more about Civil Service Online tests
2. Personal Statement
You will be asked to submit a Personal Statement of no more than 750 words explaining concisely what motivated you to apply for this role and give evidence of how you meet the Essential Criteria set out in the job advert.
3. The interview
If you are successful at sift stage, you will be invited to attend a pre-recorded video interview which will use strength-based questions. A full explanation of how this works will be provided to you, but you will need to have access to a laptop or computer with a working webcam and good Internet access.
Strength based questions seek to find out what people enjoy and when they are at their best. They are less about what they can do. There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. It is important that you answer the questions as openly and honestly as you can, thinking about the kind of work that you enjoy doing and the Border Force role you are applying for.
-
If you are interested in one of these roles, please apply using the button below.
