State-certified customs professionals in action

Our employees Nermina Causevic-Kadric, Marco Zivkovic and Martin Schampach are now officially designated certified customs officers: They have, in the last few weeks, passed the state service examination of the Federal Academy of Finance whilst also deepening and broadening their knowledge of customs operations. The training program, which runs for over two years, imparts not only theoretical fundamentals but also comprehensive practical training in the respective service unit. The basic module imparts comprehensive training in the areas of customs law, sales and excise tax law, customs tariff, financial criminal law and much more. The advanced module also includes the areas of prohibitions and restrictions, knowledge of commodities, security, fraud countermeasures or market regulation.

We asked our colleagues what motivated them to take part in the training program and why they gained not only valuable professional but also personal experience in the process.

How old are you?

Martin: "I am 43 years old, Nermina is 41 and Marco is 33. So our average age is 39."

How did you get into this training program? What did you do before or what were your areas of work?

Martin: "I’ve been in the customs service since 2009, so the advanced training made sense to me."

Marco: "Supplementary training was also necessary for me in order to advance further in the customs service."

Nermina: "I’ve not been in the customs service that long, so having all the additional knowledge of customs law is going to really help."

What made you decide on this training in particular?

Nermina: "The training is very diversified and covers a wide range of areas of knowledge. As such, it is a very good complement to the practical side of work."

What does this training enable you to do? And what is your job title now?

Nermina: "We are now state-certified customs officers, or we are now able to demonstrate a state service qualification in customs law."

Marco: "The training provides us with a better understanding of the interrelationships in the customs service. That also enables us to implement customs regulations and as such meet our customers' needs more effectively."

Was the training program conducted on a virtual basis?

Martin: "About half of the program was online and took about three months. The rest was classroom-based at the Federal Academy of Finance, also over a period of three months."

What did you enjoy most about the training? And what content did you find most interesting?

Nermina: "It was very exciting working out tasks as a team. It was also interesting getting to know our future colleagues from the customs office, as well as the customs office itself - for example, their IT systems and the organization as a whole."

How do you explain to “non-railway people” what you have learned there?

Martin: "In essence, we’ve acquired the legal basis for processing customs procedures. This includes customs law, information on prohibitions and restrictions, the Federal Tax Code, the Financial Criminal Code, excise duty and much more."

What skills should a person have for this training program?

Marco: "Commitment, perseverance, an interest in the international movement of goods and readiness to undertake further training are certainly valuable requirements for the job."

Is there anything else you would like to tell us about?

Marco: "RCG is one of the few companies that is involved in the BFA program.  We very much appreciate being able to take part in this comprehensive training."

Nermina: "What we are especially pleased about is that some longer-lasting friendships have developed over the time. We were made very welcome by the trainers and colleagues."