English for customs officers

of international trade. They are therefore faced with the delicate task of determining and maintaining the correct balance between the requirements of enforcement and facilitation which are sometimes contradictory.

V. Find the first sentence to the following text. Choose from:

1.World's economies and 3. Many Customs administrations communities are becoming today are faced with an increase in more and more reliant on cothe volume and speed of international

Both are going to have to change their mode of operation. It will take much consultation and coordination to ensure the changes are accomplished with minimal disruption of trade and without taking any unnecessary compliance risks.

Traditionally, Customs have been concerned with collecting revenue, exercising a control on imports and exports and catching smugglers. A relatively recent addition to that long-standing role has been the collection and control of excise duty and an even more recent development for some administrations has been responsibility for indirect or value added tax.

VI. Discuss the following with your partner. Supply some additional information. Make use of the following phrases:

In my opinion ...

I'm afraid you are not quite right ...

I think so too ...

If carriers should:

1.еnhance their security at foreign terminals, aboard their aircraft and vessels;

2.co-operate closely with Customs in identifying and reporting suspected smuggling attempts;

3.base their tariffs on the Harmonized System.

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If Customs should:

1.provide training to carriers' employees in the areas of baggage and cargo security, cargo profiling, personnel security and vessels and aircraft search;

2.help carriers collect external trade statistics;

3.apply simplified tariff schedule on all carriers' goods.

VII. The following verbs and nouns can be used to describe upward (↑) and downward (↓) movements in price, quantity, amount, etc.

Complete the following sentences using a noun or a verb from the list above.

1.The application of all added responsibilities has led to … in the complexity of Customs regulations.

2.In recent times international trade and traffic … significantly.

3.The problems of smuggling will continue … in many parts of the world.

4.In many countries budgetary … are the order of the day.

5.The role of Customs is rapidly … due to the changing world.

6.The … in profits is the result of poor management.

development … last year.

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VIII. Read the following texts, translate the underlined words into Russian and discuss the issues raised in the two texts with your partner.

Text 1

For many Customs commercial fraud will soon assume new dimensions and importance. In developing countries the collection of revenue will remain very important. In developed economies the issue will not be revenue but rather the circumvention of sensitive trade regulations and controls. In this respect the ability of companies advised by clever trade lawyers to manipulate prices will cause increasing concern.

Text 2

In countries that have recently adopted a market-driven economy the task for the Customs is to transform itself into an effective mechanism capable of:

–protecting the internal market and thereby regulating demand and supply;

–co-operating with policies of economic reconstruction and;

–contributing to government revenue.

IX. Translate into English.

Таможня играет ключевую роль в международной торговле. В осуществлении любой внешнеторговой сделки таможня участвует по меньшей мере дважды: один раз – при экспорте и один раз – при импорте. Поэтому ясно, что работа таможни оказывает существенное влияние на движение товаров через международные границы.

X. Translate into Russian.

I

«More and more Customs administrations are beginning to realize that the survival of Customs depends on the transformation of its «bagopening gate-keeper» image into one of «the facilitator and protector of

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society». As a result, Customs officers can now be heard using words like facilitation, consultation, dialogue, image, effectiveness, etc., when describing their functions».

II

«In many countries Customs see themselves not as making a «barrier» to international trade but as an integral part of the international trade process».

(TP. Hayes, 1993)

XI. Agree or disagree with the following statements. Give your reasons. Discuss your answers with your partner. Supply some additional information.

1.Why do the Customs administrations of the world have different areas of responsibility? Does it depend only on the national legislation governing their activities?

2.What is one prime responsibility that every Customs Service has?

3.There is no one model of Customs Service in the world to follow.

4.The size and the shape of a Customs Service is usually determined by its staff and not the challenges it faces.

5.It is the country itself which must decide on the Customs Service it needs to meet the particular needs and objectives of its government.

6.To be a success a Customs organization needs only an adequate legislation.

7.With the proper infrastructure, management, resources, policies and procedures a Customs Service can play its role in achieving and supporting government policy.

8.Government objectives are set by public opinion.

9.To be effective a Customs Service needs legislation, human, financial and technical resources, performance standards, accountability and integrity.

10.Customs procedures are designed to achieve objectives set by government policy in the areas of trade monitoring and revenue collection.

11.Customs is an obsolete, hollow and impoverished organization.

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12.The Belarusian Customs Service needs to make better use of risk assessment, business and personal performance measurement and audit techniques.

13.Customs should not be transparent in its transactions with clients.

14.A Customs Service is simply a means of administering Customs procedures.

DO IT FOR FUN

I. Complete the following proverbs and translate them into Russian:

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III. Complete the tables.

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В

Translate the following sentences using the words from the tables above.

1.Товар был продан ниже своей себестоимости.

2.Эти меры, хотя и непопулярные, способствовали восстановлению экономики.

3.Эффективность новой системы прошла проверку на нескольких предприятиях.

4.Он отвечает за коммерческую корреспонденцию компании.

5.Было трудно поверить, что некоторый риск неизбежен.

6.Многие университеты успешно сотрудничают в области науки

иобразования.

7.Правоохранительные власти несут ответственность за безопасность в городе.

8.Вчера на встрече обсуждались условия платежей.

9.Все исторические ценности находятся под охраной государства.

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UNIT 9. THE PROFESSION OF A CUSTOMS OFFICER

Study the following words and word combinations from the text.

TEXT 9.1. YOUR BACKGROUND AND CAREER

I enjoyed high school – my grades were good and I got involved in a lot of extracurricular activities. At the age of eighteen I went to university (AmE college / university). I got a place at the university in my home town, although some of my friends moved away to other universities and lived on campus. At first I hated it, and I nearly dropped out after a few months. But after a while I made friends and got used to writing all the essays (AmE papers). Money was a problem – I had no grant or other financial aid - and I worked my way through the college by doing a little part-time work whenever I could.

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My degree was in economics, and my main subject (AmE major) was international trade. The lecturers (AmE professors) were good and I enjoyed the course (AmE program) very much. I spent the middle year of the course working as an intern in a bank – that was really useful. It was the only part where I got some real vocational training. At the end of the course I thought about staying on to do a Masters, but I decided that the life of a postgraduate didn't really interest me. It was time to enter the world of work.

After graduating, it took me several months to find a job. I was short-listed for a few jobs, but they never called me back for a second interview. Eventually I was offered a junior position in the international department of a bank. Because of my internship (work placement) I knew more or less what to expect in terms of the working environment. I spent five years there, learning the business and was promoted to Senior Analyst in my late twenties.

That time in my life was really hectic – I was living the life of a typical young, single person in the financial services sector. I worked hard and partied hard. I often stayed at the office until eight in the evening, and was exhausted at the weekends. By the age of thirty I was burnt out. I needed some personal space to decide where my life was going, and I decided to take a year off. I gave in my notice and quit my job.

I had saved up quite a lot of money from the job in the bank, and so I was able to go travelling. I backpacked my way around India and South-East Asia and had some crazy times. But I knew that I had to settle down one day, and I wanted to start a family. So I came home and started to look for work again.

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I registered with some online employment agencies, and they found a vacancy almost immediately. It was in a similar field as before, but less high-pressure.

EXERCISES

I. Find a word in the text that matches each definition below. The words appear in order.

1.letters or numbers that show the quality of a student's work …

2.(two words) things that a student does at school or college that are not part of the course …

3.(phrasal verb) left university before the course had finished …

4.money given by someone, especially the government, for a particular purpose (similar to «scholarship», which only refers to money for study) …

5.a course of study at a university, or the qualification that you get …

6.a student who works in a job in order to get experience …

7.relating to the skills you need for a particular job …

8.(phrasal verb) continuing to do a job or a course after the expected time of leaving …

9.completing your studies at university and getting a degree …

10.busy; full of activity …

11.(two words) very tired and with no energy because of working too hard for too long …

12.(four words) told my employer that I would be leaving my job soon; resigned …

13.travelled for pleasure, without much money, carrying everything needed for life in one bag …

14.(phrasal verb) start living a quiet life in one place, especially when you get married …

15.an available job …

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