TL;DR: BS Customs Administration (BSCA) is a four-year, minimum 145-unit degree under CHED Memorandum Order No. 30, series of 2021, covering customs and tariff law, cargo clearance, and trade compliance, plus a required 300-hour internship. Graduates can sit for the PRC Customs Broker Licensure Examination (CBLE); pass rates swung from 44% in November 2024 to 72.71% in November 2025. Salary data varies sharply by source, with advertised job-posting averages around ₱22,000 to ₱25,000 per month in several regions and higher figures reported for licensed, experienced brokers by compensation trackers.
BS Customs Administration is a narrower, more specialized business degree than most people realize: it exists almost entirely to feed one licensed profession, customs brokerage, plus a set of adjacent logistics and Bureau of Customs roles. Students searching "BS Customs Administration subjects" or "is customs administration a good course" are usually trying to figure out what the degree actually trains you to do and whether the licensure path is worth it. This guide breaks down the real CHED-prescribed curriculum, the internship requirement, the Customs Broker board exam, and what the pay data shows. For a broader look at business-adjacent degree choices, see our in-demand courses in the Philippines guide.
What Does BS Customs Administration Cover?
BS Customs Administration trains students in the legal and procedural mechanics of moving goods across the Philippine border: tariff classification, customs valuation, duty computation, cargo clearance procedures, and the trade agreements that affect import/export duties. It is a professional, licensure-track degree rather than a general business degree — the entire upper-year curriculum is built around preparing graduates for the Customs Broker Licensure Examination.
The program is governed by CHED Memorandum Order No. 30, series of 2021, "Policies, Standards, and Guidelines for Bachelor of Science in Customs Administration (BSCA)," which updated the earlier CMO No. 46, s. 2012 framework. CMO 30 was implemented starting Academic Year 2021-2022, with existing programs given a three-year transition period to fully comply.
Disclaimer: curriculum specifics can vary by school within CHED's minimum framework. Confirm the current curriculum directly with your target school's customs administration department.
How Many Units Does BS Customs Administration Require?
CMO 30 sets the curriculum at a minimum of 145 units, completed over four years. The table below shows the official category breakdown from the memorandum.
| Category | Units |
|---|---|
| General Education | 36 |
| NSTP | 6 |
| Physical Education | 8 |
| Common Business and Management Education | 6 |
| Special Business Education | 12 |
| Professional Courses (Customs + Tariff Management) | 62 |
| Research | 6 |
| Internship/Practicum | 3 |
| Total | 145 |
The 62-unit Professional Courses block splits into two tracks: Customs Management (32 units) and Tariff Management (30 units), listed in the next section. Because CHED sets this as a minimum, some schools' actual published curricula run higher once general education electives or institution-specific business subjects are layered on top.
What Subjects Does BS Customs Administration Include?
The professional core is where BSCA differs sharply from a generic business degree. CMO 30 names specific, exam-relevant subjects under two tracks.
Customs Management (32 units):
| Subject | Units |
|---|---|
| Border Control and Security | 3 |
| Customs Operations and Cargo Handling | 3 |
| Customs Warehousing | 5 |
| Customs Clearance | 5 |
| Customs Proceedings | 5 |
| Customs Post Clearance Audit and Fraud Detection | 3 |
| Ethics and Standards of the Customs Broker | 3 |
| Competency Assessment in Customs Management | 5 |
Tariff Management (30 units):
| Subject | Units |
|---|---|
| Fundamentals of Customs and Tariff Management | 3 |
| Commodity Classification System | 3 |
| Customs Valuation System | 3 |
| Customs Appraisal and Assessment | 3 |
| Excise Taxes, Liquidation of Duty and Surcharges | 5 |
| Special Duties and Trade Remedies | 3 |
| International Trade Organizations, Agreements and Rules of Origin | 5 |
| Competency Assessment in Tariff Management | 5 |
These subjects map closely onto the actual coverage of the Customs Broker Licensure Examination, which is why the professional core reads more like exam prep than a typical business major.
Does BS Customs Administration Require an Internship?
Yes. CMO 30 requires at least 300 hours of internship/practicum, worth 3 units, split into two placements: a minimum of 150 hours with a licensed customs brokerage firm and a minimum of 150 hours in a related field placement. In practice, students commonly complete this at customs brokerage firms, freight forwarders, or directly at the Bureau of Customs, giving them exposure to real cargo clearance and documentation work before graduating.
What Is the Customs Broker Licensure Examination?
The Customs Brokers Licensure Examination (CBLE) is administered by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) through the Professional Regulatory Board for Customs Brokers, open to Filipino citizens who graduated from a CHED-recognized BSCA program and are of good moral character with no convictions involving moral turpitude. The exam covers customs laws and regulations, tariff laws and duties, principles of customs administration, and practical brokerage applications.
Passing rates have swung noticeably year to year:
| Exam Period | Passing Rate | Examinees |
|---|---|---|
| November 2025 | 72.71% | 2,238 of 3,078 passed |
| November 2024 | 44% | of 2,871 takers |
| 2023 | 57% | of 2,767 takers |
That range, from under half to nearly three-quarters passing across three consecutive cycles, is a reminder that CBLE difficulty and outcomes are not stable from year to year — don't anchor expectations to a single recent result.
Disclaimer: passing rates and exam coverage can change each cycle. Verify the current schedule and requirements directly with PRC before applying to take the exam.
How Much Does BS Customs Administration Tuition Cost?
Tuition for BSCA generally falls within the broader private-university business program range in the Philippines, commonly cited around ₱30,000 to ₱150,000 per semester depending on the school's tier and location, with business and management-adjacent programs like BSCA often priced in the ₱50,000 to ₱100,000 per semester range at mid-tier private schools. State universities and colleges under the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act charge little to nothing in tuition. Schools known for offering BSCA include Lyceum of the Philippines University, Adamson University, and Emilio Aguinaldo College, alongside several customs-brokerage-focused colleges. Always confirm the current published rate with the school directly.
What Jobs Can a BSCA Graduate Get?
Licensed Customs Brokers can practice independently, work for freight forwarding and logistics companies, or handle import/export compliance for trading firms, while BSCA graduates who have not yet passed the CBLE commonly start as customs documentation clerks, declarants, or logistics support staff, some of them at the Bureau of Customs itself. The degree's narrow, exam-aligned curriculum makes it a fairly direct pipeline into the customs brokerage and international trade compliance industry rather than a broad general-business credential.
How Much Do Customs Brokers Earn?
Salary data for customs brokers varies sharply by source, more so than most professions covered in our program guides. Jobstreet's job-posting-based salary tool shows average advertised Customs Broker pay mostly in the ₱22,000 to ₱25,000 per month range depending on region, while compensation trackers like PayScale and SalaryExpert report considerably higher annual total-compensation figures for licensed, experienced brokers, likely reflecting a smaller, higher-earning sample of self-employed or senior brokers rather than typical entry-level pay. Given that spread, treat any single number as a starting point and check current job postings for your specific target role and employer rather than relying on one source.
Disclaimer: compensation figures vary widely by source, employer, and experience level. Confirm current pay expectations with actual job postings or PRC-registered brokerage firms.
Is BS Customs Administration Right for You?
Before committing to BSCA, weigh these questions:
- Do you want a licensed profession with a defined national exam? BSCA leads directly to the CBLE; if you want that structure rather than a broad, unlicensed business degree, it fits.
- Are you comfortable with year-to-year board exam volatility? With pass rates swinging from 44% to nearly 73% across recent cycles, budget for the possibility of a retake and factor that into your review center planning.
- Have you looked at logistics and trade industry demand in your target region? Customs brokerage and freight forwarding demand tracks with a region's port and trade activity, so check local hiring patterns before committing.
- Is your school's internship placement network strong? Since 300 internship hours must include actual brokerage-firm placement, ask prospective schools about their partner brokerage firms and Bureau of Customs ties before enrolling.
Ready to find the right school? Browse schools or compare tuition and programs across hundreds of Philippine schools on SchoolFinderPH.
Sources
- CHED CMO No. 30, s. 2021 — Policies, Standards, and Guidelines for BS Customs Administration (official)
- CHED Regional Office III — National Public Orientation on CMO No. 30, s. 2021
- FEU Public Policy Center — CMO No. 30, s. 2021 Summary
- PRC — November 2025 Customs Brokers Licensure Examination Results
- PortCalls Asia — 44% Pass Customs Broker Licensure Exam (November 2024)
- PortCalls Asia — More Than 57% Pass Customs Broker Exam, Highest Passing Rate Yet (2023)
- Jobstreet — Customs Broker Salary in Philippines
- SchoolFinderPH — In-Demand Courses in the Philippines
- SchoolFinderPH — Highest-Paying Courses in the Philippines
