noun · formal
customs
/ˈkʌstəmz/CUS·toms
the government department at a border or airport that checks incoming goods and collects taxes or duties
Examples
“We declared the gifts at customs and paid the duty.”
“There was a long line at customs after the flight.”
“You must complete the customs form before arrival.”
Band 8 sentence
“After a long international flight, the queue at customs was slow because several passengers had undeclared items.”
Collocations
- go through customs
- customs declaration
- customs officer
Word family
Common mistakes
I forgot my custom form.→I forgot my customs form.
We passed immigration and then customs control.→We passed immigration and then customs.
Say it for a higher band
5border→6immigration→7+customs
Synonyms
border control
Easily confused
immigration
“Immigration checked our passports before we collected our baggage.”
Related words
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In Travel & Holidays
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