Customs clarifies status of shortlisted candidates awaiting training invitations

The Nigeria Customs Service has clarified that candidates whose names appeared on its recruitment list are not yet guaranteed appointments, as final screening and verification are still ongoing ahead of their admission for training.

The clarification comes after some shortlisted applicants expressed concern over delays in receiving invitations for the basic training programme scheduled to begin on Friday, October 9, 2026.

Some of the affected candidates reportedly completed the Computer-Based Test, physical examination and initial screening, and said they had accepted appointments through the official recruitment portal after seeing their names on the published list.

However, more than 500 applicants reportedly said they had not received training invitations after the issuance of invitations stopped on Monday. Some claimed they had resigned from their previous jobs and incurred other expenses after believing they had secured positions with the service.

But the Customs spokesman, Deputy Comptroller Abdullahi Maiwada, said appearing on the published list does not amount to a final appointment.

Maiwada explained that candidates must still satisfy the service’s eligibility, medical, academic and character requirements before they can proceed to training and eventual commissioning.

“The essence of screening is either for candidates to be screened in or screened out,” he said, adding that applicants who fail to meet the required criteria would be dropped.

According to him, issues including age, inconsistencies or forgery in academic credentials, drug use and certain medical conditions could disqualify candidates at the screening stage.

He stressed that even candidates admitted into the training college would not immediately become Customs officers, as they must complete the programme and pass the required academic, physical and character assessments before they can be commissioned.

“The fact that your name came out and you are invited for screening doesn’t qualify you to be a Customs officer,” Maiwada said.

He said the service was carrying out the checks to avoid wasting public resources on candidates who did not meet basic requirements.

Maiwada also highlighted drug screening as a major part of the recruitment process, noting that serving Customs officers undergo annual drug tests regardless of rank.

The recruitment exercise, which began with an advertisement published on December 27, 2024, attracted 573,680 applications for 3,927 advertised vacancies across the Superintendent, Inspectorate and Customs Assistant cadres.

Following several stages of screening and verification, 3,852 candidates were shortlisted, comprising 1,275 Superintendents, 367 Inspectors and 2,210 Customs Assistants.

The service subsequently conducted medical documentation and physical screening before inviting candidates who passed the required stages for basic training scheduled to commence on October 9, 2026, at the Customs Training College.

The latest clarification means that shortlisted candidates who have yet to receive training invitations may still be undergoing further verification and are not automatically entitled to final appointment or admission into the training programme.