Douane (French customs)
| Direction Générale des Douanes et Droits Indirects | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1791 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of France |
| Headquarters | 11, Rue des Deux Communes, Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis, France |
| Minister responsible |
|
| Website | www.douane.gouv.fr |
The Directorate-General of Customs and Indirect Taxes (French: Direction générale des douanes et droits indirects, DGDDI), commonly known as les douanes, is a French law enforcement agency responsible for levying indirect taxes, preventing smuggling, surveilling borders and investigating counterfeit money. The agency acts as a coast guard, border guard, sea rescue organisation and a customs service. In addition, since 1995, the agency has replaced the Border Police in carrying out immigration control at smaller border checkpoints, in particular at maritime borders and regional airports.
The Directorate-general is controlled by the Minister for the Budget, Public Accounts and the Civil Service (French: Ministère du Budget, des Comptes publics et de la Fonction publique) at the Ministry of the Economy, Industry and Employment. It is normally known simply as "la douane", individual officers being referred to as "douaniers". It is an armed service.
The first French customs service was called the General Firm (French: Ferme générale) and operated under the monarchy. The General Firm was a private company which bought each year the right to collect taxes. After the Revolution, the General Firm was dismantled and the French Customs, as a State service were created. Shortly after the instauration of Empire, the Customs gained a military status. Some personnels were affected in bureaux (port or office-based staff who were tasked to apply customs measures to the goods entering and leaving France), others in brigades (mobile detachments organized and equipped to patrol the borders and arrest smugglers).
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