About Careertakes

👉 Important disclosure: Careertakes is a third-party recruiting platform supporting this hiring process. If selected, you will be employed directly by a confidential client in federal law enforcement (border security).

Applicants for this role may also receive access to additional matched opportunities through the Careertakes platform.

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What You’ll Do

As a Border Patrol Agent (entry-level), you will join a federal law enforcement team focused on protecting the nation’s borders and preventing illegal entry and smuggling. Typical responsibilities include:

• Detecting, questioning, and inspecting people suspected of violating immigration and customs laws
• Conducting surveillance (including night operations using specialized equipment)
• Interpreting tracks, marks, and physical evidence of illegal entry
• Performing farm checks, building checks, traffic checks, city patrols, and transportation checks
• Patrolling boundaries and waterways using vehicles, horses, watercraft, ATVs, motorcycles, and other assets
• Making arrests and using sound judgment in the application of force after required training

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Salary & Benefits

• Annual base salary for newly appointed agents (GL-5 / GL-7): $51,632 – $92,912 per year.
• Recruitment incentive: up to $20,000 (first $10,000 after academy completion; remaining $10,000 for accepting prioritized locations).
• Retention incentive: up to $40,000 distributed over the first four years (may apply).
• Additional pay: locality and law-enforcement pay adjustments may apply; some fully trained agents may qualify for up to an additional ~25% of base pay under pay reform provisions.
• Federal benefits package including health, dental, leave accrual, and participation in the Thrift Savings Plan (federal retirement/savings).

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Locations & Assignments

• Duty assignments may include the Southwest Border and other mission-critical sectors across multiple states; relocation may be required.
• At the time of offer, assignments are made based on operational needs and may not match first-choice preferences.
• Examples of mission-critical sectors (non-exhaustive): Big Bend, Del Rio, El Paso, Laredo, Rio Grande Valley, San Diego, Tucson, and Yuma sectors — including many rural and prioritized locations. (Prioritized locations may be eligible for additional incentives.)

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Qualifications

You may qualify at GL-5 if you have one of the following:

• One (1) year of general work experience showing ability to take charge, make sound decisions, learn regulations and methods, and gather concise information through questioning and observation; OR
• A bachelor’s degree (four-year course of study) from an accredited institution; OR
• A combination of experience and education (evaluated from your resume and transcripts).

You may qualify at GL-7 if you have one of the following:

• One (1) year of specialized work experience demonstrating abilities such as safe firearms judgment, courteous and tactful law enforcement interactions, rapid information analysis, and prompt decision-making in law enforcement contexts; OR
• A bachelor’s degree with superior academic achievement (class standing, GPA ≥ 3.0, or honor society) OR one year of related graduate-level study; OR
• A combination of specialized experience and education (evaluated from your resume and transcripts).

Note: Applicants with prior federal or military law enforcement experience may qualify at higher grade levels (GL-9 / GS-11). Experience and education will be reviewed during application.

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Other Requirements

• U.S. citizenship is required.
• Must have had primary U.S. residency for at least three of the last five years.
• Age: Candidates must be referred for selection before their 40th birthday under federal law enforcement retirement rules, unless an exception applies (e.g., prior covered federal law enforcement service or specific veterans’ exceptions).
• Veterans’ preference and certain veterans’ hiring paths may apply.
• Must pass a thorough background investigation and meet medical, physical fitness, and training requirements.

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Training & Career Progression

• New hires are detailed to a federal law enforcement training academy (approx. six months) for instruction in immigration and nationality law, driving, physical techniques, firearms, and other operational training.
• Language requirement: Ability to speak and read Spanish is valuable. Training is provided to improve Spanish language proficiency where needed.
• Career-ladder progression: GL-5 → GL-7 → GL-9 → GS-11 → GS-12. Promotions to the next grade are typically available after successful completion of required time-in-grade (e.g., 52 weeks at each level) without reapplying.

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How You’ll Be Evaluated

• Applications are reviewed based on resume, supporting documents (transcripts where applicable), and entrance examinations as required by the job announcement.
• Required materials and instructions will be provided through the application system; follow all guidance in the official job announcement.

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Equal Opportunity & Hiring Transparency

Careertakes and our client are Equal Opportunity Employers committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We prohibit discrimination or harassment of any kind. To support a fair and efficient hiring process, AI tools may be used to assist with application review or resume screening. These tools do not replace human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are made by people.

If you have questions about how your data is used, please contact us directly.