Going through a Customs inspection at an airport is not an unpleasant experience for most passengers. But for individuals with disabilities, who are travelling with small children or who do not speak the language, it can be a frustrating process.

Nor is it easy for Customs officers, who have to ensure that all passengers stay calm and understand the information and instructions given to them. Language is often a barrier to clear communication, as are disabilities, such as hearing or visual impairments.

With this in mind, the Finnish Customs Administration started working on a project at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport to enhance the experience of passengers with specific needs.

The need to find new ways to communicate information to passengers was identified as especially crucial to enforce regulations on the importation of food products, including the prohibition on imports of pork and wild boar meat products to prevent the spread of African Swine Fever, a devastating infectious disease of pigs.

Finnish Customs officers based at airports are on the look-out for meat products transported by any passengers, whether they are arriving from a European Union (EU) country or from outside the EU. Moreover, for passengers arriving from outside the EU there are additional restrictions on products such as fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as milk and milk products.

Even if many passengers are not aware of the regulations, most can still understand the information given to them on arrival. However, some may not understand information provided to them in Finnish, in Swedish or in English. In such cases, controls are often a source of stress for both the passengers and the Customs officers responsible for incoming passenger controls.

To improve the passenger experience, facilitate interaction and ease the work of Customs officers, the Finnish Customs Administration initiated a project with the Finnish Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. After some discussion, it was decided to produce a series of drawings to explain the inspection process and prohibition of certain food items.

The drawings are used by officers conducting inspections and providing customer services. They reported a positive impact on the attitude of individuals who had food items seized, and appreciated being able to refer to the drawings when questions were raised.

Finnish Customs had identified other issues which needed to be addressed to ensure that controls were conducted in accordance with fundamental human rights and to promote the voluntary compliance of all passengers. Individuals with illnesses or disabilities, as well as passengers travelling with children, were identified as having specific needs. To better understand those needs and create an environment that was “suitable for all”, the Administration invited various non-governmental organizations and advocacy groups to join a pilot project.

An enthusiastic group of organizations responded in the affirmative, including the Finnish Hearing Association, the Finnish Federation of the Visually Impaired, the Guide Dog School, the Finnish Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, the Lahti Institute of Design, the Office of the Non-Discrimination Ombudsman, the National Child Strategy of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Carers Finland, VALLI – the Finnish Union for Senior Services, Finavia and Save the Children Finland.

A consulting agency was hired to manage the project. Walks through the airport were organized with representatives of all organizations involved to enable them to understand the airport environment and enforcement-related activities. Based on their input, a number of recommendations were drawn up.

The pilot project includes several initiatives which are conducted simultaneously. They each try to cater for passengers with specific needs.

For the hearing impaired, audio induction loop systems have been installed, allowing hearing aid users to simply switch their hearing aids over to ‘T’ or “telecoil’ mode, which picks up a much clearer sound from the speakers at the airport. A system emitting sound beacons is also used to guide passengers to the Customs’ customer service points. Tests are also going to be carried out on an app enabling Customs officers to translate what they say into Finnish sign language.

For people with visual impairments, a tactile ground surface indicator, or guidance strip,  will be installed in the channel used to declare goods before exiting the arrival area. One inspection post is to be tailored to respond to the needs of the hearing impaired and to customers in wheelchairs. As for the elderly, the facility will soon be equipped with a voice amplification device and special chairs.

Two more initiatives are in the pipeline: a training course is soon to be launched for airport personnel explaining how to interact with people with disabilities and specific needs, and a university PhD student will be conducting research into how to build an airport environment that is suitable for everyone.

To respond to the needs of individuals with children, Finnish Customs has created a children’s area inside the inspection area where children can entertain themselves. Parents, guardians or accompanying persons can still look after their children while interacting with Customs officers. The children remain calm, as they are occupied, which helps make the inspection easier and faster. The feedback from the children and their parents has been heart-warming.

The project was awarded Finland’s Kaiku Grand Prize, and the Finland State Treasury granted Finnish Customs 10,000 euro in funding to continue developing innovative and new ways of working.

Finnish Customs will continue to work with the interest groups involved in these initiatives to ensure control processes take into account the needs of all individuals at the airport, and at other Customs offices where possible. Making airport inspections “suitable for everyone” is an ambitious target, but the Administration believes it can be reached if all parties work together.

More information
nadja.painokallio@tulli.fi