Australian Border Force Flag

History

English law has required customs vessels to display a unique flag since at least 1784. The first known Australian customs flag was the New South Wales Customs House Ensign from 1832, recorded in that colony’s code of signals. It was a British Red Ensign with a gold crown above the letters “CH” in the fly. A later New South Wales Customs Colonial Flag, defined by a regulation in the NSW Government Gazette on 12 May 1882, specified a red English ensign with a white cross—like the white ensign but with reversed colors—and the letters “CH” in the lower outer quarter, plus a red pendant.

After federation, the Customs Act 1901 required a customs flag. The first flag under this act, gazetted on 1 October 1901, was a Blue Ensign with the bold letters “HMC” and the word “Australia” in the fly. In 1903, the flag switched from a defaced British blue ensign to a defaced Australian blue ensign. An order in Council on 16 June 1904 removed the word “AUSTRALIA.” The flag changed again in 1908 when the Commonwealth Star gained an extra point. On 1 January 1988, “HMC” was replaced by “CUSTOMS” via an amendment published on 17 December 1987.

When the Australian Border Force took over customs functions on 1 July 2015, the regulations replaced “CUSTOMS” with “AUSTRALIAN BORDER FORCE.” However, a flag seen flying at an ABF building on 17 July 2015 lacked the word “AUSTRALIAN.” The current flag is the Australian National Flag with “AUSTRALIAN BORDER FORCE” in bold between the Commonwealth Star and the lower part of the Southern Cross. It was adopted by regulations effective 1 July 2015. This flag is flown on Australian Border Force vessels and sometimes on ABF buildings, and any vessel acting in a customs capacity must fly it.