The Customs Department was founded when Singapore was the British Empire's Straits Settlements and later Crown Colony.

Established in 1910 under the name Government Monopolies Department, Customs is one of the oldest tax-collecting organisations in modern Singapore to increase the country's state coffers to help fund national programmes.

Effective 1 January 2012, compressed natural gas (CNG) for motor vehicles is subject to tax and excise duty.

The department's responsibilities in securing Singapore's future are affected by worldwide globalization, market forces and changes in laws, tariffs, trading and traveling trends.

[2] On 15 November 2019, the new Customs Operations Command building was officially opened at Bulim Drive off Jalan Bahar in Jurong West.