Ballpoint pens were made 'official issue' in the early 1960s. After the initial issue of one per person, they were only replaced on the return of the exhausted one.

OWO 35/1964, item 14, announced that the Board of HMC&E '. . . decided that officially provided black ballpoint pens may in future be used for all official documents and records. Officially provided red ballpoint pens may, as previously notified, be used for checking duties only. Ballpoint pens of other colours must not be used for official purposes unless specially authorised.''

Non-retractable versions with a 'pocket clip', and retractable versions were later supplied to officers whose duties required them.

Before the introduction of the Clearway System - 'Red & Green' - Coloured Chalk was used in the Baggage Halls to mark cleared bags so as to indicate to the Assistant Preventive Officers on duty at the exits which bags had been seen, and cleared by the Preventive Officers manning the baggage benches. The colour of the chalk was varied each day.

Sealing wax was used to make wax seals. A brass seal was impressed into the hot wax which when covering the cork in a bottle, the knot in a piece of string or tape tied between two hasps, or around a paper parcel, or through two holes drilled in a door and door jam, made a secure, but fragile if tampered with, security barrier.

The first Customs flag had been introduced by Royal Proclamation in 1694. Between 1815 and 1817, when the Royal Navy operated the Revenue fleet, Customs vessels flew a Red Ensign with a yellow crown above an eight-pointed yellow star with the letters CH in a red circle, while the Excise vessels flew a Blue Ensign with a similar badge except that the star was white and blue and the letters EX.

In 1822 the United Kingdom Board of Customs and Excise, formed by merging the English Board of Customs, English Board of Excise, Scots Board of Customs, Scots Board of Excise and Irish Board of Customs and Excise, took over responsibility for the Revenue Cruisers.

In 1864, by an Order in Council, Blue replaced Red as the colour of the ensigns of 'all vessels employed in the service of any public office'. Customs changed over to a Blue Ensign with crown, which was also flown ashore on Custom Houses. The Customs were authorised by the Admiralty to have their 'small blue flag', in the form of a swallow-tail flown from the mast. It came to be used to indicate that a Waterguard Superintendent or higher Customs Officer was on board a vessel flying it.

In 1949 the crown and portcullis badge was introduced at the request of Customs and Excise, who wanted a more distinctive badge than that used by other government departments of the time.