Customs officers to get guns

Customs officers will soon carry guns in Australian airports.

The move to issue Customs and Border Protection Service officers with personal defensive equipment, including guns, is part of changes to the structure of the agency guarding Australia's entry points.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said equipping officers with weapons would add an extra layer of deterrence at Australia's borders.

"People smugglers, transnational crime gangs and narcotic traffickers should be under no illusion," he said in a statement on Tuesday.

"This government is serious about border protection."

Customs and Border Protection will be transformed into the Australian Border Force from July 2015.