The Institute of Customs and International Trade Law was evolved from the collaboration of the AWA Außenwirtschafts-Akademie GmbH (Foreign Trade Academy) and the former Department of Customs and Excise, which formed part of the Institute of Tax Law at the University of Muenster. Since October 2016 the Institute of Customs and International Trade Law is a separate Institute of the University of Muenster.
The former Department of Customs and Excise was created in 1995 with the aim of promoting research into customs-related topics of both national and international importance as well as raising the profile of customs within the law faculty and business school.