It is expected the spray will be carried by specially trained officers at the Airport and Harbour as well as when carrying out search warrants at properties.
The move, which is part of a 12-month trial, was signed off in a ministerial decision by Home Affairs Minister Len Norman.
Unlike their police colleagues, who have access to the spray as well as batons, Customs officers are currently only equipped with handcuffs only but are also trained in restraint and communication techniques.
Mark Cockerham, head of the Jersey Customs and Immigration Service, said: ‘We have had a number of physical incidents in the last year and two of those resulted in officers being assaulted.
‘We have been monitoring the situation since then and have now submitted a request to the Home Affairs Minister.
‘We are only looking to consider using this in very limited circumstances, and having the spray will reduce the risk of injury – not only to the officer but also to the other person.
‘It will not be the first option that we go to.’
In recent years, the service has been involved in investigating a number of high-profile cases, such as a plot to smuggle just under £1 million worth of drugs into St Martin on a sailing yacht and an attempted importation of £10 million worth of heroin on a ferry from Poole.
All but two of the eight defendants involved in those unconnected cases received sentences ranging from 12 to 14 years in prison.
Mr Cockerham added: ‘If you look at some of the cases we have been involved in recently the consequences for those individuals that are arrested can be very serious.
‘I think people understand the presence of officers at the ports but, depending on our intelligence, we also deploy officers to the coast, on search warrants at properties around the Island – there are a range of areas where they can be exposed to physical incidents.’
According to the ministerial decision, the move was also taken as a result of the increase in Jersey’s pension age, which will reach 67 by 2031.
It added that having the spray will enable officers to deal with a violent person at arm’s length rather than physically engaging with them.
The report said: ‘Such interactions clearly carry an increased risk of injury to themselves and the individuals being restrained and we are conscious that the increase in the retirement age for officers to 67 means that they are having to remain fit for these physical duties for longer and to an older age.’
PAVA spray is already carried by similar law enforcement agencies in Guernsey and the UK. Equipping Jersey officers with cannisters and holsters is due to cost a total of £2,500.
