The Department of Homeland Security made some moves in July that reflect a continued shift toward investigating employer -- not illegal-immigrant -- violations. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has announced hundreds of planned company audits and continues to make efforts to enhance the E-Verify system.
By Anne Freedman, HR Executive Online
Never an easy problem to begin with, immigration compliance continues to be ever more complex and difficult.
Just this month, the Department of Homeland Security announced it would rescind its No-Match rule, which required the Social Security Administration to notify employers when employee Social Security numbers do not match data in the SSA database.
The rule, which actually never went into effect after the filing of a lawsuit challenging it, required employers to act to correct any discrepancies with the SSA information.
Within days of that decision, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is part of DHS, also revealed it planned to audit more than 600 employers to ensure compliance with hiring laws.
And, about the same time, DHS announced it would require the use of E-Verify screening for all federal contractors and recipients of bailout funds by Sept. 8. That's another initiative that had been long-delayed by a lawsuit.
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Monday, July 20, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
USCIS issues guidance on the Form I-9's expiration date
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced June 26, 2009, that the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification (Rev. 02/02/09) will continue to be valid for use beyond June 30, 2009. USCIS has requested that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approve the continued use of the current version of the form. While this request is pending, the Form I-9 will not expire, said the agency. USCIS will provide an update when the extension is approved. Employers will be able to use either the Form I-9 with the new revision date or the Form I-9 with the 02/02/09 revision date at the bottom of the form. For more information on the Form I-9, please visit: http://www.uscis.gov/i-9.
Pursuant to the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, all employers, agricultural recruiters and referrers for a fee are required to verify the identity and employment authorization of each individual they hire for employment in the United States, regardless of that individual's citizenship. As part of the verification process, employers and employees must complete the Form I-9, with employers retaining the form for a statutorily established period of time (three years after the employee's date of hire or one year after the date that employment is discharged) and make the form available for inspection for certain government officials.
The documents designated as acceptable for the Form I-9 are divided among three lists: List A—documents that establish both identity and employment authorization; List B—documents that establish only identity; and List C—documents that establish only employment authorization. Many work authorization documents must be renewed on or before their expiration date, requiring the Form I-9 to be updated. This process is called reverification. The Department of Homeland Security recommends using a "tickler" system to keep track of employees with documents of limited-duration work authorization.
USCIS issued a reminder that effective April 3, 2009, all US employers are required to use the revised Form I-9. The revised Form I-9 reflects changes made to the list of documents acceptable for the form pursuant to an interim rule (http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-29874.pdf) issued in the Federal Register. The interim rule narrowed the list of acceptable identity documents and further specifies that expired documents are not considered acceptable forms of identification. (www.uscis.gov.)
Pursuant to the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, all employers, agricultural recruiters and referrers for a fee are required to verify the identity and employment authorization of each individual they hire for employment in the United States, regardless of that individual's citizenship. As part of the verification process, employers and employees must complete the Form I-9, with employers retaining the form for a statutorily established period of time (three years after the employee's date of hire or one year after the date that employment is discharged) and make the form available for inspection for certain government officials.
The documents designated as acceptable for the Form I-9 are divided among three lists: List A—documents that establish both identity and employment authorization; List B—documents that establish only identity; and List C—documents that establish only employment authorization. Many work authorization documents must be renewed on or before their expiration date, requiring the Form I-9 to be updated. This process is called reverification. The Department of Homeland Security recommends using a "tickler" system to keep track of employees with documents of limited-duration work authorization.
USCIS issued a reminder that effective April 3, 2009, all US employers are required to use the revised Form I-9. The revised Form I-9 reflects changes made to the list of documents acceptable for the form pursuant to an interim rule (http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-29874.pdf) issued in the Federal Register. The interim rule narrowed the list of acceptable identity documents and further specifies that expired documents are not considered acceptable forms of identification. (www.uscis.gov.)
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