Immigration and firm news

New Form I-9 Videos Posted by USCIS

USCIS has released some new instructional videos to help employers and their employees properly complete Form I-9s at time of hire. Since the passage of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), it has been the law every employer must document on Form I-9 the work permission status of employees hired since November 6, 1986. The law applies to the hiring of US citizens as well. Employers are subject to audit (Notices of Intent to Inspect) that can result in fines for failure to complete I-9s, failure to properly complete I-9s and for “knowingly hiring unauthorized workers.” In egregious cases, employers can be prosecuted for “patterns or practices of knowingly hiring unauthorized workers.” In addition, employers are prevented from discriminating against employees on the basis of national origin or citizenship status except in limited circumstances.

A few good resources for employers include:
1) Form I-9 and instructions. For more comprehensive information, see I-9 Central 2) M274 Handbook for Employers
3) Immigration and Custom Enforcement ‘s (ICE) list of potential penalties. ICE conducts I-9 inspections. (Scroll down for the chart.)
4) Examples of high profile penalties/settlement agreements (ICE press releases) (Scroll down)
5) Preventing anti-discrimination and best practices from the US Department of Justice, Office of Special Counsel

The first USCIS video explains how the employee should properly complete the top part of Form I-9:

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The second USCIS video explains how the employer should complete Part 2 of the I-9:

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USCIS video number three covers recertification or reverification for re-hires and the newest I-9:

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An earlier USCIS video discusses why half a million companies are using E-Verify, the government’s FREE online database to verify the information on I-9s. Nationally, E-Verify is voluntary for employers except for certain federal contractors, employers in states with mandatory E-Verify, and employers with I-9 penalty agreements requiring use of E-Verify. The government is touting its half-a-million-employer use of E-Verify. Whether an employer should jump on the bandwagon depends on a number of issues. But, the first thing to do is review the Memorandum of Understanding that would be signed in exchange for the privilege of using E-Verify.

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Lastly, employees should check out these resources if they anticipate needing to complete an I-9 form. There is an E-Verify self-check, plus information about how to complete I-9s, what to do if E-Verify spits out a “tentative non-confirmation,” and information on employee rights.

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