On Wednesday, November 7, 2007, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services released a revised Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9), which is now available for use. While employers may start using the form immediately, it will officially become effective when posted in the federal register at a later date.
Click here to download the revised I-9 Form.
Purpose
The Immigration Reform and Control Act made all U.S. employers responsible to verify the employment eligibility and identity of all employees hired to work in the United States after November 6, 1986. To implement the law, employers are required to complete Employment Eligibility Verification forms (Form I-9) for all employees, including U.S. citizens.
For Who Must Employers Complete Form I-9?
Every U.S. employer must have a Form I-9 in its files for each new employee, unless:
1) The employee was hired before November 7, 1986, and has been continuously employed by the same employer;
2) The employee provides domestic services in a private household that are sporadic, irregular, or intermittent;
3) The individual provides services for the employer as an independent contractor (i.e. carry on independent business, contract to do a piece of work according to their own means and methods and are subject to control only as to results for whom the employer does not set work hours or provide necessary tools to do the job, or whom the employer does not have authority to hire and fire); and
4) Those individuals who provide services for the employer, under a contract, subcontract, or exchange entered into after November 6, 1986.
What Should Be Done With Forms I-9 After They Are Completed?
Unlike tax forms, for example, I-9 forms are not filed with the U.S. government. The requirement is for employers to maintain I-9 records in its own files for 3 years after the date of hire or 1 year after the date the employee's employment is terminated, whichever is later. This means that Forms I-9 need to be retained for all current employees, as well as terminated employees whose records remain within the retention period. Form I-9 records may be stored at the worksite to which they relate or at a company headquarters (or other) location, but the storage choice must make it possible for the documents to be transmitted to the worksite within 3 days of an official request for production of the documents for inspection.
EMPLOYEE'S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING FORM I-9. A new employee must complete Section 1 of a Form I-9 no later than close of business on his/her first day of work. The employee’s signature holds him/her responsible for the accuracy of the information provided. The employer is responsible for ensuring that the employee completes Section 1 in full. No documentation from the employee is required to substantiate Section 1 information provided by the employee.
EMPLOYER’S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING FORM I-9. The employer is responsible for ensuring completion of the entire form. No later than close of business on the employee’s third day of employment services, the employer must complete section 2 of the Form I-9. The employer must review documentation presented by the employee and record the document information on the form.
Proper documentation establishes both that the employee is authorized to work in the U.S. and that the employee who presents the employment authorization document is the person to whom it was issued. The employer should supply to the employee the official list of acceptable documents for establishing identity and work eligibility. The employer may accept any List A document, establishing both identity and work eligibility, or combination of a List B document (establishing identity) and List C document (establishing work eligibility), that the employee chooses from the list to present (the documentation presented is not required to substantiate information provided in Section 1). The employer must examine the document(s) and accept them if they reasonably appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee who presents them. Requesting more or different documentation than the minimum necessary to meet this requirement may constitute an unfair immigration-related employment practice. If the documentation presented by an employee does not reasonably appear to be genuine or relate to the employee who presents them, employers must refuse acceptance and ask for other documentation from the list of acceptable documents that meets the requirements. An employer should not continue to employ an employee who cannot present documentation that meets the requirements.
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