The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has
approved a final rule that it hopes will improve the Employment
Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) process employers use to verify
the identifies of newly hired employees and their authorization to
work in the United States.
The final rule, which takes effect May 16, adopts an interim rule
that included the following changes to previous rules, according to
a USCIS press release:
- Prohibit employers from accepting expired documents;
- Revising the list of acceptable documents by removing outdated documents and making technical amendments; and
- Adding documentation applicable to certain citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Employers are required to complete a Form I-9 for all newly
hired workers to verify their status. According to the USCIS, the
list of acceptable documents that employees may present to verify
their identity and employment authorization is divided into three
sections: List A documents, which show identity and employment
authorization; List B documents, which show identity only; and List
C documents, which show employment authorization only.
The final rule will be published in the Federal Register April 15
and will be available at
www.uscis.gov. Employers may continue to use the current
version of the Form I-9 (Rev. 08/07/2009) or the previous version
(Rev. 02/02/2009). The Handbook for Employers, Instructions for
Completing the Form I-9 (M-274) was updated on Jan. 5, 2011, and is
available for review at
www.uscis.gov/files/form/m-274.pdf.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
