Hiring illegal workers would be a costly mistake under proposed bill

Today's post comes from G.Neil's HR News Weekly:

If legislation introduced by the House of Representatives to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act passes, employers would face significantly higher fines for hiring illegal workers. The 10k Run for the Border Act (strange name, we know!) would increase the fines for knowingly hiring or recruiting undocumented workers (or continuing to employ illegal workers despite their undocumented status), as follows:

•    $10,000-$80,000 per violation (currently $250-$2,000)
•    $80,000-$200,000 per violation for employers with a prior violation (currently $2,000-$5,000)
•    $120,000-$1.6 million for repeat offenders (currently a minimum penalty of $3,000 and maximum of $10,000)

In another component of the bill, state or local law enforcement officials who assist in the investigation or prosecution of employers would be entitled to 80 percent of the fines paid by those employers.  It follows that this sort of incentive would increase enforcement.

Check back here for updates on the proposed bill. (It should be noted that prior versions of this bill have been introduced in the past six years, but didn’t advance.)

In the meantime, be certain that you’re up to date on the latest immigration laws, and properly verifying the eligibility of all employees, with our Forms I-9 and other practical tools.

Hiring illegal workers would be a costly mistake under proposed bill

Newly issued Employment Authorization Card now acceptable with Form I-9

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is now issuing employment and travel authorization on a single card for certain applicants filing an Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, Form I-485.

While it looks similar to the current Employment Authorization Document (EAD), the credit card-sized Employment Authorization Card includes new text that serves as both an employment authorization and Advance Parole document. The combination card is also more secure and durable than the paper Advance Parole document.

Employers may accept the new card as a “List A" document to prove the identity and work eligibility of a newly hired employee when completing the Form I-9.

Newly issued Employment Authorization Card now acceptable with Form I-9

That knock on your office door may be Homeland Security

In a move that disturbed many employers, but surprised few, Homeland Security has indicated that they are stepping up inspections and enforcement for I-9 Form violations.

You remember I-9 Forms, right?  Those fun "prove to me you're allowed to work in the U.S. even though you were born in Queens, and have a Brooklyn accent and I've lived next door to your Aunt all my life" forms? The ones where employers get to look over bad driver's license picture and even worse Passport pictures and try and decipher crumpled birth certificates? Yeah, those forms.

Well, according to the people who create and enforce that kind of thing, those forms and the supporting documentation are no laughing matter, and they intend to prove it to you with a big boost in random door-knocking and file-reviewing.

So what is an employer to do? You could just hope that the only knocks on your door are from customers, Candygram delivery people and whoever it is who's giving out those oversized checks and balloons these days. Or you could:

1) Make sure the I-9 Forms you're using are the right ones.  There have been several changes to the I-9 over the past few years, so check the version number and date on yours.

2) Review your I-9 files. Make sure you have completed I-9's on file for all current and past employees for the required record retention period. That includes temps, too.

3) Make sure you have not violated I-9 rules by copying documents, requiring too many types of documents, or accepting disallowed types of documents as verification for work-eligibility.

4) Keep all of your I-9 forms in a separate file or binder to allow for quick and easy inspection should your business come under the auditor's review.

5) Get a good guide to the I-9 Form and the I-9 audit process. This could be a trustworthy and up-to-date employment law book or the advice of your employment law attorney.

6) Designate one person in your business to keep track of I-9 changes, requirements and record retention.

If you're on top of the rules, and current with your I-9 records, an audit shouldn't be any problem. And who knows -- the next knock after that could be a Candygram!

Posted via email from G-Neil's Posterous

That knock on your office door may be Homeland Security

New passport card acceptable in Form I-9 process

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is informing the public that the new U.S. Passport Card may be used to verify employment eligibility in the Form I-9 process.

The new passport card was created as a less expensive and more portable alternative to the traditional passport book. Its purpose is to speed up document processing at U.S. land and sea ports of entry for U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda.

While the card may not be used for international air travel, it is a valid passport certifying U.S. citizenship and the card holder’s identity. The new passport card may be used to verify work eligibility in the Form I-9 process and employers participating in the E-Verify program.

The passport card is classified under “List A” documents to prove the identity and work eligibility of a newly hired employee when completing the I-9 form. Review the lists of acceptable and unacceptable documents new hires may use to verify work eligibility.

In related news, the House of Representatives passed the Employee Verification Amendment Act of 2008 on July 31, that would extend the federal E-Verify program for five years.

The act includes a provision that would authorize two Government Accountability Office studies to investigate the impact of the program on small businesses.

The bill continues through to the Senate, but no action is expected until September when legislators return from their August recess.

Read more about the E-Verify extension.

New passport card acceptable in Form I-9 process

The new I-9 form is the old I-9 form

Word has come down from the USCIS that the old I-9 form (one with a revision date of 06/05/07 or later and any expiration date) is still valid for the foreseeable future. That includes forms with an expiration date that has already passed. Nothing except the date has changed on the form. There is no impact on compliance.

The new form, with an expiration date of 06/30/09, is now available via download on the GNeil site. The printed and punched paper forms with the new expiration date will be available shortly.

In the meantime, you may continue to use the old I-9 forms, even if they say they have expired. We will continue selling the older fully compliant version as we await the new forms.

The new I-9 form is the old I-9 form

Tracking the I-9 changes

The I-9 saga continues, with this information just in...

The DHS has issued a new version of the I-9 with a new expiration date. However older versions with earlier expiration dates are still valid as long as they have a revision date of 6/5/07 or later.

On Thursday, we first reported on this change. The USCIS site had indicated a mandatory change effectively immediately, then dropped part of that mandate after business hours yesterday. Today, further changes have been made to the site, but still no official statement has been issued.

We are following the changes on the government's sites, talking with agency officials and watching for official press releases or Federal Register postings. We will continue to track all sources until an official press statement is released, and will bring you all the latest information as we receive it.

Tracking the I-9 changes

Update to I-9 form effective immediately

Breaking news and a revised message!

Yesterday, the Federal government announced a revision to the standard I-9 form effective immediately. The old form, which was to expire on 06/30/08 had been replaced by a new revision. Now it appears that there may be some modifications on the way.

Initially, the USCIS website stated that the old form would no longer be accepted as of 6/16/08, even though it was not expected to expire until the end of the month. Today there is an apparent reversal on that site which may indicate that the old form is valid through its initial expiration date, or that both the old and new forms will be valid for some period of time.

We will keep you posted as changes appear in the Federal Register.

At this point, there are no substantive changes to the form. Only the dates of revision and expiration have been updated, so employers do not need to alter current procedures for gathering applicant information, retaining forms, or verifying documentation.

Given the expiration date of 06/30/08 on the old forms, businesses and agencies Should use the most up to date forms. As always, current and valid versions will be available from GNeil in both hard copy and downloadable formats.

Update to I-9 form effective immediately