Is your business diligent about ensuring that all newly-hired employees are completing their I-9 form upon hire? If not, you could be facing stiff penalties for noncompliance ranging from $110 per I-9 to $3,000 per employee and/or 6 months of imprisonment.
The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) requires all employers to verify the identity and employment authorization of newly-hired employees to work in the United States. Enacted in 1986, it was designed to prohibit the hire of unauthorized workers.
The form has three parts.
- Section 1 requires the newly-hired individual to attest to their eligibility for work. This section must be completed no later than the time of hire.
- In Section 2, employers verify documents that prove an individual’s eligibility to work. This section must be completed within three days of hire. If a person is hired for less than 3 days, it must be completed upon hire. If an employee is unable to present the required documents, a receipt showing that he or she has applied for them will be sufficient for 90 days.
- Section 3 is used to update or re-verify information, as needed.
Forms and additional information are available from the Department of Homeland Security’s website, www.uscis.gov/forms or by calling 1-888-464-4218.
Employers must retain an employee’s completed Form I-9 for as long as the individual works for the employer. Once the individual’s employment has terminated, files must be retained for either three years after the date of hire, or one year after the date employment is terminated, whichever is later. Forms I-9 can be retained either on paper or microform, or electronically.
A good way to ensure compliance is to do an I-9 audit. If you don’t have a document or a process, check with your insurance broker. Full service brokers who provide value-added services will likely have the information you need to audit your records for compliance.