E-Verify & I-9 News

Electronic Form I-9 Management Software with E-Verify Improves Compliance with Employment and Immigration Laws

The paper Form I-9 process has always been error-prone and hard to centralize. Form I-9 management software can store, manage, and submit employee I-9 information electronically to the Federal databases in a fraction of the time it takes HR personnel to process paper forms. Some paperless Form I-9  management systems, including Tracker I-9™, are integrated with E-Verify, allowing employers to submit information about new hires to government databases instantly and securely in real time.

Using Form I-9 management software with E-Verify features, organizations faced with the task of including E-Verify in their new hire on-boarding process can simplify their work and conduct all tasks with only one password and user interface to learn.  By automatically filling information from the electronic Form I-9 record to open an E-Verify case, duplicate data entry and subsequent errors can be avoided right from the start. These systems can:

• Offer verification of social security numbers against government databases

• Integrate with a company’s existing office and HR management software

• Have built-in alerts to help employers avoid costly errors and liability from noncompliance

• Catch mistakes commonly made when filling out paper I-9s

In addition to these features, Tracker I-9™:

• Provides automatic notification of immigration status changes requiring I-9 reverification

You can request from Tracker I-9™ A Free Form I-9 and E-Verify HR Toolkit.

Disclaimer: The content of this blog does not constitute direct legal advice and is designed for informational purposes only. Information provided through this website should never replace the need for involving informed counsel on your employment and immigration issues.

The current Congressional authorization for the E-Verify electronic employment eligibility verification for employees expires on November 1, 2008. It seems very likely that Congress will either re-authorize the program or, if it misses the November deadline, will continue to fund E-Verify until a new re-authorizing legislation is passed.  The E-Verify program is expected to continue after November 1.

The U.S. House of Representatives has already passed a bill by a landslide vote of (407-2), re-authorizing E-Verify for another five years. The House bill does not make any substantive changes in the current program and keeps participation voluntary for U.S. employers. The action is now in the U.S. Senate, where Senators have introduced various immigration-related amendments as part of the E-Verify re-authorization.

A number of Senators have signed a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid urging a clean vote on extending E-Verify rather than trying to change the program’s scope at this time, which — they fear — would delay re-authorization.

According to a press release from his Senate office, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) “noted that the comprehensive immigration reform bill Congress debated last year contained an even stronger version of E-Verify for employment verification and mandated all business use the system.  However, Graham noted that even a watered-down version of electronic employment verification, like E-Verify, is better than none at all.”

This means that participation in E-Verify would remain largely voluntary for employers, even though Senator Graham’s home state of South Carolina has passed into law legislation mandating the use of E-Verify for state government contractors and private employers in coming years. Other states have also passed or are considering similar laws. The Bush Administration has proposed that all current and future Federal contractors would also be required to use E-Verify. The implementation of this Federal rule is being debated and may be challenged in court. 

“Congress is running out of time to reauthorize and even enhance E-Verify,” wrote Graham.  “The number of employers relying on the program to hire legal workers is likely to grow.  Small businesses and companies that utilize it need to be able to know that Congress is not going to let this program die.”

“Both sides of the aisle would like to see reforms to the electronic employment verification program,” said Graham. “Ultimately, we would prefer to pass a bill requiring mandatory participation in the program. Since there is very little time left in this session, we urge you to support a straight reauthorization of E-Verify.  Extending the program will keep employers accountable while giving them the tools needed to abide by the law in their hiring practices.”

The letter was also signed by Senators Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), Jon Kyl (R-Arizona), Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania), Johnny Isakson (R-Georgia), David Vitter (R-Louisiana), Saxby Chambliss (R-Georgia), Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina), Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama), James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), John Ensign (R-Nevada), Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma), and Wayne Allard (R-Colorado).

Posted by Tracker I-9™ team.

Employers can request a free E-Verify and Form I-9 HR Toolkit from the Tracker I-9™ website.

Disclaimer: The content of this post does not constitute direct legal advice and is designed for informational purposes only. Information provided through this website should never replace the need for involving informed counsel on your employment and immigration issues.

I-9 Forms can be filled out and retained on paper, but generating and processing them electronically means fewer errors. This is especially true for companies that have a large number of employees, high turnover rates, and/or multiple worksites.

Electronic I-9 systems allow for more efficient employee on-boarding, space-saving, and vastly improved compliance with employment, nondiscrimination and immigration laws. Using the reporting features of these systems, management and HR staff can be alerted to potential compliance problems.

While the employee’s original documents (such as passport, visa, driver’s license, SNN card, etc.) must still be presented in person, HR or other staff anywhere within a company can enter I-9 data directly into a secure system. Such systems have various self-audit features that help to reduce costly mistakes. They also give management a centralized view and control of the hiring process.

For many employers, some type of electronic management system is therefore essential to keep track of all the documents, deadlines, and work visa reverification requirements.

In processing the Form I-9 information, some software programs can also warn HR staff about actions that may amount to unlawful discrimination, although they can’t be a complete substitute for good knowledge of the law and good judgment. The penalties for ignoring the legal requirements of the I-9 process and for discrimination in hiring can be quite severe, even in cases of unintentional omissions and mistakes. The penalties for discrimination based on citizenship status or national origin can range from $275 to $2,200 for the first offense for each individual discriminated against; form $2,200 to $5,500 for the second offense; and for subsequent offenses, not less than $3,300 and not more than $11,000 for each affected person.

If violations occur, electronic management of the I-9 process may help employers establish “good faith” defense in the event they are charged with knowingly hiring an unauthorized foreign national.

Finally, some software programs also help employers manage the records of employees with unusual or temporary work visa authorizations. The law requires that when an employee’s work authorization expires, employers must reverify his or her employment eligibility.

The Tracker I-9™ system from ImmigrationTracker™ combines both Form I-9 employment eligibility and immigration management in one comprehensive package which generates alerts to HR staff about critical visa and I-9 authorization deadlines.

You may learn about Tracker I-9™ on our website, where you can also request a Free E-Verify and Form I-9 HR Toolkit.

Posted by Tracker I-9™ team.

Disclaimer: The content of this post does not constitute direct legal advice and is designed for informational purposes only. Information provided through this website should never replace the need for involving informed counsel on your employment and immigration issues.

The Tracker I-9™ team started the E-Verify & I-9 News Blog to share with American and global employers useful information about E-Verify, Form I-9, and immigration compliance issues. We will cover such topics as online functionality of electronic I-9 and E-Verify software, Form I-9 data security, and work visa management systems. We will also post useful employment and immigration-related news from U.S. Government and other sources as frequently as we find them.

You can expect to start seeing on this blog new E-Verify and I-9 information your company management and HR department can use in evaluating corporate policies and software needs. For now, please visit our Tracker I-9™ website, www.trackeri9.com, where you can request a free Form I-9 and E-Verify HR Toolkit designed to help answer some of the questions you may have about employment and immigration management software.

Posted by Tracker I-9™ team.

Disclaimer: The content of this post does not constitute direct legal advice and is designed for informational purposes only. Information provided through this website should never replace the need for involving informed counsel on your employment and immigration issues.