This is part 2 in our I-9 podcast series where we discuss:

Podcast-5-4-11.mp3

1)  Correcting the I-9 Form
2)  Storage and Retention
3)  Technical and Substantive Violations and fines
4)  I-9 Best Practices

Please contact us to discuss your I-9 compliance needs.  We have a very talented team who are experts and are ready to assist you.

Our monthly employer compliance newsletter where we review the I-9 form, the receipt rule and updating and reverifying the form,  is now available and we link to it  here.

Should you wish to become a client of our office, please contact us at:

562 612.3996  |  info@immigrationsolution.net

1. Filling out the I-9 Form
2. Reviewing the Sections of the Form
3. Re-verifying and Updating information

1)         You’ve had a turnover in the HR position(s) charged with the responsibility of handling and processing I-9 Forms

2)         None of the staff charged with the I-9 process has been formally trained

3)         You already know that you have I-9 document violations, errors and unintentional mistakes

4)         You have recently gone through a corporate reorganization, merger or acquisition

5)         You know you have an on-boarding process that is complex, such as multiple jobsite locations where the I-9 process takes place

6)         When you haven’t documented your I-9 Form policies and procedures in a policy statement or procedures manual

7)         If you have a large volume of foreign worker I-9 forms

8)         If you do not have a tickler system for re-verification or  terminated employee retention

9)         If you do not have  a centralized I-9 recordkeeping process

10)       If you are photocopying documents presented during the I-9 process for some and not for others

11)       You participate in government contracts and have been asked to perform an I-9 audit

12)      You’ve never performed a self-audit or had any outside provider perform an I-9 audit

13)      You do not know how to make corrections to the I-9 form

14)      You’ve received SSA No Match Letters

15)      Your industry is being targeted by ICE

16)      You don’t know that new I-9 guidance was released by USCIS this year

Immigration Solutions regularly represents clients from all industries to develop effective I-9 policies and compliance programs.  By establishing and maintaining effective corporate policies and procedures, many of the above-mentioned warning signs can be addressed proactively in an audit before the government does one for you.

Our complete and informational Employer Resource Center on all things I-9, can be found here.

Please take a minute to take our I-9 Survey on our website.

Yesterday, USCIS made the announcement that  a final rule was released that reflects changes made to the I-9 Form process over 2 years ago by DHS.  The changes were rolled out in April 2009 which included, amongst other changes, no longer accepting expired documents for identity and employment authorization.

Two years out from this ruling, there is still much confusion concerning the world’s most complicated 1-page form!  We hope that when USCIS does finally release the new website “I-9 Central,” that is will truly do what they are claiming it will – and that it to provide employers with additional clear & concise guidance and tools to become I-9 compliant.  In the meantime, we link to the FAQs regarding the final rule here, and link to additional I-9 employer resources here.

The employer will receive a SSA TNC when the:

1. Name, SS# or date of birth is incorrect in SSA records
2. Name change was not reported to SSA
3. Citizenship or immigration status was not updated with SSA
4. SS record contains another type of error

The employer will receive a DHS TNC when the:

1. Name, A# and/or I-94 number are incorrect in DHS records
2. Information was not updated in the employee’s DHS records
3. Citizenship or immigration status changed
4. Record contains another type of error
5. ID photograph differs from the photograph in DHS records

• The employer informs the employee and prints and reviews the TNC
• The employee chooses to “contest” or “not contest” the TNC
• Refer the employee to the appropriate agency if the TNC is contested
• The employee has 8 Federal Government workdays from the date of referral to visit or call the appropriate agency to resolve the discrepancy.
• Employee continues to work while the case is being resolved
• Once resolved, they should inform the employer
• With both a SSA TNC and a DHS TNC, a response is electronically sent to the employer through the system.  The employer should check E-Verify periodically for the response

TNC Case Resolution

• The employer will receive one of three results:

Employment Authorized |  Final Non-confirmation  |  Review/Update Employee Data then Resubmit

On Thursday,  3/31/11, a House Immigration Subcommittee hearing underscored the U.S. economy’s reliance on scientists and engineers from abroad. The hearing, entitled “H-1B Visas: Designing a Program to Meet the Needs of the U.S. Economy and U.S. Workers,” was characterized by considerable disagreement among witnesses and subcommittee members as to how the H-1B program for highly skilled foreign professionals should best be structured in terms of wage protections and job portability. But virtually everyone, including Subcommittee Chairman Elton Gallegly (R-24th/CA) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-21st/TX), agreed that foreign-born scientists and engineers, including many who come to the United States on H-1B visas, make critical contributions to the U.S. economy.

CEO’s and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a professional association, had a rare opportunity to make their case on the H-1B program  and up, wrote the House Judiciary Committee to emphasize the value of green cards.

For Tom Brokaw’s report on entrepreneurs leaving Silicon Valley, we link here.

…and for your listening pleasure, here is an animated version of an attorney explaining the PERM Labor Certification program (the 1st step in the green-card process) to a client, entitled When will Kumar get his Greencard? – Enjoy!

At least two dozen employees were arrested March 4th after deputies raided four Pei Wei restaurants and its corporate headquarters in Scottsdale.  Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio had warrants for 120 employees who were suspected of identity theft.

Just how bad can it get?  Unfortunately pretty bad.  At the corporate headquarters, boxes of documents and computer databases were seized.  Arpaio said the investigation began in June 2010 after the sheriff’s office received a tip that several employees were illegal immigrants.  The investigation showed that most of the victims whose identities may have been stolen live out of state; eight of them are children under the age of 12 and four of them are dead.

Arpaio stated, “That’s one thing that makes this operation unusual. People apparently are fed up with the ID theft problem and the problems ID theft causes and are willing to help law enforcement to ensure the successful prosecution of this kind of crime.”

Pei Wei Asian Diners are operated by publicly held P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Inc   P.F. Chang’s operates about 170 Pei Wei locations nationwide and more than 200 P.F. Chang’s China Bistros.

It is estimated that a Pei Wei restaurant can generate up to $2 mil/year in sales.  The prolonged closure of a number of locations is costing the company a significant amount of money and the media coverage is tremendously damaging including a loss of prestige and community standing.

The case at hand teaches a lesson about the E-Verify program, in that using E-Verify doesn’t insulate an employer against penalties and doesn’t provide a safe harbor against worksite enforcement. This is a wake-up call to anyone who thinks E-Verify is an effective remedy to stop identity fraud.  E-Verify doesn’t have the proper protections and safeguards in place for detecting it.

Secondly, if you own and operate a chain of restaurants, it’s time to be proactive and get your I-9’s in order and secure the services of a 3^rd party audit team who are skilled in handling employer compliance issues.  You must carefully review your systems and procedures around I-9 processing and management at all of your locations, particularly if you are a multi-site employer – including corporate headquarters.

For more on this story.

USCIS launched the new website today –  here it is.

E-Verify Self Check is the first online E-Verify program offered directly to the U.S. workforce. E-Verify Self Check, a fast, simple, secure and free service, enables individuals to voluntarily check their own employment eligibility status. USCIS is releasing E-Verify Self Check in phases, with the first phase only accessible to users who maintain an address and are physically located in Arizona, Idaho, Colorado, Mississippi, Virginia, or the District of Columbia. Click here to visit the E-Verify Self Check website and check your own employment eligibility status.

Here is a Fact Sheet for more information.  Let us know what you think.