Form I-9 + Immigration

Despite the spread of COVID-19 halting a lot of businesses, companies like Amazon and grocers such as Albertsons, Kroger and Raley’s are hiring. 

The I-9 form is used to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. The form must be completed by all US employers for every individual that they hire domestically. Both employees and employers are required to accurately complete the form. Failure to do so, or do so properly can result in an audit and/or fine.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement, better known as ICE, is the enforcement arm of the Department of Homeland Security that is responsible for conducting Form I-9 audits. Over the past few years, the number of ICE Audits has increased substantially. During the Bush Administration, ICE was conducting roughly 400 audits per year. Under the Obama Administration, that number increased to nearly 2,500. In 2018, under the Trump Administration, ICE audits more than doubled. As the country continues to tighten its belt on immigration, this number is expected to continue to exponentially rise.

As a staffing agency, it's important to understand the basics of the Form I-9. Do all new hires require a Form I-9? When should the form be completed and how long do we need to store completed forms? When it comes to employment eligibility for staffing agencies, there are many questions to be answered.

When you’re recruiting a new hire, you’ll likely have a long list of criteria to help you identify the right candidate. While skills and experience are important, there is also one crucial aspect that should not be overlooked: eligibility to work in the U.S.

Applicants for jobs typically have to undergo numerous types of checks to ensure that they meet the requirements for employment. While the most obvious check that might come to mind might be verifying your references in order to confirm your skills and experience, in the U.S. employers are also required to take additional steps to ensure that every new hire is eligible to work legally in the country.

Launching in January 2020, Tracker Corp is releasing a new module for its immigration platform that will enable immigration professionals to electronically post and maintain their clients’ Labor Condition Applications (LCAs - used in H-1B and PERM cases) and related Public Access Files (PAFs). The LCA serves to notify all "affected" employees of an employer’s plans to hire foreign workers, to help ensure those workers don’t displace US employees.

Have you ever wondered what an I-9 Notice of Inspection (NOI) from U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) looks like? 

We created a helpful sample NOI compiled from a number of real notices received by Tracker clients over the past several years.  

ICE has issued an unprecedented number of I-9 audits over the last three weeks, totaling 3,282 NOI’s to employers across the country. The recent wave of audits target hospitality, agriculture, food processing, health care, landscaping and construction industries.  It is anticipated that thousands more audits will be issued in the coming weeks.

The Form I-9 is a federally mandated, two-page document used for verifying the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment within the United States.  Every employer is responsible for ensuring proper completion of the Form I-9 for all individuals hired for employment in the U.S.  Once completed, employers must retain these forms for a designated period of time for the purpose of future inspections sanctioned by the U.S. government.