Employers Required to Use Revised Form I-9 After December 26, 2007
Employers must begin using the new Form I-9 after December 26, 2007, or they may be subject to penalties. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") last month announced the issuance of a revised Form I-9 and handbook to assist employers to complete the new Form I-9 (see our
Executive Alert of November 8, 2007). With the new Form I-9, employers may no longer use the following former "List A" documents, which previously could be used as proof of employment eligibility and identity:
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Certificate of U.S. Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-561)
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Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550 or N-570)
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Alien Registration Receipt Card (I-151)
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Unexpired Reentry Permit (Form 1-327)
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Unexpired Refugee Travel Document (Form I-571)
These documents have been eliminated from the new Form I-9 because they lack features to help deter counterfeiting, tampering and fraud.
One document was added to "List A" and may now be used as proof of employment eligibility and identity: Unexpired Employment Authorization Document (I-766). In addition, employees are no longer required to provide their Social Security Number in Section 1 of the Form I-9, unless they are employed by an employer who participates in E-Verify.
Although employers have until December 26 to transition to the new form, it is recommended that they begin using the new Form I-9 immediately. Employers do not need to complete a new Form I-9 for existing employees, but do have to use the revised Form I-9 for all re-verifications.
The new I-9 form is available online at: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-9.pdf or may be ordered by calling USCIS at 1-800-870-3676. The revised version of the "Handbook for Employers, Instructions for Completing the Form I-9." is available online at: http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/m-274.pdf, Please call us with any questions.
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