Key Changes
❗This is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please always consult your legal counsel before making any policy or process changes.
Amid the pandemic, remote work replaced office setups, prompting authorities to tweak protocols, including temporary changes to I-9 verification. Now, in the aftermath of the COVID-19 flexibility, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) mandates a re-inspection of I-9 documents for staff hired between March 2020 and July 2023, due by August-end.
However, the DHS has introduced updated Form I-9 guidelines to simplify employee identity and work authorization verification. While COVID-19 emergency policies are no longer valid, these new policies bring in some beneficial changes.
Top 5 Things to Know
Here are 5 key takeaways for founders and HR leaders to navigate the new I-9 policies effectively:
1. Re-Inspection Deadline (by August 30, 2023)
If you hired employees between March 2020 and July 2023 and took advantage of the COVID-19 flexibility (e.g. performed remote inspections), you must reverify their I-9 documents by the given deadline. Note, failure to reverify can result in penalties.
2. Virtual Document Inspections (starting August 1, 2023)
With the new policies, eligible employers can now conduct virtual document inspections for the I-9 process. This means using live video conferences to compare employee documents.
3. E-Verify and Remote Verifications
Employers who were enrolled with E-verify at the time of their employees’ hiring have the advantage of remotely examining Form I-9 documents. As many states mandate E-Verify, this is the optimal choice for virtual inspections.
Note: This option is available only to qualified employers under the E-Verify system. Additionally, re-inspection of employees who were remotely verified is only applicable for employees who were reverified AFTER the company had their E-Verify set-up.
For example, if a company signed up for E-Verify starting on January 1st, 2022:
- Employees hired from March 2020 - Jan 1st 2022: Must be physically inspected.
- Employees hired from Jan 1st 2022 - Present: Can choose to physically inspect OR remote inspect due to new rule.
4. I-9 Spreadsheet for Easy Navigation
To simplify the process, we've prepared an I-9 spreadsheet to guide you through using E-Verify for re-inspection and future employee verification purposes.
5. Stay Informed
If you have questions or concerns about your company's status with new I-9 verifications, we're here to help. Contact us at ask.lighthouse@lsvp.com for guidance.
Helpful Links
- I-9 Physical Inspection tool FAQs
- Rules for E-verify users
- Youtube video - Explaining the new updates of the I-9
- Youtube video - What is E-verify?
- Youtube video - How is E-verify used?
- Youtube video - I-9 mandatory changes
- Employer - How to inspect I-9 forms
- Handbook for Employers M-274 - Why they must verify employees
- Fillable I-9 Form
- I-9 Central - Training videos, I-9 resources
- Form I-9 inspection flow chart
- How to Notate remote inspections
- Eligibility to conduct live video chat inspections
I-9 Checklist
Below is a checklist that outlines key components in the verification & re-verification process. Again, this is NOT legal advice and is for reference purposes only. Please consult legal counsel before updating or implementing any policies.
Important Process Information
New I-9 forms were released Aug 1st. You can continue to use the outdated I-9 forms until October 31, 2023.*
While creating the list of employees you may find some errors with your I-9 forms**. Below are some actions you can take:
Correct the Existing Form OR Prepare a New Form
- If correcting a form - draw a single line through the incorrect portions (do not white out or completely block out), enter the correct information, and initial and date the correction.
- If you're creating a new Form I-9, remember to retain the old one and attach it to the new one with a memo stating the reason of the new form.
Missing Form I-9
- Immediately provide the employee with Form I-9.Allow employee 3 business days to provide the acceptable documents.
- DO NOT backdate the Form I-9
E-Verify Companies
Important Questions to Ask
- Does [company] participate in E-Verify? If so when was the account set up?
- Do we have a deadline to complete the verification? Yes, August 30, 2023
- Do we have to recreate E-Verify cases for the virtual inspections? No.
Criteria for Completing I-9 Document Re-Inspection via Live Video Interaction
- Employer was enrolled in E-Verify at the time of a remote examination of an employee's Form I-9 documentation or re-verification while using COVID-19 flexibilities.
- Employer created an E-Verify Case for the employee (except for re-verification).
- Employer performed the remote inspection between March 20, 2020 - July 31st, 2023.
- Please remember if you did not perform remote examinations, you must physically examine documents in employee's physical presence.
What to Do With Employees Hired Between Mar 2020 - July 2023
- Step 1: Make List of Employees who completed their I-9 forms that were hired in March 2020 - July 2023.**
- Step 2: Remotely or in person examine employee's I-9 documents via a live video chat or in person. (video on how to examine documents).
- Step 3: If the employee is no longer with the company, include departure date on the additional note section of the I-9 document.
- Step 4: On Section 2 of the I-9 form in the additional information box add the following verbiage - COVID-19 documents physically examined on MM/DD/YYYY by Title First Name Last Name (see this example).
- Step 5: Sign documents.
- Step 6: Retain all document copies with I-9s.
What to Do With Future Employees Starting Aug 2023
This process must be completed within 3 days of start date.
- Step 1: Follow normal practice for in person or remote document verification.
- Step 2: Review & examine submitted I-9 documents in person or conduct video live chat inspection.
- Step 3: If you use the form I-9 dated 08/01/23 check the box in the additional information field.
- Step 4: Sign documents.
- Step 5: Create a case in E-Verify.
- Step 6: Retain all document copies with I-9s.
Non E-Verify Companies
Important Questions to Ask
- Do we have a deadline to complete the verification? Yes, August 30, 2023
- Are we using the new I-9 document to verify all employees?*
What to Do With Employees Hired Between Mar 2020 - July 2023
- Step 1: Make List of Employees who completed their I-9 forms that were hired in March 2020 - July 2023.**
- Step 2: Classify your employees between office locations (Use this spreadsheet as an example).
- Step 3: If your company is remote - physical inspections will need to be performed.
- Step 4: Set up time to physically inspect I-9s documents in person.
- Step 5: Remote employees - Have your employee designate an authorize representative.
- Step 5: Authorize representative adds notation (see this example) and signs documents.
- Step 6: Retain all document copies with I-9s.
What to Do With Future Employees Starting Aug 2023
This process must be completed within 3 days of start date.
- Step 1: Follow normal practice for in person or remote document verification.
- Step 2: Review & examine submitted I-9 documents in person or conduct video live chat inspection.
- Step 3: Fill out Section 2 (If you use the form I-9 dated 08/01/23 check the box in the additional information field).
- Step 4: Authorize representative signs documents.
- Step 5: Set up an E-Verify account (You will need to go through video tutorials & pass an E-Verify knowledge test).
- Step 6: Create a case in E-Verify.
- Step 7: Retain all document copies with I-9s.
Example Verified Employee List
