The I-9 Form (also known as the Employment Eligibility Verification Form) is created by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Federal law requires that employers make certain that ALL newly hired employees fill out this form and failure to do so can be costly. Poor documentation alone can cost you $1,000 per worker, and knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant can result in a $10,000-per-worker fine.
To help sidestep potential legal trouble and discrimination complaints, follow these 10 I-9 do’s and don’ts:
1. Do require all new hires to complete and sign Section 1 on their first day of work.
2. Don’t ask an applicant to complete an I-9 prior to making a job offer. Un-hired applicants can use I-9 information to allege that you discriminated against them.
3. Do review employee documents to make sure they’re on the new version of the I-9’s list of acceptable documents and that they appear genuine. (See the new I-9 at www.uscis.gov/I-9.)
4. Don’t ask new hires for any particular documents or for more documents than the I-9 requires. The employee chooses the documents, not you.
5. Do establish a consistent procedure for completing I-9’s, and educate your hiring managers on that procedure.
6. Don’t consider the expiration date of I-9 documentation when making hiring or firing decisions.
7. Do make and retain copies of all I-9 documentation provided. (Only a few states make this mandatory, but it’s a good idea.)
8. Don’t forget to keep a tickler file to follow up on expiring documents that limit the employee’s authorization to work. You don’t have to reverify identity documents, such as a driver’s license.
9. Do keep I-9’s and copies of documents for three years after the employee’s hire date or one year after his or her termination, whichever comes later.
10. Don’t put the I-9 in an employee’s personnel file. To protect against discrimination claims, keep it and supporting documentation in a separate file for all of your I-9's.
