After trying to keep the system up despite the government shutdown, on October 1, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) suspended E-Verify services. Tonight, October 7, the system was brought back online. It is unclear how long it will remain operational, or how USCIS managed to restore access during the
Continue Reading E-Verify is Back Baby: System is Now Operational Despite Government ShutdownBy: Dawn Lurie, Matthew Parker* and Amber Stokes*
As U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) continues to deal with their backlogs, they have announced that, effective September 26, 2022, USCIS is automatically extending the validity of expired Forms I-551, Permanent Resident Card ( or “PRC”), commonly known as a
Continue Reading Treats from USCIS to LPRs: Green Card Validity Extension
Late in the day, on May 26, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced a 90-day extension for remote Form I-9 inspection, allowing flexibilities to continue through August 31, 2021.
While the U.S. appears to have turned a corner in the fight against COVID-19, most companies have yet to formulate and implement back to work policies. Thank you to ICE and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), for allowing these employers to head into the holiday weekend without having to worry about the fate of this anticipated extension. And thank you for the 90 days, rather than the shorter 30 or 60-day extensions issued previously.
The Devil is in the Details
It would not be a exciting blog post, if we didn’t have something interesting to point out. The ICE announcement includes two confusing items:
Continue Reading Nothing “new” Other Than a 90 day Extension of Virtual I-9s
Blog updated January 7 with USCIS clarifications found below.
As employers across the country started 2021 with optimism for a better year, E-Verify was stuck in 2020, experiencing a short period of technical trouble. The site was down unexpectedly from Monday, January 5 at 1:53 PM EST until Tuesday, January 6 at 8:06 PM EST. Both the Web Services and Direct Access portals were affected.
Background on the Program
E-Verify was first authorized by Congress in 1996, allowing employers to electronically confirm their employees’ employment eligibility to work in the United States. E-Verify employers verify the identity and employment eligibility of newly hired employees by electronically matching the information provided by employees on the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, against records available to the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Continue Reading E-Verify Rings in the New Year with Shadows of 2020
As of early Friday morning, July 17, there’s been no announcement by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirming whether it will continue the flexibility granted in the Form I-9 process, temporarily suspending the in-person physical inspection requirement. ICE originally announced the relaxation on March 20, as employers were beginning to grapple with COVID-19 work-from-home and shelter-in-place orders. The initial guidance allowed companies to review “Section 2 documents remotely (e.g., over video link, fax or email, etc.) and obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the documents within three business days for purposes of completing Section 2.” The relaxation of this requirement was extended through Sunday, July 19. Employers who have been using the virtual process, and will need to switch gears over the weekend, are getting very nervous.
Continue Reading Still No Word From ICE On Virtual I-9s
Seyfarth Synopsis: E-Verify has offered guidance to employers to address concerns with expiring State Drivers’ Licenses and Identification Documents. The guidance, though, fails to address the situation where states have not granted temporary Driver’s Licenses or IDs extensions.
In response to queries sent by Seyfarth and other groups, E-Verify provided additional guidance addressing the COVID-19 National Emergency. We expect E-Verify to release a full FAQ in the next week. Today’s guidance addresses the expiration of State Drivers’ Licenses and Identification Documents where employees are unable to renew these documents because of closures or limited services at Department of Motor Vehicles (DMVs). In light of the National Emergency many states have extended the validity of these documents.
Continue Reading E-Verify COVID-19 Guidance on Expired Driver’s Licenses and State IDs
On July 24, 2018, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a press release confirming that its Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) division had completed the second phase of a nationwide operation from July 16-20. HSI served 2,738 I-9 Notices of Inspection (NOIs[1]) to US businesses around the country after serving 2450 during its first phase earlier this year. In sum, HSI has now issued almost 5200 NOIs since the beginning of October 2017. Not only this, but HSI also has made 675 criminal and 984 administrative worksite-related arrests. These numbers clearly indicate that ICE takes worksite enforcement very seriously and companies should prioritize a commitment to compliance. Fines for knowingly hiring or continuing to employ unauthorized workers start at $559 per employee and can be as high as $22,363 for repeated offenses. Paperwork violations range from $224 to $2236. Companies may also face additional fines, penalties and forfeitures, and government contractors may face debarment from federal contracts.
In ICE’s press release, HSI reminded employers about its “three-pronged approach to worksite enforcement: compliance, form I-9 inspections, civil fines and referrals for debarment; enforcement, through the criminal arrest of employers and administrative arrest of unauthorized workers; and outreach, through the ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers, or IMAGE program, to instill a culture of compliance and accountability.”
These events have been expected and actually follow prior comments by HSI officials that we previously reported, confirming that 2018 will be a year of increased immigration enforcement.Continue Reading Baby It’s Cold Outside: ICE I-9 Audits Increase Over 100 Percent
This blog was first published as a Seyfarth Shaw Management Alert on July 17, 2018
By Dawn M. Lurie and Alexander Madrak
Seyfarth Synopsis: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) increases worksite enforcement by more than 50%. What should employers understand to prevent fines and minimize reputational risk?
Since the start of fiscal year 2018, ICE has increased worksite enforcement actions by over 50%. Compared with fiscal year 2017, administrative arrests have increased nearly 400% while worksite investigations have risen from 1,716 to 3,510—with the last quarter of the fiscal year remaining for these numbers to increase.[1] ICE appears to be making good on the remarks made by leadership to increase worksite enforcement “four to five times.”Continue Reading ICE I-9 Audits on the Rise: Act Today to Prevent Issues Tomorrow
By Dawn M. Lurie and Greg Morano
In mid-April, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) introduced long awaited enhancements to the program as part of the new “modernized E-Verify system”. In fact, the overhaul is enormous in scope, the new system is entirely separate from the previous itineration of E-Verify. From a data storage location shift to reinforcement of the old infrastructure, the bones of the system are being reinforced. Employers will continue to maintain access to their old data while being able to open cases in the new system. The updates demonstrate USCIS’ continued focus on improving the system, which makes perfect sense in the face of a possible, nationwide, E-Verify mandate.
What is E-Verify
E-Verify is an internet based system that compares information from an employee’s Form I-9 to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Social Security Administration (SSA) records to confirm employment eligibility. Continuously improving, but not perfect, the system struggles with cracks in its armor especially when it comes to ensuring identity. However, one of the key benefits of E-Verify is that employers are provided a rebuttable presumption that there has been no violation of the statute, with regard to the knowing hiring of an unauthorized worker, if the employee’s information has been confirmed by the system. This is important in the context of a Form I-9 inspection.Continue Reading More than a Makeover: E-Verify Boast a New, Modernized Look Inside and Out