I-9 Compliance: How to Survive I-9 Audit
ICE Audit Framework
Form I-9 violations are typically investigated and enforced by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ICE audit process begins with an issuance of a Notice of Investigation or NOI with the organization having 3 business days to respond Notice will seek the records for: ◦ ◦ ◦ ◦
All supporting documentation Payroll records A list of current employees Articles of incorporation and business licenses
ICE reviews and provides: ◦ List of technical or procedural violations found ◦ Notice of suspect documents (alien numbers do not match government records) ◦ Notice of discrepancies (SSNs do not match government records)
Organization has 10 days to make corrections
Penalties for Non-compliance Employers who violate the law may be subject to: civil fines criminal penalties (when there is a pattern or practice of violations) debarment from government contracts a court order requiring the payment of back pay to the individual discriminated against a court order requiring the employer to hire the individual discriminated against
Common I-9 Mistakes
Employee doesn’t sign/date in Section 1 Employee does not complete Section 1 on the first day of employment Employee doesn’t indicate citizenship status Employer doesn’t properly or completely enter documents in Section 2 Employer requests certain documents Employer doesn’t complete Section 2 by 3rd day of work Employer doesn’t enter date of hire Employer representative doesn’t sign, date and print name in Certification section Improper retention
ICE Best Practices
Establish an internal training program, with annual updates on: ◦ how to manage the completion of the Form I-9 ◦ how to detect fraudulent use of documents in the Form I-9 process ◦ how to use E-verify
Permit the I-9 and E-verify process to be conducted only by individuals who have received this training - and include a secondary review as part of each employee's verification to minimize the potential for a single individual to subvert the process Arrange for annual Form I-9 audits by an external auditing form or trained employee not otherwise involved in the Form I-9 and electronic verification process
ICE Best Practices (cont'd)
Establish a self-reporting procedure for reporting to ICE any violations or discovered deficiencies Establish a protocol for responding to no-match letters received from the Social Security Administration Establish a tip line for employees to report activity relating to the employment of unauthorized aliens and a protocol for responding to employee tips Establish and maintain safeguards against the use of the verification process for unlawful discrimination Establish a protocol for assessing the adherence to the "best practices" guidelines by the company's contractors/ subcontractors Submit an annual report to ICE to track results and assess the effect of participation in the IMAGE program
Want to learn more about form I-9 , its requirements and best practices to comply with them? ComplianceOnline webinars and seminars are a great training resource. Check out the following links: I-9 Compliance: Knowing What to Do and When to D
I-9 Compliance: How to Avoid an ICE Meltdown
Form I-9: ICE Storms Could Cost Your Company Mill
Form I-9 and E-Verify, How to Stay Compliant
How to Ensure ICE I-9 Compliance
How to Survive an I-9 Audit