November 2007 www.klgates.com

Author:

Hayes C. Stover412.355.6476 hayes.stover@klgates.com

K&L Gates comprises approximately 1,400 lawyers in 22 offices located in North America, Europe and Asia and represents capital markets participants, entrepreneurs, growth and middle market companies, leading FORTUNE 100 and FTSE 100 global corporations and public sector entities. For more information, please visit www.klgates.com.

Immigration Alert

New uscIs Form I-9

Since 1986, every employer in the U.S. has by necessity become familiar with the I‑9 form issued by the agency currently known as United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The genesis of that form was the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act which prohibited employers from employing individuals not authorized to work in the U.S. The method to accomplish that goal was to require all new hires, citizens and non‑citizens alike, to provide to their employers evidence of identity and authorization to work in the U.S. The I‑9 was the vehicle created to accomplish that goal.

The regulations issued by USCIS and the until now current (5/31/05) version of the I‑9 have reflected some inconsistencies. USCIS initially proposed concurrently amending the regulations and revising the I‑9. USCIS has now decided not to delay a new I‑9 until the regulations are amended, and to instead issue the new I‑9 with amended regulations to follow.

On November 7, 2007, USCIS published the new I‑9 form, with a date of 6/05/07. Attached to this Alert is the new form with instructions.

The format of the form is not changed. The employee must verify identity and eligibility to work, and must provide one or more specified documents from the revised list to the employer for the employer’s review and verification of review. The only significant change on the form is that there is no need to obtain a social security number unless the employer is using the E‑Verify system. The employer continues to have the option of retaining a copy of the produced documents with the I‑9 form, but should be consistent in its practice.

The principal difference between prior I‑9s and the current form is a reduction in the list of documents which can be used to verify identity and/or work authorization. The emphasis is on documents that contain biometric data in some form, and on documents that cannot be easily stolen or forged.

An employer is not required to use the new form for existing employees, but if future re‑verification is required, only documents on the revised list are acceptable.

The mandatory use of the revised I‑9 will begin December 7, 2007, but employers can begin using it immediately. The form may be downloaded from http://www.uscis.gov/i‑9.

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Immigration Alert

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