Are You an HR Person With an I-9 Mess on Your Hands?

While you may be a very capable Human Resources expert concerning Form I-9 issues, what if your predecessor was not?  Your company may be at tremendous risk because ICE auditors will not only look at your current I-9 forms, but will also request all of your terminated employees’ forms for the past 3 years.

How many costly I-9 compliance mistakes have been made that you may not be aware of?  We encourage you to take a look at your I-9 files on a regular basis.  You may be shocked at what you find.

If you have inherited an I-9 mess, it may be quite difficult to take those concerns to your boss.  However, you must take a proactive approach to make a good-faith effort to correct the documentation in order to avoid serious government fines.

Form I-9 Compliance Action Steps

1. Realize the Form I-9 is not as simple as it may appear and that fines for basic clerical mistakes start at $110.00 per form, per employee.
2. To help your boss understand the serious consequences of Form I-9 violations, emphasize employment eligibility verification is a legal requirement and non-compliance could result in substantial fines for the company.  The best way to avoid disaster is to focus on a full scale clean up of company I-9 procedures.
3. Get help!  You probably wouldn’t think of auditing the company’s tax records by yourself and you certainly should not consider auditing I-9 compliance by yourself. Over the years, the requirements of the Form I-9 have changed and it is important that any retroactive attempt at compliance be done within the constraints of the law.
4. Consider electronic completion and storage options.  This may be the best approach to cleaning up the I-9 mess in your file cabinets.
5. Identify and document “best practices” for moving forward in full compliance.  A qualified I-9 specialist can help develop the right procedures and practices for your business.

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