Recruiters can gain great credit for finding and securing top international talent – and rightly so.   The whole world is a talent pool today, and  the  best  people  may  be  located down the street or on the other side of the world.

Once  recruited,  paperwork  must be   completed   for   each   and   every hire  and  this  includes  the  I-9  form. The  I-9  verifies  the  identity  and  the employment authorization of each employee and is part of the federal immigration regulatory process.

Recruiters can assist their organizations, and enhance their   value,   by   knowing   something   about   the   I-9 process – in particular, how to survive an I-9 audit. An I-9  audit  takes  place  when  immigration  and  Customs Enforcement (ICE) serves a Notice of Inspection on an employer, compelling them to surrender their I-9 forms to the government.  So far this year, ICE has levied over $3  million  in  fines  on  employers  for  I-9  violations  –  a new record.

Recruiters who wish to keep their organizations out of  unwanted  trouble  may  wish  to  share  the  following tips  on  how  to  survive  an  I-9  audit  with  their  human resource departments:

1.  Make  sure  that  each  new  hire  completes  Section  1 of the I-9 form the first day of employment.  This is the section where the employee indicates his or her status – U.S. citizen, green card holder, or holder of some  form  of  work  authorization.  Some  employers allow employees to defer completion of this section. However, if the employee’s information is incomplete, it is the employer who pays the fine. If the employee has temporary work authorization, it is particularly important  he  or  she  indicate  when  the  temporary authorization expires.

2.  Complete  Section  2  of  the  form  by  the  employee’s third day of employment, as required by law. Show the employee the list of documents included on the I-9  form  the  federal  government  accepts  to  verify employment authorization. Have the employee show either  one  List  A  document  (ID  and  Employment Authorization) or one List B document (ID) and one list C document (Employment Authorization). Do not request specific documents or additional documents.

3.  Keep  your  I-9  forms  separate  from  employee  personnel files. Otherwise, employers will have a lot of sorting to do if they receive a Notice of Inspection. The forms must be retained for three years after the employee is hired or one year after his or her employment ceases, whichever is later. Keep the forms of active employees separate from those of former employees. Purge the latter on a regular basis.

4.  Create a tickler system for employees who check the box in Section 1 which indicates they possess only temporary employment  authorization.  Send  them  notices  well  in advance of the termination of their work permits advising them  of  the  need  to  update  their  I-9  forms.    Remember that certain types of work status are extended simply by submitting  an  application  for  an  extension  to  the  U.S. Center for Immigration Services (USCIS).  Never update the  forms  of  U.S.  citizens  or  permanent  residents,  even though  “green  cards”  all  have  expiration  dates,  as  the federal government will not allow such updates

5.  Protect  yourself  from  violating  the  antidiscrimination provisions of the law by treating employees who may look or  sound  “foreign”  to  you  the  same  as  employees  who are  U.S.  citizens.  Do  not  ask  “Jose  Sanchez”  for  more  of different documents than you ask from “Joe Smith.”

6.  Business   owners   and/or   human   resource   personnel should carefully read USCIS’ “Handbook for Employers” outlining the various rules and regulations pertaining to compliance  with  employment  related  immigration  law. You  can  review  to  the  handbook  from  my  web  site  at http://shusterman.com/immigrationguide.html#9.    My web site (www.shusterman.com) also features a free video entitled “How to Survive an I-9 Audit” that offers further advice.

7.  Have  an  attorney  who  has  experience  in  I-9  laws  and procedures  review  all  of  your  I-9  forms  periodically.  In most cases, employers are receiving fines not for knowingly hiring   illegal   aliens   but   for   improperly   completed paperwork, errors an attorney should be able to detect. The recruiting process does not end when a new hire signs a contract – it extends through the retention phase. Properly completed I-9 forms are part of an overall retention strategy and  recruiters  can  help  ensure  this  part  of  the  process  is handled efficiently.

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BIOGRAPHY

Carl Shusterman is the managing attorney of Law Offices of Carl Shusterman based in Los Angeles, CA. He has specialized in immigration law for over 30 years and his six-attorney law firm represents clients in all 50 states. Mr. Shusterman is a 1973 graduate of the UCLA School of Law. He served as an attorney for the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) until 1982 when he entered private practice. He is authorized to practice before the Supreme Court of California, the Federal District Court in the Central District of California, the U.S. Court of Appeals in a number of different circuits and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Mr. Shusterman is a former chairman of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Southern California Chapter and served as a member of AILA's National Board of Governors (1988-97). He has chaired numerous AILA Committees, spoken at dozens of AILA Conferences and has contributed a number of scholarly articles to AILA's publications. Mr. Shusterman is a Certified Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law, State Bar of California. He has served as a member of the Immigration and Nationality Law Advisory Commission for the State Bar.

He has been named as one of Best Attorneys in America and as a SuperLawyer for many years. He is a frequent writer and lecturer on immigration law. Mr. Shusterman has testified as an expert witness before the Senate Subcommittee on Immigration in Washington, D.C. His website, www.shusterman.com, receives over 1,000,000 hits each week, and his free, e-mail newsletter has overධ,000 subscribers in more than 150 countries.

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