USCIS Releases Lists of Employers Enrolled in E-Verify Program

Posted by Dawn Lurie on April 02, 2012

United States Citizen and Immigration Service (USCIS) is very busy improving general E-Verify Outreach and Customer Service for employees and employees dealing with the intricacies of the Form I-9 process. We applaud them for their continued efforts on I-9 Central and for today's release detailing the 345,000+ employers enrolled in the E-Verify program, a web-based system that compares information from an employee's Form I-9 to data from U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration records to confirm employment eligibility. The lists of enrolled employers, including federal contractors, are now conveniently available on the E-Verify website.

"The E-Verify Employers and Federal Contractors Lists provide the business name, city, state and ZIP code used during registration with E-Verify. They also indicate which businesses are federal contractors and provide other information such as workforce size. Click here to see these lists" stated the USCIS web release.

We were very pleased to see that the USCIS offered caveats to be considering when searching these lists. Such caveats are critical when searching the lists for particular employers. Specifically, we do not recommend using the list to confirm or deny E-Verify participation of a particular employer. 

Caveats for reviewing the E-Verify Employers and Federal Contractors Lists:

  • The lists only includes employers and federal contractors who have self-reported that their company has five or more employees.
  • Not all business locations of an employer enrolled in E-Verify may be found on the lists. The absence of a business location does not mean or imply that the business operating at the unlisted location either is or is not enrolled in E-Verify.
  • Naming conventions used by employers may not be recognizable to the public. When an employer enrolls in E-Verify, the employer uses the legal name of the individual or business entity. In many cases, however, an employer may use a trade name for public business purposes.
  • E-Verify does not collect contract information.
  • The E-Verify Employers and Federal Contractors Lists will be updated on a quarterly basis and the current postings are include employers and federal contractors enrolled in E-Verify through March 15, 2012.

More on I-9 updates including a an analysis of the proposed new Form I-9 and ICE's recent worksite activity will be posted shortly.

From the Office of Special Counsel: Anatomy of an OSC Investigation

Posted by Dawn Lurie on March 15, 2012

The phone rings.

"Hello, this is Attorney Smith with the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, may I speak to the Human Resource manager in charge of your Form I-9 process?"

You say to yourself, “This is not good. I have no idea what this government agency is — Office of the Special Counsel for...what?” Your gut confirms: this does not sound good at all.

"This is she. I'm sorry, you are with whom?"

"The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices...the OSC. I'm calling about a complaint our office received regarding your company re-verifying Permanent Residents, requiring applicants to complete Forms I-9 before you offer them employment and, last but not least, asking certain employees to bring in Social Security cards."

You ask yourself, “Is this as serious as it sounds? What do I do now?”

The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Investigations by the OSC should be taken very seriously. Our recent GT Alert reviews how the OSC investigates charges - including several examples - and the compliance strategies that companies should consider.

The Government Gets Back in the Ring...Employers Around the Country Report a New Round of ICE Audits

Posted by Dawn Lurie on November 04, 2011

The calls from clients who received visits from Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents started to trickle in last Thursday afternoon. Although nothing has been announced, we have reason to believe that ICE is conducting a new round of audits. While numbers have not been confirmed, we estimate that at least 500 employers nationwide will be receiving Notices of Inspection (NOIs). We understand that the NOIs were issued based on robust “tips and leads” and many of the inspections could lead to criminal indictments.

NOIs will include requests for hiring, payroll and other records to determine compliance with employment eligibility verification laws. Employers will be expected to produce original I-9s within three days from service of the NOI. These audits were driven by ICE headquarters and it’s unlikely that requests for extensions of time will be granted for the I-9 production; however, payroll records, copies of immigration filings, copies of Social Security Administration communications requesting corrections, information on independent contractors, and related information generally can be submitted later than the three day time period. Our February 2011 and June 2011 GT Alerts discuss what employers should do if they receive a NOI from ICE.

If your company was not selected by ICE, consider yourself lucky; be smart, be proactive and consider the following:

  • Review your I-9 related compliance
  • Conduct internal audits and act on the results
  • Do not ignore Social Security and non-traditional no-match notifications and potential identity theft issues
  • Provide ongoing training to those individuals completing Form I-9s
  • Consider E-Verify and other best practices
  • Adopt a basic compliance plan

This administration continues to make it clear that the days when immigration compliance could be ignored and considered the “cost of doing business” are long gone. Administrative audits, which can lead to criminal charges against the company and its officers and directors continue to be the tool of choice of ICE, and employers can expect these surges several times a year.

As ICE ramps up its auditor’s capabilities we can expect the inspections to become more sophisticated. With the USCIS transformation team likely moving towards integration of the Form I-9 and E-Verify, the increased use of electronic I-9s, additional monitoring of the E-Verify system and a better trained and focused core of ICE agents, employers absolutely must consider the importance of proactive compliance planning and training. A large of part of this process should include practices to detect identity theft and fraud issues. Although enforcement mechanisms may change, one thing is for certain: the focus on audits and other worksite enforcement actions will continue.

California Law Prohibits State from Requiring Employers to Use E-Verify

Posted by Dawn Lurie on October 26, 2011

Perhaps in effort to reign in the rapidly growing number of individualized city and local E-Verify laws and simultaneously stimulate the California economy, Governor Jerry Brown signed the “Employment Acceleration Act of 2011” (AB 1236) which will take effect on January 1, 2012. This bill prohibits the state from requiring employers to use E-Verify. In a nutshell, the new law prohibits the state, cities or counties from requiring employers to use E-Verify, an electronic employment verification system that uses employees’ Social Security numbers to determine work eligibility. The bill makes certain exceptions for city or county workers, and also takes into account that E-Verify is a requirement for particular employers under federal or as a condition for employers receiving federal funds.

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Just When You Were Ready for Summer, ICE Sends a Chill Through the Nation

Posted by Dawn Lurie on June 15, 2011

It was noticeably cooler in Washington this week as House Republicans sent a chill out to U.S. employers with Congressman Lamar Smith (R-TX) introducing an immigration enforcement measure that would make mandatory the currently voluntary E-Verify system, thus requiring immigration status checks for all new workers. But perhaps the biggest chill of the day comes from Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) newest worksite enforcement action, which has us expecting over 1,000 Notices of Inspection (NOI) to be served on companies throughout the U.S. starting today - June 15, 2011.

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ICE's Latest Wave of I-9 Audits

Posted by Dawn Lurie on March 08, 2011

On February 17, ICE issued 1,000 Notices of Inspection (NOI) across the country in a firm demonstration of the Obama administration’s ongoing commitment to a worksite enforcement strategy that focuses on employer compliance and much higher administrative fines. We were contacted by employers across the country to help prepare their responses. We were even contacted by an employer who handed their I-9s to the Agents who came to serve the NOI -- no 3 days, no advice by counsel, no waiver explained, no copies, no time, no receipt. What were you thinking, Mr. ICE agent? Not to worry, we worked it out with like adults. 

Seriously those fortunate companies who did not receive a NOI should take advantage of their good fortune and ensure that they are in compliance now. The coast is not clear. One or two additional rounds of audits are expected during this calendar year. This administration has continued to make it clear that the days when immigration compliance could be ignored and considered the “cost of doing business” are long gone. 

ICE is assertively pursuing companies where tips and leads come in,  These administrative reviews have been quite lucrative. It will be very interesting to track this latest round of audits in terms of timing and outcome.

Feel free to write in and share your own experiences.