Effective Today Federal Contractors and Subcontractors Required to Use E-Verify

Effective today Federal Contractors and Subcontractors will be required to use the E-Verify system, an electronic system to verify their employees’ eligibility to work in the United States, if their contract includes the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) E-Verify Clause.

Companies awarded a contract with the E-Verify clause on or after September 8 2009 will be required to enroll in E-Verify within 30 days of the contract award date.  E-Verify must be used to confirm that all new hires, whether employed on a federal contract or not, and existing employees directly working on these contracts are legally authorized to work in the United States.

The U.S District Court Judge Alexander Williams Jr. rejected an emergency motion for an injunction by U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups to delay the mandate while a federal appeal is pending. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups argue that that it is illegal for the government to extend E-verify to contractors through an executive order and that E-Verify will put greater liability on employers and employers will incur a cost burden to modify their payroll systems or existing personnel.

E-Verify,  which compares information from the Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9) against federal government databases to verify workers’ employment eligibility, is a free web-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA). The system facilitates compliance with federal immigration laws and helps to deter unauthorized individuals from attempting to work and also helps employers avoid employing unauthorized aliens. Although the the E-verify system will reduce hiring of illegal immigrants by verifying documentation it is not fool proof as it fails to verify identities of employees and thus illegal workers using the identities of other workers who are authorized to work in the U.S. could continue to do so.

For more information on the program see here:

Biometric Exit Procedures has began at Two U.S. Airports for Departing Non-U.S. Citizens

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has began collecting biometrics-digital fingerprints-from non-U.S. citizens departing the United States as part of a pilot program at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County
Airport.

Non-U.S. citizens leaving the United States from Detroit and Atlanta airports should expect to have their biometrics collected before boarding their flights. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers will collect biometrics at the boarding gate from non-U.S. citizens departing from Detroit; U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers will collect biometrics at security checkpoints from non-U.S. citizens departing from Atlanta. These pilots are expected to continue through early July.

US-VISIT plans to begin implementing new biometric exit procedures based on these pilots for non-U.S. citizens departing the United States by air within the next year.

Non-U.S. citizens departing the United States from all other ports of entry will continue to follow current exit procedures, which require travelers to return their paper Form I-94 (Arrival-Departure Record) or Form I-94W (for Visa Waiver Program travelers) to an airline or ship representative.

Understanding the Employment Verification Process and Revised Form I-9 For Employers and HR Proffessionals

The Form I-9 helps employers to verify that the individuals they hire are authorized to work in the United States. An employer is required to complete a Form I-9 for every new employee hired and prohibited from using the I-9 process to screen job applicants.

All employers are required by legislation to verify the identity and employment authorization of each employee they hire for employment in the United States after November 6, 1986, including non-citizens and nationals of the United States.

With increased Immigration enforcement by the Department of Homeland Security, understanding I-9 compliance and having established company procedures for tracking and maintaining I-9 compliance has become ever important for employers and HR Professionals. 

Employers can expect a revised Form I-9, which is likely to come into effect on April 3, 2009.

For more on employers’ obligations and differences between the current and revised Form I-9,  see our attorney, Hanishi Ali’s recent article published in the Indus Business Journal.

President Obama’s FY 2010 Budget and Proposed Plans for Department of Homeland Security

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is responsibile for providing immigration-related services and benefits such as naturalization and work authorization as well as enforcement responsibilities for enforcement of federal immigration laws, customs laws, and air security laws.  

DHS will be allocated budget totaling to $42.7 billion for Fiscal Year 2010 , in addition to the $ 2.8 billion in the Recovery Act, includes key national security priorities that range from border control to cyberspace security.

The budget proposes strengthening border security and immigration services, as well as efforts to improve the delivery of immigration enforcement by streamlining and modernizing immigration application processes.

The DHS’s budget highlights are:

• Safeguarding our nation’s transportation system
• Enhancing cybersecurity and technology R&D
• Strengthening border security and immigration services
• Supporting state homeland security activities

For more details see http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/Department_of_Homeland_Security.pdf