Proposed Revisions to Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification

On March 27, 2012, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a draft of proposed revisions to Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, the form that must be completed by all employers to verify the employment eligibility of every new hire.

Proposed Changes

The proposed changes would expand Form I-9 from two to three pages (including the “List of Acceptable Documents”). The modifications provide more detailed instructions for completion of the form and clearer explanations concerning the specific information required in key fields. Notable revisions to the form include:

• Expanded Form I-9 instructions and a revised layout;

• New, optional data fields to collect the employee’s email address and telephone number; and

• New data fields to collect the foreign passport number and country of issuance, if employees use their I-94 and foreign passport for work authorization.

Employers must continue to use the current edition of Form I-9 (with a revision date of 08/07/09, expiring on 08/31/2012) until the new, revised version has been approved and posted by the federal government. Ogletree Deakins is closely following developments regarding the proposed revisions to Form I-9 and will provide updates as they become available.