U.S. Delays Requirement to Use Revised I-9 Form
02/02/2009
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has delayed by 60 days, until April 3, 2009, the effective date for using the revised Form I-9, originally scheduled to go into effect today. Please note: Employers who use the new form prior to the April 3, 2009 effective date are subject to civil monetary penalties. According to an interim rule published in December 2008, employers were supposed to begin using the revised verification form on February 2, 2009. However, when President Obama took office, the White House issued a directive to all federal agencies asking them to review any regulations introduced by the Bush administration but had not taken effect before January 20, 2009. USCIS officials stated that the 60-day delay should provide adequate time to complete a full review of the new form and employment verification requirements. A notice announcing the delay was set to appear in The Federal Register. In addition, the USCIS will reopen the public comment period on the new rule for 30 days, until March 4, 2009. Employers must complete a Form I-9 for all newly hired employees to verify their identity and authorization to work in the United States. The interim final rule will amend regulations governing the types of acceptable identity and employment authorization documents employees may present to their employers for completion of the Form I-9. Under the interim rule, employers will no longer be able to accept expired documents to verify employment authorization on the Form I-9. The proposed revised I-9 form is available online from the USCIS website (www.uscis.gov).
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