New Form I-9: Staying Compliant

If you run a business, then you know the importance (and maybe the hassle, too) of correctly obtaining and storing the I-9 Employee Eligibility Verification form. In case you haven’t heard, CAS wanted to let you know about updates to the I-9, which has been revised for 2017. Beginning January 22nd all employers must use the updated document.

First things first, let’s make sure you have the most recent version. You can find that here: https://www.uscis.gov/i-9. How do you know you have the new form? Look for the “Revised Date” in the upper-right corner. The date should be 11/14/2016. (The old form is dated 03/08/2013).

Secondly, don’t panic — the changes aren’t drastic. Some changes are minor, such as in Section 1, where “other names used” has been replaced with “other last names used.”

Most changes, however, were designed to make filling out the form on the computer more user-friendly. For example, if you fill out the form on the computer, you’ll find “helper text,” or instructions for each section.

They’ve also added calendars for filling out dates and drop down lists to ensure you choose the correct names of countries and verifying documents. These changes are designed to help you avoid mistakes, which can lead to costly fines.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the changes in November with a press release and has updated its website accordingly.

Need more information? UCIS has multiple social media outlets, such as Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis), Facebook (/uscis), and its very own blog, The Beacon. And as always, at CAS we’re here to help you with questions particular to your business. So give us a call!