U.S. Immigration Explained Blog

Interim changes to the requirements make this a must read for employers. On December 17, CIS (Citizenship and Immigration Services) modified the way it processes the I-9 Form (Employment Eligibility Verification). Principally the changes pertain to the “List A” documents. They now accept only current documentation, no expired documents allowed, and the passports must be machine-readable.

Furthermore, the verification of a new employee must be made within three days of their hire date. Beyond this, the required documents break into three lists.

The List A documents verify an employee’s identity and their authorization to work. The authentication comes from such documents as their U.S. Passport, green card (I-551 Permanent Resident certification), and an EAD (Employment Authorization Document) which must now contain a recent photograph.

The List B documents prove only the employee’s ID. As stated, they must be current documentation with the latest version of the U.S. passport which can be optically scanned for verification.

The List C documents provide the employee’s right to work in the United States. As with all accepted documentation, the EAD must be current and totally accurate.

To qualify, the employee must either have a List A document, or both List B and C documents.

By refusing expired documents, especially passports, CIS hopes to stem fraudulently used passports. This does not mean that one’s U.S. citizenship ends because they have an expired passport. But, it does mean, it can’t be used for employment verification.

If the new employee has an unexpired foreign passport with the Pre-Printed temporary I-551 stamp, it will be approved. So long as it’s the new machine readable visa, they will be accepted on the List A documents.

However, the latest ruling does exclude the use of Forms I-688, I-688A and I-688B. These were previous versions of Temporary Resident Cards and EADs. They are no longer issued and will not be accepted.

One more thing to keep in mind. As an employer, you are required to keep current documentation on all employees. The newly revised Form I-9 will be available 45 days after the publication of this rule in the Federal Register. After that date, the new form must be filled out on all new hires. But, your current work force must also be re-verified under the stipulations set forth in this ruling when their documents expire.

Finally, to help answer any questions you may have concerning immigration requirements and CIS regulations, contact a well qualified immigration attorney for up to the minute information and accurate advice.

Tags: alien, CIS, Citizenship, EAD, foreigner, Green Card, I-551, I-688, I-9, Immigration, immigration attorney, immigration lawyer, US Citizenship, Visa