January 30, 2009
The Department of Homeland Security announced on January 30, 2009 that the implementation of the revised I-9 will be delayed for sixty days, through April 3, 2009. The effective date of the interim final rule regarding the revised I-9 will also be extended through April 3, 2009. The Immigration Service is also extending the comment period for this rule for thirty days.
The Form I-9 must be completed by employers for all newly hired employees. The purpose of the form is to verify the identity and work authorization of all newly hired employees. The documents employees can present to verify their identity and work authorization are divided into three lists: List A documents verify identity and employment authorization; List B documents verify identity only; and List C documents verify employment authorization only.
According to USCIS, the new rule eliminates Forms I-688, I-688A, and I-688B (Temporary Resident Card and older versions of the Employment Authorization Card/Document) from List A. These cards are no longer issued and all cards in circulation are now expired. The rule also adds to List A two acceptable documents: (1) A temporary I-551 printed notation on a machine-readable immigrant visa in addition to the foreign passport with a temporary I-551 stamp; and (2) foreign passports containing specially-marked machine-readable visas and documentation for certain citizens of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands. Other changes to the revised Form I-9 include revisions to the employee attestation section, some technical changes to the list of acceptable documents, and the addition of the new U.S. Passport Card to List A.
