To clear up some of the confusion, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has published answers to a few of HR’s most common questions about federal contractors and E-Verify:

1. Who’s affected by the rule?

Companies will be required to use E-Verify when they enter into federal contracts with a performance period longer than 120 days and a value of more than $100,000. Also, subcontractors are covered by the rule when the prime contract meets the above requirements and the subcontract is for services or construction with a value over $3,000.

2. Which employees must be verified?

Covered contractors are required to verify all new hires, as well as any existing employees assigned to the government contract. That includes employees who perform “substantial duties” under the contract, as opposed to those performing overhead or support work.

3. When do we have to enroll?

The rule went into effect on September 8. Any applicable federal contract signed after that date must include an “E-Verify clause” that requires contractors to use the system.

Companies not already signed up for E-Verify have to enroll within 30 days after they’re awarded a contract with that clause, and they must begin verifying new hires and current employees working on the contract within 90 days.

However, all companies can sign up for E-Verify whenever they want, so current or prospective federal contractors might as well enroll before they’re required to.

4. What if we already have a government contract?

You won’t be required to sign up for E-Verify until you sign a new contract that contains the E-Verify clause.

For more information from USCIS, click here.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced the delay on Jan. 30, in response to a memorandum from the Obama administration asking federal agencies to freeze certain unimplemented regulations.

The rule updating the Form I-9 was set to take effect on Feb. 2, but has been pushed back 60 days to April 3.

Until then, employers should continue using the current version (dated 06/05/07 at the bottom of the last page) and be prepared to change forms on April 3.

Both the current version and the one employers will be required to switch to are available from the USCIS here.

The federal government recently announced that a new I-9 form is on the way. What’s going to change, and what does it mean to HR?

Here’s an overview of the changes in a set of new I-9 rules proposed last week by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS):

1. No expired documents

The biggest change: Expired documents will no longer be accepted for employment verification.

Right now, passports and all List B documents are acceptable even if they’re expired. But the Department of Homeland Security wants to do away with that, because expired IDs are more prone to fraudulent use and harder to verify as authentic.

2. Changes to the list of acceptable documents

The new rule also removes three documents from List A: the “Temporary Resident Card” (form I-688) and “Employment Authorization Cards” (Forms I-688A and I-688B). USCIS no longer issues those cards, and any that are in circulation have expired by now.

Instead, people are issued Form I-766, which remains on the list.

Also, the new I-9 will add to List A:

• the U.S. Passport Card to List A (a cheaper passport alternative only valid for land or sea travel that the Department of State started issuing earlier this year)
• foreign passports containing machine-readable visas, and
• passports from certain citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

3. Technical changes

The new form also makes a few minor, technical changes in language and wording. For example, references to “employment eligibility” are replaced with “employment authorization.” Also, employees can now attest to being a “noncitizen national of the United States” (people born in American Samoa and the former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands).

When is it official?

How soon will you have to use the new form? The feds are collecting comments on the new rule now, after which a final rule will be published in the Federal Register. The new form will be required starting 45 days after publication. We’ll keep you posted when the date is set.

To view the new form and submit comments, go here.