Winter of ICE – as in Immigration & Customs Enforcement

WINTER OF ICE:  Baby it’s cold outside, and it’s time to worry about more than the usual winter ICE.  The United States Office of Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) has launched some 1,000 I-9 audits of employers within the last few weeks.  ICE says the audit notices were sent to employers based on investigative leads and other enforcement intelligence.  The formal audits to be conducted by ICE will review I-9 forms, payroll reports, unemployment insurance tax reports, quarterly tax statements, lists of independent contractors, no match letters, etc.  What should an employer do to deal with this winter ICE?  Take proactive measures to ensure compliance with the immigration laws, such as properly review relevant records and correctly fill out I-9 forms.  Employers who employ H-1B and L-1 foreign workers might also soon expect unannounced site visits by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) anti-fraud agents.  It could be a long winter…

Acknowledgement and thanks to Mike O’Brien (writer) and Kriss Hess (sender) at the law firm Jones Waldo in Salt Lake City, UT

Note: Posts on this blog are for information only, and are NOT legal advice.

NEW I-9 FORM VALID THROUGH 2012

 The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Agency (USCIS) has issued an updated I-9 form.  The I-9 form is used to verify the eligibility of new employees to work in the United States.  The form must be filled out within three days of when a new employee starts work. The new form, available at http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-9.pdf, expires on August 31, 2012.