ICE Extends I-9 Flexibility Through August 2020
ICE extended I-9 remote verification flexibility through August 19, 2020, but ended extensions for employers served NOIs in March. Here is what changed.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) extended the I-9 requirement flexibility accommodations that were issued in March until August 19. ICE also announced that no additional extensions would be granted to employers that were served Notices of Inspection (NOIs) in March 2020.
As covered in our previous update on the DHS I-9 rule change during COVID-19, DHS allowed employers that had implemented physical proximity policies due to COVID-19 to verify an employee's identity documents remotely. E-Verify participants who met the criteria and chose the remote inspection option were instructed to continue following current guidance and create cases for new hires within three business days of the date of hire.
As a reminder, employers that used CRC's online I-9 form documentation service had access to additional features to help reduce the burden of organizing and tracking this update, including a checkbox at the top of Section 2 titled "Operating remotely, physical inspection delay, COVID-19." Checking this box allowed the employer to upload a copy of the documents; once normal operations resumed, customers were notified to complete their physical inspections and mark them as complete on their forms.
In response to these ongoing extensions, CRC hosted a webinar to discuss the updates and strategies HR personnel could use to stay in compliance. If you have questions about I-9 compliance or CRC's I-9 fulfillment services, please reach out to our team.
This post reflects DHS and ICE guidance in effect at the time of original publication in July 2020.
