Reminder: Employers Must Inspect Remote Form I-9 Documents by August 30

Employers have until Wednesday, August 30, to comply with requirements by physically inspecting documents that were viewed remotely during the COVID-19 temporary flexibilities for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Employers are required to complete a physical document examination for all individuals hired on or after March 20, 2020, who only have had a virtual or remote document examination.

What to Do on Form I-9

Employers that examined employees’ documents remotely should have entered “COVID-19” in the section 2 Additional Information field on Form I-9 as the reason for the physical examination delay.

By August 30, an employer must obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the documents for these employees. Employers should add “documents physically examined” and the examination date to the section 2 Additional Information field or in section 3 of Form I-9. DHS provided examples of how to notate document examination.

Remote Option Allowed for Recheck

DHS published a final rule that provides an alternative for certain employers to examine Form I-9 documents remotely. Employers that were participating in E-Verify and created a case for employees whose documents were examined during the flexibilities may use the new alternative procedure for the physical document examination requirement.

To participate in the remote examination option, employers must examine copies of the documents or an acceptable receipt and conduct a live video interaction with the employee presenting the documents. Employers should indicate on Form I-9 that the alternative procedure was used to examine documentation.

To learn more about federal and state laws, regulations, and information to keep your company’s payroll operations in compliance, check out Payroll Source Plus!

Rayna Alexander, Esq., is Editor of Payroll Information Resources for PayrollOrg.