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How to Prepare for ICE I-9 Audit / Inspection |
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by Mira Mdivani, Immigration Attorney
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Thursday, 02 July 2009 |
 On July 1, 2009, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) announced that the agency is set to conduct I-9 audits of over 650 employers in all 50 states. I-9-related violations have been used by the government recently to indict employers and individual people, from CEOs to HR managers to first-line supervisor, on criminal grounds, and to impose civil and criminal monetary liability. What can an employer do to make sure that their I-9 Employment Verification Forms are in proper order and the employer is in top shape as far as immigration compliance goes?
ICE Best Employment Practices
First, make sure that the Employer understands the ICE Best Practices and implements them. The Best Practices are based on ICE’s IMAGE program, a voluntary probation-like program run by ICE. I do not recommend that the employers actually sign up for IMAGE; but I strongly suggest to my clients to write down ICE Best Practices requirements and find a reasonable way to implement them. My sample list of ICE Best Practices is below:
MDIVANI Best Employment Practices Based on ICE Best Employment Practices:
1. E-Verify
2. Annual I-9 Administrator Training on I-9s
3. Only Trained I-9 Administrators to Complete I-9s and E-Verify
4. Secondary Review of I-9
5. Annual I-9 Audits
6. Report I-9 Violations to Management - Annual I-9 Audit Report
7. SSN No-Match Procedures
8. Open Door Policy for Employees to Report IRCA and Other (e.g. Title VII) Violations
9. Establish Policies to Avoid Use of Verification for Unlawful discrimination
10. Contractors and Subcontractors: Communicate ICE Best Practices, Include in Contracts, Assess Compliance through Contractor Certification
Annual I-9 Audits
ICE Best Practices call for ANNUAL I-9 Self-Audits, by an outside auditor or done internally by an employee not normally involved in the I-9 process. The I-9 self-audits serve two purposes: they ensure that the all the errors are caught and corrected before ICE gets involved, and demonstrate to the government that the employer is serious about immigration compliance and is not simply “turning a blind eye.”
Why Bother with I-9 Audits: www.i-9seminars.com/images/pdf/i-9_self_audit_chapter_one_web.pdf
How to Conduct Preliminary I-9 Audits:
www.i-9seminars.com/images/pdf/i-9_self_audit_chapter_three_how_to_conduct_preliminary_i-9_audits_web.pdf
Annual I-9 Administrator Training
Annual Administrator training is on the ICE Best Practices list. Again, it serves two purposes: trained administrators will know their I-9s and there will be fewer errors, and the regular annual training of I-9 administrators is a sign of how serious the company is about I-9s, thus, a serious defense against allegations of “turning a blind eye.” I advise clients to hold I-9 Aminsitrator training immediately after the annual I-9 Self-Audit, before they make corrections of errors found during the self-audit, and when significant changes in the law occur.
How to Prepare for ICE I-9 Inspection
If you have not implemented the ICE Best Practices, including an I-9 Self-Audit and I-9 training done within past year, it is time to do so. Once the I-9 Self-Audit and I-9 Administration training are complete, you will be ready to work with ICE during the course of their I-9 audit, and you will be able to defend yourself if necessary once their audit is completed.
BOOKS on I-9 Self-Audits
I-9 Self-Audits, The Best Way to Prevent I-9 Disasters: www.i-9seminars.com/component/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,46/category_id,6/page,shop.browse/
TRAINING:
Immigration Specialist Certification Program: www.i-9seminars.com/component/option,com_seminars/Itemid,41/lang,en/seminarType,1/task,listSeminarTitlesNew/
I-9 Self-Audits Training: www.i-9seminars.com/phone-seminars/
I-9 Administrator Training: www.i-9seminars.com/phone-seminars/
(c)2009 I-9 Seminars.com
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