Employers filing I-9 forms to verify the eligibility of newly hired employees to work in the U.S. might have noticed an impending expiration date: The form will expire on Aug. 31.
But officials with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS, office this week said employers should continue to use that form until further notice, even after the deadline has passed.
“We will provide updated information about the new version of the Form I-9 as it becomes available,” the agency said on its website.
Required for all new hires, the I-9 was first introduced in 1987, and several versions have been issued. Not all are valid for use, the agency said, and employers are urged to check the expiration date on the top right corner of the document.
According to the National Law Review, the USCIS initiated a 60-day comment period on its plan to extend the form without making changes in March. Only 21 comments were received, though requests for changes and clarifications were expected. So USCIS decided to extend the comment period through July 6. It remains unclear whether the form will change.
This comes amid fears of workplace raids as enforcement by Homeland Security steps up. The I-9 form compliance is a key factor in employer audits.
Earlier this month, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, officials detained about 680 “removable aliens” who they said were working unlawfully at seven agricultural processing plants in Mississippi.
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