IRCA & I-9 Compliance Issues

It is as important for an employer to methodically navigate and comply with the U.S. immigration system as for a foreign national employee. The hiring procedures of an employer were dramatically changed with the passage of the Immigration Reform & Control Act (IRCA) by Congress in 1986. Under IRCA, an employer is required to only hire aliens authorized to work and to maintain records evidencing the right to work of all employees hired after October 6, 1986. These two requirements have generated an area of immigration law is complex and burdensome. The challenges to the employer include determining: Who is an employee covered by IRCA? Who is permitted to work under U.S. immigration laws? What internal system should be developed to ensure compliance with the law? What constitutes a violation? What penalties are imposed on the employer in the instance of a violation? What is E-Verify? An employer must know the answers to these questions in order to ensure that his/her business is in compliance with federal law.