Human Resource Blog

I-9 Forms

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A company has several divisions and they are hiring employees and the new hire information such as tax forms and I-9 forms are forwared to the corporate headquarters to be processed.

The I-9 form usually arrives with only copies of the employee’s drivers license, birth certificate and/or social security card attached to it. Section two of the I-9 form is not completed.

The HR rep at headquarters is asked to complete section 2 without seeing the original documents. When the HR rep questions this practice the HR rep is told that one of the managers at the divisions is making copies of the original documents and it is ok to complete section 2 of the I-9 and sign it.

Is this correct and/or legal?

Thank you for your time.

No, this is not correct and possibly not legal. Worst of all, it exposes the employer to charges of knowingly hiring an illegal alien, which can carry hefty fines.

 

All employers are required to complete an I-9 form when hiring workers.

As you no doubt know, Section 2 requires the employee’s representative to sign this statement: “CERTIFICATION – I attest, under penalty of perjury, that I have examined the document(s) presented by the above-named employee, that the above-listed document(s) appear genuine and to relate to the employee named, that the employee began employment on (date) and that to the best of my knowledge the employee is eligible to work in the United States.”

It is clearly the intention of the I-9 that the person completing Section 2 examines the original documents, not faxed copies of them. You can’t attest that a driver’s license or green card “appears genuine” if you’ve never seen the actual document. It’s also impossible for you to know if the photo on a passport or driver’s license looks like the employee, because you can’t see the employee.

Many documents that appear genuine in a fax or photocopy will easily be identified as fakes when the original is viewed.

If an on-site manager is reviewing the I-9 documents, then that person should complete Section 2 of the I-9, make copies and fax you the form with Section 2 complete.

Be aware that some companies deliberately use this process because they know or strongly suspect that the documents presented are fake.

For more information on the I-9 and the certification process, contact the USCIS National Customer Service Center at 1-800- 375-5283 or by visiting the website at www.uscis.gov.

A word to the wise: If you present this as “I refuse to sign the I-9” you will probably be perceived as a troublemaker. If you present this as “I think we should do this differently, because this way exposes the company to liability for hiring illegal aliens” you become the good employee who is trying to protect the company.