The price for everything has gone up in recent times, and the cost of failing to comply with Form I-9 requirements is no exception. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has raised the fines for Form I-9 civil violations in order to take inflation into account.

The agency made its official announcement last month, and these new fines will take effect for any penalties that are assessed subsequent to October 18th, 2021, for violations that took place after November 2nd, 2021. The increased penalties for paperwork violations include:

• Minimum Penalties: The minimum penalty has increased from $234 for the prior year to the current $237.
• Maximum Penalties: The maximum penalty has increased from $2,332 for the prior year to the current $2,360.

The already much higher penalties for knowingly hiring, recruiting, retaining, or referring those without employment authorization have been raised as well. These penalties now include:

• First Offense: These penalties have increased from $583-$4,667 for the prior year to the current $590-$4,722.
• Second Offense:These penalties have increased from $583-$4,667 for the prior year to the current $590-$4,722.
• Third and Subsequent Offenses: These penalties have increased from $6,999-$23,331 for the prior year to $7,082-23,607 for the current year.

Form I-9 Basics

Now more than ever before, failing to comply with the requirements for completing Form I-9 can be extremely costly. So, let’s consider the basics of completing Form I-9 – Employment Eligibility Verification. This form administered by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) must be completed in order to verify the identity and employment authorization of every new hire employed in the U.S.

Employers are responsible for completing this form for every new hire, or else they face the risk of the severe penalties given above. In order to complete Form I-9, both employees and employers must complete parts of the form. The Form I-9 contains three distinct sections, which are:

• Section 1: This section is completed by the employee and contains their information and an attestation.
• Section 2: This section is for the employer to complete alongside their review and verification of the employee’s documentation.
• Section 3: This section is used by the employer in the event of reverification of employment authorization or for rehires.

Completing Form I-9 can be difficult, and it requires considerable knowledge and attention to complete correctly. There are many unusual situations that can arise and procedures to remember, and this can lead to costly mistakes. Often these include missing sections or completing them incorrectly, failure to comply with verification of documentation, or missing deadlines.

The best way to stay in compliance and avoid costly civil penalties is to streamline the process with an electronic I-9 management tool. This can guide personnel through the verification process and prevent errors while ensuring documentation is stored properly, and send helpful alerts of upcoming deadlines.