It’s almost time Georgia employers. For what you ask? To enroll in E-Verify of course. You can thank Governor Deal for signing House Bill 87, also known as the Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act of 2011, which was passed during the 2011 session of the Georgia General Assembly and was signed by the Governor on May 13, 2011. The first wave of private employers required to enroll in E-Verify in Georgia occurred on January 1, 2012, when employers with 500+ employees had to enroll. Compliance with the Georgia law is tied to a company’s ability to apply for, or renew, their business license, occupational tax certificate or any other document required to operate a business in the Peach State. The Georgia Attorney General’s office has posted online the affidavit employers will need to sign confirming their participation in E-Verify pursuant to the deadlines spelled out in section 36-60-6(d) of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.
Private employers in Georgia with 100 to 499 employees must enroll in E-Verify, the electronic employment eligibility verification program run by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), by July 1st. Enrollment is free, takes less than one hour (conservative estimate) and requires those who will be using the program to take and pass a tutorial about how to use it. The enrollment process is described on the USCIS website, and employers will be required to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department of Homeland Security (USCIS is a part of the Department of Homeland Security).
- Private employers in Georgia must enroll in E-Verify by July 1st, 2012 if you have 100 – 499 employees.
- E-Verify is used in conjunction with completion of the Employment Eligibility Verification form (Form I-9) — so don’t stop completing the Form I-9 as you will take information from that form and enter it into E-Verify.
- Use E-Verify only for new hires.
- Because E-Verify requires that you photocopy certain documents presented by new hires, consider a policy where you photocopy the document(s) presented by new hires effective upon your enrollment in E-Verify.
- Consider an internal audit using outside immigration counsel of your Forms I-9 as well as your policies and procedures with respect to your compliance with federal and state immigration laws. I am happy to have that discussion with you.