LawLogix Group (01/06/12)

E-Verify, the federal government’s electronic employment eligibility verification program, is increasingly becoming mandatory, and employers must understand how to use the system through an ever-expanding web of state requirements. At last count, nine states require E-Verify for all or most employers. States with new E-Verify laws effective Jan. 1, 2012, include Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Many of these state laws have been enacted without any accompanying guidance, making it important for employers to make a coordinated effort to successfully manage their I-9 and E-Verify obligations by working closely with experienced immigration counsel to ensure compliance with both state and federal rules. Employers are also well-advised to use an integrated I-9/E-Verify system that can automatically control the submission of I-9s to E-Verify by work location or impose other state-specific rules which may be in effect.