Would your I-9 Forms Pass an ICE audit Employer Best Practices to Conduct Internal I-9 Audits

The U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) is going all-out in its "bold new audit initiative" to crack down on employers who violate immigration laws. Administrative I-9 audits are ICE's tool of choice. Too often, company execs and HR managers assume their I-9 compliance practices are in order when, in fact, their records and policies are littered with mistakes, leaving the business and individuals open to fines & lawsuits. Immigration compliance is important for employers as I-9 errors can be costly. In this webinar, Immigration Lawyer Bruce Buchanan will discuss how to conduct an internal I-9 audit, including how to correct errors on I-9 forms. He will also discuss what to expect and how to respond to an ICE audit. E-Verify are also becoming mandatory in many situations so it’s important to understand E-Verify as well.

• The importance of internal self-audits
• How to conduct I-9 internal audit
• How to correct the common errors found on I-9 forms
• Discuss what to do when no I-9 found or only a copy found
• Discuss the importance of an Immigration Compliance policy
• Teach the audience what occurs in an ICE inspection
• Potential consequences and penalties from an ICE inspection
• How to respond to ICE inspection

• Why should an employer conduct an internal I-9 audit
• How often should an employer conduct an internal I-9 audit
• Who should perform the internal I-9 audit
• How to conduct an I-9 internal audit
• How to correct I-9 form errors & omissions
• What to do when you discover an employee does not have an I-9 form
• What to do when you discover an employee is unauthorized to work and
• Discuss how to prevent claims of discrimination in internal I-9 audit recent penalties assessed by OCAHO to employers
• I-9 violations and penalties
• ICE Inspections and how to respond to them

Immigration enforcement is on the rise. With increased funding and driven by public outcry, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, is on the audit trail, ready to levy big fines for employers not in compliance.

Ever changing immigration laws, cautious environment, ever vigilant officers, costly fines for potential violations - few of the issues faced by your organization. Most organizations are suffering from innocent mistakes made with regard to employment verification and other immigration laws. Form I-9 is used for verifying the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment. Join us as we explore a range of questions surrounding Form I9, with emphasis on changing federal immigration law, the issues faced by employer and the newer challenges associated with it.

A self-audit can go a long way toward minimizing fines and risks of liability for immigration law violations. The main objectives of an I-9 self-audit are to:

• Identify and fix mistakes and omissions
• Eliminate records you no longer are required to maintain and
• Ensure you are not inadvertently employing an undocumented worker

You should be conducting periodic I-9 audits on your own and making a good-faith effort to correct mistakes. This webinar will help make an ICE inspection as painless as possible.

• HR Managers and Professionals
• Owners of Small Companies
• office Managers
• CFOs & COO’s
• Payroll and Accounting Managers
• In - House Counsel
• Compliance Officers
• E-Verify Users
• Anyone involved in company’s I-9s

Bruce E. Buchanan is a founding partner at Sebelist Buchanan Law PLLC with offices in Nashville and Atlanta, where he primarily represents employers in all aspects of immigration law, with a special emphasis on employer immigration compliance, as well as employment/labor law matters. Additionally, he is "Of Counsel" to Siskind Susser concerning employer immigration compliance matters.

Mr. Buchanan received his law degree from the Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1982. He served as senior trial specialist for the National Labor Relations Board for 20 years. Mr. Buchanan also served for 12 years as Adjunct Professor at William H. Bowen UALR School of Law. He went into private practice in 2003 and formed his own law firm in late 2015.

Mr. Buchanan authors his own blog on employer immigration compliance for ilw.com, located at www.employerimmigration.com and is a monthly contributor to HR Professionals Magazine. He is also the editor of the Tennessee Bar Association's Immigration Law Section Newsletter and past-Chair of the TBA's Immigration Law Section. Mr. Buchanan is admitted to practice in Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, and Arkansas, and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth, Sixth, Eighth and D.C. Circuits.