USCIS Revises I-9

On July 17, 2017, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a new Form I-9.  This new form must be used beginning September 18, 2017. Fortunately, the current changes to the form are minimal. Below is a short summary of the revisions made by USCIS:

Revisions to the Form I-9 instructions:

• USCIS revised the anti-discrimination and privacy act notices on the instructions to change the name of the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices to its new name, Immigrant and Employee Rights Section.
• USCIS removed “the end of” from the phrase “the first day of employment.”

Revisions to the List of Acceptable Documents on Form I-9:

• The Consular Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240) has been added as an acceptable document under List C. Employers completing Form I-9 on a computer will be able to select Form FS-240 from the drop-down menus available in List C of Sections 2 and 3. E-Verify users will also be able to select Form FS-240 when creating a case for an employee who has presented this document for Form I-9.
• All the certifications of report of birth issued by the Department of State (Form FS-545, Form DS-1350, and Form FS-240) are now combined into selection C #2 in List C.
• All List C documents (except the Social Security card) were renumbered.

USCIS also issued a press release advising employers that all of the latest changes have been included in the revised Handbook for Employers: Guidance for Complete Form I-9 (M-274).