Federal law prohibits employers from hiring or continuing to employ an unauthorized alien. The work status of new employees can be verified using the Electronic Verification Program (E-Verify), administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration.

Conducting an E-Verify search involves matching a social security number and other information reported on Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to government records.

E-Verify:

• Can only be used after an individual accepts an offer of employment and completes Form I-9.
• Must be used within three business days of the new hire’s actual start date.
• Cannot be used to verify the eligibility status of existing employees.
• Must be used to verify the work status of all new hires if an employer elects to use it, regardless of national origin or citizenship.
• Cannot be used selectively.

As with all current employee-verification programs, E-Verify is not always accurate. If a new employee is legally documented to work in the U.S. but the employer receives a final notice of nonconfirmation of work eligibility for the employee through E-Verify, there is recourse for the employee. Visit the employees section of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website.

For information about the employee’s identity documents presented for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, visit www.uscis.gov.

It is unlawful for an employer to:

• Hire, recruit, or refer for a fee, for employment in the United States, an alien, knowing the alien is an unauthorized alien;
• Hire, recruit, or refer for a fee, for employment in the United States, an individual without verifying the employment eligibility status of the individual through completion of the Form I-9, or its successor form;
• Continue to employ an alien in the United States, knowing that the alien is or has become an unauthorized alien; or
• While using the E-Verify program, refuse to hire, discharge, promote, or demote a person, harass a person during the course of employment, or discriminate against a person in matters of compensation, on the basis of the person’s disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, age, national origin, or ancestry. [1]

For more specific information regarding the E-Verify program and its requirements and use, employers should consult 8 U.S.C. Sec. 1324a.

 

[1] 24-34-402, C.R.S.