Policy & Related News Archive
Archived Content
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Due to the implementation of system enhancements, E-Verify will be unavailable from April 20 at 9 p.m. to April 22 at 11:59 p.m. (Eastern). The E-Verify outage does not affect the requirements for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Employers must still complete Form I-9 no later than the third business day after employment begins.
DHS is aware of the hardship and ongoing recovery efforts resulting from the recent flooding in areas such as Louisiana and Texas. Individuals from these affected areas who need to replace lost or damaged documents can find FEMA fact sheets for information on replacing lost or damaged documents in Louisiana or Texas.
USCIS has published a final rule to modernize and improve several aspects of certain employment-based nonimmigrant and immigrant visa programs. USCIS has also amended regulations to better enable U.S. employers to hire and retain certain foreign workers who are beneficiaries of approved employment-based immigrant visa petitions and are waiting to become lawful permanent residents.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible nationals of Somalia (and those without nationality who last habitually resided in Somalia) for an additional 18 months, from March 18, 2017, through Sept. 17, 2018. DHS also automatically extended current TPS Somalia Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) with a March 17, 2017, expiration date for 6 months. These existing EADs are now valid through Sept. 17, 2017.
On May 10, the American Immigration Lawyers Association Verification and Document Liaison Committee met with the USCIS Verification Division, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations Division, and the U.S. Department of Justice Immigrant and Employee Rights Section to respond to questions, provide updates, and address questions from previous meetings. You can find the questions and answers below.
Question and Answers (PDF)
All Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, requirements remain in effect for those areas impacted by the recent hurricanes. All employers must continue to complete and retain Form I-9 for all individuals they hire for employment.
The E-Verify modernization launch has been postponed, but it’s still in the works. New system enhancements will feature improvements to photo matching, reduced Tentative Nonconfirmations and easier and faster creation of cases.
E-Verify will remain available from March 23 at 12 a.m. to March 26 at 8 a.m. Eastern, and all regular employment eligibility verification timelines continue to apply.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen announced her decision to terminate the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Nepal. She has authorized a delayed effective date of 12 months, through June 24, 2019.
Current beneficiaries who want to maintain their status until TPS for Nepal ends must re-register between May 22 and July 23, 2018.
Liberian nationals covered under Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) will have their employment authorization documents, which expire Sept. 30, 2016, automatically extended to be valid through March 31, 2017. For detailed information on how to complete or update Form I-9, please click here.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson has extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible nationals of Yemen (and those without nationality who last habitually resided in Yemen) for an additional 18 months, from Mar. 4, 2017, through Sept. 3, 2018. He also automatically extended current TPS Yemen Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) with a Mar. 3, 2017, expiration date for 6 months. These existing EADs are now valid through Sept. 3, 2017.