The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published a request for public comment seeking feedback on employers’ experiences in utilizing remote processes (such as video chat or email) to verify new employees’ work authorization and identity documents. Under a policy adopted by DHS last year, remote I-9 verifications are currently allowed on a temporary basis in response to worksite disruptions created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Worth noting, DHS has posed a series of questions designed to solicit information that it may use to “understand the potential costs and benefits of allowing for future remote document examination flexibilities,” suggesting that the agency is open to making this policy permanent.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.