The COVID Project
Context, not an orderThis record is guidance or an announcement kept for context. It is not counted among the orders in force.
The record
- Jurisdiction
- United States Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (federal agency)
- Level
- Federal
- Authority
- 8 U.S.C. 1324a; 8 C.F.R. 274a.2; DHS enforcement discretion
- Issued
- 2020-03-20 Mar. 20, 2020
- Effective
- 2020-03-20 (NOI extensions effective Mar. 19, 2020) (read as 2020-03-20)
- End
- Initially 60 days or three business days after the national emergency ended; extended repeatedly (Sept. 14, 2020 to Nov. 19; then to Dec. 31, 2020; Jan. 31, Mar. 31, May 31, Aug. 31, Dec. 31, 2021; ultimately July 31, 2023) (read as 2021-09-30)
- In force
- Mar. 20, 2020 to Sept. 30, 2021
- Quarters
- 2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
- Limitation types
- Telework mandateWorkplace rulesOther
- Addressees
- all employers and workplaces operating remotely due to COVID-19
- employers served with Notices of Inspection in March 2020
- Functions reached
- HR hiring and onboarding: the federal verification rule for every new hire in the United States was modified for remote workplaces from Mar. 20, 2020 through the whole period, conditioned on written telework policies and later in-person re-verification
- OF telework administration
- OP recordkeeping
- Character
- context
- Collection
- Federal labor and immigration agencies AGY-FED-LABOR-IMMIGRATION
Operative words
Due to precautions being implemented by employers and employees related to physical proximity associated with COVID-19, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it will exercise discretion to defer the physical presence requirements associated with Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Employers with employees taking physical proximity precautions due to COVID-19 will not be required to review the employee's identity and employment authorization documents in the employee's physical presence.... Employers who avail themselves of this option must provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee.... Once normal operations resume, all employees who were onboarded using remote verification, must report to their employer within three business days for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9... This provision only applies to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely. If there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification... Effective March 19, 2020, any employers who were served NOIs by DHS during the month of March 2020 and have not already responded will be granted an automatic extension for 60 days from the effective date. [Mar. 31, 2021 update:] If employees hired on or after April 1, 2021, work exclusively in a remote setting due to COVID-19-related precautions, they are temporarily exempt from the physical inspection requirements associated with the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the INA until they undertake non-remote employment on a regular, consistent, or predictable basis, or the extension of the flexibilities related to such requirements is terminated, whichever is earlier.
Enforcement
Civil and criminal paperwork and knowing-hire penalties under 8 U.S.C. 1324a(e)-(f) for employers outside the terms of the deferral; written remote-onboarding documentation required as a condition
Notes
Reaches every employer in every industry that onboarded staff remotely; the Mar. 31, 2021 update (in force in 2021 Q2-Q3) exempted remote hires from physical inspection until they returned to non-remote work.
Retrieval noteLive ice.gov page carrying the original Mar. 20, 2020 release and the Mar. 31, 2021 update.