Federal contractors and subcontractors will be required to use the E-Verify system starting on January 15, 2009, to verify their employees' eligibility to legally work in the United States. In a final rule published in the Federal Register on November 14, 2008, the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council amended the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to reflect this change.
E-Verify is an electronic system administered by the United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA). This program allows participating employers to verify whether newly hired employees are authorized to work in the United States by checking the information provided by employees on their Form I-9 against both USCIS and SSA databases.
Currently, employer enrollment in the E-Verify program is primarily voluntary, and there is no fee for participating employers. However, certain states have passed legislation requiring the use of E-Verify; and as of January 15, 2009, Federal government contractors will be required to use E-Verify for all contractor and subcontractor new hires, and ALL employees (existing and new) directly engaged in the performance of work under the covered contract.
To which Government Contracts does the New Rule Apply?
Federal contracts awarded and solicitations issued after January 15, 2009 will include a clause committing government contractors to use E-Verify. The same clause will also be required in subcontracts over $3000 for services or construction. Contracts exempt from this rule include those that are for less than $100,000 and those that are for commercially available off-the-shelf items. Companies awarded a contract with the federal government will be required to enroll in E-Verify within 30 days of the contract award date. They will also need to begin using E-Verify to confirm that all of their new hires and their employees directly working on federal contracts are authorized to legally work in the United States.
How This Affects You
Under the final rule, after January 15, 2009, employers are required to enroll in E-Verify if and when they are awarded a federal contract or subcontract that requires participation in E-Verify as a term of the contract. Federal contractors are required to use E-Verify for both new hires and existing employees who work on a new federal contract.
If an employer has not yet enrolled in E-Verify, then it has thirty (30) days from the date of contract award to enroll, and ninety (90) days from the date the employer enrolls with E-Verify to initiate verification queries for employees already on staff who will be working on the contract, and to begin using the system to verify newly hired employees.
There are several exceptions and exemptions associated with this new rule. If your company is a federal contractor, we recommend that you contact our office for further guidance on the new E-Verify requirements.
We will provide further information as soon as it becomes available.
Please contact Goeschl Law Corporation if your company is interested in having our firm serve as an E-Verify Third Party Agent.
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