The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have recently announced the “sunset” of COVID-19 temporary flexibilities announced in March 2020 which allowed employers to remotely inspect new employee identification documents required for the Form I-9. These flexibilities began to “sunset” on July 31, 2023, and employers are required to finalize physical inspections by August 30, 2023.

This means that all employers have until the August 30, 2023 deadline to go back and physically inspect the documents the employer received from all individuals hired on or after March 20, 2020, and who only had remote inspections completed by the employer for their Form I-9. DHS requires specific annotations regarding the physical inspections on Form I-9, depending on who completes the physical inspection and what documents are presented.

For more information or questions about this announcement, please contact us.