USCIS Requires Federal Contractors To Use New E-Verify System

Effective January 15, 2009, the United States Citizenship and

Immigration Service (USCIS) will require federal contractors to use

its E-Verify system. E-Verify is an automated system of verifying

employees' identity and authorization to work through the

databases of both the Social Security Administration and the

Department of Homeland Security. Enrollment will be required for

most prime federal contracts with a period of performance longer

than 120 days, a value above the simplified acquisition threshold

($100,000), and for work to be performed in the United States. This

requirement also will apply to indefinite delivery or indefinite

quantity contracts. The federal contractor and any covered

subcontractors will need to enroll in E-Verify within 30 days of

the contract award date.

Under the new rule, the federal contractor will be required to

use the E-Verify system to confirm the work eligibility of (1) all

persons hired by the contractor to perform work in the United

States; and (2) all persons assigned by the contractor to perform

work within the United States on the federal contract.

Participating employers will be required to enter into a Memorandum

of Understanding with the Department of Homeland Security, in which

the employer agrees to use the E-Verify system. Note that there are

many detailed procedural requirements which must be addressed in

this agreement.

The rule provides that if a covered government contractor fails

to use the E-Verify system, the contractor is subject to a risk of

debarment. Further information about the E-Verify system can be

found at www.uscis.gov/e-verify.

The government estimates that, as a result of this new

requirement, 170,000 new employers will enroll in E-Verify and

4,000,000 employees will go through the E-Verify process in...