GNYADA October 2016 Newsletter

14 Dealer Hotline Q&A: I-9 Forms The GNYADA Dealer Hotline is a valuable resource for dealership personnel trying to navigate the various com- pliance issues they face. One of the Hotline's most fre- quent calls relates to Form I-9 and employment documen- tation requirements.

Q Do I need to complete a Form I-9 for independent contractors? A The requirement to complete the I-9 form extends to employees only. Employers should not complete an I-9 form for independent contractors or workers employed by the contractor. Q Can I terminate an employee who fails to produce the required documents (or an acceptable receipt for a document) within three business days of his or her start date? A Yes. Q Do I have to authenticate documents? A If the documents appear genuine upon examination, you must accept them. To do otherwise could be an unfair immigration-related employment practice. If the documents don’t appear on their face to be genuine or to relate to the person presenting them, do not accept them. Q What happens if I properly complete and retain a Form I-9 and DHS discovers that my employee is not actually authorized to work? A Unless the government can show that you had knowledge of the unauthorized status of the employee, you shouldn’t be subject to penalties. Q My new employee’s documentation reflects different last names, because of their recent marriage. Can I accept documents with different names? A You may accept a document with a different name than the name entered in Section 1, provided that you resolve the question of whether the document reasonably relates to the employee. You also may wish to attach a brief memo to the form stating the reason for the name discrepancy, along with any supporting documentation the employee provides. Again, if one of the documents doesn’t look genuine, you may ask the employee to provide other acceptable forms of documentation found on the last page of the I-9 form. Employment requirements will be on the agenda for dis- cussion at the Annual Labor Law Seminar, along with many other regulations impacting dealers’ day-to-day operations. The Seminar will be held on October 18 and 20 at the Center for Automotive Education & Training. To register, contact Phyllis at PhyllisA@gnyada.com.

Employers are required to complete and retain a Form I-9 for every employee. Below are answers to some common questions regarding your obligations to complete and retain the form. Q What is Form I-9? A Form I-9 verifies the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired in the United States. For each new hire, employers must ensure proper completion of the form, which is completed by both the employer and the employee. On the form, an employee must: Attest that he/she is authorized to work. Present documents demonstrating their identity and employment authorization. The employer must then examine and verify the employee’s documents and record the information on the form. Q What is the deadline for completing the form? A Employers must complete Section 1 by the end of the employee's first day of paid work. Employers must complete Section 2 within three business days, following the first day of work. Q What are the record retention requirements? A Employers don’t need to file the form with any agency. It must simply be made available for inspection by authorized U.S. Government officials from the Department of Labor, or Department of Justice, or Department of Homeland Security. For this reason, GNYADA recommends retaining all I-9 forms in a separate file. Employers are required to retain completed I-9 forms for at least three years following the employee's date of hire or for one year following their separation from the company, whichever is later. n n

Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association • www.gnyada.com

The Newsletter • October 2016

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