Background 

On 07/25/2023 the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule to the Federal Register titled “Optional Alternative 1 to the Physical Document Examination Associated With Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9)”. The ruling authorizes employers enrolled in E-Verify the option to remotely examine their employees’ identity and work authorization document(s) under a new DHS-authorized alternative procedure. You can access the final ruling here. 

At a high-level, the alternative procedure requires qualifying employers (or an authorized representative acting on such an employer’s behalf) to conduct the following within 3 business days of an employee’s first day of employment: 

1. Examine copies (front and back, if the document is two-sided) of Form I-9 documents or an acceptable receipt, and ensure that the documentation presented reasonably appears to be genuine. 
2. Conduct a live video interaction with the employee who is presenting the document(s) to ensure that the documentation reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the employee. The employee must provide copies of their document(s) in advance of the live meeting and present the same document(s) during the live video interaction.
3. Check the alternative procedure checkbox on the Form I-9. 
4. Retain a clear and legible copy of the documentation provided by the employee (front and back if the documentation is two-sided), and 
5. In the event of a Form I-9 audit or investigation, make available clear and legible copies of the documentation provided by the employee. 

In response to the new rule, the Tracker team has been developing a set of features to assist employers who want to take advantage of the new alternative procedure. As part of our Sydney Release (December 2023) we delivered our new Remote Document Inspection feature. This new feature is designed to meet the 5 requirements associated with the alternative procedure listed above. The only requirement that needs to be handled outside of the Tracker application is the live video interaction meeting between the employer (or authorized representative) and the employee. 

As part of our Tokyo release (February 2024) we have expand the feature to include reverifications. Qualified employers can still use the alternative procedure when processing a reverification. 

Client Configurations 

New Worksite Setting 

Once the feature is enabled, a new setting will appear on select Worksite records for Worksites that are associated with an Employer who has E-Verify has enabled. The new setting is labeled Default Remote Document Inspection Setting. If E-Verify is enabled for the Worksite then a Client Admin user will be able to enable the Default Remote Document Inspection Setting. 

Hover over the accompanying tooltip to learn more: “Enabling this feature for this Worksite will default any I-9’s that are created and associated with this Worksite to Remote Document Inspection”. 

Note: If the Default Remote Document Inspection Setting is enabled for a given Worksite then it is only recommended that you use this Worksite in conjunction with the Section 1 Only workflow where you want to use the DHS-authorized alternative procedure.   

If you hire at a location where there is a need to use multiple workflows (ex., Employer Appoint, Employee Appoint, Network Alliance) where the DHS-authorized alternative procedure is NOT applicable, then we recommend setting up two Worksites for the same location. One Worksite where the Default Remote Document Inspection Setting is enabled and another where the Default Remote Document Inspection Setting is NOT enabled. For more information on this or if you have questions, please reach out to the Tracker I-9 Product Support team who will put you in contact with the appropriate resource. 

New System Message and Instructions Settings 

On the Features page, a new instruction labeled Remote Document Inspection Instructions has been added to the System Message and Instructions Settings area.

Any text that is configured here will conditionally appear to the employee at the bottom of either the Section 1 Only email or SMS landing page if the I-9 is flagged for Remote Document Inspection. This provides employers with the ability to give specific messaging to employees with regard to scheduling their live interactive video meetings. 

Remote Document Inspection Workflow/User Interface (UI) Changes 

The following changes become apparent when the Remote Document Inspection feature is enabled. It’s important to note that the screenshots below depict views from accessing the Tracker application via a standard desktop or laptop computer.

Note: These changes also apply when accessing the Tracker application from a mobile device or tablet. However, the layout and presentation of information are slightly different since the screen size is smaller. 

Changing the Remote Section 2 Document Verification Setting 

When the Remote Document Inspection feature is enabled, the DHS-authorized alternative procedure checkbox is controlled by the new Remote Section 2 Document Verification Setting.  When set to ON, the checkbox will be checked and disabled.  When set to OFF (in-person verification), the checkbox will be unchecked and disabled. After a Section 1 Only I-9 has been created, the setting can be changed as appropriate. To change the setting, an I-9 Manager will need to follow these steps: 

1. On the Form I-9\Remote I-9 page or the Form I-9\Section 2 page, open the Administrative Options menu. 
2. Click on Configure Remote Document Verification Settings.                                                                                                                        
3. The current Remote Section 2 Document Verification setting will be displayed.  Change the setting to ON or OFF as appropriate, and click Save. 
4. The I-9 Manager will receive a confirmation pop-up that the setting has been updated successfully and can click the OK button to dismiss the pop-up.  

Note: Changing the Remote Section 2 Document Verification setting after Section 2 has been signed will invoke a Section 2 Amendment.

I-9 Manager Journey Changes – Section 3 Reverification 

For a Section 3 to be eligible for Remote Document Inspection, the following conditions need to be met: 

• Remote Document Inspection feature is enabled for the client.
• Remote Access Section 3 feature is enabled for the client.
• E-Verify is enabled at the Worksite that is currently listed on the Employee Profile record. 

Note that there is no EDU option for the employee to complete for Section 3 reverifications. The employee will need to provide front/back copies of their work authorization document(s) in some other manner as determined by their employer. 

When a Section 3 is flagged for Remote Document Inspection then the I-9 Manager journey conditionally changes. Here is the sequence of events that an I-9 Manager will need to follow: 

1. I-9 Manager schedules a meeting with the employee to complete their reverification and requests that the employee provide front/back copies of their work authorization document(s) in advance of that meeting. 
2. Employee sends I-9 Manager front/back copies of their work authorization document(s). 
3. I-9 Manager meets with the employee via a live interactive video meeting. 
4. I-9 Manager accesses Section 3 of the employee’s Form I-9. 
5. I-9 Manager initiates a Section 3 to process the reverification. On the Form I-9 Section 3 – Reverification step, I-9 Manager selects the Me option indicating that they will be completing Section 3 and inspecting the employee’s document(s). I-9 Manager selects ON for the Remote Section 3 Document Verification setting and clicks Continue. 

6. The I-9 Manager asks the employee to hold up their actual work authorization document(s), views/compares them to the work authorization document(s) that the employee previously provided and ensures that the documentation reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the employee. 
7. The I-9 Manager selects the List A or List C document(s) presented by the employee from the list of eligible document types, uploads front/back copies of the document(s) and completes the remaining data entry. Since the Remote Section 3 Document Verification setting is set to ON, the DHS alternative procedure checkbox will be automatically checked. The I-9 Manager enters the remaining document data.  Since the I-9 is flagged for Remote Document Inspection, the DHS-authorized alternative procedure box is automatically checked, and the button is disabled.

Hover over the checkbox to learn more: “This I-9 is flagged for remote verification of documents. If you would like to examine the employee’s documentation in-person and not use the DHS-authorized alternative procedure, then please change the Remote Section 3 Document Verification Setting to OFF. You will need to click the Back button at the bottom of the page to get back to the setting. 

8. The I-9 Manager signs Section 3.   

Note: If the DHS-authorized alternative procedure box was checked or unchecked in error then the I-9 Manager can initiate a Section 3 Amendment to correct it. After initiating a Section 3 Amendment, the DHS-authorized alternative procedure box will be enabled, and the I-9 Manager will be able to check or uncheck it as appropriate.  If the I-9 Manager unchecks the box, then they will be presented with the following alert and will need to confirm before moving forward: