State / Jurisdiction
Federal / All
E-Verify Resumes Operations Following Brief Shutdown
E-Verify is back online and operational after being temporarily unavailable during the federal government shutdown that began October 1, 2025.
Create Pending Cases: Employers should now create E-Verify cases for employees hired while the system was unavailable. When creating these cases, use the employee's actual hire date from Form I-9. If the case creation date is more than three business days after the employee began work, select "Other" from the dropdown menu and enter "E-Verify Not Available" as the specific reason.
Review USCIS Guidance: Additional details on resumed operations were shared on October 9th and can be found on the E-Verify website, https://www.e-verify.gov/about-e-verify/whats-new/e-verify-resumes-operations.
Exception: Customers Using Avionté Onboarding with Equifax
If you use Equifax's I-9 HQ platform for E-Verify processing, no action is needed on your part. All previously submitted E-Verify cases, including those submitted during the shutdown, will automatically begin processing now that the system has resumed operations. You should start seeing updates on pending cases soon.
Avionté and Equifax will notify clients of any additional developments related to the government shutdown or E-Verify availability.
Required Reverification of Employment Authorization
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) notified E-verify employers on June 20, 2025, about the release of a new Status Change Report that lists employees who have a status change in work authorization. Employers who use an electronic I-9 provider for E-Verify must obtain the report from their vendor. Employers who manually enter queries can access the report via their E-verify account. Note that the report includes "A numbers" as identifiers, so employers need to match A-numbers to employee names to determine who to contact for further follow up.
Although employers who are not enrolled in E-Verify won't receive any report of employee status changes, they should notify all employees that if they are aware that their employment status has changed, they are obligated to report it to the employer, and that failure to do so would be grounds for termination. Staffing firms could also check the status of identification documents and EADs, although the administration of this task could be time-consuming without a report, so notifying employees as soon as possible is advised.
It's also important to note that while the report results indicate that the employee had a status change on one of the employment authorization documents (EAD), it does not necessarily indicate that the changed document is the same one that initially presented at the time of hire. Many individuals have more than one EAD and may have an alternative document that is valid. DHS is instructing E-verify employers to meet with impacted employees and reverify their work status within a reasonable amount of time. Visit E-verify.gov for more details.
Avionté Updates Form I-9
As mentioned in a recent BOLD Bulletin article, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an updated version of the Form I-9 with minor edits to the employment eligibility verification form on April 3, 2025. Avionté has now made these updates and this version ("1/20/25") is published in our Knowledge Base.
Updates to the Form I-9 include text changes to use the word "alien" instead of "noncitizen" within Section 1 of the form, revisions to descriptions of two List B documents, and some modifications to the privacy notice within the form instructions. More details on these changes can be found on the USCIS website.
Avionté Updates Classic Form I-9
As previously announced, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an updated version of the Form I-9 with minor edits to the employment eligibility verification form on April 3, 2025. Avionté has now made these updates to the eDocument version of this form in Classic, and this edition of the form ("1/20/25") is published in our Knowledge Base for your reference.
Updates to the Form I-9 include text changes to use the word "alien" instead of "noncitizen" within Section 1 of the form, revisions to descriptions of two List B documents, and some modifications to the privacy notice within the form instructions. More details on these changes can be found on the USCIS website.
Form I-9 Updates in Effect
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an updated version of the Form I-9 on April 3, 2025, making minor edits to the employment eligibility verification form. Avionté is in the process of making these updates and will publish this newest version, "edition 1/20/25" in this Knowledge Base article for our clients' reference. Employers are encouraged to update to this new version immediately. In the meantime, previous versions of the Form I-9 are considered valid until their respective expiration dates.
Updates to the Form I-9 include:
- Renaming the fourth checkbox in Section 1 from "A noncitizen authorized to work" to “An alien authorized to work”
- Revising the descriptions of two List B documents in the Lists of Acceptable Documents (Driver's license or ID card) by replacing the word "gender" with the word "sex"
- Adding appropriate statutory language and a revised DHS Privacy Notice to the instructions
More details on these changes can be found on the USCIS website.
E-Verify to Remove Aged Records
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that employers using E-Verify who need records that were last updated in 2014 to download and retain records before they are purged on January 5, 2025. Note that this deadline is critical to avoid potential compliance issues, particularly in the event of an audit or if the employer is transitioning to an electronic system. The purpose of permanently removing these E-verify records is to comply with data retention requirements to reduce security and privacy risks. For more information, refer to USCIS’s fact sheet.
Form I-9 Update Available in Avionté Knowledge Base
An update to the Form I-9 completion options has been made under List C specific to the selection of an unrestricted Social Security Number (SSN). Additional data enhancements have been made to update Avionté when the SSN is entered on the form. The updated Form I-9 can be referenced within the Avionté Knowledge Base.
Note that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) extended the expiration date of the I-9 from 7/31/2026 to 5/31/2027. Since both forms bear an edition date of 8/1/2023, either form may be used until it expires, however, the newest version must be used after July 31, 2026. Avionté will update the form prior to that date to remain compliant.
IRS Posts Draft Versions of 2024 Tax Forms
In addition to Affordable Care Act (ACA) draft forms, the Internal Revenue Service has also posted draft versions of tax forms such as the W-2, 1099, and 940. Visit the IRS website to review all the draft tax forms that have been posted recently.
IRS Released Draft 2024 ACA Reporting Forms
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released draft versions of 2024 Affordable Care Act (ACA) forms. However, instructions for these forms are yet to be released. The 1094-C and 1095-C forms are used by applicable large employers (ALEs) who must offer minimum essential coverage that is affordable and that provides a minimum value to full-time employees and their dependents.
While no major changes were made to the draft versions of the forms for 2024 reporting, it is notable that additional changes could be made once the forms and instructions are finalized and released. Refer to the IRS website for the draft versions of the 1094-C and 1095-C forms.
New Passport Requirements for H-1B FY 2025 Cap
The registration period for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 H-1B cap petitions opened on March 6, 2024, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has a new registration requirement. Registrants must have a valid, unexpired passport or travel document at the time of registration, and employers must provide the expiration date of the passport/document.
See this recent National Law Review article as well as the USCIS website for more information.
California
Avionté BOLD – California Tax Withholding Form Updates
Changes have been made in Avionté BOLD to this Adobe form template, and the updated version of this tax form is available within this Avionté Knowledge Base article.
- California: DE-4
Avionté continues to monitor for additional tax form updates as they become available on the individual state revenue agency websites.
Florida
Florida Introduces Bills to Strengthen E-Verify Law
Florida legislators are proposing to eliminate the minimum employee threshold (currently set at 25) requiring private employers to use E-Verify, which would require all private employers to implement E-Verify. This proposal under SB 782 and HB 1033 would include independent contractors within the definition of “employee” for E-Verify purpose unlike federal law, which does not require an I-9 for contractors. These bills would also revise penalties for the employment of unauthorized aliens.
Following the change of presidential administration in January 2025, Florida Governor DeSantis signed immigration legislation into law that includes penalties for undocumented immigrants and institutes a new State Board of Immigration Enforcement.
Idaho
Idaho Tax Withholding Form Update
The state of Idaho's State Tax Commission recently made revisions to their tax withholding certificate, Form ID W-4. Avionté has updated this tax form in both the BOLD Adobe templates and within Classic E-documents. This version of the form can be found in this Avionté Classic Knowledge Base article and the BOLD Knowledge Base article for your reference.
Illinois
Illinois Expanded Requirements for E-verify
Several states have proposed bills to modify or enact requirements regarding the use of E-verify, and Avionté is monitoring these for product impact. In the meantime, the state of Illinois did update its regulations under Public Act 103-0879 that affects E-Verify and Form I-9 compliance as of January 1, 2025. The Illinois Department of Labor has clarified that the law does not prohibit private employers from using E-Verify. However, it does confirm the current federal E-Verify requirements and imposes additional obligations to protect workers from discrimination and to ensure fair practices.
Expanded Employee Protections:
- Employers must notify employees whose work eligibility or documentation is questioned.
- Employers are required to inform the entire workforce in the event of a federal I-9 audit.
Prohibited Practices for Employers:
- E-Verify cannot be used to prescreen applicants.
- Action cannot be taken on tentative non-confirmations (TNCs) without following state and federal procedures to ensure fair treatment and due process for all their employees.
Employers located in Illinois (or any employer with employees working in Illinois) should review their practices to ensure compliance with the state and federal requirements. More details can be found in this National Law Review article or within the FAQs on the Illinois Department of Labor website.
Kentucky
Kentucky State Tax Withholding Form Update
The state of Kentucky has updated its Form K-4 Withholding Certificate for use in 2025. The standard deduction allowance has increased, and the income tax liability thresholds have also been raised. These changes have been updated on the Adobe form, and this 2025 version of the Kentucky tax withholding form is now available within the Avionté Knowledge Base article for your reference.
3rd party link Disclaimer: These links are being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by [The author] of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. [The author] bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. Contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content.
Comments
0 commentsPlease sign in to leave a comment.