Riverside Citizenship Lawyer

From their offices in Cerritos, Santa Ana, and Riverside, the citizenship lawyers at Wilner & O'Reilly help employers across southern California to operate in compliance with U.S. immigration laws.

Whether due to specialized knowledge and training in a specialty occupation, the ability to work in an underserved area, or merely the capability and willingness to perform jobs not being taken by U.S. citizens, foreign workers are a necessity in a host of different occupations and industries throughout the country. Many different government agencies, including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), apply a host of laws covering every facet of employing foreign workers. Maintaining a legal workforce in compliance with the tangled web of rules and regulations can be daunting for the employer, who has to pull time and attention away from running the business in order to deal with immigration issues.

At Wilner & O'Reilly, our citizenship lawyers in Riverside are immigration experts, capable of working with employers at the human resources level and all levels of management and corporate governance to ensure the company is operating with sound policies that are being implemented effectively.

I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification

It is unlawful for an employer to knowingly hire an employee who is not authorized to work in the United States. The I-9 is the CIS form used to document that any employee hired is in fact an authorized U.S. worker. An I-9 is required of all employees hired after November 6, 1986, regardless of whether they are U.S. citizens or noncitizens. Although the I-9 is only a one-page form, the government prints a 65-page Handbook for Employers to aid them in completing it appropriately. Failure to obtain and maintain an I-9 for each employee can lead to a fine up to $200,000 per violation. Also, reverification is constantly required for certain work authorizations which expire at the end of a given period.

A range of documents can be used to verify eligibility for U.S. employment, including a U.S. or foreign passport with appropriate notation or supporting documentation, or a U.S. driver's license or government ID card accompanied by a Social Security card or birth certificate. Certain documents are required to be presented in combination, and the law is constantly changing as to what documents are acceptable.

The employer is required to examine the documents and verify that it has done so. Although the I-9 is not filed with CIS or any other agency but rather is retained by the employer, it must be open to inspection by an appropriate government authority on request in order to stay in compliance and avoid steep penalties.

Corporate Immigration Policies

As noted on the firm's employment-based immigration page, most employment-related visas are based on the fact that the sponsoring employer has a need for a workforce that it cannot adequately sustain with U.S. workers alone. For companies in this situation, defining and detailing an individualized corporate immigration policy will help to make sure that it has a steady supply of labor designed to meet its needs.

Since I-9 data is not reported to or tracked by a government agency, it is important for company policy to be clear on the importance of hiring only authorized workers, and to have steps in place for in-house monitoring of I-9 compliance, including staying on top of expiring work authorizations and obtaining reverifications as necessary. Depending upon the size and sophistication of the company, assistance by outside counsel at various stages is often part of a sound policy aimed at employer compliance with immigration laws.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement Audits and Investigations

Following the breakup of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) in the last decade, the enforcement arm of immigration law was given over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), an agency under the aegis of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Although ICE focuses on industries and occupations most closely related to critical infrastructure and national security, such as airports and seaports, nuclear plants and chemical plants, and defense facilities, its reach extends to every place of employment. ICE has tremendous resources at its disposal, such as the Forensic Documents Laboratory, which can determine whether documents forming the basis of I-9 eligibility are in fact authentic.

Through its Worksite Enforcement (WSE) Investigations, ICE may also look at company wage and hour records and workplace standards to determine whether employees, including illegal immigrants, are being exploited. WSE investigations range from uncovering criminal activity such as document fraud, alien smuggling, and human rights abuses, to wage and hour violations and substandard working conditions.

Our employer compliance services extend beyond documentation of employee eligibility and corporate immigration policies. If an employer is being audited or is under investigation for its compliance with the nation's immigration laws, our Orange County immigration lawyers are ready to advise, assist, and represent the company through the process.

Human Resources Counseling

Day-to-day issues of compliance, including policy development, implementation, and review, are most often handled by the company's human resources personnel, which may be an entire department or one manager responsible for hiring and firing employees and everything in between. We work hand-in-hand with the company's human resources personnel to establish compliance on the front-end and intervene as necessary to troubleshoot particular problems that arise. Our level of assistance is dictated by the company's needs and can range from occasional phone consultations to policy development and review and regular advice and counsel.

In keeping with corporate immigration policies, we can help in-house human resources professionals determine when to sponsor foreign workers, when to seek permanent labor certifications (PERMs), and which preference category is most likely to be successful when a worker may fit into more than one category.

Serving Southern California with Expert Immigration Assistance

The consequences for an illegal or non-compliant workforce can be severe. Let the immigration experts at Wilner & O'Reilly evaluate your corporate policies and management to make sure your business goals are being met within a practical, legal framework. To meet with an experienced Riverside citizenship lawyer, contact Wilner & O'Reilly with your employment-related concerns.