1. Complete I-9's for all new hires employed on or after November 6, 1989. Part I should be completed on the first day of work, part II should be completed at the same time so the employee can be asked to correct his or her portion if there are any problems. Part Ii must be completed no later than the 3rd day of work.

2. Institute and publicize a uniform corporate policy prohibiting the hiring of anyone who does not have employment authorization.

3. Do not hire someone without authorization to work.

4. Carefully examine the documents presented to make sure they are still valid, relate to the person, and appear to be genuine.

5. Do not over document. Ask the employee only to show one document from List A on the back of the I-9, or one document from list B and one document from List C.

6. Allow employees to decide which documents to show from the lists on the back of the I-9. Only questions documents which on their face appear to not be genuine, or which do not appear to relate to the employee.

7. Reverify the employment eligibility for anyone whose documents expire, particularly documents granting permission to work in the United States. Reverify using either one document from List a or one from List C.

8. Keep I-9's in separate files and retain for three years after the date of hire or one year after the employee is no longer employed, whichever is later.

9. Do not discriminate in the I-9 process. Make sure all processes are applied equally to all prospective, new, and current employees. Make sure all members of the protected classes U.S. citizens, permanent resident aliens, temporary resident aliens, asylees, and refugees have equal protection. Do not discriminate against members of the protected classes or individuals outside of the class on the basis of national origin.

10. Apply a "citizens only" policy in limited cases, for example where it is required under the terms of a contract you have been granted by the federal, state, or local government agency.

11. Conduct period audits and training programs so your staff is comfortable with the I-9 process.

12. If you are sent a letter from the INS, the U.S. Department of Labor, or any other federal agency indicating your personnel records will be reviewed or audited, contact an immigration attorney immediately so that the review can be monitored and any potential problems or concerns can be resolved before the matter is written up.