Method for Complying with Employment Eligibility Verification Requirements

Abstract

A method is provided for determining employer compliance in determining employment eligibility requirements in accordance with federal immigration regulations. Compliance alerts and compliance tips are displayed for guiding employers in verifying employment eligibility. Completed employment eligibility forms are automatically audited to analyze whether the employer has accurately completed the employment verification. The completed forms are audited by applying various compliance rules to a completed employment eligibility form, presently a Form I-9, to determine compliance with the applicable regulations. A listing is provided of various errors and additional data required to complete the audited form. The method is preferably administered by a single service provider for multiple employers, to assure that changes in the applicable regulations are regularly incorporated. A central system is provided for managing all of the employment eligibility forms associated with particular employers, to assure continued compliance with federal regulations.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for assisting in documenting employment eligibility using a data handling device, comprising:
 displaying a field of an employment eligibility verification document;   receiving time data corresponding to the field;   determining a current time;   comparing with the data handling device the time data to one or more time values based at least in part on the current time; and   displaying predetermined text based at least in part on an outcome of comparing the time data to the time values.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  where displaying a field of an employment eligibility verification document includes displaying the entire document. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  where the time data includes an expiration date. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  where the time data includes an expiration date for an employee's original document. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  where determining a current time includes checking a computer system clock. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  where the one or more of the time values based at least in part on the current time are a range of dates extending forward from the current time. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  where displaying predetermined text includes displaying a warning when the time data matches one or more of the time values. 
     
     
         8 . A method for assisting in documenting employment eligibility using a data handling device, comprising:
 updating compliance rules for an employment eligibility verification document;   displaying a field of the employment eligibility verification document;   receiving data corresponding to the field;   applying at least one compliance rule to the received data; and   displaying predetermined text based at least in part on an outcome of applying the at least one compliance rule.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8  where updating compliance rules includes checking through a network for updated compliance rules. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8  where updating compliance rules includes receiving updated compliance rules through a network. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 8  where the predetermined text is part of an error report for multiple fields of the employment verification document. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 8  where displaying a field of an employment eligibility verification document includes displaying the entire document. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 8  where the at least one compliance rule requires the received data to match one of a set of values. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 8  where receiving data corresponding to the field includes detecting the choice made by a user from a pulldown menu. 
     
     
         15 . A computer program, stored on a tangible storage medium, for assisting in documenting employment eligibility, the program including executable instructions that cause a computer to:
 update compliance rules for an employment eligibility verification document;   display a field of the employment eligibility verification document;   receive data corresponding to the field;   apply at least one compliance rule to the received data; and   display predetermined text based at least in part on an outcome of applying the at least one compliance rule.   
     
     
         16 . The computer program of  claim 15  where the executable instructions cause the computer to check through a network for updated compliance rules. 
     
     
         17 . The computer program of  claim 15  where the executable instructions cause the computer to install updated compliance rules received through a network. 
     
     
         18 . The computer program of  claim 15  where the executable instructions cause the computer to display the entire employment eligibility verification document. 
     
     
         19 . The computer program of  claim 15  where the executable instructions cause the computer to display the predetermined text in an overlying window. 
     
     
         20 . The computer program of  claim 15  where the at least one compliance rule requires the received data to match one of a set of values.