Ocean Associates, Inc

Ocean and Fisheries Consultants    

 

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OAI provides professional consulting services to government organizations, the private sector, academia, and UN agencies. OAI experts have carried out ocean and fisheries projects throughout the world. Our experts couple diverse work experiences as scientists and senior managers with exceptional educational backgrounds and contacts throughout the United States and world-wide.

Teams of OAI Associates and affiliates can be fielded quickly, anywhere, to do analyses, plans, evaluations, and technical reports on -
      • Commercial and Recreational fisheries
      • Fisheries and wildlife conservation
      • Aquaculture - freshwater and marine
      • Issues in aquatic ecosystems
      • Ocean issues, remote sensing, and oceanography
      • Marine fisheries research and management
      • Fisheries in developing nations - research, development, and management
      • Climate change impacts on freshwater and marine systems and fisheries
      • Planning and evaluation of Environmental Projects
      • Research vessels and facilities

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Form I-9: Employment Eligibility Verification Information

Frequently Asked Questions regarding Form I-9

For purposes of this document Ocean Associates, Inc. may be abbreviated to OAI.


General Questions

Filling out Form I-9

Using a Notary or Agent

Documents

Other

 

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Who needs to file a Form I-9?
All Ocean Associates, Inc. employees must complete the Form I-9 and have it filed with e-Verify to work.  

How long do I have to complete the Form I-9?
The Form I-9 must be completed by midnight (EST) of the third day you work, unless there is a rare extenuating circumstance.

Why do I need to file a Form I-9?
All U.S. employers must complete and retain a Form I-9 for each individual they hire for employment in the United States. This includes citizens and noncitizens. 

All employers (and agricultural recruiters and referrers for a fee) must fill out and keep Form I-9 for every person they hire for employment in the United States as long as the person works for pay or other benefits. 

Employers must complete Form I-9 for every employee hired after Nov. 6, 1986, even if the employee is a U.S. citizen.

U.S. law requires companies to employ only individuals who may legally work in the United States – either U.S. citizens, or foreign citizens who have the necessary authorization.

This employer is a federal contractor required to use E-Verify under the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).

The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 prohibits employers from knowingly hiring illegal workers. To comply with this law, employers must collect information regarding an employee’s identity and employment eligibility and document that information on Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, no later than three business days from when the employee begins work for pay. As an employee, you must provide certain information on the form, such as your name, date of birth and Social Security number. You must also present supporting documents.

Additionally, Oceans Associates, Inc. could lose all federal contracts if you and Ocean Associates, Inc. are in violation by not completing a Form I-9. 

When and where do I get a Form I-9 to complete?
When you have a confirmed start date send it to SusanLinhares@oceanassoc.com. Once your confirmed start date has been received you will be sent a Form I-9, a remote hire or agent authorization form, and instructions for their completion. The forms can not be sent out until a confirmed start date has been received and inserted into the forms.

What is e-Verify?
From the U.S. Citizenship and immigrations website: “E-Verify is an Internet-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security in partnership with the Social Security Administration that allows participating employers to electronically verify the employment authorization of their newly hired employees.”  

E-Verify is closely linked to Form I-9 and exists to strengthen the Form I-9 employment eligibility verification process that all employers, by law, must follow. Though all employers must verify their employees’ employment eligibility with Form I 9, participation in E-Verify is usually voluntary.  Some employers may be required by state law or federal regulation to use E-Verify.  For example, most employers in Arizona and Mississippi are required to use E-Verify.  In addition, participation in E-Verify is required for employers with certain types of government contracts, such as federal contracts that contain a clause requiring E-Verify use.

E-Verify compares information from your Form I-9 to data from U.S Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration records to confirm employment eligibility. Of employees whose employment eligibility is checked through E-Verify, 98.3 percent are confirmed automatically as eligible to work in the United States.  (source: http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify/employees)


FILLING OUT FORM I-9

What do I need to do to complete the I-9 process?
To be in full compliance, the employer, or an agent of the employer such as a notary, must "physically examine the documents presented by the employee."  Sending the completed form with photocopies of the supporting documents without prior physical inspection by an OAI agent or notary will not suffice.  Thus, every employee must complete his/her Form I-9 promptly, fax the pages to Susan Linhares in Massachusetts so that it can be filed with e-Verify on time, and then send back all necessary documents by regular mail to Juleen Savarese at the OAI office in Arlington, VA where they are kept on file.

How to complete the I-9 form:

Ocean Associates, Inc  
Attn: Juleen Savarese
4007 N. Abingdon St.
Arlington, VA 22207
*NOTE: If using a delivery service please waive the signature requirement.

May employees use a P.O. Box as their address in Section 1?
No, employees may not use P.O. Boxes as their address on Form I-9. Employees must enter the physical address of their residence in Section 1 (e.g., "1234 Verification Street"). If the employee's residence does not have a physical address, he or she should enter a description of the location of his or her residence. The following is an example of an acceptable description: "18 miles southwest of Anytown post office near water tower".

Does Form I-9 need to be completed in a specific color of ink?
No. Form I-9 does not need to be completed in a specific color of ink. However, the information written on the form must be readable for the entire retention period of the form.

I made a mistake on the Form I-9, can I use “white out” to make corrections?
No. If an error is made, the employee and/or employer can only line out the error and make the correction. Also, you need initial and date the changes made.

OAI uses a notary to complete Section 2 of Form I-9 when an H.R. person or internal employee is not located in the area in which the new employee will work. What is the best way to make a correction if the notary makes a mistake on an employee’s form?
The notary acts as an agent of the employer. Therefore, either the notary or the employer may make corrections to Forms I-9 as needed. To make corrections, you or the notary may line through the incorrect information, enter the correct information, and initial and date the change.

What do I need to email to you and what is the email address?
Email the completed I-9 form and Remote Hire form along with a copy of your supporting documents to SusanLinhares@oceanassoc.com.


USING A NOTARY OR AGENT

Why do I need to use a notary?
OAI uses a notary to complete Section 2 of Form I-9 when an H.R. person or internal employee is not located in the area in which the new employee will work.  We ask the notary to act as our representative to examine the identification documents for an OAI employee.  Because the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires us to verify the right of our employees to work in the U.S., we ask the notary to serve as our representative in this matter by examining the person’s paperwork for us, completing a remote hire form and signing the attached USCIS Form I-9.

What is a remote hire form (or Remote Hire Notary Form for Completion of Form I-9)?
The remote hire form for Completion of Form I-9 is filled out by the notary. This form states the employees name, steps completed by the employee and notary and that the employee has appeared before the notary. It is signed by the notary and stamped with the notary’s seal.

What is an agent authorization form?
The agent authorization form is filled out by an agent of Ocean Associates, Inc. and is used when the new employee is in a location where OAI has a representative.  This form states that the representative is acting as an agent of Ocean Associates, Inc. in the preparation of the Form I-9 on behalf of the new employee.

Can a notary public attach an attestation to Form I-9 instead of providing a signature in the signature block of Section 2?
No. Section 2 is a review of the documents the employee presents and must be signed. If that section is not signed, Form I-9 is not complete.

Will you reimburse me for the notary fee?
Yes, just include the receipt for the notary fee in the envelope with the original documents when you mail it in to our Arlington office, once you have heard that the Form I-9 filing has been completed.

The notary says that they will not complete or sign the I-9 in section 2. What should I do?
Occasionally an employee will come across a notary who will refuse to complete and sign the Form I-9, stating either that it is illegal in their state to do so, they have been told not to complete them by management, or some other reason. In all cases the notary is mistaken or does not understand what we are asking of them. Please be advised that Ocean Associates, Inc. would not ask you to do anything that is not legal. The use of a notary has been recommended by the Federal Government as a suitable representative for the completion of the Form I-9 as notaries have experience in reviewing identification documents. Additionally, we are not asking the notary to notarize the Form I-9 but rather complete Section 2 and sign/date it as a representative of OAI.

If the notary you go to does not wish to complete the Form I-9 we will need you to go to a different notary. We have generally had the best luck with notaries located in mailing/UPS-type stores. Below are some suggestions to help in finding a notary who will help you complete the Form I-9:


DOCUMENTS

Where do I find the list of acceptable documents allowed to be used for the Form I-9?
The lists (A, B, & C) of documents that a new hire must provide to verify his or her identity and prove that he or she is authorized to work in the United States are in a table on page 9 of the Form I-9 and copied below for your convenience. You may use one item from List A, OR one item from both Lists B and List C.

Can OAI recommend to an employee what documents to present for Section 2 of Form I-9, even if the employee ask which ones would be best?
No. Employees can only be presented with the lists of acceptable documents and have the employee choose which document(s) they wish to present.

May I use an expired document?
No. Expired documents are no longer accept­able for Form I-9.However, you may accept Employment Authorization Documents (Forms I-766) and Permanent Resident Cards (Forms I-551) that appear to be expired on their face, but have been extended by USCIS.

For example, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries whose Employment Authorization Documents (Forms I-766) appear to be expired may be automatically extended in a Federal Register notice. These individuals may continue to work based on their expired Employment Authorization Documents (Forms I-766) dur­ing the automatic extension period specified in the Federal Register notice. When the automatic extension of the Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires, you must reverify the employee’s employment authoriza­tion (source: http://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/i-9-central-questions-answers/document-acceptable)

Will you accept a photocopy of a document pre­sented by an employee for the Form I-9?
No. Employees must present original documents. The only exception is that an employee may present a certified copy of a birth certificate. 

Can an employer accept an expired driver’s license with a paper document from the state department of motor vehicles (DMV) stating that the paper document serves as a temporary license?
Yes. A state-issued temporary driver’s license is an acceptable List B document provided it contains a photograph or identifying information including name, date of birth, gender, height, eye color, and address. If the temporary driver’s license has conditions, such as that the expired license must accompany the temporary driver’s license for it to be valid, then those conditions must be followed.

OTHER

I’ve worked for Oceans Associates, Inc. in the past. Do I still need to file a new I-9?
If OAI rehires an employee within three years of the date that a previous Form I-9 was completed, OAI may complete a new Form I-9 for the employee or complete Section 3 of the previously completed Form I-9. 

To complete Section 3 for rehires:

  • Confirm that the original Form I-9 relates to the employee.
  • Review the original Form I-9 to determine if the employee is still authorized to work, including whether employment authorization documentation presented in Section 2 (List A or List C) has since expired. Use the guidelines to determine if reverification applies.
  • If the employee is still authorized to work and his or her employment authorization documentation is still valid, OAI will enter the date of the rehire in the space provided in Section 3.
  • If the employee is no longer authorized to work or their employment authorization documentation has since expired and requires reverification, OAI requests that the employee present an unexpired List A or List C document. Do not reverify an employee’s List B (identity) document. An agent of OAI or suitable representative will enter the document information and the date of rehire in the spaces provided in Section 3. If the current version of Form I-9 is different from the previously completed Form I-9, you must complete Section 3 on the current version.
  • An agent of OAI or suitable representative will then sign and date Section 3.

Can an employee who fails to produce the required documents within three business days of his or her start date be fired?
Yes, OAI may terminate an employee who fails to produce the required document or documents, or an acceptable receipt for a document, within three business days of the date employment begins

Where do I go for more information?
For more information:
I-9 Hub - http://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central
I-9 Questions & Answers - http://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/i-9-central-questions-answers
E-Verify - http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify
OAI's I-9 Compliance Manager - SusanLinhares@oceanassoc.com

 

References:

 

 If the new hire claims that the necessary documents were lost, stolen or destroyed, the person must provide a receipt for replacement documents within the three days.

If an employee has presented a receipt for a replacement document, he or she must produce the actual document within 90 days of the date employment begins.

Replacement Documents

Note: This rule does not apply to individuals
who present receipts for new documents fol-
lowing the expiration of their previously held
document.

 

 

 

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