Final E-Verify Rule For Government Contractors Issued

On November 13, 2008, the Federal Acquisition Regulation ("FAR") Councils issued their final rule requiring certain government contractors to use the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' ("USCIS") E-Verify system to verify that certain of their employees are eligible to work in the United States.¹ The new rule goes into effect January 15, 2009, and applies to contracts awarded after that date.

The E-Verify program, formerly known as the Basic Pilot/Employment Eligibility Verification Program, is a web-based system operated by USCIS in conjunction with the Social Security Administration ("SSA"). The program automatically verifies an individual's employment eligibility, either confirming the employee's eligibility to work in the United States or generating a "tentative non-confirmation" notice for any employee whose eligibility the system cannot verify. An employee may contest a tentative non-confirmation notice within eight