Reminder for employers: Changes take effect this month to the Department of Homeland Security regulation that permits electronic signature and storage of the Form I-9 used to verify employees' work authorization.

The final rule, which takes effect Aug. 23, makes minor changes to a June 2006 interim final rule that allows for the electronic signature and storage of the form.

While it doesn't dramatically alter the I-9 landscape, the final makes some changes that employers should find helpful, notes Kyle Knapp, an attorney at Porter Wright Morris & Arthur.

Under the final rule, employers don't need keep audit trails each time an I-9 is electronically viewed; they only need to keep audit trails when an I-9 is created, completed, updated, modified, altered, or corrected.

That should be a welcome change from the interim rule, which required employers to keep an audit trail every time somebody looked at an I-9. "It's one less IT issue they need to deal with," says Knapp.

The final rule permits employers to provide or transmit a confirmation of an I-9 transaction, but unlike the interim rule, doesn't require them to do so unless the employee requests a copy, cutting down on the amount of paper required.

The final also clarifies that employers must complete a Form I-9 within three business days, rather than calendar days. Previous references to "within three business days of the hire" and "within three days of the hire" had caused some confusion.

The final rule also clarifies that employers may use paper, electronic systems, or a combination of both, and makes it clear that employers may change electronic storage systems so long as the systems meet the performance requirements of the regulations.

Knapp notes that the final rule doesn't change the basics: Employers must still retain Form I-9 for the later of three years after the date of hire or one year after the date that employment is terminated.

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