 
Knowledgebase
 
Technical Support Articles
Immigration Case Management Articles
As part of the Edge suite, LawLogix offers integrators with Microsoft Word and Outlook products. As there are many versions available, please refer to this compatibility matrix:
 
The Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) option available in Edge will allow Edge users to mandate more secure access needs for their Foreign National portals. MFA is an additional layer of secure access to a site that requires a secondary piece of data in order to login.
This feature is available to all Edge users who wish to enable it, and will require Support assistance to turn on for the organization.
Turning On/Off MFA in Firm Admin
Once enabled for the firm, Edge users may turn the feature on or off as they determine is necessary for their organization. To turn the MFA feature on for FN users, the following steps must be completed by someone who has administrative access:
- Sign into the Edge application.
- From the Dashboard screen, click the name displayed in the upper right.
- Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears.  	
- Click the Security tab.
- Select Yes next to the Allow MFA for FN option. 	- Please note that once enabled, this will apply to all FNs. This feature cannot be turned on or off for specific FN profiles.
 
- Click Update Info in the lower right.
When a Foreign National signs into their portals after these steps are taken, they will be prompted with steps to complete MFA setup.
Company Level MFA Control
Should an organization have multiple companies set up within it, MFA can be disabled or enabled at the company level if so desired.
Please note: When MFA is enabled within the Firm Administration settings, it will automatically apply to all Petitioning Companies by default.
To modify MFA settings at the Company level, please proceed with the following steps:
- Sign into Edge.
- Click Companies in the left hand navigation module. 	
- Click the desired company name under the Company column.  	
- Under the General tab select Yes or No next to the Allow MFA for All FN option. 	- Selecting Yes will apply MFA to all FNs existing within the selected company.
- Selecting No will disable MFA and setup instructions will not appear to all FNs linked to the selected company
 
- Click Update Info in the lower right to save.
MFA Experience on the FN Portal
After multi-factor authentication is enabled by a firm administrator, Foreign National users will be shown a pop-up message the next time they attempt to login.
- Please note, this pop-up will appear after the FN user has agreed to terms of service and GDPR consent (if applicable).
- In addition, this pop-up will not appear if a firm user is utilizing the Login as FN function within Edge.
The pop-up will feature a QR code and the following instructions for the Foreign National:
| “You are REQUIRED to set up Multi-Factor Authentication! Please follow the steps below: 
 | 
In addition to these instructions, the FN user may click the Need Help? E-Mail Your Case Manager link in the upper right. This will open a new overlay where a FN may send a SureMessage to their assigned case manager for assistance.
T"
 A note about Office 365: Office 365 is a subscription service that provides users with online-only offerings, as well as the ability to download Office applications directly to a personal computer.  Edge does not currently have an integration with the online-only 365 options (a.k.a. in-browser functionalities), but the existing integrators currently available will work with the downloadable Office applications (desktop apps). For any further issues, feel free to refer to the existing integrator guides and troubleshooting articles. Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word Version Compatible? (Yes/No) Office 365 (32bit) Yes Office 365 (64bit) No Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) Yes Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) Yes Word 2016 Yes Word 2013 Yes Word 2010 Yes Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook Version Compatible? (Yes/No) Office 365 (32bit) Yes Office 365 (64bit) No Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) Yes Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) No 
As part of the Edge suite, LawLogix offers integrators with Microsoft Word and Outlook products. As there are many versions available, please refer to this compatibility matrix:
Microsoft Word
| Microsoft Word Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Word 2016 | Yes | 
| Word 2013 | Yes | 
| Word 2010 | Yes | 
A note about Office 365:
Office 365 is a subscription service that provides users with online-only offerings, as well as the ability to download Office applications directly to a personal computer.
Edge does not currently have an integration with the online-only 365 options (a.k.a. in-browser functionalities), but the existing integrators currently available will work with the downloadable Office applications (desktop apps). For any further issues, feel free to refer to the existing integrator guides and troubleshooting articles.
Microsoft Outlook
| Microsoft Outlook Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | Yes | 
Elevate your immigration case management experience by leveraging the best practices shared as part of our monthly Power User Series.
- Customize Questionnaires
- Modify Required Documents
- Review Activities
- Create and Customize your Dashboard
- Leverage Advanced Reporting Capabilities
- Turbocharge Efficiency with HR Requests
- Boost Productivity with our Outlook & Word Integrators
- Create Customizable FN Summary Templates
- Streamline Communications with Custom Email Templates
For those organizations that need to submit multiple employees in a single online e-file to the H-1B Registration system, a new set of features and workflow has been established in ICM. The new workflow permits organizations to selectively build “groups” of individuals per employer and submit all of them (up to 250 at a time) to the H-1B Registration system in a single interaction. This enhancement adds to the existing, single employee submission method available in the ICM system.
View Instructions
View Video
The Employee Dashboard has been added to the ICM system.
The attached PDF is a product walkthrough for HR users regarding the new Employee Dashboard. This document is also available to HR users directly from within the HR portal through the “Help” link. Please feel free to share this article with your clients as you prepare to activate this time saving feature.
The Employee Dashboard has been added to the ICM system.
The attached PDF is a product walkthrough for Firm Users of the ICM system who utilize the HR portal for their corporate clients. This article explains how to activate the Employee Dashboard for your Corporate clients and provides an overview of the feature.
A new user role has been created and is called Security Administrator. This narrowly focused role is designed to permit a member of the organization to manage user profiles for the organization. In order to assign this role, clients must contact LawLogix support for assistance.
Once activated, the Security Administrator has the ability to access all user profiles for the organization. The role may add new users, adjust privileges, restrict access and “retire” profiles. Outside of these options, the new role cannot access firm administration controls (i.e. creating custom processes, modifying templates etc.) or any client data.
This role may be helpful in those organizations where a strict separation of duties must be maintained and least–privilege access must be enforced.
Security administrators must be assigned within the LLX Firm Administration module. Once in the Firm Administration screen, click on the Users tab. A list will populate of all users within the organization.
Click on the name of the user that will be assigned the new role. Once loaded into the General settings for the user, select Yes next to the Security Administrator setting.
- 
	A user cannot be an administrator and security administrator at the same time. 
- 
	Multiple people may be security administrators if needed, there is no limitation. 
- 
	System administrators may still be created and retain access to the user settings for the organization. 
Enabling this role will not stop administrative users from accessing the Users tab within the Edge system. If an organization desires to have this type of configuration, navigate to the General tab of LLX Admin and select the Yes radio button for Hide Users tab for non-security admin users.
Security admin view from sign in:
Security admin user tab views:
Once signed in, the security administrators will only be able to view the elements of the Users tab and nothing else within Edge. They are not allowed access into any other functionalities of the system such as FN/Individual profiles, widgets, or messaging.
Assigning this role does not in any way prevent administrative users from accessing the Users tab under Administrative Settings.
Security Administrators are responsible for the following actions for all users within the organization:
- 
	Adding/Retiring/Deleting users 
- 
	Adding/Removing groups 
- 
	Adding/Removing users from groups 
- 
	Transferring inboxes between users 
- 
	Entering general user information - 
		i.e. email address, billing information, addresses, phone numbers, etc. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Resetting password and login information 
- 
	Inputting DOL E-filing credentials 
- 
	Assigning security privileges and calendar access/management 
H-1B Registration Toolkit
A GUIDE TO CUSTOMIZING YOUR EDGE IMMIGRATION SOFTWARE
Overview
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement a new electronic registration requirement for petitioners seeking to submit H-1B cap-subject petitions for the fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap season, which commences in April 2020. As many practitioners are aware, this new registration program, announced pursuant to a final rule issued last year (84 FR 888, 1/31/19), will change how cap-subject H-1B petitions are prepared and ultimately filed with the USCIS.
Specifically, under the new proposed registration system, petitioners will be required to submit a registration for each qualified cap-subject H-1B visa beneficiary before filing the actual petition with the USCIS. If the H-1B registration submissions exceed the statutory limits, USCIS will then conduct a computer-generated lottery to determine which registrations may proceed with filing. Once a registration has been accepted, petitioners will have 90 days to file the H-1B petition.
The H-1B Registration Tool
The USCIS will process registrations through a new online portal, which enables US employers or agents to submit multiple cap-subject beneficiaries (per registration) for whom the petitioner or agent seeks to obtain H-1B classification. Based on the 60-day notice published in the Federal Register, the H-1B registration tool will consist of a series of web pages that capture basic employer data about the petitioner and biographical details of each beneficiary included in the registration.
Petitioner Information
Information requested about the employer/petitioner includes business name, EIN, primary address, and details regarding the authorized signatory. 
Beneficiary Information
Information requested about each beneficiary includes name, gender, date of birth, countries of birth and citizenship, passport number, and a question regarding whether the beneficiary has a master’s or higher degree from a U.S. institution and intends to request consideration under the advanced degree exemption. 
As noted above, a registration may include multiple beneficiaries, but a petitioner may only submit one registration per beneficiary in any fiscal year. If a petitioner submits more than one registration per beneficiary in the same fiscal year, all registrations filed by that petitioner relating to that beneficiary for that fiscal year will be considered invalid.
H-1B Registration Fee
The USCIS also announced that each H-1B registration will require a $10 non-refundable fee to account for the resources needed to implement and maintain the registration system. The fee will be required for each beneficiary included in the registration; for example, if a registration includes 5 beneficiaries, the petitioner will need to pay $50. Payment will be collected through pay.gov after the registrant provides billing information and a form of payment (credit card or US bank account). Pay.gov will then redirect to a uscis.gov confirmation screen.
Registration Timing
The USCIS announced that it will open an initial registration period from March 1 through March 20, 2020 for the fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap selection process. The H-1B random selection process will then be run on those electronic registrations.
Managing H-1B Registration using Edge
To assist Edge users with this new H-1B registration requirement, LawLogix has prepared a specialized “toolkit.” This guide can aid practitioners in modifying their H-1B cap processes and procedures within the Edge system. Users can find helpful information on the following topics:
- Overall approach to gathering required information and documents
- Designating an H-1B process is “cap” subject through a default H-1B cap process type
- Adding new H-1B registration activity steps (which will be defined and available for selection in the Edge system)
- SureMessage e-mail templates for both the HR and FN
- Customizing H-1B cap reporting to include H-1B registration activity steps
- Saving H-1B registration confirmation number as a receipt activity for each FN
Five Steps to Get Started
- Review the H-1B registration requirements by clicking on the links included on the first page of this toolkit.
- Note: AILA members may also wish to consult AILA's H-1B Registration Tool Featured Issue available here.
- Decide whether to implement any changes to your specific client offerings and fee schedules to account for this new process.
- For example, some practitioners have indicated they may split their service offering into two components: the first involving initial legal review and submission of H-1B cases for registration; the second involving the filing of H-1B petitions for selected FNs, including preparation of forms and supporting documentation and assistance with LCA compliance.
- Critical: If you haven't already, make sure your attorneys or accredited representatives register for a USCIS.gov account so they can submit and manage the H-1B registrations in a timely fashion when the lottery window opens on March 1, 2020. Accounts can be created by visiting https://myaccount.uscis.gov/users/sign_up.
- In order to create an account, you will need to provide a secure password, answers to several challenge questions, and a second form of authentication (through an app, email address, or phone number text messaging). If your paralegals will be using the account(s), it's generally best to choose a shared email address for receiving the authentication code required for login.
- Review the Edge Best Practices below to modify your workflows and overall management processes for H-1B cap cases.
Overall Approach for Gathering H-1B Information
While the H-1B registration process only requires a limited amount of biographical and employer-related information, many practitioners feel they must conduct a full “legal review” to ensure the case is approvable (if selected) as part of their due diligence and ethical obligations to provide responsible legal representation.
Practitioners must also be mindful of the 90-day filing requirement once an H-1B beneficiary is selected. Given the increasing amount of scrutiny of H-1B petitions, most practitioners will need more than 90 days to gather a sufficient amount of information and documentation to support the underlying petition. Firms with a significant H-1B case volume will also find that 90 days is not enough time to prepare a large number of petitions within the required timeframe.
Given these realities, many practitioners are choosing to conduct “business as usual” with regards to requesting FN and job-related information through their standard questionnaires and intakes. As described below, firms can still implement other customizations to account for the H-1B registration steps.
Creating a New Default H-1B Cap Process Type
- From within the Edge system, click on the name displayed in the upper right corner of the page.
- Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears.
- In the administrative screen, click on the Process tab.
- Enter “H-1B-CAP” for the custom process in the To Create A New Process field.
	- To pre-bundle the new process, select a current process type from the behaves like dropdown list to bundle forms, required documents, questionnaires, and activities.
 
- Click the New Process button on the right-hand side of the screen to add the process.
Adding New H-1B Registration Activity Steps
The following steps must be performed by a user that retains administrative privileges.
- From the Edge dashboard, click the name displayed in the upper right.
- Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Hover cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown.
- Click Create Firm Activity in the lower left.
- Fill out the fields in the pop-up that appears as follows:
	- Sort - Add a number such as 0030 for the sort order.
- Name - Supply name indicative of registration such as ‘Registration Filing Date.’
- Behaves Like - Select ‘Application Receipt’
- Receipt - Mark this box.
- Mandatory - Select No.
- Email Template - Select None.
 
- Click Create Firm Activity in the lower right of the pop-up.
After activity is created, it can be grouped into a process.
- Within the Process Activities column in the right portion of the screen, click Process dropdown.
- Select H-1B CAP from the available options.
- Within the Firm’s Activities column, hold Ctrl on keyboard and click to select Registration Filing Date, Registration Not Selected, and Registration Selected activities in the list.
- Release Ctrl key on keyboard.
- Click Use Firm Activity in the lower left.
Saving H-1B Registration Confirmation Number
- From the Edge dashboard, navigate to the desired Foreign National case.
- Once within the file, hover cursor on the Processes Forms tab.
- Click Activities in the dropdown that appears.
- Click the dropdown in the upper left next to activities to select the appropriate process.
- In the lower portion of the area, find the associated H-1B Cap Activity.
	- i.e. Registration Confirmation Number
 
- Enter the date the confirmation was issued in the Date field.
- Enter Registration numbers in the Receipt No. field.
- Entering short notes within the Note field is acceptable but not required.
- Click Update Info in lower or upper right.
SureMessaging Email Templates
Welcome e-mail may be tailored to meet the needs of this H-1B cap season. To create a new template, a user must have administrative privileges. If you are unable to complete the steps listed below, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights or assistance.
- From the Edge system, click the username displayed in the upper right.
- Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Hover your cursor over Templates and select E-Mail & Reminder from the dropdown.
- Click Add E-mail Template in the upper right.
- A modal will appear to pick the email type. Click HTML Format.
- Select No if the template is not meant for use as a Welcome Email.
	- Name your template in the Template Class field. Select the new FN or HR email template as the system default by selecting Yes or No in the Set as default option.
 
- Name your template in the Template Class field.
- Add your custom e-mail text within the blank description field.
	- You may also add any attachments as necessary by clicking Upload Document in the lower left.
 
- Once finished, click Update Info to save the template.
Sample SureMessage Templates
Sample SureMessage e-mail templates to the FN, informing them of H-1B registration submittal and results:
 
Registration Email
| Dear Laura, Please be advised that your H-1B CAP registration was electronically filed with USCIS. You may confirm the registration number by logging onto the case management system with your login and password credentials. Rest assured we will notify you once we have an update from USCIS regarding the status of the registration. Sincerely, | 
Registration Selected Email
| Dear Laura, Congratulations! Your H-1B CAP registration was selected in this year's lottery process. Our firm will move forward with the preparation of your petition. You will receive a separate email notification confirming your H-1B has been submitted to the USCIS. You may login to the case management system with your credentials to check the status of your case. | 
Registration Rejected Email
| Dear Laura, Unfortunately, your H-1B CAP registration was not selected among this year's lottery process. | 
Customizing H-1B Cap Reporting
- Click the Reports button from the Menu selection.
- Under Select Report Type, pick Interactive from the dropdown menu and then click View.
- After the screen refreshes, click New from the action bar top of screen, then select Report.
- Select FN + Process as the data type, then click Continue.
	- This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column
 selections.
 
- This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column
- Click the General tab and enter/select the following:
	- Report Name: H-1B Cap Reporting
- Sharing Options
- Report Folder
- Report Generation Mode
- Report Style
- Click Update Info
 
- In the Reports Columns tab, select the specific information you want displayed on the report.
	- (e.g. Beneficiary Name, Citizenship, Process, Current Status, various expiration types).
 
- After making the appropriate selections, click Update Info.
- In the Report Criteria tab, select the items you wish to use in order to filter the report (e.g. Case Status, Process types, Company Petitioner, etc.), then click Update Info.
- Click the Run Report button.
In keeping with security best practices, the LawLogix Technology team will be implementing a security enhancement to the Edge application that may impact your organization. In preparation for this security enhancement, we are discontinuing support for out of date browsers and integrators on Friday, July 17th, 2020 . Any organizations that use browsers and/or integrators that are out of date or do not follow this security standard will be impacted.
	
	
		 What’s Changing?
	
	LawLogix will be disabling earlier forms of the TLS encryption protocol, including TLS 1.0 and 1.1.  This means that such protocols cannot be used to communicate with the Edge application and services (both inbound and outbound transmissions).
	
	  
	After the change, any inbound connection to Edge must use the TLS  1.2 protocol.  Similarly, external applications must be able to receive outbound communications from Edge via the TLS 1.2 protocol.
	
	  
What interactions use TLS 1.2?
The following types of interactions will no longer be able to use earlier versions of TLS to communicate with Edge:
- 
		Accessing the Edge application via web browser 
- 
		Sending or receiving web service or API requests 
- 
		Sending or receiving SSO authentication information 
Note: transmission of files via SFTP are not impacted by this change.
	
	
		 Compatible Web Browsers
	
Google Chrome
Chrome browser version 4 to Chrome browser version 29 are not supported. Chrome browser version 30 to Chrome browser version 70 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Mozilla Firefox
	
Mozilla Firefox browser version 2 to Mozilla Firefox browser version 26 are not supported. Mozilla Firefox browser version 27 to Mozilla Firefox browser version 63 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Internet Explorer
	
Internet Explorer browser version 6 and Internet Explorer browser version 10 are not supported. Internet Explorer browser version 11 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
- 
		Note: For desktop IE versions: 8, 9, and 10 are only compatible with TLS 1.1 and TLS 1.2 when running Windows 7 or newer, but it is disabled by default. 
	
	
		 Safari
	
Safari browser version 3.1 to Safari browser version 6.1 are not supported. Safari browser version 7 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Microsoft Edge
	
	
	 Microsoft Edge browser version 12 to Microsoft Edge browser version 18 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2 property.
	
	
		 Opera
	
Opera browser version 10.1, 11.5, 15 and 16 doesn't supports. Opera browser version 12.1 and 17 to 53 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
For organizations that utilize browsers that are not the most current versions, an update to the latest iteration is recommended.
- 
		Upgrade to IE 11 or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to the latest Firefox version or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to the latest Chrome version or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to Safari 12 or use an alternate browser. 
	
	
		 Testing Web Service Integrations
	
If your organization utilizes the Edge API, testing is required to ensure the encryption protocol TLS 1.2 and approved cipher is enabled for your integration. You will be unable to transmit requests successfully if your integration does not support TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher.
	
	
		 To test:
	
- Setup an integration client in a test environment
- 
		Change the REST endpoint from your production endpoint to the following:
		
			 https://uat.aws.welcomeclient.com/4DCGI/services
		
		- Make the ws_action as the following &ws_action=auth.test
 
- Send a request to this endpoint
For the test, authentication and credentials are not necessary. As long as an error message is received back (ex. error for bad credentials), then your organization’s connection is compatible with the upcoming security update.
If you receive an error message related to the connection (i.e. HTTPS or TLS) then the test failed and you must make additional changes in order to support TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher (see list of ciphers below).
	
	
		 Testing SSO and Outbound Integrations
	
If your organization’s users authenticate to Edge via single sign on, or your organization receives web service requests from Edge, review and ensure the encryption protocol TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher is enabled for your integration. You will be unable to authenticate users or receive transmissions if your integration does not support this protocol.
	
	 To test:
- 
		If your endpoint is accessible publicly, you can utilize a diagnostic service like that provided by Qualsys SSL Labs to ensure TLS 1.2 support with an approved cipher is enabled and functional. 
- 
		Access https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/ and provide your hostname. 
- 
		Review the results for confirmation that TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher is enabled and functional. (see list of ciphers below) 
	
	
		 Ciphers
	
Following the update, Edge will only accept incoming requests that utilize TLS 1.2 and one of the following ciphers
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 
	
	
		 Outdated Integrators
	
As a result of this update, the Microsoft Outlook 2007 Integrator must be retired from use with Edge.
LawLogix highly encourages users to update to the Outlook 2010-2016 integrator moving forward. These versions are compatible with the newest security standards and support the same functionality as the 2007 version. It is available for download and install from the Edge application under the Tools dropdown menu. After the security enhancement, the 2007 integrator will no longer connect to Edge or retrieve information from Foreign National profiles. LawLogix recommends updating before July 17 to ensure no disruptions between Outlook and Edge occur. .
When a user is retired within a given Edge instance, they may still have lingering reminders attached to their profile.
- 
		If the reminder is attached to the process , then the system will look for a non-retired user to pass the item on to. It will search for the following user types in this order to reassign the reminder to: - Case Manager, Responsible Attorney, Paralegal, Partner, and Collaborating Attorney. If no active users with these assignments are found, then the system will randomly assign the reminder to the next active user.
 
- 
		If the reminder is not attached to any process or Foreign National , then the Edge system will assign the item to another active user in the organization. 
This works similarly for a retired HR user, except the system will attempt to reassign first to the default Company Contact, then HR Manager, HR Assistant, Secondary Contact, and Manager, in that order. If no active user is found with those designations, then the reminder will be assigned to the next found active user.
The Adobe Reader software is required for the drafting and viewing of many forms within the Edge system. This software works in tandem with your chosen web browser (i.e. Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.).
 
Some issues may occur if your browser does not have adjusted settings to allow the proper use of Adobe Reader for forms. If you are experiencing problems with forms not saving information, unresponsive buttons, etc. please consult the following troubleshooting steps to configure your browser.
 
Google Chrome
In the latest versions of Google Chrome, the application should automatically open PDFs in the browser. In the event of any issues however, installing an additional extension may help.
- 
        Open the Google Chrome browser from your desktop. 
- 
        Click the three dots icon in the top right corner. 
- 
        From the drop-down menu that appears, select Settings. 
- 
        In the left hand area click Privacy and Security. 
- 
        In the Privacy and security section, click on Site Settings. 
- 
        Scroll to the bottom of the list and click Additional content settings. Then click PDF documents. 
- 
        Toggle the switch (icon turns blue) for Download PDF files instead of automatically opening them in Chrome until it is in the ON position. 
- 
        Close browser and retry. 
Mozilla Firefox
 
- 
        Open your Mozilla Firefox browser from your desktop. 
- 
        Click the three stacked lines icon in the top right corner of the browser window. 
- 
        From the drop-down menu that appears, click Options. 
- 
        Scroll to the section labeled Applications. 
- 
        In the dropdown directly next to Portable Document Format, click to select Use Adobe Reader (default) 
- 
        Close the window and reopen your browser for the changes to take place. 
Part 1
- Click on Safari in the top left corner
- Select the Websites tab
- Make sure Adobe Reader is selected under the Plug-ins heading on the left side (not Reader, Adobe Reader specifically)
- Click on "On" in "When visiting other websites"
- Click on Done.
- Log out of the browser completely and log back in.
- Click on Safari in the top left corner
- Click on Preferences
- Select the Websites tab
- Go to Reader
- Click "On" in "When visiting other websites"
The LawLogix Outlook Integrator is an add-on that works in conjunction with Microsoft Outlook™ to integrate email records and attachments into the system.
To install the integrator on your computer, please perform the following steps.
Note: The installation of the integrator may require administrative permissions to your Windows or Mac system.
To uninstall old/previous versions on Windows 10:
- Close out any Microsoft Office applications (Word, Outlook, etc.)
- Click Windows symbol in the lower left of the desktop.
- Click Settings (gear icon).
- In the pop-up window for settings, click Apps in the upper right.
- Scroll downward through the listing and click the file named LawLogix Outlook Integrator Installer.
- Click Uninstall in the lower right.
- A pop-up will appear warning that the application and related information will be removed. Click Uninstall on this modal.
- Restart computer.
- Proceed with the installation instructions below.
Confirming Outlook Integrator is uninstalled
To ensure that the file was erased properly, open the Microsoft Outlook program on your computer and perform the following actions.
- Click File in the upper left.
 
- Click Options in the lower left.
 
 
 
- In the Outlook Options modal that appears, click Add-Ins in the lower left.
 
 
 
- A list of options will be displayed. Next to Manage, click Go in the lower left.
   
 
- A new COM Add ins pop up will appear. Click to highlight Outlook Integrator on the list, then click Remove.
 
 
 
- Click OK.
 
To download Outlook Integrator:
- In Edge, click on Tools from the Action bar.
- Select Get Outlook Integrator.
- Setup file will be saved in your specified download folder.
Installing Outlook Integrator:
- Locate the file (generally in the Downloads folder of a computer) and open it.
 Ensure that all instances of the Outlook application are closed before beginning the installation.
 
- Double-click the Setup file to run it.
 You may see a pop-up from Windows indicating that this is an unrecognized app. Click More Info and then click the Run Anyway button that appears in the lower right. 
- A modal will appear asking for confirmation to install. Click Install in the lower right.
 
- Once complete, a success message will appear. Click Close in the lower right.
 
- Open the Outlook application.
 
| 
 
 
 
 | 
- Click the LawLogix tab at the top of the window.
 
 
 
- Click the red and blue LLX Settings icon.
 
- A pop-up will appear asking for credentials. Type in your Edge username, password, and server address.
 
 
 
 If you are unsure as to your server address, it will be the website used to navigate to Edge (ex. www.welcomeclient.com)
 
- Click Ok.
For SSO Users
If your organization employs the use of Single Sign On with your Edge instance, then please proceed with the following steps to properly sign into the integrator.
- Open the Microsoft Outlook application on your machine.
 
- Click the LawLogix tab in the top navigation.
 
 
 
- Click on the LLX icon in the upper left of the screen labeled Settings.
 
 
 
- A pop-up will appear asking for credentials.
 
 
 
- Enter your Edge instances’ unique server URL in the Server Address field.
 
 This URL is composed of the following:
 • [welcomeclient URL]/sso/[SSO UID]/login
 • Example URL:https://ww2.welcomeclient.com/sso/11aa1111a1111a11a11aa11aa/login
 The SSO UID should have been provided to your Edge administrator during SSO setup. Please reach out to your administrator to retrieve this value if it has not been provided. 
- Click OK.
 
- A small window labeled SSO Form may appear momentarily as the integrator applies.
 
 Note: if a user does not have an active SSO session in progress, they may be prompted to log into Edge in the SSO Form window.
 
- The Word Integrator may now be used as normal within the Word application.
The redesigned Foreign National portal was created to simplify the interface for FNs, while making it easy for organizations to communicate their requirements easily to their clients.
While it looks very different form the old portal, a majority of the functionalities remain the same. This walkthrough will show the newest features and how to effectively navigate them.
The new portal primarily revolves around two new pages: My Tasks and Case Status.
The Personal Settings, Messages, and Need Help? areas have been largely unchanged from the previous iteration of the portal. 
Welcome Message, Instructions, Notices, & Special Instructions
The various text-based notifications are now placed at the top of both the My Tasks and Case Status pages.
These messages will display depending on the inputs made by the issuing organization and/or case manager. By default, they are open upon page load, but if a user collapses them they will remain so.
If Edge users do not create any Instructions, Special Instructions, or Notices for the FN, these containers will not appear on the page. The Welcome Message is the only item that will appear by default. If an organization has not created a custom Welcome Message, a pre-written LawLogix one will be populated.
My Tasks
The first page that a Foreign National will arrive on will generally be the My Tasks page.
- If a FN had nothing assigned to them by an Edge user to complete (i.e. questionnaires, uploading documents, etc.), or have finished all assigned tasks, then they will be automatically redirected to the Case Status page upon login.
Underneath the aforementioned notices and instructions area is the tasks callout section. This section will have a blue bar with tiles present and instructions to "Please complete the following." The tiles will detail the amount of each respective item that needs to be completed by the FN, broken down by Questionnaire and Documents.
Questionnaires
The questionnaires section has been completely redesigned to enable a better workflow for FNs. By simply clicking on the displayed Questionnaire tile, the bottom half of the My Tasks page will immediately load the first of the required questionnaires.
As part of the redesign efforts, the questionnaires look slightly different and allow for tabbed navigation, but no questions were added, deleted, or otherwise changed.
Another addition is the presence of tabbed navigation for different sections of a questionnaire. The stepper items effectively break down the major parts of a full questionnaire, and the tabs section them further to easily parse the information needed from the FN.
- As FNs proceed through the questions, they must click the Next button in the upper right in order to record their responses. Clicking on the tabs without clicking Next will result in data loss.
	- In certain sections such as Work History, the Save & Add Another button in the lower right does not currently worked, but clicking the Next button will retain the information as an entry.
 
- Clicking the Cancel button will simply return FNs to the top of their My Tasks page, as the item is still pending completion.
Once a questionnaire is saved and completed, the tile will update to show the new count of items that still need to be completed.
Documents
Similar to the Questionnaires tile, the Documents tile will display the amount and types of documents requested by the Edge user. By clicking on the tile, the bottom half of the screen will show all of the required document upload sections.
FNs can click the Upload File button beneath each document title and follow the modal prompts to send their files to their case manager. Once the file has been uploaded, the associated section will disappear from the document display within the My Tasks page.
- If a user wishes to view their submitted documents, they may do so via a widget in the Case Status page.
Case Status
The Case Status page is a centralized page where FNs may view widgets that dynamically display information related to their case and profile within the Edge system.
- Please note that if a process is closed for a FN and they have no other one marked as current, this page will display blank and all of the widgets will appear empty.
If any tasks still need to be completed, a thin blue bar will appear on this page under any Welcome Message or instructions. This bar will notify the FN that they still have tasks to complete and if clicked, will direct users to the My Tasks page.
The widgets are as follows:
- Recent Activity
- Case Information
- Receipt(s)
- Documents for your Review
- Expirations
- Visa Priority
- Submitted Items
- Calendar
Recent Activity
In the upper left is the Recent Activity widget, which will permanently occupy this area on the dashboard. This widget tracks the various case milestones that the case manager allows the Foreign National to view from Edge, and gives a sense of progression. This widget also includes any receipt numbers associated with the given activity for users to click and follow status.
Case Information
In the upper right is a section summarizing the FN specific information such as case number, case contact, case contact email, etc. This area remains static, unless the case manager makes any changes to this information from the Edge system.
Receipt(s)
This widget will display the last three receipts that were uploaded to the FN process. Receipt type, date and description may all be entered in the Processes Forms tab within the FN Profile under Receipts. Entries are sorted from newest to oldest, with a display limit of three in this widget. Each item may be clicked and routed to the USCIS tracking page, where the number will be automatically populated in the check status area. Clicking Show More Receipts will open an overlay that displays all the receipts attached. If no receipts are uploaded, this widget will not be displayed.
Documents for Your Review
Located directly underneath the My Information section, this widget will highlight documents that were shared with FNs by case managers. This widget has a display limit of three, but users can click Show More Documents to view older items. In the Show More Documents view, documents will have a checkmark to indicate that the FN has already viewed it before.
This widget will always be present on the Case Status page, regardless of documents needing review or not (if no documents are present, widget will only have title and nothing else). FNs may not upload documents from this widget.
Expirations
In the instance that a FN carries applications, processes or statuses with an expiration date, these relevant dates will be displayed in the Expirations widget. The widget will only display two upcoming expiration dates (determined by the fewest amount of days till it occurs), with a Show More button to accommodate other dates that are further out. If a Foreign National has no expiration dates on their file, this widget will not be displayed.
Visa Priority
For Foreign Nationals that are applying for various visa types, the Visa Priority widget will display the appropriate dates and preference category for them. In addition, it will supply dates for filing and final actions. These dates are the same that are calculated within the Travel Visa Status tab within the FN profile on Edge.
Submitted Items
This widget will display all items completed by the Foreign National and communicated to their case manager. Items such as Required Documents that have been uploaded or pages of a questionnaire that have been completed, will be tallied here. FNs may also upload documents directly via this widget. If a Foreign National has not submitted anything, the Submitted Items module will not be displayed.
Calendar
A convenient area for displaying any calendar events that have been shared with the Foreign National by the case manager. By default the next 3 upcoming events will be displayed, and more can be viewed by clicking the Show More button.
Need Help?
The Help section has not changed from the previous Foreign National Portal. Clicking the option in the navigation will open a single choice that drives to a page with various help material links.
- Documentation here will be updated to accommodate the new redesign and functionalities.
Personal Settings
The Personal Settings page is very similar to the old version. Users may click their names in the upper right to open up a dropdown menu pointing to Personal Settings. On this page, the FN profile photo will be displayed, along with options to modify time zones or set to observe Daylight Savings Time in site timestamps.
FNs may also change their login name and password if so desired. They must follow the directions and requirements laid out in the yellow squares off right of the fields. Users must click Update Settings in the upper or lower right to save any changes made on this page.
Messages
The Messages header will open up a modal displaying the SureMessaging options. The content of this display has not changed from how it functioned previously.
Clicking on Compose will open a new tab/window for users to create their messages, pick templates, add email addresses, etc. All other actions will keep the main modal window as the active one.
Clicking once on the message title will preview the content in the bottom half of the modal, while double-clicking will open the message in its own window. Clicking Close in the lower right will close the modal window and return users to their previously inactive screen.
When there are instances of dependents needing to be deleted, this can be approached a number of ways.
If a dependent record is preventing another case file from being deleted, but you need to retain the dependent data, unlinking the file would be the best way forward.
Unlinking a Linked Dependent
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National file. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	In the list of dependents, click on Break from the Link column to unlink the dependent from the FN. 
Deleting a Dependent
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National file. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	Click the Dependent’s name to display the Personal tab. 
- 
	From the Personal tab, find the section labeled Relationship. Click the drop-down menu next to it and select Other. 
- 
	Further down the screen find the field Applying with Relative? Select No. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button in the lower or upper right of the screen. This will prevent the dependent from appearing on any further forms created for the main Foreign National. 
- 
	Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the Delete This Individual button. 
- 
	A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation. Select Yes if you wish to proceed with the Dependent deletion. 
- 
	In some instances, you may receive an error that the “Individual may not be deleted because of dependents attached.” In these cases, dependents of the dependent in question must be deleted or unlinked to facilitate this deletion. 
Please note that after deletion, the names of the removed Dependent(s) may still appear on the Foreign National’s case overview page until midnight the day of the action.
The LawLogix team understands that Edge users may not always be near a computer when the need to use the Edge system may arise. It is for this reason that a mobile version of the site is available. The mobile site allows for responsive access to key features of the Edge system, enabling users to consult in-system calendars, view Foreign National files, or set appointments, are all items that can be accomplished from a smartphone or tablet device.
Logging In
To sign into your organization’s Edge system, simply start the browser application within your smartphone. For iPhones operating off of iOS this would be Safari, and for Android phones it can vary applications such as Google Chrome, Samsung Internet, etc.
Once opened in browser, type in the following URL www.welcomeclient.com/mobile.
- Please note that the URL may need to change depending on your organization’s URL (i.e. ww2, ww3, ww4, etc.).
The WelcomeClient web page can be saved as a quick-start icon to a given device, generally by tapping the three dots or bookmark icon in the upper right and electing to add the site to the home screen. For full instructions, please consult the help menu of the chosen web browser.
Once the login page displays, existing credentials for the Edge system must be entered to sign on.
By tapping on the slider button next to Remember Me, the username and password will be retained upon next sign in.
Edge Mobile Home Screen
After signing in, the mobile site will present a list of accessible options.
- Calendar
- Address Book
- Reminders
- Case Notes
These areas offer a variety of functionalities that are more streamlined to match the mobile format.
Calendar
Tapping on Calendar will direct the user to a view of the current month and highlight the present day. The view may be switched by tapping the Day or Month buttons in the upper left, and the entire calendar may be refreshed by tapping the semicircle arrow icon in the upper middle. To move forward or backward through the months, tap the right or left facing arrows in the upper right.
Underneath the calendar, any events scheduled for that date will be displayed. Tapping on the names of these events will navigate to a more detailed view of the appointment.
To create a new event for the calendar, tap the ‘+’ icon in the upper right.
Doing so will lead to a new screen to specify the details of the entry including the type of appointment, subject, start time, duration, users assigned to the meeting, and which Foreign National the item is attached to (if applicable).
To have the item added to the calendar, tap Save in the upper right. The event will now show on the calendar, indicated by a star underneath the date.
Address Book
The address book within the mobile site can be utilized to search for Foreign Nationals, individuals, companies or a user’s personal address book for contacts.
Enter in any keyword or name before tapping Search. The results should return any Foreign National or dependent record in an organization’s Edge system, depending on the search filters selected.
Tapping on any of the results returned will open an at-a-glance view of the record, including any current or mailing address, phone number, and associated companies.
If a phone number is present, tapping the phone icon in the right of the entry will populate it in a user’s smartphone dialer. Tapping the pin icon to the right of any address entries will automatically route to Google Maps to display the location. To return to the search page, click List in the upper left.
Reminders
In the mobile version of Edge, reminders can be created and searched for from within the Reminders module. Once tapped, the user will see options for searching through reminders based on their associated roles or users, FN Name, company, case number, date, or subject.
New reminders may be created by tapping the plus icon in the upper right. Once tapped, users will be directed to a page to specify the subject, expiry date, reminder date, description, attached FN/HR profile, and system user assignment as desired. When complete, the reminder can be retained by tapping Save in the upper right.
Case Notes
Within the Case Notes module, users may search for and create case notes for Foreign National processes. After tapping Case Notes in the main menu, a case notes search page will be displayed. Users may specify user, timeframe, status (i.e. viewed, not viewed, unassigned, etc.), user role (FN or HR), date assigned and created for criteria to search by.
Users may also create new notes by tapping the plus icon in the upper right. Once done, a case note creation screen will appear. Users may search for a specific FN or HR to associate the note to, as well as record the activity type, subject, regarding information, details and any users that should also be attached to the note. The note may be saved by tapping Save in the upper right.
Edge allows for the creation of new process types, as well as the customization of a process's default Forms, Questionnaire, Required Documents, and Activities.
To create a new process type, follow the steps below.
Note: The following steps may only be carried out by an administrator. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator(s).
- 
	Click your name at the top-right, and then click Administrative Settings. 
- 
	Click the Processes tab. 
- 
	Enter in a desired process name in the To Create A New Process field. - 
		Note: Once the process has been used it cannot be re-named. 
- 
		[Optional] In the dropdown menu that appears directly under the field, select another existing process that is similar to the one you are creating. This will copy that process’s default Forms, Questionnaire, Required Documents, and Activities. This can help save time so that you don’t have to start from scratch in defining these process defaults. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the New Process button. Users will now be able to create new cases using this process type. 
- 
	[Optional] Now that you’ve created the process, it is recommended to review the process defaults mentioned above and make any desired changes. 
The Edge system allows for a variety of customizations in order to best suit an organization’s workflow. In order to accomplish this, users with administrative access must carry out the steps provided below.
Adding Activities to a Process:
- 
	Click the username displayed in the upper right of the screen. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	From the Activities screen, the left hand side will display the Firm’s Activities and the right hand side will display the Process Activities. 
- 
	From the Process Activities section, select the desired process for customization from the Process drop-down selection. 
- 
	To associate specific activities to the selected process, select the activity from the Firm’s Activities column (hold down Ctrl to select multiple). 
- 
	Once all desired activities are selected, click the Use Firm Activity -> button below the activities column to add the activities to the process. 
- 
	If needed, use the Up and Down arrow buttons to sort the activities, then click on the Update Sort Order button to save the changes. 
Alternatively, users may need certain activities removed from a process. This can be accomplished through the following steps.
Removing Activities from a Process:
(Note: Activities marked as LLX Mandatory-M cannot be deleted from a process)
- 
	Click the username displayed in the upper right of the screen. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	From the Activities screen, the left hand side will display the Firm’s Activities and the right hand side will display the Process Activities. 
- 
	From the Process Activities section, select the desired process for customization from the Process drop-down selection. 
- 
	To remove specific activities from the selected process, select the activity from the Process Activities column (hold down Ctrl to select multiple). 
- 
	Once all desired activities are selected, click the Delete Process Activity button to remove the activities from the process. 
When company contacts are created within the Edge system, they can be categorized as one of two types: HR-1 and HR-2. The privileges and system experience can change depending on these designations. The differences between the two are detailed below:
HR-1 Company Contacts
HR-1 contacts will have access to the following modules within their portal:
- 
	Firm Information 
- 
	Company Information
	- 
		Jobs 
- 
		Questionnaire 
- 
		Documents and Scans 
 
- 
		
- 
	Employee Status 
- 
	Pending Forms 
- 
	Reports 
- 
	Tutorial 
- 
	Personal Preferences 
- 
	Help 
- 
	Logout 
HR-1 contacts will be able to view and edit certain information for all Foreign Nationals associated with their company, or only those with processes to which they are assigned.
HR-2 Company Contacts
HR-2 contacts will have access to the following modules within their portal:
- 
	Home 
- 
	Messages 
- 
	Employee Status 
- 
	Reports (dependent on administrative settings) 
- 
	Firm Information 
- 
	Personal Preferences 
- 
	Help 
- 
	Logout 
HR-2 contacts can be limited to only viewing and editing Foreign Nationals or employees with processes that they are assigned to. Alternately, if the HR-2 user is allowed to view all HR cases, then they may view or edit all FNs associated with the company.
These users cannot request new cases for new or existing employees, but can request a new case for an existing Foreign National.
Depending on the yes/no selection for the contact's Restrict to HR-2 Privilege setting a company contact can be assigned to a FN's process as the HR-1 Employer Contact or one of the HR-2 Contacts, but not both. Both HR-1 and HR-2 users may be assigned as the Company Signer on a FN’s Forms area.
The Required Documents tile on the Foreign National is a simple means of bringing up the items that a firm needs from the Foreign National on an easy-to-read dashboard. Firm users simply mark documents from the Edge system that are required from the FN, then it will appear to their clients as an item they need to upload. The full workflow is available below.
Marking Documents for a Foreign National
Similar to the legacy version of the FN Portal, the newer version still requires a few things for the documents to actually display to the Foreign National on their My Tasks page.
A Firm user must simply take the following steps:
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National profile within Edge. - 
		This FN profile must NOT be retired. A retired FN should not have access to the Foreign National Portal. Any changes to required documents for a retired FN will not reflect on the portal. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Hover over the Processes Forms tab and select Required Docs. 
- 
	Ensure that the Current Process is selected. 
- 
		The Required Documents tile only reflects documents marked as required for the current process. 
 
- 
	Once in the Required Documents area, there will be a list of documents that a user may make available. - 
		- 
			Required of FN: Checking this box and clicking Update Info will make the item appear on the FN Portal tile. 
- 
			Required of HR-1: Checking this box and clicking Update Info will make the item appear on the HR Portal for the designated HR rep. 
- 
			Uploaded by FN: A checkmark appearing here indicates that the document has been provided by the FN. If this is marked then the Required document will no longer appear on the FN Portal tile. 
- 
			Uploaded by HR: A checkmark appearing here indicates that the document has been provided by the HR. 
- 
			Received from FN: Marking this box and clicking Update Info will effectively mark this document from the firm side. This item will not reflect as truly received unless there is a document also attached from the firm side. 
- 
			Received from HR-1: Marking this box and clicking Update Info will effectively mark this document from the firm side. This document will be removed from the HR portal dashboard. 
- 
			Upload/View: Area where a firm side upload can take place or a direct link to the uploaded document will appear. 
 
- 
			
 
- 
		
- 
	User can select all applicable documents under Required of FN and click Update Info. 
- 
	Once saved, the FN should see the selected documents on their portal tile. 
- 
		Please note, this item will not automatically refresh the portal for the FN. FNs may have to refresh the page or navigate to another page to see changes. 
 
 
Uploading Documents
The Foreign National can easily progress through the Required Documents by clicking on the Documents tile in their portal. 
 
When clicked, the tile will be highlighted orange and the requested documents will be listed out. A second section called 'Uploaded' will also appear below the required documents, showing the items that the Foreign National has already previously provided through the portal directly or by the firm uploading it from the Edge interface.
From this screen, Foreign Nationals may upload these documents directly or replace/add to previously uploaded documents.
For Foreign Nationals to upload docs:
- 
	Click Upload File within the box of the desired document. 
- 
	A new tab/window will open with an upload module. 
- 
	Click Add Files. 
- 
	Select all desired documents. 
- 
	Click Start Upload. 
- 
	Once the progress bar reads "success" the FN may safely click on the Finished button. 
- 
	Click Close to return to the FN Portal. 
After the upload is completed, FN users will see the previous square drop below the Uploaded Documents line. Firm side users will now see a check mark populate under the Uploaded by FN column in the Required Documents tab.
Required Documents and Activities
Certain activities, when marked as complete, will effectively mark the document as received as well. This will result in the item no longer appearing in the Documents tile on the FN portal.
The following activities, when marked, will remove associated required documents from the FN's portal:
- 
	All Documents Received by FN - 
		This will include any customized processes with this behavior assigned. List attached of all activities with this behavior assigned. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Final Action Completed - 
		Completed Date required 
 
- 
		
- 
	Application Filed - 
		Completed Date required 
 
- 
		
- 
	Date Closed 
Credit Requests are accepted by LawLogix as long as they are for one of following reasons:
- 
        A process was created within the last 90 days and deleted. - 
                Fees are not charged for processes that were created and deleted on the same day. 
- 
                Anything over 90 days is generally not credited. 
 
- 
                
- 
        A process was created based on a recent migration. - 
                Example: The process not being imported as expected. 
 
- 
                
Processes are billed as part of a nightly batch that runs at midnight. Credit Requests must be processed if the request is on the following day.
If the case falls under one of these reasons, a credit request may be submitted. The customer must provide the following information:
- 
        Date Process was created. 
- 
        Process type. - 
                Example: Consultation, L-1A/B, etc. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Foreign National name. 
- 
        Reference number (if available). 
To process the request:
- 
        Create a case in Salesforce marking it as the following: - 
                Type: Billing 
- 
                Case Reason: Credit Request 
 
- 
                
- 
        Obtain the required credit request information (date created, process type, FN name, Reference number) and enter it in the Description field. - 
                Utilize one of the following email templates from Customer Support Current folder in order to obtain the information from the customer: - 
                        Credit Request Information needed-deleted processes 
- 
                        Credit Request Information needed-migrated processes 
 
- 
                        
 
- 
                
- 
        Within the case click New Credit Request button. 
- 
        Enter information in the following fields: - 
                Process Created Date 
- 
                Process Type 
- 
                FN Name 
- 
                Reference Number 
- 
                Select the reason for the request (Process Deleted, Migration Related, Other); if “Process Deleted” is selected review the database and confirm deletion prior to processing. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Save the credit request. 
- 
        Email the requestor utilizing template **Credit Request Processed from the Customer Support Current folder. 
- 
        Close the Salesforce case. 
Annual Maintenance Fees are charges associated with the storage and maintenance of a firm’s Foreign National files. These fees are triggered on the year anniversary of the Foreign National case creation, but are only billed if there has been 100KB (or more) of data stored in OnDocs during the past year.
These fees vary depending on your firm’s agreement, but they are charged to help offset the cost of storing, insuring, and backing up the data stored within the Foreign National’s file. Below are some common questions users may have on Annual Maintenance Fees.
What information is counted toward the 100KB threshold?
SureMessages, Case Notes, and uploaded files (including e-mails) to the OnDocs folder count toward the 100KB threshold.
Will we still incur an AMF is the case is closed or inactive?
Yes, as the documents are still being stored, insured, and backed up by LawLogix these cases would incur an AMF if they are larger 100KB or larger.
How can I see the size of my files?
The amount of data storage being used by documents in a Foreign National's case file is available in the OnDocs Notes tab of their profile. The AMF Info is located on the lower left side of the page, just below the OnDocs History active links.
What are the benefits of storing documents in LawLogix?
Storing documents within your LawLogix client files provides:
- 
	Secure access of any client document or form 
- 
	Ability to view documents anywhere with an internet connection 
- 
	Reduces the need for physical storage 
- 
	Increases office efficiency through a centralized location for all client related information/documents 
- 
	Helps to comply with state bar client retention requirements 
How can I avoid Annual Maintenance Fees?
Firms who find they are surpassing the 100KB threshold included in the traditional pricing structure have the ability to opt into one of the unlimited storage options. These options increase the one-time case activation fee (as to bundle the AMF charges at a substantial discount), but provide unlimited storage for either five or ten years.
If you are interested in this option, please contact us.
What are the advantages of opting into one of these unlimited storage options?
Opting into an unlimited storage option allows firms to pass along the case activation/storage fee upfront, as it is difficult to pass along the yearly AMF charge for $3.95.
Many firms use this option to move to a paperless environment, saving office space and employee time.
Can we avoid the AMF by deleting data prior to the anniversary date?
The AMF is triggered when the FN storage size reaches 100KB, so deleting the documents will not prevent the charge for the upcoming anniversary. However, if you delete the documents and the FN file remains below 100KB, the firm will not be charged the 2nd anniversary.
The Reports module within the Edge portal allows users to compile data within a scope across their client base. These reports can be when completed, or saved as a template for future use.
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select Case Status Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	Click the New Template button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	Enter a Report name, then click the Update Settings button. 
- 
	Leave report filters set to All for a more comprehensive report, or use the filter options to filter the report by: - Responsible Attorney
- Case Manager
- Case Status
- Date Range Types
- Process type
 
- 
	Select the Multiple FN Rows option to Include All Rows. 
- 
	Omit Closed Processes option. 
- 
	Click the Update Settings in the left hand navigation to save any changes. 
- 
	Underneath Update Settings, click Select Columns to Add/Remove data columns for the report. 
- 
	From the Available Columns section; select the data columns to include them in the report. (Hold down the Ctrl key to make multiple column selections) then click Add Columns. 
- 
	From the Selected columns section, remove data columns you don’t want on the report by selecting the column (Hold Ctrl key to make multiple column selections) then click the Remove Columns button. 
- 
	Use the Move Column Up or Move Column Down button to sort the columns, then click on Update to save changes. 
- 
	Use the Group & Sort By fields will further organize the way the data will populate the Report. 
- 
	Click the Update Settings button to save changes made. 
- 
	Click the Calculate button, the system will show the number of records to Print/Display. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports. 
Note: There are limits on the overall size of any single report. Click the Calculate button to determine if your report falls within these limits: Manually run reports have a limit of 1000 records. Scheduled reports are limited to 5,000 records.
To schedule a report, select a day of the week from the Automatic Update popup menu. No report containing more than 10,000 records can ever be produced.
In order for forms to pull in the firm address (or an attorney address) when the form is initially added to the Forms list, the following steps should be verified.
Please note that the following steps require administrative permissions.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Click the Addresses Phones tab and verify firm information is listed. - 
		If any item is missing, click Add Phone Number or Add Address to input the information. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Users tab. 
- 
	Click the name of the attorney user. 
- 
	Verify all relevant information is present within user profile. - 
		If any are missing, enter information within the blank fields and click Update Info to save. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Verify the correct case assignments from the FN’s case file in the Process Forms Assignments section. 
- 
	Information from the above sections is what will populate the form when it is opened. 
The Reports module in Edge allows for users to pull from a wide selection of values within a given Foreign National record or process.
FN Report
Currently the FN Report will pull all values appearing in the Default FN Values area of Processes Forms within the FN Profile.
When utilized in a FN Report, these values will override what is selected in the Report Criteria tab of a given report.
FN+Process Report
When a user applies the FN+Process report, the values seen in the Assignment tab of the Processes Forms dropdown in a FN profile are the ones that can be pulled into the report.
In the scenario of a problematic filter, confirm which report type the user is employing first before troubleshooting unresponsive data pulls.
For organizations that have numerous clients and users, getting an update to the overall status of a firm may be necessary. To generate a report for tracking the activities of an organization across multiple users within a specific date range, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select Firm Activity Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	A default Firm Activity Report will appear, you can use this default template or click the New Template button to add a new report. 
- 
	If adding a new template enter a Report name, then click Update Settings. 
- 
	Select the following report filter options: - 
		Shared or Private 
- 
		Automatic Update 
- 
		Date Range 
- 
		Users 
- 
		Group By 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings to save changes. 
- Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports.
Note: There are limits on the overall size of any single report. Manually run reports have a limit of 1000 records. Scheduled reports are limited to 5,000 records. To schedule a report, select a day of the week from the Automatic Update popup menu. No report containing more than 10,000 records can ever be produced.
The Edge system offers a great deal of flexibility for users to customize it to best fit their own practices. One such example is creating custom questionnaires and attaching them to existing processes. This can be accomplished within the Edge system with a few steps.
Please note that the following steps require administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your administrator to secure rights or assistance.
Creating Your Questionnaire
- 
        Click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
        Click Administrative Settings within the dropdown. 
- 
        Hover cursor over the Templates tab and click Custom Questions from within the dropdown. 
- 
        Click Add Question in the upper right. 
- 
        Add Category, Description, and Question. 
- 
        Click Update Info in upper or lower right to save. 
- 
        Repeat as necessary until all questions are created. 
- 
        From the Administrative settings area, hover cursor over the Processes tab and click Custom Questionnaires. 
- 
        Click Create Questionnaire. 
- 
        Name the questionnaire and define its type. 
- 
        Click the plus icon button. 
- 
        In the new model that appears, check the box next to every question desired for the questionnaire. 
- 
        Rearrange the question order by clicking to highlight the question title, click the up or down arrows to move it, and click Update Sort Order to save it. 
- 
        Click Update Info to save the questionnaire. 
Attaching the Questionnaire
 
- 
        Return to the Custom Questionnaires area. 
- 
        Next to Selected Process, select the desired process from the dropdown menu for which the questionnaire was created. 
- 
        Click to highlight the desired questionnaire in the left hand listing. - 
                To select multiple questionnaires, hold down Ctrl (or apple key) and click each one as desired. Release key when finished.. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Click Select Required Questionnaires. - 
                Questionnaire will now bear an asterisk to indicate the attachment. 
 
- 
                
Making Questionnaire Visible to the FN
In order to ensure that a FN can see the questionnaire, it can be added to the FN profile.
- 
        Navigate to the FN profile. 
- 
        Hover cursor over Processes Forms and select Questionnaire. 
- 
        Scroll to the Custom Questionnaires area and click Add Questionnaire in the lower right. 
- 
        Click the checkbox for the specific questionnaire. 
- 
        Click Return to FN. 
Please note, in order for the FN to see the questionnaire pages attached to the specified process, the process must be either the most recently created or marked as the Current Process. Data entered into Custom Questionnaires will not populate form
The Reports module within Edge allows users to compile report data within a scope across their client base. Reports can be run once completed, or saved as a template for future use. The steps below are more commonly used for creating reports of Foreign National clients.
- 
	Click the Reports button from the Menu selection. 
- 
	Under Select Report Type, pick Interactive from the dropdown menu and then click View. 
- 
	After the screen refreshes, click New from the action bar top of screen, then select Report. 
- 
	Select FN + Process as the data type, then click Continue. 
- 
	This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column selections. 
- 
	Click the General tab and enter/select the following: - 
		Report Name 
- 
		Sharing Options 
- 
		Report Folder 
- 
		Report Generation Mode 
- 
		Report Style 
- 
		Click Update Info. 
 
- 
		
- 
	In the Reports Columns tab, select the specific information you want displayed on the report. - 
		(e.g. Beneficiary Name, Citizenship, Process, Current Status, various expiration types). 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making the appropriate selections, click Update Info. 
- 
	In the Report Criteria tab, select the items you wish to use in order to filter the report (e.g. Case Status, Process types, Company Petitioner, etc.), then click Update Info. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
Users within the Edge system have the ability to add various files to the built-in OnDocs repository. This storage area can host a variety of file types that suit the specific needs of a given process. See the full list of supported types below:
| Extension | File Type | 
| 7z | Zipped files (Archive Data) | 
| bmp | Bitmap | 
| cpy | Document | 
| csv | Comma-separated Value (Computable Document Format) | 
| dat | Generic binary or text file (Archive Data) | 
| db | Windows Database file (Archive Data) | 
| doc | Word processing file (Computable Document Format) | 
| docm | Macro-enabled word processing file (Archive Data) | 
| docx | Rich text word processing file (Archive Data) | 
| dot | Document template file (Computable Document Format) | 
| efx | eFax document (data) | 
| eml | E-mail message (text) | 
| fdf | Text file export from PDF (document) | 
| gif | image | 
| hfd | Form document generally associated with HotDocs application (data) | 
| hpd | Portable form document generally associated with HotDocs application (document) | 
| iaf | Settings file exported by older versions of Microsoft Outlook (text) | 
| jpeg | image | 
| jpg | image | 
| kes | Document file type generally associated with Kurzweil applications for blind and visually impaired users (document) | 
| log | File with a log of data (text) | 
| lwp | Document file type generally associated with Lotus Suite of applications (Lotus) | 
| mdi | Proprietary Microsoft Document Imaging file type (document) | 
| mp3 | Audio file | 
| msg | Mail message from Microsoft Outlook or Exchange (document) | 
| odg | OpenDocument vector file type | 
| odt | OpenDocument text file type | 
| oft | OpenType font file (Computable Document Format) | 
|  | Portable Document Format | 
| png | Portable Network Graphics (image) | 
| ppt | Microsoft PowerPoint file | 
| pptx | Microsoft PowerPoint file, XML version (archive data) | 
| pptm | Macro-enabled Microsoft PowerPoint file, XML version (archive data) | 
| psd | PhotoShop Document (image) | 
| pub | Document file generally associated with Microsoft Publisher application (Computable Document Format) | 
| rar | Native to WinRAR archiver for compressing files (archive data) | 
| rtf | Text file format commonly used by Microsoft products. | 
| sxw | Document file generally associated with StarOffice Writer applications. | 
| tif | Tagged Image File (image) | 
| tiff | Tagged Image File Format (image) | 
| txt | Unformatted (plain) text file. | 
| vsd | Vector graphics file format generally associated with Microsoft Visio application. (Computable Document Format) | 
| wav | Uncompressed audio file. | 
| wbk | Backup file for Microsoft Word documents. (Computable Document Format) | 
| wpd | Text document generally associated with WordPerfect applications. | 
| wps | Text document file that does not carry any advanced formatting or macros. (Computable Document Format) | 
| xfd | File used to populate PDF forms with data. (document) | 
| xls | Excel Spreadsheet file generally used with Microsoft Excel. (Computable Document Format) | 
| xlsm | Macro-enabled Excel Spreadsheet file. (archive data) | 
| xml | Extensible Markup Language file used for internet information formatting and data. (text) | 
| xps | XML Paper Specification file containing fixed page layout data. (archive data) | 
| dotx | Template files generally created by Microsoft Word applications. (archive data) | 
| zipx | Compressed, zipped data file that requires a special utility application to unpack the individual files within. | 
| htm | Hypertext Markup file more that is compatible with older OS systems. (text) | 
| html | HyperText Markup Language file in use with current systems. (text) | 
| ptn | Data file generally used with PaperPort (ScanSoft) application to display thumbnail images. | 
Edge system administrators have the ability to retire users profiles rather than outright deleting them. Retired user profiles do not incur a monthly user fee, and can be viewed and/or restored at the discretion of the administrator.
To retire a user, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard page, click the user name displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Click the Users tab. 
- 
	Click the name of the user that needs to be retired. 
- 
	Click Retire This User in the lower right. This will remove the user name from the list of active users. 
Please note that every process assignment with the retired user (e.g. Case Manager) will display with an (R) next to their name. Reminders and case notes that were created by the user will still display their name as the Created By/Entered By individual.
To view retired user profiles, navigate to the Users tab of the administrative settings and click Show Retired Users in the upper right.
File Location settings can be used to track where the physical copy of a Foreign National’s file is located. Settings can be used to reflect that the file is located in a certain section of the office, offsite storage, or with a certain user.
Please note, the following steps require administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator for further assistance or proper rights.
- 
	From Edge, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click the Choice Lists tab. 
- 
	In the dropdown next to Choice List, select File Location. 
- 
	In the blank field below the Default Type buttons, enter in a custom file location. - 
		i.e. “Intake Cabinet,” “Offsite Storage,” etc. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Add Custom Type. 
Repeat steps as necessary.
The new file location will appear in the right hand selection area. Once the list is customized, users will be able to assign any one of the new file locations (or a user’s name) to a Foreign National process’ file location by using the following steps:
- 
	Search for the Foreign National by using the FN/Individual module or FN Search field in the Action bar. 
- 
	Select the Foreign National. 
- 
	Hover over the Process Forms tab and select Assignment. 
- 
	Click the drop down selection in the File Location section to select where the physical file is located. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right to save. 
The Edge system provides users with the ability to add a Case Note to a Foreign National’s process, as well as customize who gets to view and access the information within it.
To add a Case Note to a Foreign National:
- 
	Navigate to the desired Foreign National record. 
- 
	Click the FN Action button in upper left. 
- 
	Click Add Case Note. 
- 
	Add any relevant details, such as: - 
		Which Process the note relates to. Alternatively, relate the note to All processes. 
- 
		An Activity Type, useful for categorization and reporting of notes. 
- 
		A Subject/Reference that provides a brief description of the note. 
- 
		The Details of the note, which provides a large text area to include as much detail as needed. - 
			Please note, there is a 32,000 character limit for this area. If users go over this limit, the note will automatically be truncated to fit the limit. 
 
- 
			
 
- 
		
- 
	Optionally, share the case note by configuring the View options: - 
		FN Viewable: Makes the case note visible to the FN via the FN Portal 
- 
		HR-1 Viewable: Makes the case note visible to the HR-1 who is assigned to the case, as well as any other HR-1’s with permission to access all Company cases. 
- 
		HR-2 Viewable: Makes the case note visible to any HR-2’s assigned to the case. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Optionally, assign the note to other users. Case notes assigned to a user will appear on their Case Notes module as a note that is Not Viewed yet. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save, and/or click Update & Return to return to the FN record. 
As part of the Foreign National Portal suite of features, the ability for firm users to view the questionnaires completed by Foreign Nationals is important. With this update, users may now access Foreign National submitted information, make amendments or submit the data on behalf of the FN if needed.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
Edge system users can be subject to Annual Maintenance Fees depending on their plan. This fee is dictated by the amount of file storage being utilized per a Foreign National. To pull the AMF information and create a report in order to better estimate these fees ahead of time, please proceed through the following steps:
- 
	Sign into your Edge portal. 
- 
	Click the New button in the upper left of the screen. 
- 
	From the dropdown menu that appears, click the Report button. 
- 
	A new screen will appear asking for the data type to be selected: - 
		If you need only the AMF and related FN information, select FN from the dropdown menu. 
- 
		If you need to include process-specific data (i.e. activities), then select FN + Process from the dropdown menu. 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making your selections, click the Continue button. 
- 
	A new screen will load directly to a General Information tab. In the Report Name field, enter in your preferred reference title for this report, as well as any applicable selections. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Columns tab. 
- 
	Hold down the Ctrl key and select AMF Date, AMF Current Size KB, AMF Max Size KB, and First Case Initiation Date from the Available Columns list, then release the Ctrl key and click Add Columns. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Criteria tab. 
- 
	Once the tab is loaded, ensure that every selection is set to All, with Case Status being set to All + Retired. All other fields should be blank. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
The system will return a report with all FNs and their associated AMF data, sorted by the last name of the beneficiary as a default.
To further refine your data:
If you would like to filter your results based on a maximum amount of allowable data per FN, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	Click the Report Criteria tab for the report. 
- 
	Scroll down to the Search Criteria area. 
- 
	Select AMF Max Size KB from the leftmost dropdown menu, then select Greater or equal in the second dropdown menu. 
- 
	Type “100” in the field to the right of the second dropdown selector. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button in the lower right corner of the screen. 
Using this criteria, the report that is generated will show a list of FNs that have exceeded 100KB, and therefore have triggered an AMF fee.
Users may click the Duplicate Template button to create a copy of the report, then change the Search Criteria accordingly to generate a list of FNs whose AMF Max Size is approaching the 100 KB limit. The duplicate template will be named "Copy of (template name)" by default, but can be changed within the General Info tab of the new template.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
- Click on the hyperlinked name of the questionnaire. 
	
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
Part of Edge's billing functionalities includes the option to add your organization's information at the top of any invoices or statements generated from the system. In order to make changes to this area to better suit your organization's workflows, please proceed with the following steps.
Note: These steps must be performed by an administrative user within your organization.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the name displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings in the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Click the Billing Setup tab. 
- 
	Under the Invoices & Statements section, location the Letterhead: Omit Firm name & address option. - 
		To remove the contact information, select Yes. 
- 
		To add the firm contact information, select No. 
 
- 
		
If No is selected, the next option Letterhead: Division allows for users to select their specific division from which they wish to populate an address and contact number.
If necessary, this information may be modified within the Administrative Settings area under the Addresses Phones tab (address changes) and Divisions Companies tab (contact number) respectively.
- 
	Sign into your Edge portal. 
- 
	Click the New button in the upper left of the screen. 
- 
	From the dropdown menu that appears, click the Report button. 
- 
	A new screen will appear asking for the data type to be selected: - 
		If you need only the AMF and related FN information, select FN from the dropdown menu. 
- 
		If you need to include process-specific data (i.e. activities), then select FN + Process from the dropdown menu. 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making your selections, click the Continue button. 
- 
	A new screen will load directly to a General Information tab. In the Report Name field, enter in your preferred reference title for this report, as well as any applicable selections. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Columns tab. 
- 
	Hold down the Ctrl key and select AMF Date, AMF Current Size KB, AMF Max Size KB, and First Case Initiation Date from the Available Columns list, then release the Ctrl key and click Add Columns. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Criteria tab. 
- 
	Once the tab is loaded, ensure that every selection is set to All, with Case Status being set to All + Retired. All other fields should be blank. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
The system will return a report with all FNs and their associated AMF data, sorted by the last name of the beneficiary as a default.
 
To further refine your data:
If you would like to filter your results based on a maximum amount of allowable data per FN, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	Click the Report Criteria tab for the report. 
- 
	Scroll down to the Search Criteria area. 
- 
	Select AMF Max Size KB from the leftmost dropdown menu, then select Greater or equal in the second dropdown menu. 
- 
	Type “100” in the field to the right of the second dropdown selector. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button in the lower right corner of the screen. 
Using this criteria, the report that is generated will show a list of FNs that have exceeded 100KB, and therefore have triggered an AMF fee.
Users may click the Duplicate Template button to create a copy of the report, then change the Search Criteria accordingly to generate a list of FNs whose AMF Max Size is approaching the 100 KB limit. The duplicate template will be named "Copy of (template name)" by default, but can be changed within the General Info tab of the new template.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
- Click on the hyperlinked name of the questionnaire. 
	
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
LawLogix E-File Extension
The Foreign Labor Application Gateway is one of the tools introduced by the government in order to digitally facilitate the submission of immigration applications. To more seamlessly integrate the Edge system into this new website, our developers have crafted an extension for use in the Google Chrome web browser.
This extension will work to bridge the specified Foreign National data collected in your Edge instance and communicate it to government sites with just a few clicks.
Before you Begin
Before using the extension, users must have valid credentials for accessing government sites and Edge. This is important as both items need to be open and active windows for the extension to function.
It is highly recommended that your Chrome browser be updated to the latest version available. Extension use must be enabled if it is not already permitted by your organization’s administrator.
To install the extension, simply navigate to the Chrome Web Store and search for ‘LawLogix.’ Click on the extension name and then select Add to Chrome in the upper right.
Form Filling in Edge
Filling out application forms in Edge has not changed. Users may still manually add pertinent Foreign National information, or utilize the Foreign National Portal to collect information directly from their client.
Once the application is filled out in Edge, then users may proceed to the specific government sites.
Using the Extension
Once the extension is installed, users can quickly start populating information into a corresponding application on FLAG.
To begin, the user must open their populated worksheet first. To do this, users must navigate to the desired FN profile, click Forms under the Process/Forms tab and then click Add Form to generate a new form or click the hyperlink to the prepared form in the list within the tab.
Once the worksheet has been opened, review that all information has been entered as desired and no required fields are missing.
If the worksheet meets expectations, click the LLX FLAG extension icon in the upper right of the Chrome browser window to open the loading dialogue. Click to select the type of form that will be populated into the FLAG portal.
Once selected, a series of options will appear in an extended menu below the form selection.
Filing with an ETA-9035
In this example, we will be using the ETA-9035 application to walk through the extension functionality.
Once the form worksheet is opened and ETA-9035 is chosen from the extension menu, click Load From Edge to temporarily load the data from this worksheet.
A disclaimer will appear when the data is being loaded from Edge. This is an important item that must be accepted before continuing.
When the action is successfully completed, the job and associated company will appear in the same line. This indicates that the data is fully loaded and prepared for population to FLAG.
After the load is completed, users must navigate to the FLAG website. This can be accomplished by simply opening a new tab or clicking the Open FLAG Site option in the LLX FLAG extension menu.
This selection will simply open flag.dol.gov in a new tab within the currently opened browser. Users must still log in with their DOL credentials as appropriate.
After signing into the FLAG site and opening a new/existing application for the corresponding form, users will be able to populate each page with data by clicking the Populate to FLAG option in the LLX extension menu.
When navigating from page to page, users need only click the population button from the extension menu to automatically feed in data from the worksheet to FLAG.
Due to technical limitations, some of the fields such as NAICS and SOC numbers cannot be populated through the use of the extension. When this occurs, a pop-up will appear highlighting the code that the user should copy into FLAG manually.
Worksite Locations (Employment and Wage Information)
As far as worksite locations, this can vary between applications and FNs. On the FLAG site it is a singular page, rather than multiple.
To add these using the Chrome extension, users will click the number of the Location they wish to populate. Each entry in the extension menu will display the city to assist users in keeping track of their information.
In this example, our application only has data for a single worksite. Clicking Location 1 (City) will populate the data for that worksite location.
After each location data is populated, users will click the Add Place of Employment button at the bottom of the page. Then they may click the second worksite button in the Chrome extension to populate the next set of information and so on.
As users progress through the application and populate their FLAG forms, any errors in data will be reflected immediately in the FLAG site. Users are always encouraged to review their information before submission.
It is important to note that users must navigate through submissions in order, or the extension will not perform correctly.
Filing the ETA-9141
The process for using the extension with the 9141 form is similar to the 9035. First, users must open the worksheet version of the completed form on the Edge application. Then in the extension, click Flag 9141 and then click Load from Edge.
Note: Once data is loaded, the space next to Load from Edge will read the (Job Title, Company) to indicate the application that is currently being used.
After the load is completed, users must navigate to the FLAG website. This can be accomplished by simply opening a new tab or clicking the Open FLAG Site option in the LLX FLAG extension menu.
After signing into the FLAG site and opening a new/existing application for the corresponding form, users will be able to populate each page with data by clicking the Populate to FLAG option in the LLX extension menu.
Please note: Even if continuing a case, when the extension is in use, users must always start at the first step of the application in the FLAG site.
As this application does not require worksite information, this option is removed from the menu when utilizing the extension for ETA-9141 purposes.
Once finished with an application, repeat steps as needed to fulfill other submissions.
Hotkeys
To assist with quick form-filling, the following functions are available for input with the extension installed.
- Alt+O = Open the extension’s pop-up menu.
        - This will allow for the rest of the macros to be used.
 
- Alt+9 = Load data from the ETA-9035 form on Edge.
        - A disclaimer will appear and must be agreed to before continuing.
 
- Alt+0 = Load data from the ETA-9141 form on Edge.
        - A disclaimer will appear and must be agreed to before continuing
 
- Alt+P = Populate previously loaded data to the chosen form on FLAG.
The I-864-CO and I-864-P represents the I-864A form used by USCIS (Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member). For the I-864-CO, the letters “CO” indicate the form will populate with the co-sponsor's household member’s information. The letter "P" in the I-864-P indicates the form will populate with the primary sponsor's information. In some cases, the co-sponsor or primary sponsor may choose to include the income of other qualifying family members.
The following steps should be completed to ensure all data is populated correctly when adding income from either sponsor's additional family members:
- 
	Search for the primary or co-sponsor by using the Advanced Search options in the Address Book module. 
- 
	Navigate to the co-sponsor’s profile. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	Click the Add Individual button to enter additional family member(s). 
- 
	Click the Go Back to Primary FN button to access the foreign national’s profile. 
- 
	Hover cursor over Processes Forms, then select Forms from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click Add Form button. 
- 
	Click I-864-CO or I-864-P in the dropdown list. Click Add USCIS Form. 
- 
	The form will open in Draft stage, click on Save and Close to exit the form. 
- 
	In the Forms section, change the stage of the I-864-CO or I-864-P from Draft to Worksheet then click on Update Info to save. 
- 
	Click on the I-864-CO or I-864-P form to open it in Worksheet stage. 
- 
	Scroll to Part 6 – Sponsor’s income and employment section. 
- 
	Click the Select Family Members button. 
- 
	Family Member screen will appear displaying Sponsor’s family members. 
- 
	Click on the number next to the family member, then move it to the DRAG AND DROP RECORDS HERE section. 
- 
	If needed add additional information for each record: - 
		Middle Name 
- 
		A-Number 
- 
		ELIS Number 
- 
		SSN 
- 
		Income 
 
- 
		
- Click on Update Info to save changes.
- 
	Once all information has been entered into the form, click Update and Return. 
In the Forms section, change the stage of the I-864-CO or I-864-P from Worksheet to Review, click on Update Info to save.
An enhanced I-944 Form and questionnaire are now available. The questionnaire has been introduced for use on the new Foreign National portal, where users can quickly supply information that will feed into the upgraded I-944 form.
Enhanced I-944 for New FN Portal Users
To assist users in gathering up important information relating to Public Charge requirements, the I-944 form on Edge has been upgraded. The latest version offers an enhanced workflow as follows. As there are a number of questions in regards to family members, household income, and assets, several pop-ups have been implemented to the form in order to assist with preparation.
- To access this latest version, users must click the Upgrade button next to a I-944 already attached to a FN profile OR, add the form to the profile after 4/9/2020.
- Users must review and save all data in their I-944 forms prior to upgrading as a precaution.
Adding I-944 Questionnaire for FN Use
Enabling this questionnaire for FNs to access on their portal can be done easily from the FN Profile.
- Navigate to the FN Profile.
- Under the Processes/Forms tab select Questionnaires.
- Select the checkboxes next Declaration of Self-Sufficiency (I-944) as desired.
- Click Update Info in the upper right.
At this point in time, no questions can be viewed, hidden, or customized by administrators at this time. The status of the questionnaire will be displayed, but these other options will be implemented at a later date.
I-944 Questionnaire on the New FN Portal
When made viewable to the FN via the Questionnaires tab on the FN profile, the I-944 will appear as a new tile labeled Declaration of Self Sufficiency (I-944).
Once Get Started is clicked, users will be presented with all relevant questions pertaining to the I-944, spread out across multiple tabs:
- Personal/Income
	- Contains questions in regards to the Foreign National, their income and types of assets.
 
- Liabilities/Credit/Insurance
	- Areas for the FN to disclose any liabilities (mortgage, car loans, etc.), credit score, and any health insurance.
 
- Education
	- Details about the Foreign National such as any occupational skills, retirement status, being a caregiver, etc.
 
- Public Benefits 
	- Pertinent form questions in regards to the receipt of or application for public benefits at any time.
 
- Household Income 
	- Area for the Foreign National to disclose income and types of assets of their household members (including dependents).
 
- Additional Income
	- Questions regarding any extra income pulled from other sources not already disclosed in other areas of the questionnaire.
 
- Income Source
	- Details as to the source of income for the Foreign National or their household members.
 
Along with multiple tabs for different asset information, there are a few key sections for Foreign Nationals to use when submitting data on their household members.
When filling out Household Income data, the questionnaire will automatically populate the members of the household disclosed previously in the My Immediate Family questionnaire. Here the FN may input data and save asset, income, and informational data on each person.
The Additional Income tab will allow for a FN to add or delete entries denoting other assets at will. The FN must click one of the Save buttons in the upper right to ensure this data is retained.
At this time there is a limit to how many entries a Foreign National may supply in regards to assets or benefits they list throughout the questionnaire. The ability to allow for more entries and eventual overflow into the addendum is planned for a future release.
I-944 Questionnaire-To-Form Workflow
As these items work best in tandem, the data input by the Foreign National can be selected as needed by the form preparer.
Once in the questionnaire, the Foreign National will be presented with several tabs of questions asking about assets, household members, etc.
In the Part 3 (Your and Your Household Members’ Assets, etc) of the form, the preparer can click on the Select Household Member button. This will display a pop-up of the household members that the FN supplied information about through the questionnaire.
Later in the same part of the form, preparers can also make selections as far as any Additional Income the FN has provided via the questionnaire. Clicking Select Additional Income on the form will present a pop-up displaying every entry supplied by the FN. Users may populate this information to the form by clicking and dragging the desired items to the top of the pop-up window and clicking Update Info in the lower left. If an item must be added to this record manually, users can click on the + icon in the upper right to generate a blank line where additional income may be added within the modal.
Finally, preparers can easily add the types of assets provided by the FN in the questionnaire. Within the Your Household’s Assets and Resources section, users may click the Select Assets button appearing within the I 944 draft form. A pop-up will appear, showing each entry that the FN provided in the Information About Your Assets area of the questionnaire.
Here as well, users are free to click and drag up to seven entries and have it populate in the form.
With the upgraded form and questionnaire working in tandem, the preparation of the I-944 is clear and concise.
If there are folders for reports that are no longer needed or should be added, this can be managed from within the administrative settings area.
Please note, the following steps require administrative privileges to proceed. If you are unable to carry out these steps, please contact your Edge administrator for appropriate permissions or assistance.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click the Choice Lists tab. 
- 
	Select Report Folders within dropdown next to Choice Lists in center. 
To create a new folder
- 
	Enter in desired folder name in blank center field. 
- 
	Click Add Custom Type. 
The new folder will be added for use within the Reports module.
To delete a folder
- 
	Click to highlight the desired folder in the right hand column. 
- 
	Click Remove Type. 
Please note: Administrators will not be able to remove custom folders that contain reports. Reports must first be moved to a different location, before deleting the report folder.
Edge allows foreign nationals to access a portal where they can check on their case status, upload documents, and fill out questionnaires. The following are steps on how you can give the foreign national access to the portal, where they can then fill out the questionnaires.
- 
	Navigate to the foreign nationals case file. 
- 
	If the foreign national has multiple process assigned, select the Process Forms tab then the Assignments folder. 
- 
	Click the drop down arrow in the Case Assignment section and verify the correct process type is selected as the current process (* will be displayed next to current process name) 
- 
	Click the Questionnaires folder. 
- 
	Verify the correct questionnaires are selected from the Set 1 for this Process column, and make any changes if necessary. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save any changes made. 
- 
	Next click on the Activities folder, then click the Send Welcome Email button. 
- 
	Verify the foreign national’s email address, and make changes to the welcome email message if necessary, then click on Send. 
The Welcome E-mail will have the login credentials for the foreign national where they can access the portal and fill out the questionnaires. Once the foreign national has completed the questionnaires, they can sign and date the Statement of Truthfullness. After this, the questionnaire may be marked as completed.
This will send an email notification to the Case Manager, detailing that the foreign national has completed the questionnaires.
Note: Questionnaires can be made available in the foreign national’s language. To change the language of the questionnaire from the default (English), go to the Personal tab of the foreign national’s case file and change the Language (for the online questionnaire) by using the dropdown list and selecting a different language. Click Update Info to save the changes.
To better fit your organization’s daily needs, the Edge system has the functionality for custom processes to be utilized. These custom processes may serve a more niche need that falls outside of the default ones already provided by LawLogix.
Note: The following steps may only be carried out by an administrator. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights.
 
- 
	From within the Edge system, click on the name displayed in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	In the administrative screen, click on the Process tab. 
- 
	Enter the name for the custom process in the To Create A New Process field. - 
		To pre-bundle the new process, select a current process type from the behaves like dropdown list to bundle forms, required documents, questionnaires, and activities. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the New Process button on the right hand side of the screen to add the process. 
Processes marked with empty parentheses ( ) are not in use, and will not be available to your users, although you can use the "Mark as Used" button to add an unused process to the list of available process types. Before adding a new custom process, we recommend reviewing the current list of process types to ensure that you do not create a duplicate process type.
 The Edge system can be accessed via the web on a PC, Mac or mobile device, so the requirements are dictated by the browser you utilize to sign into the program. 
 
Compatible browsers:
 
- Safari (version 7 and above)
- Mozilla Firefox (version 32 and above)
- Chrome (version 46 and above)
- Microsoft Edge (current version and one previous)
Connectivity: For optimal access to the Edge system, it is recommended that users utilize a DSL, cable, or broadband internet connection.
 
Note: Microsoft Edge is not officially compatible with the Edge system. If using Microsoft Edge, you may open an Internet Explorer window through the command on the settings menu. 
 
Adobe Acrobat Requirements:
 
In order to optimally view and edit forms within the Edge system, users are encouraged to utilize the free PDF software Adobe Reader (Acrobat in later versions). The software has some operating specifications in order to function properly on your device. 
 
- Adobe Reader 8 - Any system utilizing an OS below Mac OS X 10.7 or Windows 7.
- Adobe Reader 9 - Any PC. Minimum Mac OS X 10.6.8 with Safari 5.0..
- Adobe Reader 10 - Any PC. Mac OS 10.6.8 with Safari 5.0.5 or Mac OS X 10.7.4 with Firefox 12.0 using Adobe 10.1.2 plugin.
Note: Improper install or uninstall of Adobe programs may result in difficulties uploading/downloading forms from the Edge system. 
 
Scanner Settings:
 
During the course of multiple workflows, Edge users will need to scan in applicable documentation. In order to maximize the quality and printability of the documents processed, the following settings are recommended for your scanning device. 
 
- Resolution set at either 72-100 dpi, or 8-bit grayscale.
- Scan size set to auto-detect.
- Image files formatted to JPEG, PDF, or TIFF (single or multi-page).
Save for multi-page TIFFs, image files should ideally be less than 200K in size to allow for minimal impact on loading times.
Document Upload Limits:
 
- File names should not exceed a maximum of 80 characters (this includes the file extension).
- File size should not exceed 150 MB.
- Foreign characters cannot be used in file names.
The Edge system is highly customizable and this extends to system default questionnaires. Questionnaires can be modified for each process type to better suit your organizational needs.
 
Note: The following may only be performed by a user with administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed through the steps, please contact your Edge administrator for assistance.
 
To customize a default questionnaire for a process type:
- 
	Click on the username displayed in the upper right of the page and select Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	In the Firm Administration module, click the Processes tab. 
- 
	Click the Default Questionnaires tab. 
- 
	The left hand side of the page will display all of the Questionnaires that are available. 
- 
	Click the dropdown arrow in the Selected Process section and select the process to customize the questionnaires for. 
- 
	From the Questionnaires section, use the checkbox in the Show column to include or remove Questionnaires for the selected process. 
- 
	Clicking the name of the questionnaire will display all of the questions associated with it. 
- 
	Use the checkbox in the Hide column to hide the questions you don’t want displayed. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save changes. 
LawLogix allows a firm administrator to create custom email templates and set any of them as a 'Welcome Email' type for Foreign National or HR users. When the Send Welcome Email button is clicked within a given FN’s Activities page, the user may select one of their custom created templates to be sent.
 
To create a new template, a user must have administrative privileges. If you are unable to complete the steps listed below, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights or assistance.
 
- 
        From the Edge system, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
        Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
        Hover your cursor over Templates and select E-Mail & Reminder from the dropdown. 
- 
        Click Add E-mail Template in the upper right. 
- 
        A modal will appear to pick the email type. Click Plain Text Format. 
- 
        Next to Welcome E-mail? Make a selection between Foreign National or HR as the type of end recipient. - 
                Select No if the template is not meant for use as a Welcome Email. 
- 
                Select the new FN or HR email template as the system default by selecting Yes or No in the Set as default option. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Name your template in the Template Class field. 
- 
        Add your custom e-mail text within the blank description field. - 
                You may also add any attachments as necessary by clicking Upload Document in the lower left. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Once finished, click Update Info to save the template. 
When the Send Welcome Email button is selected within an FN/Individual’s profile, users will have the ability to select the newly created welcome email from the template dropdown list.
Please see the following tutorial video on adjusting your settings. 
LawLogix provides a tool that allows users to create a relationship between individual records within a case file. For example, users can establish a link between siblings whose records both exist within the Primary Foreign National's Dependents Sponsors tab, but are not listed on each other's Dependents Sponsors tab. This eliminates the need for recreating dependent records within each family member's dependents area.
You can link two individuals' records to each other as follows:
- 
	Navigate to either of the unlinked Foreign National’s unlinked family member profiles. 
- 
	Click Dependents Sponsors. 
- 
	Click Show Non Linked Family Dependents in the upper right.
	- This should display all other individual records that have been created within the primary case file, but are not yet linked to the person.
 
- 
	Click Create under the Link column heading. 
- 
	In the next page, choose a relationship from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Make a selection if Applying With. 
- 
	Click Update in the upper right. 
The two family members will now be linked and listed on each other’s Dependents Sponsors tab.
For security purposes, the LawLogix Foreign National billing module does not allow for the complete deletion of an invoice. These items are best retained for accurate record keeping. However, users can delete charges or add credits to offset charges made to an FN.
To delete charges, proceed with the following steps:
- 
	Navigate to the FN file with the invoice issue. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the FN Billing tab and select Billing History from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Click the number of the invoice that needs charges deleted. 
- 
	Once loaded into the invoice review screen, find the charge(s) that need to be removed and click the Charge Date. 
- 
	Another screen with specific information about the charge will load. click the Delete This Charge button in the bottom right corner of the screen. - 
		This button may not appeared if this charge was spread over time and cannot be edited. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Delete in the action confirmation window that appears. 
Note: If the invoice was created by the Create Blank Invoice button, then it can be deleted so long as it adheres to the following criteria:
- 
	All charges are deleted from the invoice. 
- 
	It is the most recent invoice on the FN’s file. 
Should your organization experience issues with emails being sent from the Edge system being caught in spam filters of your recipients (or never received at all), there could be an issue with how the messages are recognized by email programs.
The following settings will assist in “whitelisting” your firm’s communications, so they may be sent and received without any further problems.
Please have your IT Administrator add the following information to your Sender Policy Framework (SPF) record:
 
Host names:
- 
        mail.welcomeclient.com 
 
A law firm or organization e-mail system contains protections against unauthorized use of its e-mail domain. A common tactic of Spam senders is to forge the identity of the sender of an e-mail so that it appears that the email originated from a safe or familiar mail server.
 
To protect against this the organization has what is called a mail server Sender Policy Framework (SPF). The SPF system allows recipients of email to verify that the mail server sending the email from the lawfirm or organization domain is authorized.
 
By adding the mail server addresses listed above to the SPF record of the organization, mail issued from the EDGE system from the organization's email domain will be authorized and will not be rejected.
 
Note: The Edge system sends messages using the email address stored in the user profile of whomever is logged in. For example, if a user has entered in user@lawfirm.com as their contact email, Edge will send emails from its own server with this address. This can cause some email systems to block communications since it is unsure of where the message is coming from exactly.
In certain instances, you may need to delete a process from a Foreign National’s file. Maybe an individual does not wish to pursue all the processes they started, or the process was created in error. In any case, deleting a process can be done easily.
Please note that new cases or processes will not generate a case creation fee if deleted within 24 hours.
The following steps apply only if a Foreign National’s case has more than one process assigned to it. If there is only one process and you still wish to remove it, then the entire Foreign National file must be deleted.
Note: Once processes are deleted, they cannot be restored.
- 
        Search for the Foreign National you want to delete the process for. 
- 
        Select the Processes Forms tab from the FN’s case file, then click Assignments. 
- 
        Select the specific process you wish to delete from the dropdown list that appears in the Case Assignment section. Once selected, the screen will refresh to show the process. 
- 
        Click the Delete Process button in the lower right. 
- 
        A warning box will appear asking for verification of the deletion. Click Yes to proceed. 
The forms created in Edge are protected with PDF Document Security that restrict editing and modification of the form. This security is intended to protect the work product of our users and to prevent unintended changes that could impact a client’s case.
Attempting to make certain changes to the form may prompt for a password. If additional changes need to be made to the form, such changes should be made within Edge by placing the form back into the “Draft” stage.
The Edge system carries the flexibility to create custom fields for users to provide additional data fields to be used and reported on as necessary. Setting these items however, is something only administrators can carry out and apply across an organization’s system for use.
To set custom fields, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Within the Admin settings page, click Custom Fields. 
- 
	Enter in desired custom labels for FN, Process, HR,or Address Book . 
- 
	Click Update Info. 
Once these custom fields are added, they will appear in different areas dependent on their categorization.
- 
	FN Fields - Located under Financial Misc tab within FN profile. 
- 
	Process Fields - Located under Processes Forms tab, Assignment folder within FN profile. 
- 
	Address Book Data - Located in Address Book Contact record. 
- 
	HR Fields - Located in the Misc tab within the HR contact record 
In order to generate a set of completed questionnaire pages in a printable format, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, navigate to the profile of the Foreign National that completed the questionnaire. 
- 
	From the FN profile, hover your cursor over Processes/Forms and click Questionnaire from the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Select checkboxes for each desired under the Locked (Set I) column. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right. 
- 
	Click the paper document icon underneath the Locked (Set I) column header. 
- 
	A message will appear reading: “Locked Questionnaires in PDF is being generated and will be available in OnDocs shortly!” 
- 
	Hover cursor over OnDocs Notes and select Documents from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click PDF Locked Questionnaire Set I. 
- 
	Click Download Document. 
- 
	Once document is opened, click the Adobe printer icon to print page(s). 
To generate and print a blank questionnaire, please proceed with the following: 
- 
	From the FN profile, hover your cursor over Processes/Forms and click Questionnaire from the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Check the pages needed by selecting the appropriate boxes in the Set I for this Process column. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right. 
- 
	Click the paper document icon underneath the Set I for this Process column header. 
- 
	A message will appear reading “Selected Blank Questionnaires in PDF is being generated and will be available in OnDocs shortly!” 
- 
	Hover cursor over OnDocs Notes and select Documents from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click PDF Blank Questionnaires Set I. 
- 
	Click Download Document. 
- 
	Once document is opened, click the Adobe printer icon to print page(s). 
There are a variety of reports available for pulling information within the Edge system. In order to create a specific A/R Report, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select A/R Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	A default Firm Activity Report will appear, you can use this default template or click the New Template button to add a new report. 
- 
	If adding a new template enter a Report name, then click Update Settings. 
- 
	Select the following report filter options: - 
		Shared or Private 
- 
		Report Type 
- 
		Scope 
- 
		Level 
- 
		Show FN’s 
- 
		Date Range 
- 
		Group By 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings to save changes. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports. 
As part of the Edge suite, LawLogix offers integrators with Microsoft Word and Outlook products. As there are many versions available, please refer to this compatibility matrix:
 
The Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) option available in Edge will allow Edge users to mandate more secure access needs for their Foreign National portals. MFA is an additional layer of secure access to a site that requires a secondary piece of data in order to login.
This feature is available to all Edge users who wish to enable it, and will require Support assistance to turn on for the organization.
Turning On/Off MFA in Firm Admin
Once enabled for the firm, Edge users may turn the feature on or off as they determine is necessary for their organization. To turn the MFA feature on for FN users, the following steps must be completed by someone who has administrative access:
- Sign into the Edge application.
- From the Dashboard screen, click the name displayed in the upper right.
- Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears.  	
- Click the Security tab.
- Select Yes next to the Allow MFA for FN option. 	- Please note that once enabled, this will apply to all FNs. This feature cannot be turned on or off for specific FN profiles.
 
- Click Update Info in the lower right.
When a Foreign National signs into their portals after these steps are taken, they will be prompted with steps to complete MFA setup.
Company Level MFA Control
Should an organization have multiple companies set up within it, MFA can be disabled or enabled at the company level if so desired.
Please note: When MFA is enabled within the Firm Administration settings, it will automatically apply to all Petitioning Companies by default.
To modify MFA settings at the Company level, please proceed with the following steps:
- Sign into Edge.
- Click Companies in the left hand navigation module. 	
- Click the desired company name under the Company column.  	
- Under the General tab select Yes or No next to the Allow MFA for All FN option. 	- Selecting Yes will apply MFA to all FNs existing within the selected company.
- Selecting No will disable MFA and setup instructions will not appear to all FNs linked to the selected company
 
- Click Update Info in the lower right to save.
MFA Experience on the FN Portal
After multi-factor authentication is enabled by a firm administrator, Foreign National users will be shown a pop-up message the next time they attempt to login.
- Please note, this pop-up will appear after the FN user has agreed to terms of service and GDPR consent (if applicable).
- In addition, this pop-up will not appear if a firm user is utilizing the Login as FN function within Edge.
The pop-up will feature a QR code and the following instructions for the Foreign National:
| “You are REQUIRED to set up Multi-Factor Authentication! Please follow the steps below: 
 | 
In addition to these instructions, the FN user may click the Need Help? E-Mail Your Case Manager link in the upper right. This will open a new overlay where a FN may send a SureMessage to their assigned case manager for assistance.
T"
 A note about Office 365: Office 365 is a subscription service that provides users with online-only offerings, as well as the ability to download Office applications directly to a personal computer.  Edge does not currently have an integration with the online-only 365 options (a.k.a. in-browser functionalities), but the existing integrators currently available will work with the downloadable Office applications (desktop apps). For any further issues, feel free to refer to the existing integrator guides and troubleshooting articles. Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word Version Compatible? (Yes/No) Office 365 (32bit) Yes Office 365 (64bit) No Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) Yes Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) Yes Word 2016 Yes Word 2013 Yes Word 2010 Yes Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook Version Compatible? (Yes/No) Office 365 (32bit) Yes Office 365 (64bit) No Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) Yes Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) No 
As part of the Edge suite, LawLogix offers integrators with Microsoft Word and Outlook products. As there are many versions available, please refer to this compatibility matrix:
Microsoft Word
| Microsoft Word Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Word 2016 | Yes | 
| Word 2013 | Yes | 
| Word 2010 | Yes | 
A note about Office 365:
Office 365 is a subscription service that provides users with online-only offerings, as well as the ability to download Office applications directly to a personal computer.
Edge does not currently have an integration with the online-only 365 options (a.k.a. in-browser functionalities), but the existing integrators currently available will work with the downloadable Office applications (desktop apps). For any further issues, feel free to refer to the existing integrator guides and troubleshooting articles.
Microsoft Outlook
| Microsoft Outlook Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | Yes | 
Elevate your immigration case management experience by leveraging the best practices shared as part of our monthly Power User Series.
- Customize Questionnaires
- Modify Required Documents
- Review Activities
- Create and Customize your Dashboard
- Leverage Advanced Reporting Capabilities
- Turbocharge Efficiency with HR Requests
- Boost Productivity with our Outlook & Word Integrators
- Create Customizable FN Summary Templates
- Streamline Communications with Custom Email Templates
For those organizations that need to submit multiple employees in a single online e-file to the H-1B Registration system, a new set of features and workflow has been established in ICM. The new workflow permits organizations to selectively build “groups” of individuals per employer and submit all of them (up to 250 at a time) to the H-1B Registration system in a single interaction. This enhancement adds to the existing, single employee submission method available in the ICM system.
View Instructions
View Video
The Employee Dashboard has been added to the ICM system.
The attached PDF is a product walkthrough for HR users regarding the new Employee Dashboard. This document is also available to HR users directly from within the HR portal through the “Help” link. Please feel free to share this article with your clients as you prepare to activate this time saving feature.
The Employee Dashboard has been added to the ICM system.
The attached PDF is a product walkthrough for Firm Users of the ICM system who utilize the HR portal for their corporate clients. This article explains how to activate the Employee Dashboard for your Corporate clients and provides an overview of the feature.
A new user role has been created and is called Security Administrator. This narrowly focused role is designed to permit a member of the organization to manage user profiles for the organization. In order to assign this role, clients must contact LawLogix support for assistance.
Once activated, the Security Administrator has the ability to access all user profiles for the organization. The role may add new users, adjust privileges, restrict access and “retire” profiles. Outside of these options, the new role cannot access firm administration controls (i.e. creating custom processes, modifying templates etc.) or any client data.
This role may be helpful in those organizations where a strict separation of duties must be maintained and least–privilege access must be enforced.
Security administrators must be assigned within the LLX Firm Administration module. Once in the Firm Administration screen, click on the Users tab. A list will populate of all users within the organization.
Click on the name of the user that will be assigned the new role. Once loaded into the General settings for the user, select Yes next to the Security Administrator setting.
- 
	A user cannot be an administrator and security administrator at the same time. 
- 
	Multiple people may be security administrators if needed, there is no limitation. 
- 
	System administrators may still be created and retain access to the user settings for the organization. 
Enabling this role will not stop administrative users from accessing the Users tab within the Edge system. If an organization desires to have this type of configuration, navigate to the General tab of LLX Admin and select the Yes radio button for Hide Users tab for non-security admin users.
Security admin view from sign in:
Security admin user tab views:
Once signed in, the security administrators will only be able to view the elements of the Users tab and nothing else within Edge. They are not allowed access into any other functionalities of the system such as FN/Individual profiles, widgets, or messaging.
Assigning this role does not in any way prevent administrative users from accessing the Users tab under Administrative Settings.
Security Administrators are responsible for the following actions for all users within the organization:
- 
	Adding/Retiring/Deleting users 
- 
	Adding/Removing groups 
- 
	Adding/Removing users from groups 
- 
	Transferring inboxes between users 
- 
	Entering general user information - 
		i.e. email address, billing information, addresses, phone numbers, etc. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Resetting password and login information 
- 
	Inputting DOL E-filing credentials 
- 
	Assigning security privileges and calendar access/management 
H-1B Registration Toolkit
A GUIDE TO CUSTOMIZING YOUR EDGE IMMIGRATION SOFTWARE
Overview
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement a new electronic registration requirement for petitioners seeking to submit H-1B cap-subject petitions for the fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap season, which commences in April 2020. As many practitioners are aware, this new registration program, announced pursuant to a final rule issued last year (84 FR 888, 1/31/19), will change how cap-subject H-1B petitions are prepared and ultimately filed with the USCIS.
Specifically, under the new proposed registration system, petitioners will be required to submit a registration for each qualified cap-subject H-1B visa beneficiary before filing the actual petition with the USCIS. If the H-1B registration submissions exceed the statutory limits, USCIS will then conduct a computer-generated lottery to determine which registrations may proceed with filing. Once a registration has been accepted, petitioners will have 90 days to file the H-1B petition.
The H-1B Registration Tool
The USCIS will process registrations through a new online portal, which enables US employers or agents to submit multiple cap-subject beneficiaries (per registration) for whom the petitioner or agent seeks to obtain H-1B classification. Based on the 60-day notice published in the Federal Register, the H-1B registration tool will consist of a series of web pages that capture basic employer data about the petitioner and biographical details of each beneficiary included in the registration.
Petitioner Information
Information requested about the employer/petitioner includes business name, EIN, primary address, and details regarding the authorized signatory. 
Beneficiary Information
Information requested about each beneficiary includes name, gender, date of birth, countries of birth and citizenship, passport number, and a question regarding whether the beneficiary has a master’s or higher degree from a U.S. institution and intends to request consideration under the advanced degree exemption. 
As noted above, a registration may include multiple beneficiaries, but a petitioner may only submit one registration per beneficiary in any fiscal year. If a petitioner submits more than one registration per beneficiary in the same fiscal year, all registrations filed by that petitioner relating to that beneficiary for that fiscal year will be considered invalid.
H-1B Registration Fee
The USCIS also announced that each H-1B registration will require a $10 non-refundable fee to account for the resources needed to implement and maintain the registration system. The fee will be required for each beneficiary included in the registration; for example, if a registration includes 5 beneficiaries, the petitioner will need to pay $50. Payment will be collected through pay.gov after the registrant provides billing information and a form of payment (credit card or US bank account). Pay.gov will then redirect to a uscis.gov confirmation screen.
Registration Timing
The USCIS announced that it will open an initial registration period from March 1 through March 20, 2020 for the fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap selection process. The H-1B random selection process will then be run on those electronic registrations.
Managing H-1B Registration using Edge
To assist Edge users with this new H-1B registration requirement, LawLogix has prepared a specialized “toolkit.” This guide can aid practitioners in modifying their H-1B cap processes and procedures within the Edge system. Users can find helpful information on the following topics:
- Overall approach to gathering required information and documents
- Designating an H-1B process is “cap” subject through a default H-1B cap process type
- Adding new H-1B registration activity steps (which will be defined and available for selection in the Edge system)
- SureMessage e-mail templates for both the HR and FN
- Customizing H-1B cap reporting to include H-1B registration activity steps
- Saving H-1B registration confirmation number as a receipt activity for each FN
Five Steps to Get Started
- Review the H-1B registration requirements by clicking on the links included on the first page of this toolkit.
- Note: AILA members may also wish to consult AILA's H-1B Registration Tool Featured Issue available here.
- Decide whether to implement any changes to your specific client offerings and fee schedules to account for this new process.
- For example, some practitioners have indicated they may split their service offering into two components: the first involving initial legal review and submission of H-1B cases for registration; the second involving the filing of H-1B petitions for selected FNs, including preparation of forms and supporting documentation and assistance with LCA compliance.
- Critical: If you haven't already, make sure your attorneys or accredited representatives register for a USCIS.gov account so they can submit and manage the H-1B registrations in a timely fashion when the lottery window opens on March 1, 2020. Accounts can be created by visiting https://myaccount.uscis.gov/users/sign_up.
- In order to create an account, you will need to provide a secure password, answers to several challenge questions, and a second form of authentication (through an app, email address, or phone number text messaging). If your paralegals will be using the account(s), it's generally best to choose a shared email address for receiving the authentication code required for login.
- Review the Edge Best Practices below to modify your workflows and overall management processes for H-1B cap cases.
Overall Approach for Gathering H-1B Information
While the H-1B registration process only requires a limited amount of biographical and employer-related information, many practitioners feel they must conduct a full “legal review” to ensure the case is approvable (if selected) as part of their due diligence and ethical obligations to provide responsible legal representation.
Practitioners must also be mindful of the 90-day filing requirement once an H-1B beneficiary is selected. Given the increasing amount of scrutiny of H-1B petitions, most practitioners will need more than 90 days to gather a sufficient amount of information and documentation to support the underlying petition. Firms with a significant H-1B case volume will also find that 90 days is not enough time to prepare a large number of petitions within the required timeframe.
Given these realities, many practitioners are choosing to conduct “business as usual” with regards to requesting FN and job-related information through their standard questionnaires and intakes. As described below, firms can still implement other customizations to account for the H-1B registration steps.
Creating a New Default H-1B Cap Process Type
- From within the Edge system, click on the name displayed in the upper right corner of the page.
- Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears.
- In the administrative screen, click on the Process tab.
- Enter “H-1B-CAP” for the custom process in the To Create A New Process field.
	- To pre-bundle the new process, select a current process type from the behaves like dropdown list to bundle forms, required documents, questionnaires, and activities.
 
- Click the New Process button on the right-hand side of the screen to add the process.
Adding New H-1B Registration Activity Steps
The following steps must be performed by a user that retains administrative privileges.
- From the Edge dashboard, click the name displayed in the upper right.
- Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Hover cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown.
- Click Create Firm Activity in the lower left.
- Fill out the fields in the pop-up that appears as follows:
	- Sort - Add a number such as 0030 for the sort order.
- Name - Supply name indicative of registration such as ‘Registration Filing Date.’
- Behaves Like - Select ‘Application Receipt’
- Receipt - Mark this box.
- Mandatory - Select No.
- Email Template - Select None.
 
- Click Create Firm Activity in the lower right of the pop-up.
After activity is created, it can be grouped into a process.
- Within the Process Activities column in the right portion of the screen, click Process dropdown.
- Select H-1B CAP from the available options.
- Within the Firm’s Activities column, hold Ctrl on keyboard and click to select Registration Filing Date, Registration Not Selected, and Registration Selected activities in the list.
- Release Ctrl key on keyboard.
- Click Use Firm Activity in the lower left.
Saving H-1B Registration Confirmation Number
- From the Edge dashboard, navigate to the desired Foreign National case.
- Once within the file, hover cursor on the Processes Forms tab.
- Click Activities in the dropdown that appears.
- Click the dropdown in the upper left next to activities to select the appropriate process.
- In the lower portion of the area, find the associated H-1B Cap Activity.
	- i.e. Registration Confirmation Number
 
- Enter the date the confirmation was issued in the Date field.
- Enter Registration numbers in the Receipt No. field.
- Entering short notes within the Note field is acceptable but not required.
- Click Update Info in lower or upper right.
SureMessaging Email Templates
Welcome e-mail may be tailored to meet the needs of this H-1B cap season. To create a new template, a user must have administrative privileges. If you are unable to complete the steps listed below, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights or assistance.
- From the Edge system, click the username displayed in the upper right.
- Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Hover your cursor over Templates and select E-Mail & Reminder from the dropdown.
- Click Add E-mail Template in the upper right.
- A modal will appear to pick the email type. Click HTML Format.
- Select No if the template is not meant for use as a Welcome Email.
	- Name your template in the Template Class field. Select the new FN or HR email template as the system default by selecting Yes or No in the Set as default option.
 
- Name your template in the Template Class field.
- Add your custom e-mail text within the blank description field.
	- You may also add any attachments as necessary by clicking Upload Document in the lower left.
 
- Once finished, click Update Info to save the template.
Sample SureMessage Templates
Sample SureMessage e-mail templates to the FN, informing them of H-1B registration submittal and results:
 
Registration Email
| Dear Laura, Please be advised that your H-1B CAP registration was electronically filed with USCIS. You may confirm the registration number by logging onto the case management system with your login and password credentials. Rest assured we will notify you once we have an update from USCIS regarding the status of the registration. Sincerely, | 
Registration Selected Email
| Dear Laura, Congratulations! Your H-1B CAP registration was selected in this year's lottery process. Our firm will move forward with the preparation of your petition. You will receive a separate email notification confirming your H-1B has been submitted to the USCIS. You may login to the case management system with your credentials to check the status of your case. | 
Registration Rejected Email
| Dear Laura, Unfortunately, your H-1B CAP registration was not selected among this year's lottery process. | 
Customizing H-1B Cap Reporting
- Click the Reports button from the Menu selection.
- Under Select Report Type, pick Interactive from the dropdown menu and then click View.
- After the screen refreshes, click New from the action bar top of screen, then select Report.
- Select FN + Process as the data type, then click Continue.
	- This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column
 selections.
 
- This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column
- Click the General tab and enter/select the following:
	- Report Name: H-1B Cap Reporting
- Sharing Options
- Report Folder
- Report Generation Mode
- Report Style
- Click Update Info
 
- In the Reports Columns tab, select the specific information you want displayed on the report.
	- (e.g. Beneficiary Name, Citizenship, Process, Current Status, various expiration types).
 
- After making the appropriate selections, click Update Info.
- In the Report Criteria tab, select the items you wish to use in order to filter the report (e.g. Case Status, Process types, Company Petitioner, etc.), then click Update Info.
- Click the Run Report button.
In keeping with security best practices, the LawLogix Technology team will be implementing a security enhancement to the Edge application that may impact your organization. In preparation for this security enhancement, we are discontinuing support for out of date browsers and integrators on Friday, July 17th, 2020 . Any organizations that use browsers and/or integrators that are out of date or do not follow this security standard will be impacted.
	
	
		 What’s Changing?
	
	LawLogix will be disabling earlier forms of the TLS encryption protocol, including TLS 1.0 and 1.1.  This means that such protocols cannot be used to communicate with the Edge application and services (both inbound and outbound transmissions).
	
	  
	After the change, any inbound connection to Edge must use the TLS  1.2 protocol.  Similarly, external applications must be able to receive outbound communications from Edge via the TLS 1.2 protocol.
	
	  
What interactions use TLS 1.2?
The following types of interactions will no longer be able to use earlier versions of TLS to communicate with Edge:
- 
		Accessing the Edge application via web browser 
- 
		Sending or receiving web service or API requests 
- 
		Sending or receiving SSO authentication information 
Note: transmission of files via SFTP are not impacted by this change.
	
	
		 Compatible Web Browsers
	
Google Chrome
Chrome browser version 4 to Chrome browser version 29 are not supported. Chrome browser version 30 to Chrome browser version 70 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Mozilla Firefox
	
Mozilla Firefox browser version 2 to Mozilla Firefox browser version 26 are not supported. Mozilla Firefox browser version 27 to Mozilla Firefox browser version 63 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Internet Explorer
	
Internet Explorer browser version 6 and Internet Explorer browser version 10 are not supported. Internet Explorer browser version 11 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
- 
		Note: For desktop IE versions: 8, 9, and 10 are only compatible with TLS 1.1 and TLS 1.2 when running Windows 7 or newer, but it is disabled by default. 
	
	
		 Safari
	
Safari browser version 3.1 to Safari browser version 6.1 are not supported. Safari browser version 7 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Microsoft Edge
	
	
	 Microsoft Edge browser version 12 to Microsoft Edge browser version 18 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2 property.
	
	
		 Opera
	
Opera browser version 10.1, 11.5, 15 and 16 doesn't supports. Opera browser version 12.1 and 17 to 53 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
For organizations that utilize browsers that are not the most current versions, an update to the latest iteration is recommended.
- 
		Upgrade to IE 11 or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to the latest Firefox version or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to the latest Chrome version or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to Safari 12 or use an alternate browser. 
	
	
		 Testing Web Service Integrations
	
If your organization utilizes the Edge API, testing is required to ensure the encryption protocol TLS 1.2 and approved cipher is enabled for your integration. You will be unable to transmit requests successfully if your integration does not support TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher.
	
	
		 To test:
	
- Setup an integration client in a test environment
- 
		Change the REST endpoint from your production endpoint to the following:
		
			 https://uat.aws.welcomeclient.com/4DCGI/services
		
		- Make the ws_action as the following &ws_action=auth.test
 
- Send a request to this endpoint
For the test, authentication and credentials are not necessary. As long as an error message is received back (ex. error for bad credentials), then your organization’s connection is compatible with the upcoming security update.
If you receive an error message related to the connection (i.e. HTTPS or TLS) then the test failed and you must make additional changes in order to support TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher (see list of ciphers below).
	
	
		 Testing SSO and Outbound Integrations
	
If your organization’s users authenticate to Edge via single sign on, or your organization receives web service requests from Edge, review and ensure the encryption protocol TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher is enabled for your integration. You will be unable to authenticate users or receive transmissions if your integration does not support this protocol.
	
	 To test:
- 
		If your endpoint is accessible publicly, you can utilize a diagnostic service like that provided by Qualsys SSL Labs to ensure TLS 1.2 support with an approved cipher is enabled and functional. 
- 
		Access https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/ and provide your hostname. 
- 
		Review the results for confirmation that TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher is enabled and functional. (see list of ciphers below) 
	
	
		 Ciphers
	
Following the update, Edge will only accept incoming requests that utilize TLS 1.2 and one of the following ciphers
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 
	
	
		 Outdated Integrators
	
As a result of this update, the Microsoft Outlook 2007 Integrator must be retired from use with Edge.
LawLogix highly encourages users to update to the Outlook 2010-2016 integrator moving forward. These versions are compatible with the newest security standards and support the same functionality as the 2007 version. It is available for download and install from the Edge application under the Tools dropdown menu. After the security enhancement, the 2007 integrator will no longer connect to Edge or retrieve information from Foreign National profiles. LawLogix recommends updating before July 17 to ensure no disruptions between Outlook and Edge occur. .
When a user is retired within a given Edge instance, they may still have lingering reminders attached to their profile.
- 
		If the reminder is attached to the process , then the system will look for a non-retired user to pass the item on to. It will search for the following user types in this order to reassign the reminder to: - Case Manager, Responsible Attorney, Paralegal, Partner, and Collaborating Attorney. If no active users with these assignments are found, then the system will randomly assign the reminder to the next active user.
 
- 
		If the reminder is not attached to any process or Foreign National , then the Edge system will assign the item to another active user in the organization. 
This works similarly for a retired HR user, except the system will attempt to reassign first to the default Company Contact, then HR Manager, HR Assistant, Secondary Contact, and Manager, in that order. If no active user is found with those designations, then the reminder will be assigned to the next found active user.
The Adobe Reader software is required for the drafting and viewing of many forms within the Edge system. This software works in tandem with your chosen web browser (i.e. Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.).
 
Some issues may occur if your browser does not have adjusted settings to allow the proper use of Adobe Reader for forms. If you are experiencing problems with forms not saving information, unresponsive buttons, etc. please consult the following troubleshooting steps to configure your browser.
 
Google Chrome
In the latest versions of Google Chrome, the application should automatically open PDFs in the browser. In the event of any issues however, installing an additional extension may help.
- 
        Open the Google Chrome browser from your desktop. 
- 
        Click the three dots icon in the top right corner. 
- 
        From the drop-down menu that appears, select Settings. 
- 
        In the left hand area click Privacy and Security. 
- 
        In the Privacy and security section, click on Site Settings. 
- 
        Scroll to the bottom of the list and click Additional content settings. Then click PDF documents. 
- 
        Toggle the switch (icon turns blue) for Download PDF files instead of automatically opening them in Chrome until it is in the ON position. 
- 
        Close browser and retry. 
Mozilla Firefox
 
- 
        Open your Mozilla Firefox browser from your desktop. 
- 
        Click the three stacked lines icon in the top right corner of the browser window. 
- 
        From the drop-down menu that appears, click Options. 
- 
        Scroll to the section labeled Applications. 
- 
        In the dropdown directly next to Portable Document Format, click to select Use Adobe Reader (default) 
- 
        Close the window and reopen your browser for the changes to take place. 
Part 1
- Click on Safari in the top left corner
- Select the Websites tab
- Make sure Adobe Reader is selected under the Plug-ins heading on the left side (not Reader, Adobe Reader specifically)
- Click on "On" in "When visiting other websites"
- Click on Done.
- Log out of the browser completely and log back in.
- Click on Safari in the top left corner
- Click on Preferences
- Select the Websites tab
- Go to Reader
- Click "On" in "When visiting other websites"
The LawLogix Outlook Integrator is an add-on that works in conjunction with Microsoft Outlook™ to integrate email records and attachments into the system.
To install the integrator on your computer, please perform the following steps.
Note: The installation of the integrator may require administrative permissions to your Windows or Mac system.
To uninstall old/previous versions on Windows 10:
- Close out any Microsoft Office applications (Word, Outlook, etc.)
- Click Windows symbol in the lower left of the desktop.
- Click Settings (gear icon).
- In the pop-up window for settings, click Apps in the upper right.
- Scroll downward through the listing and click the file named LawLogix Outlook Integrator Installer.
- Click Uninstall in the lower right.
- A pop-up will appear warning that the application and related information will be removed. Click Uninstall on this modal.
- Restart computer.
- Proceed with the installation instructions below.
Confirming Outlook Integrator is uninstalled
To ensure that the file was erased properly, open the Microsoft Outlook program on your computer and perform the following actions.
- Click File in the upper left.
 
- Click Options in the lower left.
 
 
 
- In the Outlook Options modal that appears, click Add-Ins in the lower left.
 
 
 
- A list of options will be displayed. Next to Manage, click Go in the lower left.
   
 
- A new COM Add ins pop up will appear. Click to highlight Outlook Integrator on the list, then click Remove.
 
 
 
- Click OK.
 
To download Outlook Integrator:
- In Edge, click on Tools from the Action bar.
- Select Get Outlook Integrator.
- Setup file will be saved in your specified download folder.
Installing Outlook Integrator:
- Locate the file (generally in the Downloads folder of a computer) and open it.
 Ensure that all instances of the Outlook application are closed before beginning the installation.
 
- Double-click the Setup file to run it.
 You may see a pop-up from Windows indicating that this is an unrecognized app. Click More Info and then click the Run Anyway button that appears in the lower right. 
- A modal will appear asking for confirmation to install. Click Install in the lower right.
 
- Once complete, a success message will appear. Click Close in the lower right.
 
- Open the Outlook application.
 
| 
 
 
 
 | 
- Click the LawLogix tab at the top of the window.
 
 
 
- Click the red and blue LLX Settings icon.
 
- A pop-up will appear asking for credentials. Type in your Edge username, password, and server address.
 
 
 
 If you are unsure as to your server address, it will be the website used to navigate to Edge (ex. www.welcomeclient.com)
 
- Click Ok.
For SSO Users
If your organization employs the use of Single Sign On with your Edge instance, then please proceed with the following steps to properly sign into the integrator.
- Open the Microsoft Outlook application on your machine.
 
- Click the LawLogix tab in the top navigation.
 
 
 
- Click on the LLX icon in the upper left of the screen labeled Settings.
 
 
 
- A pop-up will appear asking for credentials.
 
 
 
- Enter your Edge instances’ unique server URL in the Server Address field.
 
 This URL is composed of the following:
 • [welcomeclient URL]/sso/[SSO UID]/login
 • Example URL:https://ww2.welcomeclient.com/sso/11aa1111a1111a11a11aa11aa/login
 The SSO UID should have been provided to your Edge administrator during SSO setup. Please reach out to your administrator to retrieve this value if it has not been provided. 
- Click OK.
 
- A small window labeled SSO Form may appear momentarily as the integrator applies.
 
 Note: if a user does not have an active SSO session in progress, they may be prompted to log into Edge in the SSO Form window.
 
- The Word Integrator may now be used as normal within the Word application.
The redesigned Foreign National portal was created to simplify the interface for FNs, while making it easy for organizations to communicate their requirements easily to their clients.
While it looks very different form the old portal, a majority of the functionalities remain the same. This walkthrough will show the newest features and how to effectively navigate them.
The new portal primarily revolves around two new pages: My Tasks and Case Status.
The Personal Settings, Messages, and Need Help? areas have been largely unchanged from the previous iteration of the portal. 
Welcome Message, Instructions, Notices, & Special Instructions
The various text-based notifications are now placed at the top of both the My Tasks and Case Status pages.
These messages will display depending on the inputs made by the issuing organization and/or case manager. By default, they are open upon page load, but if a user collapses them they will remain so.
If Edge users do not create any Instructions, Special Instructions, or Notices for the FN, these containers will not appear on the page. The Welcome Message is the only item that will appear by default. If an organization has not created a custom Welcome Message, a pre-written LawLogix one will be populated.
My Tasks
The first page that a Foreign National will arrive on will generally be the My Tasks page.
- If a FN had nothing assigned to them by an Edge user to complete (i.e. questionnaires, uploading documents, etc.), or have finished all assigned tasks, then they will be automatically redirected to the Case Status page upon login.
Underneath the aforementioned notices and instructions area is the tasks callout section. This section will have a blue bar with tiles present and instructions to "Please complete the following." The tiles will detail the amount of each respective item that needs to be completed by the FN, broken down by Questionnaire and Documents.
Questionnaires
The questionnaires section has been completely redesigned to enable a better workflow for FNs. By simply clicking on the displayed Questionnaire tile, the bottom half of the My Tasks page will immediately load the first of the required questionnaires.
As part of the redesign efforts, the questionnaires look slightly different and allow for tabbed navigation, but no questions were added, deleted, or otherwise changed.
Another addition is the presence of tabbed navigation for different sections of a questionnaire. The stepper items effectively break down the major parts of a full questionnaire, and the tabs section them further to easily parse the information needed from the FN.
- As FNs proceed through the questions, they must click the Next button in the upper right in order to record their responses. Clicking on the tabs without clicking Next will result in data loss.
	- In certain sections such as Work History, the Save & Add Another button in the lower right does not currently worked, but clicking the Next button will retain the information as an entry.
 
- Clicking the Cancel button will simply return FNs to the top of their My Tasks page, as the item is still pending completion.
Once a questionnaire is saved and completed, the tile will update to show the new count of items that still need to be completed.
Documents
Similar to the Questionnaires tile, the Documents tile will display the amount and types of documents requested by the Edge user. By clicking on the tile, the bottom half of the screen will show all of the required document upload sections.
FNs can click the Upload File button beneath each document title and follow the modal prompts to send their files to their case manager. Once the file has been uploaded, the associated section will disappear from the document display within the My Tasks page.
- If a user wishes to view their submitted documents, they may do so via a widget in the Case Status page.
Case Status
The Case Status page is a centralized page where FNs may view widgets that dynamically display information related to their case and profile within the Edge system.
- Please note that if a process is closed for a FN and they have no other one marked as current, this page will display blank and all of the widgets will appear empty.
If any tasks still need to be completed, a thin blue bar will appear on this page under any Welcome Message or instructions. This bar will notify the FN that they still have tasks to complete and if clicked, will direct users to the My Tasks page.
The widgets are as follows:
- Recent Activity
- Case Information
- Receipt(s)
- Documents for your Review
- Expirations
- Visa Priority
- Submitted Items
- Calendar
Recent Activity
In the upper left is the Recent Activity widget, which will permanently occupy this area on the dashboard. This widget tracks the various case milestones that the case manager allows the Foreign National to view from Edge, and gives a sense of progression. This widget also includes any receipt numbers associated with the given activity for users to click and follow status.
Case Information
In the upper right is a section summarizing the FN specific information such as case number, case contact, case contact email, etc. This area remains static, unless the case manager makes any changes to this information from the Edge system.
Receipt(s)
This widget will display the last three receipts that were uploaded to the FN process. Receipt type, date and description may all be entered in the Processes Forms tab within the FN Profile under Receipts. Entries are sorted from newest to oldest, with a display limit of three in this widget. Each item may be clicked and routed to the USCIS tracking page, where the number will be automatically populated in the check status area. Clicking Show More Receipts will open an overlay that displays all the receipts attached. If no receipts are uploaded, this widget will not be displayed.
Documents for Your Review
Located directly underneath the My Information section, this widget will highlight documents that were shared with FNs by case managers. This widget has a display limit of three, but users can click Show More Documents to view older items. In the Show More Documents view, documents will have a checkmark to indicate that the FN has already viewed it before.
This widget will always be present on the Case Status page, regardless of documents needing review or not (if no documents are present, widget will only have title and nothing else). FNs may not upload documents from this widget.
Expirations
In the instance that a FN carries applications, processes or statuses with an expiration date, these relevant dates will be displayed in the Expirations widget. The widget will only display two upcoming expiration dates (determined by the fewest amount of days till it occurs), with a Show More button to accommodate other dates that are further out. If a Foreign National has no expiration dates on their file, this widget will not be displayed.
Visa Priority
For Foreign Nationals that are applying for various visa types, the Visa Priority widget will display the appropriate dates and preference category for them. In addition, it will supply dates for filing and final actions. These dates are the same that are calculated within the Travel Visa Status tab within the FN profile on Edge.
Submitted Items
This widget will display all items completed by the Foreign National and communicated to their case manager. Items such as Required Documents that have been uploaded or pages of a questionnaire that have been completed, will be tallied here. FNs may also upload documents directly via this widget. If a Foreign National has not submitted anything, the Submitted Items module will not be displayed.
Calendar
A convenient area for displaying any calendar events that have been shared with the Foreign National by the case manager. By default the next 3 upcoming events will be displayed, and more can be viewed by clicking the Show More button.
Need Help?
The Help section has not changed from the previous Foreign National Portal. Clicking the option in the navigation will open a single choice that drives to a page with various help material links.
- Documentation here will be updated to accommodate the new redesign and functionalities.
Personal Settings
The Personal Settings page is very similar to the old version. Users may click their names in the upper right to open up a dropdown menu pointing to Personal Settings. On this page, the FN profile photo will be displayed, along with options to modify time zones or set to observe Daylight Savings Time in site timestamps.
FNs may also change their login name and password if so desired. They must follow the directions and requirements laid out in the yellow squares off right of the fields. Users must click Update Settings in the upper or lower right to save any changes made on this page.
Messages
The Messages header will open up a modal displaying the SureMessaging options. The content of this display has not changed from how it functioned previously.
Clicking on Compose will open a new tab/window for users to create their messages, pick templates, add email addresses, etc. All other actions will keep the main modal window as the active one.
Clicking once on the message title will preview the content in the bottom half of the modal, while double-clicking will open the message in its own window. Clicking Close in the lower right will close the modal window and return users to their previously inactive screen.
When there are instances of dependents needing to be deleted, this can be approached a number of ways.
If a dependent record is preventing another case file from being deleted, but you need to retain the dependent data, unlinking the file would be the best way forward.
Unlinking a Linked Dependent
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National file. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	In the list of dependents, click on Break from the Link column to unlink the dependent from the FN. 
Deleting a Dependent
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National file. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	Click the Dependent’s name to display the Personal tab. 
- 
	From the Personal tab, find the section labeled Relationship. Click the drop-down menu next to it and select Other. 
- 
	Further down the screen find the field Applying with Relative? Select No. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button in the lower or upper right of the screen. This will prevent the dependent from appearing on any further forms created for the main Foreign National. 
- 
	Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the Delete This Individual button. 
- 
	A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation. Select Yes if you wish to proceed with the Dependent deletion. 
- 
	In some instances, you may receive an error that the “Individual may not be deleted because of dependents attached.” In these cases, dependents of the dependent in question must be deleted or unlinked to facilitate this deletion. 
Please note that after deletion, the names of the removed Dependent(s) may still appear on the Foreign National’s case overview page until midnight the day of the action.
The LawLogix team understands that Edge users may not always be near a computer when the need to use the Edge system may arise. It is for this reason that a mobile version of the site is available. The mobile site allows for responsive access to key features of the Edge system, enabling users to consult in-system calendars, view Foreign National files, or set appointments, are all items that can be accomplished from a smartphone or tablet device.
Logging In
To sign into your organization’s Edge system, simply start the browser application within your smartphone. For iPhones operating off of iOS this would be Safari, and for Android phones it can vary applications such as Google Chrome, Samsung Internet, etc.
Once opened in browser, type in the following URL www.welcomeclient.com/mobile.
- Please note that the URL may need to change depending on your organization’s URL (i.e. ww2, ww3, ww4, etc.).
The WelcomeClient web page can be saved as a quick-start icon to a given device, generally by tapping the three dots or bookmark icon in the upper right and electing to add the site to the home screen. For full instructions, please consult the help menu of the chosen web browser.
Once the login page displays, existing credentials for the Edge system must be entered to sign on.
By tapping on the slider button next to Remember Me, the username and password will be retained upon next sign in.
Edge Mobile Home Screen
After signing in, the mobile site will present a list of accessible options.
- Calendar
- Address Book
- Reminders
- Case Notes
These areas offer a variety of functionalities that are more streamlined to match the mobile format.
Calendar
Tapping on Calendar will direct the user to a view of the current month and highlight the present day. The view may be switched by tapping the Day or Month buttons in the upper left, and the entire calendar may be refreshed by tapping the semicircle arrow icon in the upper middle. To move forward or backward through the months, tap the right or left facing arrows in the upper right.
Underneath the calendar, any events scheduled for that date will be displayed. Tapping on the names of these events will navigate to a more detailed view of the appointment.
To create a new event for the calendar, tap the ‘+’ icon in the upper right.
Doing so will lead to a new screen to specify the details of the entry including the type of appointment, subject, start time, duration, users assigned to the meeting, and which Foreign National the item is attached to (if applicable).
To have the item added to the calendar, tap Save in the upper right. The event will now show on the calendar, indicated by a star underneath the date.
Address Book
The address book within the mobile site can be utilized to search for Foreign Nationals, individuals, companies or a user’s personal address book for contacts.
Enter in any keyword or name before tapping Search. The results should return any Foreign National or dependent record in an organization’s Edge system, depending on the search filters selected.
Tapping on any of the results returned will open an at-a-glance view of the record, including any current or mailing address, phone number, and associated companies.
If a phone number is present, tapping the phone icon in the right of the entry will populate it in a user’s smartphone dialer. Tapping the pin icon to the right of any address entries will automatically route to Google Maps to display the location. To return to the search page, click List in the upper left.
Reminders
In the mobile version of Edge, reminders can be created and searched for from within the Reminders module. Once tapped, the user will see options for searching through reminders based on their associated roles or users, FN Name, company, case number, date, or subject.
New reminders may be created by tapping the plus icon in the upper right. Once tapped, users will be directed to a page to specify the subject, expiry date, reminder date, description, attached FN/HR profile, and system user assignment as desired. When complete, the reminder can be retained by tapping Save in the upper right.
Case Notes
Within the Case Notes module, users may search for and create case notes for Foreign National processes. After tapping Case Notes in the main menu, a case notes search page will be displayed. Users may specify user, timeframe, status (i.e. viewed, not viewed, unassigned, etc.), user role (FN or HR), date assigned and created for criteria to search by.
Users may also create new notes by tapping the plus icon in the upper right. Once done, a case note creation screen will appear. Users may search for a specific FN or HR to associate the note to, as well as record the activity type, subject, regarding information, details and any users that should also be attached to the note. The note may be saved by tapping Save in the upper right.
Edge allows for the creation of new process types, as well as the customization of a process's default Forms, Questionnaire, Required Documents, and Activities.
To create a new process type, follow the steps below.
Note: The following steps may only be carried out by an administrator. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator(s).
- 
	Click your name at the top-right, and then click Administrative Settings. 
- 
	Click the Processes tab. 
- 
	Enter in a desired process name in the To Create A New Process field. - 
		Note: Once the process has been used it cannot be re-named. 
- 
		[Optional] In the dropdown menu that appears directly under the field, select another existing process that is similar to the one you are creating. This will copy that process’s default Forms, Questionnaire, Required Documents, and Activities. This can help save time so that you don’t have to start from scratch in defining these process defaults. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the New Process button. Users will now be able to create new cases using this process type. 
- 
	[Optional] Now that you’ve created the process, it is recommended to review the process defaults mentioned above and make any desired changes. 
The Edge system allows for a variety of customizations in order to best suit an organization’s workflow. In order to accomplish this, users with administrative access must carry out the steps provided below.
Adding Activities to a Process:
- 
	Click the username displayed in the upper right of the screen. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	From the Activities screen, the left hand side will display the Firm’s Activities and the right hand side will display the Process Activities. 
- 
	From the Process Activities section, select the desired process for customization from the Process drop-down selection. 
- 
	To associate specific activities to the selected process, select the activity from the Firm’s Activities column (hold down Ctrl to select multiple). 
- 
	Once all desired activities are selected, click the Use Firm Activity -> button below the activities column to add the activities to the process. 
- 
	If needed, use the Up and Down arrow buttons to sort the activities, then click on the Update Sort Order button to save the changes. 
Alternatively, users may need certain activities removed from a process. This can be accomplished through the following steps.
Removing Activities from a Process:
(Note: Activities marked as LLX Mandatory-M cannot be deleted from a process)
- 
	Click the username displayed in the upper right of the screen. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	From the Activities screen, the left hand side will display the Firm’s Activities and the right hand side will display the Process Activities. 
- 
	From the Process Activities section, select the desired process for customization from the Process drop-down selection. 
- 
	To remove specific activities from the selected process, select the activity from the Process Activities column (hold down Ctrl to select multiple). 
- 
	Once all desired activities are selected, click the Delete Process Activity button to remove the activities from the process. 
When company contacts are created within the Edge system, they can be categorized as one of two types: HR-1 and HR-2. The privileges and system experience can change depending on these designations. The differences between the two are detailed below:
HR-1 Company Contacts
HR-1 contacts will have access to the following modules within their portal:
- 
	Firm Information 
- 
	Company Information
	- 
		Jobs 
- 
		Questionnaire 
- 
		Documents and Scans 
 
- 
		
- 
	Employee Status 
- 
	Pending Forms 
- 
	Reports 
- 
	Tutorial 
- 
	Personal Preferences 
- 
	Help 
- 
	Logout 
HR-1 contacts will be able to view and edit certain information for all Foreign Nationals associated with their company, or only those with processes to which they are assigned.
HR-2 Company Contacts
HR-2 contacts will have access to the following modules within their portal:
- 
	Home 
- 
	Messages 
- 
	Employee Status 
- 
	Reports (dependent on administrative settings) 
- 
	Firm Information 
- 
	Personal Preferences 
- 
	Help 
- 
	Logout 
HR-2 contacts can be limited to only viewing and editing Foreign Nationals or employees with processes that they are assigned to. Alternately, if the HR-2 user is allowed to view all HR cases, then they may view or edit all FNs associated with the company.
These users cannot request new cases for new or existing employees, but can request a new case for an existing Foreign National.
Depending on the yes/no selection for the contact's Restrict to HR-2 Privilege setting a company contact can be assigned to a FN's process as the HR-1 Employer Contact or one of the HR-2 Contacts, but not both. Both HR-1 and HR-2 users may be assigned as the Company Signer on a FN’s Forms area.
The Required Documents tile on the Foreign National is a simple means of bringing up the items that a firm needs from the Foreign National on an easy-to-read dashboard. Firm users simply mark documents from the Edge system that are required from the FN, then it will appear to their clients as an item they need to upload. The full workflow is available below.
Marking Documents for a Foreign National
Similar to the legacy version of the FN Portal, the newer version still requires a few things for the documents to actually display to the Foreign National on their My Tasks page.
A Firm user must simply take the following steps:
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National profile within Edge. - 
		This FN profile must NOT be retired. A retired FN should not have access to the Foreign National Portal. Any changes to required documents for a retired FN will not reflect on the portal. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Hover over the Processes Forms tab and select Required Docs. 
- 
	Ensure that the Current Process is selected. 
- 
		The Required Documents tile only reflects documents marked as required for the current process. 
 
- 
	Once in the Required Documents area, there will be a list of documents that a user may make available. - 
		- 
			Required of FN: Checking this box and clicking Update Info will make the item appear on the FN Portal tile. 
- 
			Required of HR-1: Checking this box and clicking Update Info will make the item appear on the HR Portal for the designated HR rep. 
- 
			Uploaded by FN: A checkmark appearing here indicates that the document has been provided by the FN. If this is marked then the Required document will no longer appear on the FN Portal tile. 
- 
			Uploaded by HR: A checkmark appearing here indicates that the document has been provided by the HR. 
- 
			Received from FN: Marking this box and clicking Update Info will effectively mark this document from the firm side. This item will not reflect as truly received unless there is a document also attached from the firm side. 
- 
			Received from HR-1: Marking this box and clicking Update Info will effectively mark this document from the firm side. This document will be removed from the HR portal dashboard. 
- 
			Upload/View: Area where a firm side upload can take place or a direct link to the uploaded document will appear. 
 
- 
			
 
- 
		
- 
	User can select all applicable documents under Required of FN and click Update Info. 
- 
	Once saved, the FN should see the selected documents on their portal tile. 
- 
		Please note, this item will not automatically refresh the portal for the FN. FNs may have to refresh the page or navigate to another page to see changes. 
 
 
Uploading Documents
The Foreign National can easily progress through the Required Documents by clicking on the Documents tile in their portal. 
 
When clicked, the tile will be highlighted orange and the requested documents will be listed out. A second section called 'Uploaded' will also appear below the required documents, showing the items that the Foreign National has already previously provided through the portal directly or by the firm uploading it from the Edge interface.
From this screen, Foreign Nationals may upload these documents directly or replace/add to previously uploaded documents.
For Foreign Nationals to upload docs:
- 
	Click Upload File within the box of the desired document. 
- 
	A new tab/window will open with an upload module. 
- 
	Click Add Files. 
- 
	Select all desired documents. 
- 
	Click Start Upload. 
- 
	Once the progress bar reads "success" the FN may safely click on the Finished button. 
- 
	Click Close to return to the FN Portal. 
After the upload is completed, FN users will see the previous square drop below the Uploaded Documents line. Firm side users will now see a check mark populate under the Uploaded by FN column in the Required Documents tab.
Required Documents and Activities
Certain activities, when marked as complete, will effectively mark the document as received as well. This will result in the item no longer appearing in the Documents tile on the FN portal.
The following activities, when marked, will remove associated required documents from the FN's portal:
- 
	All Documents Received by FN - 
		This will include any customized processes with this behavior assigned. List attached of all activities with this behavior assigned. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Final Action Completed - 
		Completed Date required 
 
- 
		
- 
	Application Filed - 
		Completed Date required 
 
- 
		
- 
	Date Closed 
Credit Requests are accepted by LawLogix as long as they are for one of following reasons:
- 
        A process was created within the last 90 days and deleted. - 
                Fees are not charged for processes that were created and deleted on the same day. 
- 
                Anything over 90 days is generally not credited. 
 
- 
                
- 
        A process was created based on a recent migration. - 
                Example: The process not being imported as expected. 
 
- 
                
Processes are billed as part of a nightly batch that runs at midnight. Credit Requests must be processed if the request is on the following day.
If the case falls under one of these reasons, a credit request may be submitted. The customer must provide the following information:
- 
        Date Process was created. 
- 
        Process type. - 
                Example: Consultation, L-1A/B, etc. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Foreign National name. 
- 
        Reference number (if available). 
To process the request:
- 
        Create a case in Salesforce marking it as the following: - 
                Type: Billing 
- 
                Case Reason: Credit Request 
 
- 
                
- 
        Obtain the required credit request information (date created, process type, FN name, Reference number) and enter it in the Description field. - 
                Utilize one of the following email templates from Customer Support Current folder in order to obtain the information from the customer: - 
                        Credit Request Information needed-deleted processes 
- 
                        Credit Request Information needed-migrated processes 
 
- 
                        
 
- 
                
- 
        Within the case click New Credit Request button. 
- 
        Enter information in the following fields: - 
                Process Created Date 
- 
                Process Type 
- 
                FN Name 
- 
                Reference Number 
- 
                Select the reason for the request (Process Deleted, Migration Related, Other); if “Process Deleted” is selected review the database and confirm deletion prior to processing. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Save the credit request. 
- 
        Email the requestor utilizing template **Credit Request Processed from the Customer Support Current folder. 
- 
        Close the Salesforce case. 
Annual Maintenance Fees are charges associated with the storage and maintenance of a firm’s Foreign National files. These fees are triggered on the year anniversary of the Foreign National case creation, but are only billed if there has been 100KB (or more) of data stored in OnDocs during the past year.
These fees vary depending on your firm’s agreement, but they are charged to help offset the cost of storing, insuring, and backing up the data stored within the Foreign National’s file. Below are some common questions users may have on Annual Maintenance Fees.
What information is counted toward the 100KB threshold?
SureMessages, Case Notes, and uploaded files (including e-mails) to the OnDocs folder count toward the 100KB threshold.
Will we still incur an AMF is the case is closed or inactive?
Yes, as the documents are still being stored, insured, and backed up by LawLogix these cases would incur an AMF if they are larger 100KB or larger.
How can I see the size of my files?
The amount of data storage being used by documents in a Foreign National's case file is available in the OnDocs Notes tab of their profile. The AMF Info is located on the lower left side of the page, just below the OnDocs History active links.
What are the benefits of storing documents in LawLogix?
Storing documents within your LawLogix client files provides:
- 
	Secure access of any client document or form 
- 
	Ability to view documents anywhere with an internet connection 
- 
	Reduces the need for physical storage 
- 
	Increases office efficiency through a centralized location for all client related information/documents 
- 
	Helps to comply with state bar client retention requirements 
How can I avoid Annual Maintenance Fees?
Firms who find they are surpassing the 100KB threshold included in the traditional pricing structure have the ability to opt into one of the unlimited storage options. These options increase the one-time case activation fee (as to bundle the AMF charges at a substantial discount), but provide unlimited storage for either five or ten years.
If you are interested in this option, please contact us.
What are the advantages of opting into one of these unlimited storage options?
Opting into an unlimited storage option allows firms to pass along the case activation/storage fee upfront, as it is difficult to pass along the yearly AMF charge for $3.95.
Many firms use this option to move to a paperless environment, saving office space and employee time.
Can we avoid the AMF by deleting data prior to the anniversary date?
The AMF is triggered when the FN storage size reaches 100KB, so deleting the documents will not prevent the charge for the upcoming anniversary. However, if you delete the documents and the FN file remains below 100KB, the firm will not be charged the 2nd anniversary.
The Reports module within the Edge portal allows users to compile data within a scope across their client base. These reports can be when completed, or saved as a template for future use.
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select Case Status Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	Click the New Template button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	Enter a Report name, then click the Update Settings button. 
- 
	Leave report filters set to All for a more comprehensive report, or use the filter options to filter the report by: - Responsible Attorney
- Case Manager
- Case Status
- Date Range Types
- Process type
 
- 
	Select the Multiple FN Rows option to Include All Rows. 
- 
	Omit Closed Processes option. 
- 
	Click the Update Settings in the left hand navigation to save any changes. 
- 
	Underneath Update Settings, click Select Columns to Add/Remove data columns for the report. 
- 
	From the Available Columns section; select the data columns to include them in the report. (Hold down the Ctrl key to make multiple column selections) then click Add Columns. 
- 
	From the Selected columns section, remove data columns you don’t want on the report by selecting the column (Hold Ctrl key to make multiple column selections) then click the Remove Columns button. 
- 
	Use the Move Column Up or Move Column Down button to sort the columns, then click on Update to save changes. 
- 
	Use the Group & Sort By fields will further organize the way the data will populate the Report. 
- 
	Click the Update Settings button to save changes made. 
- 
	Click the Calculate button, the system will show the number of records to Print/Display. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports. 
Note: There are limits on the overall size of any single report. Click the Calculate button to determine if your report falls within these limits: Manually run reports have a limit of 1000 records. Scheduled reports are limited to 5,000 records.
To schedule a report, select a day of the week from the Automatic Update popup menu. No report containing more than 10,000 records can ever be produced.
In order for forms to pull in the firm address (or an attorney address) when the form is initially added to the Forms list, the following steps should be verified.
Please note that the following steps require administrative permissions.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Click the Addresses Phones tab and verify firm information is listed. - 
		If any item is missing, click Add Phone Number or Add Address to input the information. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Users tab. 
- 
	Click the name of the attorney user. 
- 
	Verify all relevant information is present within user profile. - 
		If any are missing, enter information within the blank fields and click Update Info to save. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Verify the correct case assignments from the FN’s case file in the Process Forms Assignments section. 
- 
	Information from the above sections is what will populate the form when it is opened. 
The Reports module in Edge allows for users to pull from a wide selection of values within a given Foreign National record or process.
FN Report
Currently the FN Report will pull all values appearing in the Default FN Values area of Processes Forms within the FN Profile.
When utilized in a FN Report, these values will override what is selected in the Report Criteria tab of a given report.
FN+Process Report
When a user applies the FN+Process report, the values seen in the Assignment tab of the Processes Forms dropdown in a FN profile are the ones that can be pulled into the report.
In the scenario of a problematic filter, confirm which report type the user is employing first before troubleshooting unresponsive data pulls.
For organizations that have numerous clients and users, getting an update to the overall status of a firm may be necessary. To generate a report for tracking the activities of an organization across multiple users within a specific date range, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select Firm Activity Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	A default Firm Activity Report will appear, you can use this default template or click the New Template button to add a new report. 
- 
	If adding a new template enter a Report name, then click Update Settings. 
- 
	Select the following report filter options: - 
		Shared or Private 
- 
		Automatic Update 
- 
		Date Range 
- 
		Users 
- 
		Group By 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings to save changes. 
- Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports.
Note: There are limits on the overall size of any single report. Manually run reports have a limit of 1000 records. Scheduled reports are limited to 5,000 records. To schedule a report, select a day of the week from the Automatic Update popup menu. No report containing more than 10,000 records can ever be produced.
The Edge system offers a great deal of flexibility for users to customize it to best fit their own practices. One such example is creating custom questionnaires and attaching them to existing processes. This can be accomplished within the Edge system with a few steps.
Please note that the following steps require administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your administrator to secure rights or assistance.
Creating Your Questionnaire
- 
        Click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
        Click Administrative Settings within the dropdown. 
- 
        Hover cursor over the Templates tab and click Custom Questions from within the dropdown. 
- 
        Click Add Question in the upper right. 
- 
        Add Category, Description, and Question. 
- 
        Click Update Info in upper or lower right to save. 
- 
        Repeat as necessary until all questions are created. 
- 
        From the Administrative settings area, hover cursor over the Processes tab and click Custom Questionnaires. 
- 
        Click Create Questionnaire. 
- 
        Name the questionnaire and define its type. 
- 
        Click the plus icon button. 
- 
        In the new model that appears, check the box next to every question desired for the questionnaire. 
- 
        Rearrange the question order by clicking to highlight the question title, click the up or down arrows to move it, and click Update Sort Order to save it. 
- 
        Click Update Info to save the questionnaire. 
Attaching the Questionnaire
 
- 
        Return to the Custom Questionnaires area. 
- 
        Next to Selected Process, select the desired process from the dropdown menu for which the questionnaire was created. 
- 
        Click to highlight the desired questionnaire in the left hand listing. - 
                To select multiple questionnaires, hold down Ctrl (or apple key) and click each one as desired. Release key when finished.. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Click Select Required Questionnaires. - 
                Questionnaire will now bear an asterisk to indicate the attachment. 
 
- 
                
Making Questionnaire Visible to the FN
In order to ensure that a FN can see the questionnaire, it can be added to the FN profile.
- 
        Navigate to the FN profile. 
- 
        Hover cursor over Processes Forms and select Questionnaire. 
- 
        Scroll to the Custom Questionnaires area and click Add Questionnaire in the lower right. 
- 
        Click the checkbox for the specific questionnaire. 
- 
        Click Return to FN. 
Please note, in order for the FN to see the questionnaire pages attached to the specified process, the process must be either the most recently created or marked as the Current Process. Data entered into Custom Questionnaires will not populate form
The Reports module within Edge allows users to compile report data within a scope across their client base. Reports can be run once completed, or saved as a template for future use. The steps below are more commonly used for creating reports of Foreign National clients.
- 
	Click the Reports button from the Menu selection. 
- 
	Under Select Report Type, pick Interactive from the dropdown menu and then click View. 
- 
	After the screen refreshes, click New from the action bar top of screen, then select Report. 
- 
	Select FN + Process as the data type, then click Continue. 
- 
	This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column selections. 
- 
	Click the General tab and enter/select the following: - 
		Report Name 
- 
		Sharing Options 
- 
		Report Folder 
- 
		Report Generation Mode 
- 
		Report Style 
- 
		Click Update Info. 
 
- 
		
- 
	In the Reports Columns tab, select the specific information you want displayed on the report. - 
		(e.g. Beneficiary Name, Citizenship, Process, Current Status, various expiration types). 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making the appropriate selections, click Update Info. 
- 
	In the Report Criteria tab, select the items you wish to use in order to filter the report (e.g. Case Status, Process types, Company Petitioner, etc.), then click Update Info. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
Users within the Edge system have the ability to add various files to the built-in OnDocs repository. This storage area can host a variety of file types that suit the specific needs of a given process. See the full list of supported types below:
| Extension | File Type | 
| 7z | Zipped files (Archive Data) | 
| bmp | Bitmap | 
| cpy | Document | 
| csv | Comma-separated Value (Computable Document Format) | 
| dat | Generic binary or text file (Archive Data) | 
| db | Windows Database file (Archive Data) | 
| doc | Word processing file (Computable Document Format) | 
| docm | Macro-enabled word processing file (Archive Data) | 
| docx | Rich text word processing file (Archive Data) | 
| dot | Document template file (Computable Document Format) | 
| efx | eFax document (data) | 
| eml | E-mail message (text) | 
| fdf | Text file export from PDF (document) | 
| gif | image | 
| hfd | Form document generally associated with HotDocs application (data) | 
| hpd | Portable form document generally associated with HotDocs application (document) | 
| iaf | Settings file exported by older versions of Microsoft Outlook (text) | 
| jpeg | image | 
| jpg | image | 
| kes | Document file type generally associated with Kurzweil applications for blind and visually impaired users (document) | 
| log | File with a log of data (text) | 
| lwp | Document file type generally associated with Lotus Suite of applications (Lotus) | 
| mdi | Proprietary Microsoft Document Imaging file type (document) | 
| mp3 | Audio file | 
| msg | Mail message from Microsoft Outlook or Exchange (document) | 
| odg | OpenDocument vector file type | 
| odt | OpenDocument text file type | 
| oft | OpenType font file (Computable Document Format) | 
|  | Portable Document Format | 
| png | Portable Network Graphics (image) | 
| ppt | Microsoft PowerPoint file | 
| pptx | Microsoft PowerPoint file, XML version (archive data) | 
| pptm | Macro-enabled Microsoft PowerPoint file, XML version (archive data) | 
| psd | PhotoShop Document (image) | 
| pub | Document file generally associated with Microsoft Publisher application (Computable Document Format) | 
| rar | Native to WinRAR archiver for compressing files (archive data) | 
| rtf | Text file format commonly used by Microsoft products. | 
| sxw | Document file generally associated with StarOffice Writer applications. | 
| tif | Tagged Image File (image) | 
| tiff | Tagged Image File Format (image) | 
| txt | Unformatted (plain) text file. | 
| vsd | Vector graphics file format generally associated with Microsoft Visio application. (Computable Document Format) | 
| wav | Uncompressed audio file. | 
| wbk | Backup file for Microsoft Word documents. (Computable Document Format) | 
| wpd | Text document generally associated with WordPerfect applications. | 
| wps | Text document file that does not carry any advanced formatting or macros. (Computable Document Format) | 
| xfd | File used to populate PDF forms with data. (document) | 
| xls | Excel Spreadsheet file generally used with Microsoft Excel. (Computable Document Format) | 
| xlsm | Macro-enabled Excel Spreadsheet file. (archive data) | 
| xml | Extensible Markup Language file used for internet information formatting and data. (text) | 
| xps | XML Paper Specification file containing fixed page layout data. (archive data) | 
| dotx | Template files generally created by Microsoft Word applications. (archive data) | 
| zipx | Compressed, zipped data file that requires a special utility application to unpack the individual files within. | 
| htm | Hypertext Markup file more that is compatible with older OS systems. (text) | 
| html | HyperText Markup Language file in use with current systems. (text) | 
| ptn | Data file generally used with PaperPort (ScanSoft) application to display thumbnail images. | 
Edge system administrators have the ability to retire users profiles rather than outright deleting them. Retired user profiles do not incur a monthly user fee, and can be viewed and/or restored at the discretion of the administrator.
To retire a user, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard page, click the user name displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Click the Users tab. 
- 
	Click the name of the user that needs to be retired. 
- 
	Click Retire This User in the lower right. This will remove the user name from the list of active users. 
Please note that every process assignment with the retired user (e.g. Case Manager) will display with an (R) next to their name. Reminders and case notes that were created by the user will still display their name as the Created By/Entered By individual.
To view retired user profiles, navigate to the Users tab of the administrative settings and click Show Retired Users in the upper right.
File Location settings can be used to track where the physical copy of a Foreign National’s file is located. Settings can be used to reflect that the file is located in a certain section of the office, offsite storage, or with a certain user.
Please note, the following steps require administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator for further assistance or proper rights.
- 
	From Edge, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click the Choice Lists tab. 
- 
	In the dropdown next to Choice List, select File Location. 
- 
	In the blank field below the Default Type buttons, enter in a custom file location. - 
		i.e. “Intake Cabinet,” “Offsite Storage,” etc. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Add Custom Type. 
Repeat steps as necessary.
The new file location will appear in the right hand selection area. Once the list is customized, users will be able to assign any one of the new file locations (or a user’s name) to a Foreign National process’ file location by using the following steps:
- 
	Search for the Foreign National by using the FN/Individual module or FN Search field in the Action bar. 
- 
	Select the Foreign National. 
- 
	Hover over the Process Forms tab and select Assignment. 
- 
	Click the drop down selection in the File Location section to select where the physical file is located. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right to save. 
The Edge system provides users with the ability to add a Case Note to a Foreign National’s process, as well as customize who gets to view and access the information within it.
To add a Case Note to a Foreign National:
- 
	Navigate to the desired Foreign National record. 
- 
	Click the FN Action button in upper left. 
- 
	Click Add Case Note. 
- 
	Add any relevant details, such as: - 
		Which Process the note relates to. Alternatively, relate the note to All processes. 
- 
		An Activity Type, useful for categorization and reporting of notes. 
- 
		A Subject/Reference that provides a brief description of the note. 
- 
		The Details of the note, which provides a large text area to include as much detail as needed. - 
			Please note, there is a 32,000 character limit for this area. If users go over this limit, the note will automatically be truncated to fit the limit. 
 
- 
			
 
- 
		
- 
	Optionally, share the case note by configuring the View options: - 
		FN Viewable: Makes the case note visible to the FN via the FN Portal 
- 
		HR-1 Viewable: Makes the case note visible to the HR-1 who is assigned to the case, as well as any other HR-1’s with permission to access all Company cases. 
- 
		HR-2 Viewable: Makes the case note visible to any HR-2’s assigned to the case. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Optionally, assign the note to other users. Case notes assigned to a user will appear on their Case Notes module as a note that is Not Viewed yet. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save, and/or click Update & Return to return to the FN record. 
As part of the Foreign National Portal suite of features, the ability for firm users to view the questionnaires completed by Foreign Nationals is important. With this update, users may now access Foreign National submitted information, make amendments or submit the data on behalf of the FN if needed.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
Edge system users can be subject to Annual Maintenance Fees depending on their plan. This fee is dictated by the amount of file storage being utilized per a Foreign National. To pull the AMF information and create a report in order to better estimate these fees ahead of time, please proceed through the following steps:
- 
	Sign into your Edge portal. 
- 
	Click the New button in the upper left of the screen. 
- 
	From the dropdown menu that appears, click the Report button. 
- 
	A new screen will appear asking for the data type to be selected: - 
		If you need only the AMF and related FN information, select FN from the dropdown menu. 
- 
		If you need to include process-specific data (i.e. activities), then select FN + Process from the dropdown menu. 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making your selections, click the Continue button. 
- 
	A new screen will load directly to a General Information tab. In the Report Name field, enter in your preferred reference title for this report, as well as any applicable selections. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Columns tab. 
- 
	Hold down the Ctrl key and select AMF Date, AMF Current Size KB, AMF Max Size KB, and First Case Initiation Date from the Available Columns list, then release the Ctrl key and click Add Columns. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Criteria tab. 
- 
	Once the tab is loaded, ensure that every selection is set to All, with Case Status being set to All + Retired. All other fields should be blank. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
The system will return a report with all FNs and their associated AMF data, sorted by the last name of the beneficiary as a default.
To further refine your data:
If you would like to filter your results based on a maximum amount of allowable data per FN, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	Click the Report Criteria tab for the report. 
- 
	Scroll down to the Search Criteria area. 
- 
	Select AMF Max Size KB from the leftmost dropdown menu, then select Greater or equal in the second dropdown menu. 
- 
	Type “100” in the field to the right of the second dropdown selector. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button in the lower right corner of the screen. 
Using this criteria, the report that is generated will show a list of FNs that have exceeded 100KB, and therefore have triggered an AMF fee.
Users may click the Duplicate Template button to create a copy of the report, then change the Search Criteria accordingly to generate a list of FNs whose AMF Max Size is approaching the 100 KB limit. The duplicate template will be named "Copy of (template name)" by default, but can be changed within the General Info tab of the new template.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
- Click on the hyperlinked name of the questionnaire. 
	
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
Part of Edge's billing functionalities includes the option to add your organization's information at the top of any invoices or statements generated from the system. In order to make changes to this area to better suit your organization's workflows, please proceed with the following steps.
Note: These steps must be performed by an administrative user within your organization.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the name displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings in the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Click the Billing Setup tab. 
- 
	Under the Invoices & Statements section, location the Letterhead: Omit Firm name & address option. - 
		To remove the contact information, select Yes. 
- 
		To add the firm contact information, select No. 
 
- 
		
If No is selected, the next option Letterhead: Division allows for users to select their specific division from which they wish to populate an address and contact number.
If necessary, this information may be modified within the Administrative Settings area under the Addresses Phones tab (address changes) and Divisions Companies tab (contact number) respectively.
- 
	Sign into your Edge portal. 
- 
	Click the New button in the upper left of the screen. 
- 
	From the dropdown menu that appears, click the Report button. 
- 
	A new screen will appear asking for the data type to be selected: - 
		If you need only the AMF and related FN information, select FN from the dropdown menu. 
- 
		If you need to include process-specific data (i.e. activities), then select FN + Process from the dropdown menu. 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making your selections, click the Continue button. 
- 
	A new screen will load directly to a General Information tab. In the Report Name field, enter in your preferred reference title for this report, as well as any applicable selections. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Columns tab. 
- 
	Hold down the Ctrl key and select AMF Date, AMF Current Size KB, AMF Max Size KB, and First Case Initiation Date from the Available Columns list, then release the Ctrl key and click Add Columns. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Criteria tab. 
- 
	Once the tab is loaded, ensure that every selection is set to All, with Case Status being set to All + Retired. All other fields should be blank. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
The system will return a report with all FNs and their associated AMF data, sorted by the last name of the beneficiary as a default.
 
To further refine your data:
If you would like to filter your results based on a maximum amount of allowable data per FN, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	Click the Report Criteria tab for the report. 
- 
	Scroll down to the Search Criteria area. 
- 
	Select AMF Max Size KB from the leftmost dropdown menu, then select Greater or equal in the second dropdown menu. 
- 
	Type “100” in the field to the right of the second dropdown selector. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button in the lower right corner of the screen. 
Using this criteria, the report that is generated will show a list of FNs that have exceeded 100KB, and therefore have triggered an AMF fee.
Users may click the Duplicate Template button to create a copy of the report, then change the Search Criteria accordingly to generate a list of FNs whose AMF Max Size is approaching the 100 KB limit. The duplicate template will be named "Copy of (template name)" by default, but can be changed within the General Info tab of the new template.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
- Click on the hyperlinked name of the questionnaire. 
	
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
LawLogix E-File Extension
The Foreign Labor Application Gateway is one of the tools introduced by the government in order to digitally facilitate the submission of immigration applications. To more seamlessly integrate the Edge system into this new website, our developers have crafted an extension for use in the Google Chrome web browser.
This extension will work to bridge the specified Foreign National data collected in your Edge instance and communicate it to government sites with just a few clicks.
Before you Begin
Before using the extension, users must have valid credentials for accessing government sites and Edge. This is important as both items need to be open and active windows for the extension to function.
It is highly recommended that your Chrome browser be updated to the latest version available. Extension use must be enabled if it is not already permitted by your organization’s administrator.
To install the extension, simply navigate to the Chrome Web Store and search for ‘LawLogix.’ Click on the extension name and then select Add to Chrome in the upper right.
Form Filling in Edge
Filling out application forms in Edge has not changed. Users may still manually add pertinent Foreign National information, or utilize the Foreign National Portal to collect information directly from their client.
Once the application is filled out in Edge, then users may proceed to the specific government sites.
Using the Extension
Once the extension is installed, users can quickly start populating information into a corresponding application on FLAG.
To begin, the user must open their populated worksheet first. To do this, users must navigate to the desired FN profile, click Forms under the Process/Forms tab and then click Add Form to generate a new form or click the hyperlink to the prepared form in the list within the tab.
Once the worksheet has been opened, review that all information has been entered as desired and no required fields are missing.
If the worksheet meets expectations, click the LLX FLAG extension icon in the upper right of the Chrome browser window to open the loading dialogue. Click to select the type of form that will be populated into the FLAG portal.
Once selected, a series of options will appear in an extended menu below the form selection.
Filing with an ETA-9035
In this example, we will be using the ETA-9035 application to walk through the extension functionality.
Once the form worksheet is opened and ETA-9035 is chosen from the extension menu, click Load From Edge to temporarily load the data from this worksheet.
A disclaimer will appear when the data is being loaded from Edge. This is an important item that must be accepted before continuing.
When the action is successfully completed, the job and associated company will appear in the same line. This indicates that the data is fully loaded and prepared for population to FLAG.
After the load is completed, users must navigate to the FLAG website. This can be accomplished by simply opening a new tab or clicking the Open FLAG Site option in the LLX FLAG extension menu.
This selection will simply open flag.dol.gov in a new tab within the currently opened browser. Users must still log in with their DOL credentials as appropriate.
After signing into the FLAG site and opening a new/existing application for the corresponding form, users will be able to populate each page with data by clicking the Populate to FLAG option in the LLX extension menu.
When navigating from page to page, users need only click the population button from the extension menu to automatically feed in data from the worksheet to FLAG.
Due to technical limitations, some of the fields such as NAICS and SOC numbers cannot be populated through the use of the extension. When this occurs, a pop-up will appear highlighting the code that the user should copy into FLAG manually.
Worksite Locations (Employment and Wage Information)
As far as worksite locations, this can vary between applications and FNs. On the FLAG site it is a singular page, rather than multiple.
To add these using the Chrome extension, users will click the number of the Location they wish to populate. Each entry in the extension menu will display the city to assist users in keeping track of their information.
In this example, our application only has data for a single worksite. Clicking Location 1 (City) will populate the data for that worksite location.
After each location data is populated, users will click the Add Place of Employment button at the bottom of the page. Then they may click the second worksite button in the Chrome extension to populate the next set of information and so on.
As users progress through the application and populate their FLAG forms, any errors in data will be reflected immediately in the FLAG site. Users are always encouraged to review their information before submission.
It is important to note that users must navigate through submissions in order, or the extension will not perform correctly.
Filing the ETA-9141
The process for using the extension with the 9141 form is similar to the 9035. First, users must open the worksheet version of the completed form on the Edge application. Then in the extension, click Flag 9141 and then click Load from Edge.
Note: Once data is loaded, the space next to Load from Edge will read the (Job Title, Company) to indicate the application that is currently being used.
After the load is completed, users must navigate to the FLAG website. This can be accomplished by simply opening a new tab or clicking the Open FLAG Site option in the LLX FLAG extension menu.
After signing into the FLAG site and opening a new/existing application for the corresponding form, users will be able to populate each page with data by clicking the Populate to FLAG option in the LLX extension menu.
Please note: Even if continuing a case, when the extension is in use, users must always start at the first step of the application in the FLAG site.
As this application does not require worksite information, this option is removed from the menu when utilizing the extension for ETA-9141 purposes.
Once finished with an application, repeat steps as needed to fulfill other submissions.
Hotkeys
To assist with quick form-filling, the following functions are available for input with the extension installed.
- Alt+O = Open the extension’s pop-up menu.
        - This will allow for the rest of the macros to be used.
 
- Alt+9 = Load data from the ETA-9035 form on Edge.
        - A disclaimer will appear and must be agreed to before continuing.
 
- Alt+0 = Load data from the ETA-9141 form on Edge.
        - A disclaimer will appear and must be agreed to before continuing
 
- Alt+P = Populate previously loaded data to the chosen form on FLAG.
The I-864-CO and I-864-P represents the I-864A form used by USCIS (Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member). For the I-864-CO, the letters “CO” indicate the form will populate with the co-sponsor's household member’s information. The letter "P" in the I-864-P indicates the form will populate with the primary sponsor's information. In some cases, the co-sponsor or primary sponsor may choose to include the income of other qualifying family members.
The following steps should be completed to ensure all data is populated correctly when adding income from either sponsor's additional family members:
- 
	Search for the primary or co-sponsor by using the Advanced Search options in the Address Book module. 
- 
	Navigate to the co-sponsor’s profile. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	Click the Add Individual button to enter additional family member(s). 
- 
	Click the Go Back to Primary FN button to access the foreign national’s profile. 
- 
	Hover cursor over Processes Forms, then select Forms from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click Add Form button. 
- 
	Click I-864-CO or I-864-P in the dropdown list. Click Add USCIS Form. 
- 
	The form will open in Draft stage, click on Save and Close to exit the form. 
- 
	In the Forms section, change the stage of the I-864-CO or I-864-P from Draft to Worksheet then click on Update Info to save. 
- 
	Click on the I-864-CO or I-864-P form to open it in Worksheet stage. 
- 
	Scroll to Part 6 – Sponsor’s income and employment section. 
- 
	Click the Select Family Members button. 
- 
	Family Member screen will appear displaying Sponsor’s family members. 
- 
	Click on the number next to the family member, then move it to the DRAG AND DROP RECORDS HERE section. 
- 
	If needed add additional information for each record: - 
		Middle Name 
- 
		A-Number 
- 
		ELIS Number 
- 
		SSN 
- 
		Income 
 
- 
		
- Click on Update Info to save changes.
- 
	Once all information has been entered into the form, click Update and Return. 
In the Forms section, change the stage of the I-864-CO or I-864-P from Worksheet to Review, click on Update Info to save.
An enhanced I-944 Form and questionnaire are now available. The questionnaire has been introduced for use on the new Foreign National portal, where users can quickly supply information that will feed into the upgraded I-944 form.
Enhanced I-944 for New FN Portal Users
To assist users in gathering up important information relating to Public Charge requirements, the I-944 form on Edge has been upgraded. The latest version offers an enhanced workflow as follows. As there are a number of questions in regards to family members, household income, and assets, several pop-ups have been implemented to the form in order to assist with preparation.
- To access this latest version, users must click the Upgrade button next to a I-944 already attached to a FN profile OR, add the form to the profile after 4/9/2020.
- Users must review and save all data in their I-944 forms prior to upgrading as a precaution.
Adding I-944 Questionnaire for FN Use
Enabling this questionnaire for FNs to access on their portal can be done easily from the FN Profile.
- Navigate to the FN Profile.
- Under the Processes/Forms tab select Questionnaires.
- Select the checkboxes next Declaration of Self-Sufficiency (I-944) as desired.
- Click Update Info in the upper right.
At this point in time, no questions can be viewed, hidden, or customized by administrators at this time. The status of the questionnaire will be displayed, but these other options will be implemented at a later date.
I-944 Questionnaire on the New FN Portal
When made viewable to the FN via the Questionnaires tab on the FN profile, the I-944 will appear as a new tile labeled Declaration of Self Sufficiency (I-944).
Once Get Started is clicked, users will be presented with all relevant questions pertaining to the I-944, spread out across multiple tabs:
- Personal/Income
	- Contains questions in regards to the Foreign National, their income and types of assets.
 
- Liabilities/Credit/Insurance
	- Areas for the FN to disclose any liabilities (mortgage, car loans, etc.), credit score, and any health insurance.
 
- Education
	- Details about the Foreign National such as any occupational skills, retirement status, being a caregiver, etc.
 
- Public Benefits 
	- Pertinent form questions in regards to the receipt of or application for public benefits at any time.
 
- Household Income 
	- Area for the Foreign National to disclose income and types of assets of their household members (including dependents).
 
- Additional Income
	- Questions regarding any extra income pulled from other sources not already disclosed in other areas of the questionnaire.
 
- Income Source
	- Details as to the source of income for the Foreign National or their household members.
 
Along with multiple tabs for different asset information, there are a few key sections for Foreign Nationals to use when submitting data on their household members.
When filling out Household Income data, the questionnaire will automatically populate the members of the household disclosed previously in the My Immediate Family questionnaire. Here the FN may input data and save asset, income, and informational data on each person.
The Additional Income tab will allow for a FN to add or delete entries denoting other assets at will. The FN must click one of the Save buttons in the upper right to ensure this data is retained.
At this time there is a limit to how many entries a Foreign National may supply in regards to assets or benefits they list throughout the questionnaire. The ability to allow for more entries and eventual overflow into the addendum is planned for a future release.
I-944 Questionnaire-To-Form Workflow
As these items work best in tandem, the data input by the Foreign National can be selected as needed by the form preparer.
Once in the questionnaire, the Foreign National will be presented with several tabs of questions asking about assets, household members, etc.
In the Part 3 (Your and Your Household Members’ Assets, etc) of the form, the preparer can click on the Select Household Member button. This will display a pop-up of the household members that the FN supplied information about through the questionnaire.
Later in the same part of the form, preparers can also make selections as far as any Additional Income the FN has provided via the questionnaire. Clicking Select Additional Income on the form will present a pop-up displaying every entry supplied by the FN. Users may populate this information to the form by clicking and dragging the desired items to the top of the pop-up window and clicking Update Info in the lower left. If an item must be added to this record manually, users can click on the + icon in the upper right to generate a blank line where additional income may be added within the modal.
Finally, preparers can easily add the types of assets provided by the FN in the questionnaire. Within the Your Household’s Assets and Resources section, users may click the Select Assets button appearing within the I 944 draft form. A pop-up will appear, showing each entry that the FN provided in the Information About Your Assets area of the questionnaire.
Here as well, users are free to click and drag up to seven entries and have it populate in the form.
With the upgraded form and questionnaire working in tandem, the preparation of the I-944 is clear and concise.
If there are folders for reports that are no longer needed or should be added, this can be managed from within the administrative settings area.
Please note, the following steps require administrative privileges to proceed. If you are unable to carry out these steps, please contact your Edge administrator for appropriate permissions or assistance.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click the Choice Lists tab. 
- 
	Select Report Folders within dropdown next to Choice Lists in center. 
To create a new folder
- 
	Enter in desired folder name in blank center field. 
- 
	Click Add Custom Type. 
The new folder will be added for use within the Reports module.
To delete a folder
- 
	Click to highlight the desired folder in the right hand column. 
- 
	Click Remove Type. 
Please note: Administrators will not be able to remove custom folders that contain reports. Reports must first be moved to a different location, before deleting the report folder.
Edge allows foreign nationals to access a portal where they can check on their case status, upload documents, and fill out questionnaires. The following are steps on how you can give the foreign national access to the portal, where they can then fill out the questionnaires.
- 
	Navigate to the foreign nationals case file. 
- 
	If the foreign national has multiple process assigned, select the Process Forms tab then the Assignments folder. 
- 
	Click the drop down arrow in the Case Assignment section and verify the correct process type is selected as the current process (* will be displayed next to current process name) 
- 
	Click the Questionnaires folder. 
- 
	Verify the correct questionnaires are selected from the Set 1 for this Process column, and make any changes if necessary. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save any changes made. 
- 
	Next click on the Activities folder, then click the Send Welcome Email button. 
- 
	Verify the foreign national’s email address, and make changes to the welcome email message if necessary, then click on Send. 
The Welcome E-mail will have the login credentials for the foreign national where they can access the portal and fill out the questionnaires. Once the foreign national has completed the questionnaires, they can sign and date the Statement of Truthfullness. After this, the questionnaire may be marked as completed.
This will send an email notification to the Case Manager, detailing that the foreign national has completed the questionnaires.
Note: Questionnaires can be made available in the foreign national’s language. To change the language of the questionnaire from the default (English), go to the Personal tab of the foreign national’s case file and change the Language (for the online questionnaire) by using the dropdown list and selecting a different language. Click Update Info to save the changes.
To better fit your organization’s daily needs, the Edge system has the functionality for custom processes to be utilized. These custom processes may serve a more niche need that falls outside of the default ones already provided by LawLogix.
Note: The following steps may only be carried out by an administrator. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights.
 
- 
	From within the Edge system, click on the name displayed in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	In the administrative screen, click on the Process tab. 
- 
	Enter the name for the custom process in the To Create A New Process field. - 
		To pre-bundle the new process, select a current process type from the behaves like dropdown list to bundle forms, required documents, questionnaires, and activities. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the New Process button on the right hand side of the screen to add the process. 
Processes marked with empty parentheses ( ) are not in use, and will not be available to your users, although you can use the "Mark as Used" button to add an unused process to the list of available process types. Before adding a new custom process, we recommend reviewing the current list of process types to ensure that you do not create a duplicate process type.
 The Edge system can be accessed via the web on a PC, Mac or mobile device, so the requirements are dictated by the browser you utilize to sign into the program. 
 
Compatible browsers:
 
- Safari (version 7 and above)
- Mozilla Firefox (version 32 and above)
- Chrome (version 46 and above)
- Microsoft Edge (current version and one previous)
Connectivity: For optimal access to the Edge system, it is recommended that users utilize a DSL, cable, or broadband internet connection.
 
Note: Microsoft Edge is not officially compatible with the Edge system. If using Microsoft Edge, you may open an Internet Explorer window through the command on the settings menu. 
 
Adobe Acrobat Requirements:
 
In order to optimally view and edit forms within the Edge system, users are encouraged to utilize the free PDF software Adobe Reader (Acrobat in later versions). The software has some operating specifications in order to function properly on your device. 
 
- Adobe Reader 8 - Any system utilizing an OS below Mac OS X 10.7 or Windows 7.
- Adobe Reader 9 - Any PC. Minimum Mac OS X 10.6.8 with Safari 5.0..
- Adobe Reader 10 - Any PC. Mac OS 10.6.8 with Safari 5.0.5 or Mac OS X 10.7.4 with Firefox 12.0 using Adobe 10.1.2 plugin.
Note: Improper install or uninstall of Adobe programs may result in difficulties uploading/downloading forms from the Edge system. 
 
Scanner Settings:
 
During the course of multiple workflows, Edge users will need to scan in applicable documentation. In order to maximize the quality and printability of the documents processed, the following settings are recommended for your scanning device. 
 
- Resolution set at either 72-100 dpi, or 8-bit grayscale.
- Scan size set to auto-detect.
- Image files formatted to JPEG, PDF, or TIFF (single or multi-page).
Save for multi-page TIFFs, image files should ideally be less than 200K in size to allow for minimal impact on loading times.
Document Upload Limits:
 
- File names should not exceed a maximum of 80 characters (this includes the file extension).
- File size should not exceed 150 MB.
- Foreign characters cannot be used in file names.
The Edge system is highly customizable and this extends to system default questionnaires. Questionnaires can be modified for each process type to better suit your organizational needs.
 
Note: The following may only be performed by a user with administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed through the steps, please contact your Edge administrator for assistance.
 
To customize a default questionnaire for a process type:
- 
	Click on the username displayed in the upper right of the page and select Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	In the Firm Administration module, click the Processes tab. 
- 
	Click the Default Questionnaires tab. 
- 
	The left hand side of the page will display all of the Questionnaires that are available. 
- 
	Click the dropdown arrow in the Selected Process section and select the process to customize the questionnaires for. 
- 
	From the Questionnaires section, use the checkbox in the Show column to include or remove Questionnaires for the selected process. 
- 
	Clicking the name of the questionnaire will display all of the questions associated with it. 
- 
	Use the checkbox in the Hide column to hide the questions you don’t want displayed. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save changes. 
LawLogix allows a firm administrator to create custom email templates and set any of them as a 'Welcome Email' type for Foreign National or HR users. When the Send Welcome Email button is clicked within a given FN’s Activities page, the user may select one of their custom created templates to be sent.
 
To create a new template, a user must have administrative privileges. If you are unable to complete the steps listed below, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights or assistance.
 
- 
        From the Edge system, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
        Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
        Hover your cursor over Templates and select E-Mail & Reminder from the dropdown. 
- 
        Click Add E-mail Template in the upper right. 
- 
        A modal will appear to pick the email type. Click Plain Text Format. 
- 
        Next to Welcome E-mail? Make a selection between Foreign National or HR as the type of end recipient. - 
                Select No if the template is not meant for use as a Welcome Email. 
- 
                Select the new FN or HR email template as the system default by selecting Yes or No in the Set as default option. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Name your template in the Template Class field. 
- 
        Add your custom e-mail text within the blank description field. - 
                You may also add any attachments as necessary by clicking Upload Document in the lower left. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Once finished, click Update Info to save the template. 
When the Send Welcome Email button is selected within an FN/Individual’s profile, users will have the ability to select the newly created welcome email from the template dropdown list.
Please see the following tutorial video on adjusting your settings. 
LawLogix provides a tool that allows users to create a relationship between individual records within a case file. For example, users can establish a link between siblings whose records both exist within the Primary Foreign National's Dependents Sponsors tab, but are not listed on each other's Dependents Sponsors tab. This eliminates the need for recreating dependent records within each family member's dependents area.
You can link two individuals' records to each other as follows:
- 
	Navigate to either of the unlinked Foreign National’s unlinked family member profiles. 
- 
	Click Dependents Sponsors. 
- 
	Click Show Non Linked Family Dependents in the upper right.
	- This should display all other individual records that have been created within the primary case file, but are not yet linked to the person.
 
- 
	Click Create under the Link column heading. 
- 
	In the next page, choose a relationship from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Make a selection if Applying With. 
- 
	Click Update in the upper right. 
The two family members will now be linked and listed on each other’s Dependents Sponsors tab.
For security purposes, the LawLogix Foreign National billing module does not allow for the complete deletion of an invoice. These items are best retained for accurate record keeping. However, users can delete charges or add credits to offset charges made to an FN.
To delete charges, proceed with the following steps:
- 
	Navigate to the FN file with the invoice issue. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the FN Billing tab and select Billing History from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Click the number of the invoice that needs charges deleted. 
- 
	Once loaded into the invoice review screen, find the charge(s) that need to be removed and click the Charge Date. 
- 
	Another screen with specific information about the charge will load. click the Delete This Charge button in the bottom right corner of the screen. - 
		This button may not appeared if this charge was spread over time and cannot be edited. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Delete in the action confirmation window that appears. 
Note: If the invoice was created by the Create Blank Invoice button, then it can be deleted so long as it adheres to the following criteria:
- 
	All charges are deleted from the invoice. 
- 
	It is the most recent invoice on the FN’s file. 
Should your organization experience issues with emails being sent from the Edge system being caught in spam filters of your recipients (or never received at all), there could be an issue with how the messages are recognized by email programs.
The following settings will assist in “whitelisting” your firm’s communications, so they may be sent and received without any further problems.
Please have your IT Administrator add the following information to your Sender Policy Framework (SPF) record:
 
Host names:
- 
        mail.welcomeclient.com 
 
A law firm or organization e-mail system contains protections against unauthorized use of its e-mail domain. A common tactic of Spam senders is to forge the identity of the sender of an e-mail so that it appears that the email originated from a safe or familiar mail server.
 
To protect against this the organization has what is called a mail server Sender Policy Framework (SPF). The SPF system allows recipients of email to verify that the mail server sending the email from the lawfirm or organization domain is authorized.
 
By adding the mail server addresses listed above to the SPF record of the organization, mail issued from the EDGE system from the organization's email domain will be authorized and will not be rejected.
 
Note: The Edge system sends messages using the email address stored in the user profile of whomever is logged in. For example, if a user has entered in user@lawfirm.com as their contact email, Edge will send emails from its own server with this address. This can cause some email systems to block communications since it is unsure of where the message is coming from exactly.
In certain instances, you may need to delete a process from a Foreign National’s file. Maybe an individual does not wish to pursue all the processes they started, or the process was created in error. In any case, deleting a process can be done easily.
Please note that new cases or processes will not generate a case creation fee if deleted within 24 hours.
The following steps apply only if a Foreign National’s case has more than one process assigned to it. If there is only one process and you still wish to remove it, then the entire Foreign National file must be deleted.
Note: Once processes are deleted, they cannot be restored.
- 
        Search for the Foreign National you want to delete the process for. 
- 
        Select the Processes Forms tab from the FN’s case file, then click Assignments. 
- 
        Select the specific process you wish to delete from the dropdown list that appears in the Case Assignment section. Once selected, the screen will refresh to show the process. 
- 
        Click the Delete Process button in the lower right. 
- 
        A warning box will appear asking for verification of the deletion. Click Yes to proceed. 
The forms created in Edge are protected with PDF Document Security that restrict editing and modification of the form. This security is intended to protect the work product of our users and to prevent unintended changes that could impact a client’s case.
Attempting to make certain changes to the form may prompt for a password. If additional changes need to be made to the form, such changes should be made within Edge by placing the form back into the “Draft” stage.
The Edge system carries the flexibility to create custom fields for users to provide additional data fields to be used and reported on as necessary. Setting these items however, is something only administrators can carry out and apply across an organization’s system for use.
To set custom fields, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Within the Admin settings page, click Custom Fields. 
- 
	Enter in desired custom labels for FN, Process, HR,or Address Book . 
- 
	Click Update Info. 
Once these custom fields are added, they will appear in different areas dependent on their categorization.
- 
	FN Fields - Located under Financial Misc tab within FN profile. 
- 
	Process Fields - Located under Processes Forms tab, Assignment folder within FN profile. 
- 
	Address Book Data - Located in Address Book Contact record. 
- 
	HR Fields - Located in the Misc tab within the HR contact record 
In order to generate a set of completed questionnaire pages in a printable format, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, navigate to the profile of the Foreign National that completed the questionnaire. 
- 
	From the FN profile, hover your cursor over Processes/Forms and click Questionnaire from the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Select checkboxes for each desired under the Locked (Set I) column. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right. 
- 
	Click the paper document icon underneath the Locked (Set I) column header. 
- 
	A message will appear reading: “Locked Questionnaires in PDF is being generated and will be available in OnDocs shortly!” 
- 
	Hover cursor over OnDocs Notes and select Documents from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click PDF Locked Questionnaire Set I. 
- 
	Click Download Document. 
- 
	Once document is opened, click the Adobe printer icon to print page(s). 
To generate and print a blank questionnaire, please proceed with the following: 
- 
	From the FN profile, hover your cursor over Processes/Forms and click Questionnaire from the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Check the pages needed by selecting the appropriate boxes in the Set I for this Process column. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right. 
- 
	Click the paper document icon underneath the Set I for this Process column header. 
- 
	A message will appear reading “Selected Blank Questionnaires in PDF is being generated and will be available in OnDocs shortly!” 
- 
	Hover cursor over OnDocs Notes and select Documents from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click PDF Blank Questionnaires Set I. 
- 
	Click Download Document. 
- 
	Once document is opened, click the Adobe printer icon to print page(s). 
There are a variety of reports available for pulling information within the Edge system. In order to create a specific A/R Report, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select A/R Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	A default Firm Activity Report will appear, you can use this default template or click the New Template button to add a new report. 
- 
	If adding a new template enter a Report name, then click Update Settings. 
- 
	Select the following report filter options: - 
		Shared or Private 
- 
		Report Type 
- 
		Scope 
- 
		Level 
- 
		Show FN’s 
- 
		Date Range 
- 
		Group By 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings to save changes. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports. 
A new user role has been created and is called Security Administrator. This narrowly focused role is designed to permit a member of the organization to manage user profiles for the organization. In order to assign this role, clients must contact LawLogix support for assistance.
Once activated, the Security Administrator has the ability to access all user profiles for the organization. The role may add new users, adjust privileges, restrict access and “retire” profiles. Outside of these options, the new role cannot access firm administration controls (i.e. creating custom processes, modifying templates etc.) or any client data.
This role may be helpful in those organizations where a strict separation of duties must be maintained and least–privilege access must be enforced.
Security administrators must be assigned within the LLX Firm Administration module. Once in the Firm Administration screen, click on the Users tab. A list will populate of all users within the organization.
Click on the name of the user that will be assigned the new role. Once loaded into the General settings for the user, select Yes next to the Security Administrator setting.
- 
	A user cannot be an administrator and security administrator at the same time. 
- 
	Multiple people may be security administrators if needed, there is no limitation. 
- 
	System administrators may still be created and retain access to the user settings for the organization. 
Enabling this role will not stop administrative users from accessing the Users tab within the Edge system. If an organization desires to have this type of configuration, navigate to the General tab of LLX Admin and select the Yes radio button for Hide Users tab for non-security admin users.
Security admin view from sign in:
Security admin user tab views:
Once signed in, the security administrators will only be able to view the elements of the Users tab and nothing else within Edge. They are not allowed access into any other functionalities of the system such as FN/Individual profiles, widgets, or messaging.
Assigning this role does not in any way prevent administrative users from accessing the Users tab under Administrative Settings.
Security Administrators are responsible for the following actions for all users within the organization:
- 
	Adding/Retiring/Deleting users 
- 
	Adding/Removing groups 
- 
	Adding/Removing users from groups 
- 
	Transferring inboxes between users 
- 
	Entering general user information - 
		i.e. email address, billing information, addresses, phone numbers, etc. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Resetting password and login information 
- 
	Inputting DOL E-filing credentials 
- 
	Assigning security privileges and calendar access/management 
H-1B Registration Toolkit
A GUIDE TO CUSTOMIZING YOUR EDGE IMMIGRATION SOFTWARE
Overview
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement a new electronic registration requirement for petitioners seeking to submit H-1B cap-subject petitions for the fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap season, which commences in April 2020. As many practitioners are aware, this new registration program, announced pursuant to a final rule issued last year (84 FR 888, 1/31/19), will change how cap-subject H-1B petitions are prepared and ultimately filed with the USCIS.
Specifically, under the new proposed registration system, petitioners will be required to submit a registration for each qualified cap-subject H-1B visa beneficiary before filing the actual petition with the USCIS. If the H-1B registration submissions exceed the statutory limits, USCIS will then conduct a computer-generated lottery to determine which registrations may proceed with filing. Once a registration has been accepted, petitioners will have 90 days to file the H-1B petition.
The H-1B Registration Tool
The USCIS will process registrations through a new online portal, which enables US employers or agents to submit multiple cap-subject beneficiaries (per registration) for whom the petitioner or agent seeks to obtain H-1B classification. Based on the 60-day notice published in the Federal Register, the H-1B registration tool will consist of a series of web pages that capture basic employer data about the petitioner and biographical details of each beneficiary included in the registration.
Petitioner Information
Information requested about the employer/petitioner includes business name, EIN, primary address, and details regarding the authorized signatory. 
Beneficiary Information
Information requested about each beneficiary includes name, gender, date of birth, countries of birth and citizenship, passport number, and a question regarding whether the beneficiary has a master’s or higher degree from a U.S. institution and intends to request consideration under the advanced degree exemption. 
As noted above, a registration may include multiple beneficiaries, but a petitioner may only submit one registration per beneficiary in any fiscal year. If a petitioner submits more than one registration per beneficiary in the same fiscal year, all registrations filed by that petitioner relating to that beneficiary for that fiscal year will be considered invalid.
H-1B Registration Fee
The USCIS also announced that each H-1B registration will require a $10 non-refundable fee to account for the resources needed to implement and maintain the registration system. The fee will be required for each beneficiary included in the registration; for example, if a registration includes 5 beneficiaries, the petitioner will need to pay $50. Payment will be collected through pay.gov after the registrant provides billing information and a form of payment (credit card or US bank account). Pay.gov will then redirect to a uscis.gov confirmation screen.
Registration Timing
The USCIS announced that it will open an initial registration period from March 1 through March 20, 2020 for the fiscal year 2021 H-1B cap selection process. The H-1B random selection process will then be run on those electronic registrations.
Managing H-1B Registration using Edge
To assist Edge users with this new H-1B registration requirement, LawLogix has prepared a specialized “toolkit.” This guide can aid practitioners in modifying their H-1B cap processes and procedures within the Edge system. Users can find helpful information on the following topics:
- Overall approach to gathering required information and documents
- Designating an H-1B process is “cap” subject through a default H-1B cap process type
- Adding new H-1B registration activity steps (which will be defined and available for selection in the Edge system)
- SureMessage e-mail templates for both the HR and FN
- Customizing H-1B cap reporting to include H-1B registration activity steps
- Saving H-1B registration confirmation number as a receipt activity for each FN
Five Steps to Get Started
- Review the H-1B registration requirements by clicking on the links included on the first page of this toolkit.
- Note: AILA members may also wish to consult AILA's H-1B Registration Tool Featured Issue available here.
- Decide whether to implement any changes to your specific client offerings and fee schedules to account for this new process.
- For example, some practitioners have indicated they may split their service offering into two components: the first involving initial legal review and submission of H-1B cases for registration; the second involving the filing of H-1B petitions for selected FNs, including preparation of forms and supporting documentation and assistance with LCA compliance.
- Critical: If you haven't already, make sure your attorneys or accredited representatives register for a USCIS.gov account so they can submit and manage the H-1B registrations in a timely fashion when the lottery window opens on March 1, 2020. Accounts can be created by visiting https://myaccount.uscis.gov/users/sign_up.
- In order to create an account, you will need to provide a secure password, answers to several challenge questions, and a second form of authentication (through an app, email address, or phone number text messaging). If your paralegals will be using the account(s), it's generally best to choose a shared email address for receiving the authentication code required for login.
- Review the Edge Best Practices below to modify your workflows and overall management processes for H-1B cap cases.
Overall Approach for Gathering H-1B Information
While the H-1B registration process only requires a limited amount of biographical and employer-related information, many practitioners feel they must conduct a full “legal review” to ensure the case is approvable (if selected) as part of their due diligence and ethical obligations to provide responsible legal representation.
Practitioners must also be mindful of the 90-day filing requirement once an H-1B beneficiary is selected. Given the increasing amount of scrutiny of H-1B petitions, most practitioners will need more than 90 days to gather a sufficient amount of information and documentation to support the underlying petition. Firms with a significant H-1B case volume will also find that 90 days is not enough time to prepare a large number of petitions within the required timeframe.
Given these realities, many practitioners are choosing to conduct “business as usual” with regards to requesting FN and job-related information through their standard questionnaires and intakes. As described below, firms can still implement other customizations to account for the H-1B registration steps.
Creating a New Default H-1B Cap Process Type
- From within the Edge system, click on the name displayed in the upper right corner of the page.
- Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears.
- In the administrative screen, click on the Process tab.
- Enter “H-1B-CAP” for the custom process in the To Create A New Process field.
	- To pre-bundle the new process, select a current process type from the behaves like dropdown list to bundle forms, required documents, questionnaires, and activities.
 
- Click the New Process button on the right-hand side of the screen to add the process.
Adding New H-1B Registration Activity Steps
The following steps must be performed by a user that retains administrative privileges.
- From the Edge dashboard, click the name displayed in the upper right.
- Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Hover cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown.
- Click Create Firm Activity in the lower left.
- Fill out the fields in the pop-up that appears as follows:
	- Sort - Add a number such as 0030 for the sort order.
- Name - Supply name indicative of registration such as ‘Registration Filing Date.’
- Behaves Like - Select ‘Application Receipt’
- Receipt - Mark this box.
- Mandatory - Select No.
- Email Template - Select None.
 
- Click Create Firm Activity in the lower right of the pop-up.
After activity is created, it can be grouped into a process.
- Within the Process Activities column in the right portion of the screen, click Process dropdown.
- Select H-1B CAP from the available options.
- Within the Firm’s Activities column, hold Ctrl on keyboard and click to select Registration Filing Date, Registration Not Selected, and Registration Selected activities in the list.
- Release Ctrl key on keyboard.
- Click Use Firm Activity in the lower left.
Saving H-1B Registration Confirmation Number
- From the Edge dashboard, navigate to the desired Foreign National case.
- Once within the file, hover cursor on the Processes Forms tab.
- Click Activities in the dropdown that appears.
- Click the dropdown in the upper left next to activities to select the appropriate process.
- In the lower portion of the area, find the associated H-1B Cap Activity.
	- i.e. Registration Confirmation Number
 
- Enter the date the confirmation was issued in the Date field.
- Enter Registration numbers in the Receipt No. field.
- Entering short notes within the Note field is acceptable but not required.
- Click Update Info in lower or upper right.
SureMessaging Email Templates
Welcome e-mail may be tailored to meet the needs of this H-1B cap season. To create a new template, a user must have administrative privileges. If you are unable to complete the steps listed below, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights or assistance.
- From the Edge system, click the username displayed in the upper right.
- Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu.
- Hover your cursor over Templates and select E-Mail & Reminder from the dropdown.
- Click Add E-mail Template in the upper right.
- A modal will appear to pick the email type. Click HTML Format.
- Select No if the template is not meant for use as a Welcome Email.
	- Name your template in the Template Class field. Select the new FN or HR email template as the system default by selecting Yes or No in the Set as default option.
 
- Name your template in the Template Class field.
- Add your custom e-mail text within the blank description field.
	- You may also add any attachments as necessary by clicking Upload Document in the lower left.
 
- Once finished, click Update Info to save the template.
Sample SureMessage Templates
Sample SureMessage e-mail templates to the FN, informing them of H-1B registration submittal and results:
 
Registration Email
| Dear Laura, Please be advised that your H-1B CAP registration was electronically filed with USCIS. You may confirm the registration number by logging onto the case management system with your login and password credentials. Rest assured we will notify you once we have an update from USCIS regarding the status of the registration. Sincerely, | 
Registration Selected Email
| Dear Laura, Congratulations! Your H-1B CAP registration was selected in this year's lottery process. Our firm will move forward with the preparation of your petition. You will receive a separate email notification confirming your H-1B has been submitted to the USCIS. You may login to the case management system with your credentials to check the status of your case. | 
Registration Rejected Email
| Dear Laura, Unfortunately, your H-1B CAP registration was not selected among this year's lottery process. | 
Customizing H-1B Cap Reporting
- Click the Reports button from the Menu selection.
- Under Select Report Type, pick Interactive from the dropdown menu and then click View.
- After the screen refreshes, click New from the action bar top of screen, then select Report.
- Select FN + Process as the data type, then click Continue.
	- This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column
 selections.
 
- This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column
- Click the General tab and enter/select the following:
	- Report Name: H-1B Cap Reporting
- Sharing Options
- Report Folder
- Report Generation Mode
- Report Style
- Click Update Info
 
- In the Reports Columns tab, select the specific information you want displayed on the report.
	- (e.g. Beneficiary Name, Citizenship, Process, Current Status, various expiration types).
 
- After making the appropriate selections, click Update Info.
- In the Report Criteria tab, select the items you wish to use in order to filter the report (e.g. Case Status, Process types, Company Petitioner, etc.), then click Update Info.
- Click the Run Report button.
In keeping with security best practices, the LawLogix Technology team will be implementing a security enhancement to the Edge application that may impact your organization. In preparation for this security enhancement, we are discontinuing support for out of date browsers and integrators on Friday, July 17th, 2020 . Any organizations that use browsers and/or integrators that are out of date or do not follow this security standard will be impacted.
	
	
		 What’s Changing?
	
	LawLogix will be disabling earlier forms of the TLS encryption protocol, including TLS 1.0 and 1.1.  This means that such protocols cannot be used to communicate with the Edge application and services (both inbound and outbound transmissions).
	
	  
	After the change, any inbound connection to Edge must use the TLS  1.2 protocol.  Similarly, external applications must be able to receive outbound communications from Edge via the TLS 1.2 protocol.
	
	  
What interactions use TLS 1.2?
The following types of interactions will no longer be able to use earlier versions of TLS to communicate with Edge:
- 
		Accessing the Edge application via web browser 
- 
		Sending or receiving web service or API requests 
- 
		Sending or receiving SSO authentication information 
Note: transmission of files via SFTP are not impacted by this change.
	
	
		 Compatible Web Browsers
	
Google Chrome
Chrome browser version 4 to Chrome browser version 29 are not supported. Chrome browser version 30 to Chrome browser version 70 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Mozilla Firefox
	
Mozilla Firefox browser version 2 to Mozilla Firefox browser version 26 are not supported. Mozilla Firefox browser version 27 to Mozilla Firefox browser version 63 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Internet Explorer
	
Internet Explorer browser version 6 and Internet Explorer browser version 10 are not supported. Internet Explorer browser version 11 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
- 
		Note: For desktop IE versions: 8, 9, and 10 are only compatible with TLS 1.1 and TLS 1.2 when running Windows 7 or newer, but it is disabled by default. 
	
	
		 Safari
	
Safari browser version 3.1 to Safari browser version 6.1 are not supported. Safari browser version 7 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
	
	
		 Microsoft Edge
	
	
	 Microsoft Edge browser version 12 to Microsoft Edge browser version 18 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2 property.
	
	
		 Opera
	
Opera browser version 10.1, 11.5, 15 and 16 doesn't supports. Opera browser version 12.1 and 17 to 53 supports SECURITY TLS 1.2.
For organizations that utilize browsers that are not the most current versions, an update to the latest iteration is recommended.
- 
		Upgrade to IE 11 or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to the latest Firefox version or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to the latest Chrome version or use an alternate browser. 
- 
		Upgrade to Safari 12 or use an alternate browser. 
	
	
		 Testing Web Service Integrations
	
If your organization utilizes the Edge API, testing is required to ensure the encryption protocol TLS 1.2 and approved cipher is enabled for your integration. You will be unable to transmit requests successfully if your integration does not support TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher.
	
	
		 To test:
	
- Setup an integration client in a test environment
- 
		Change the REST endpoint from your production endpoint to the following:
		
			 https://uat.aws.welcomeclient.com/4DCGI/services
		
		- Make the ws_action as the following &ws_action=auth.test
 
- Send a request to this endpoint
For the test, authentication and credentials are not necessary. As long as an error message is received back (ex. error for bad credentials), then your organization’s connection is compatible with the upcoming security update.
If you receive an error message related to the connection (i.e. HTTPS or TLS) then the test failed and you must make additional changes in order to support TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher (see list of ciphers below).
	
	
		 Testing SSO and Outbound Integrations
	
If your organization’s users authenticate to Edge via single sign on, or your organization receives web service requests from Edge, review and ensure the encryption protocol TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher is enabled for your integration. You will be unable to authenticate users or receive transmissions if your integration does not support this protocol.
	
	 To test:
- 
		If your endpoint is accessible publicly, you can utilize a diagnostic service like that provided by Qualsys SSL Labs to ensure TLS 1.2 support with an approved cipher is enabled and functional. 
- 
		Access https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/ and provide your hostname. 
- 
		Review the results for confirmation that TLS 1.2 with an approved cipher is enabled and functional. (see list of ciphers below) 
	
	
		 Ciphers
	
Following the update, Edge will only accept incoming requests that utilize TLS 1.2 and one of the following ciphers
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_GCM_SHA256 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA256 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA 
- 
		TLS_ECDHE_RSA_WITH_AES_256_CBC_SHA384 
	
	
		 Outdated Integrators
	
As a result of this update, the Microsoft Outlook 2007 Integrator must be retired from use with Edge.
LawLogix highly encourages users to update to the Outlook 2010-2016 integrator moving forward. These versions are compatible with the newest security standards and support the same functionality as the 2007 version. It is available for download and install from the Edge application under the Tools dropdown menu. After the security enhancement, the 2007 integrator will no longer connect to Edge or retrieve information from Foreign National profiles. LawLogix recommends updating before July 17 to ensure no disruptions between Outlook and Edge occur. .
When a user is retired within a given Edge instance, they may still have lingering reminders attached to their profile.
- 
		If the reminder is attached to the process , then the system will look for a non-retired user to pass the item on to. It will search for the following user types in this order to reassign the reminder to: - Case Manager, Responsible Attorney, Paralegal, Partner, and Collaborating Attorney. If no active users with these assignments are found, then the system will randomly assign the reminder to the next active user.
 
- 
		If the reminder is not attached to any process or Foreign National , then the Edge system will assign the item to another active user in the organization. 
This works similarly for a retired HR user, except the system will attempt to reassign first to the default Company Contact, then HR Manager, HR Assistant, Secondary Contact, and Manager, in that order. If no active user is found with those designations, then the reminder will be assigned to the next found active user.
The Adobe Reader software is required for the drafting and viewing of many forms within the Edge system. This software works in tandem with your chosen web browser (i.e. Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.).
 
Some issues may occur if your browser does not have adjusted settings to allow the proper use of Adobe Reader for forms. If you are experiencing problems with forms not saving information, unresponsive buttons, etc. please consult the following troubleshooting steps to configure your browser.
 
Google Chrome
In the latest versions of Google Chrome, the application should automatically open PDFs in the browser. In the event of any issues however, installing an additional extension may help.
- 
        Open the Google Chrome browser from your desktop. 
- 
        Click the three dots icon in the top right corner. 
- 
        From the drop-down menu that appears, select Settings. 
- 
        In the left hand area click Privacy and Security. 
- 
        In the Privacy and security section, click on Site Settings. 
- 
        Scroll to the bottom of the list and click Additional content settings. Then click PDF documents. 
- 
        Toggle the switch (icon turns blue) for Download PDF files instead of automatically opening them in Chrome until it is in the ON position. 
- 
        Close browser and retry. 
Mozilla Firefox
 
- 
        Open your Mozilla Firefox browser from your desktop. 
- 
        Click the three stacked lines icon in the top right corner of the browser window. 
- 
        From the drop-down menu that appears, click Options. 
- 
        Scroll to the section labeled Applications. 
- 
        In the dropdown directly next to Portable Document Format, click to select Use Adobe Reader (default) 
- 
        Close the window and reopen your browser for the changes to take place. 
Part 1
- Click on Safari in the top left corner
- Select the Websites tab
- Make sure Adobe Reader is selected under the Plug-ins heading on the left side (not Reader, Adobe Reader specifically)
- Click on "On" in "When visiting other websites"
- Click on Done.
- Log out of the browser completely and log back in.
- Click on Safari in the top left corner
- Click on Preferences
- Select the Websites tab
- Go to Reader
- Click "On" in "When visiting other websites"
The LawLogix Outlook Integrator is an add-on that works in conjunction with Microsoft Outlook™ to integrate email records and attachments into the system.
To install the integrator on your computer, please perform the following steps.
Note: The installation of the integrator may require administrative permissions to your Windows or Mac system.
To uninstall old/previous versions on Windows 10:
- Close out any Microsoft Office applications (Word, Outlook, etc.)
- Click Windows symbol in the lower left of the desktop.
- Click Settings (gear icon).
- In the pop-up window for settings, click Apps in the upper right.
- Scroll downward through the listing and click the file named LawLogix Outlook Integrator Installer.
- Click Uninstall in the lower right.
- A pop-up will appear warning that the application and related information will be removed. Click Uninstall on this modal.
- Restart computer.
- Proceed with the installation instructions below.
Confirming Outlook Integrator is uninstalled
To ensure that the file was erased properly, open the Microsoft Outlook program on your computer and perform the following actions.
- Click File in the upper left.
 
- Click Options in the lower left.
 
 
 
- In the Outlook Options modal that appears, click Add-Ins in the lower left.
 
 
 
- A list of options will be displayed. Next to Manage, click Go in the lower left.
   
 
- A new COM Add ins pop up will appear. Click to highlight Outlook Integrator on the list, then click Remove.
 
 
 
- Click OK.
 
To download Outlook Integrator:
- In Edge, click on Tools from the Action bar.
- Select Get Outlook Integrator.
- Setup file will be saved in your specified download folder.
Installing Outlook Integrator:
- Locate the file (generally in the Downloads folder of a computer) and open it.
 Ensure that all instances of the Outlook application are closed before beginning the installation.
 
- Double-click the Setup file to run it.
 More InfoRun AnywayYou may see a pop-up from Windows indicating that this is an unrecognized app. Click and then click the button that appears in the lower right.
- A modal will appear asking for confirmation to install. Click Install in the lower right.
 
- Once complete, a success message will appear. Click Close in the lower right.
 
- Open the Outlook application.
 
| 
 
 
 
 | 
- Click the LawLogix tab at the top of the window.
 
 
 
- Click the red and blue LLX Settings icon.
 
- A pop-up will appear asking for credentials. Type in your Edge username, password, and server address.
 
 
 
 If you are unsure as to your server address, it will be the website used to navigate to Edge (ex. www.welcomeclient.com)
 
- Click Ok.
For SSO Users
If your organization employs the use of Single Sign On with your Edge instance, then please proceed with the following steps to properly sign into the integrator.
- Open the Microsoft Outlook application on your machine.
 
- Click the LawLogix tab in the top navigation.
 
 
 
- Click on the LLX icon in the upper left of the screen labeled Settings.
 
 
 
- A pop-up will appear asking for credentials.
 
 
 
- Enter your Edge instances’ unique server URL in the Server Address field.
 
 This URL is composed of the following:
 • [welcomeclient URL]/sso/[SSO UID]/login
 • Example URL:https://ww2.welcomeclient.com/sso/11aa1111a1111a11a11aa11aa/login
 The SSO UID should have been provided to your Edge administrator during SSO setup. Please reach out to your administrator to retrieve this value if it has not been provided. 
- Click OK.
 
- A small window labeled SSO Form may appear momentarily as the integrator applies.
 
 Note: if a user does not have an active SSO session in progress, they may be prompted to log into Edge in the SSO Form window.
 
- The Word Integrator may now be used as normal within the Word application.
The redesigned Foreign National portal was created to simplify the interface for FNs, while making it easy for organizations to communicate their requirements easily to their clients.
While it looks very different form the old portal, a majority of the functionalities remain the same. This walkthrough will show the newest features and how to effectively navigate them.
The new portal primarily revolves around two new pages: My Tasks and Case Status.
The Personal Settings, Messages, and Need Help? areas have been largely unchanged from the previous iteration of the portal. 
Welcome Message, Instructions, Notices, & Special Instructions
The various text-based notifications are now placed at the top of both the My Tasks and Case Status pages.
These messages will display depending on the inputs made by the issuing organization and/or case manager. By default, they are open upon page load, but if a user collapses them they will remain so.
If Edge users do not create any Instructions, Special Instructions, or Notices for the FN, these containers will not appear on the page. The Welcome Message is the only item that will appear by default. If an organization has not created a custom Welcome Message, a pre-written LawLogix one will be populated.
My Tasks
The first page that a Foreign National will arrive on will generally be the My Tasks page.
- If a FN had nothing assigned to them by an Edge user to complete (i.e. questionnaires, uploading documents, etc.), or have finished all assigned tasks, then they will be automatically redirected to the Case Status page upon login.
Underneath the aforementioned notices and instructions area is the tasks callout section. This section will have a blue bar with tiles present and instructions to "Please complete the following." The tiles will detail the amount of each respective item that needs to be completed by the FN, broken down by Questionnaire and Documents.
Questionnaires
The questionnaires section has been completely redesigned to enable a better workflow for FNs. By simply clicking on the displayed Questionnaire tile, the bottom half of the My Tasks page will immediately load the first of the required questionnaires.
As part of the redesign efforts, the questionnaires look slightly different and allow for tabbed navigation, but no questions were added, deleted, or otherwise changed.
Another addition is the presence of tabbed navigation for different sections of a questionnaire. The stepper items effectively break down the major parts of a full questionnaire, and the tabs section them further to easily parse the information needed from the FN.
- As FNs proceed through the questions, they must click the Next button in the upper right in order to record their responses. Clicking on the tabs without clicking Next will result in data loss.
	- In certain sections such as Work History, the Save & Add Another button in the lower right does not currently worked, but clicking the Next button will retain the information as an entry.
 
- Clicking the Cancel button will simply return FNs to the top of their My Tasks page, as the item is still pending completion.
Once a questionnaire is saved and completed, the tile will update to show the new count of items that still need to be completed.
Documents
Similar to the Questionnaires tile, the Documents tile will display the amount and types of documents requested by the Edge user. By clicking on the tile, the bottom half of the screen will show all of the required document upload sections.
FNs can click the Upload File button beneath each document title and follow the modal prompts to send their files to their case manager. Once the file has been uploaded, the associated section will disappear from the document display within the My Tasks page.
- If a user wishes to view their submitted documents, they may do so via a widget in the Case Status page.
Case Status
The Case Status page is a centralized page where FNs may view widgets that dynamically display information related to their case and profile within the Edge system.
- Please note that if a process is closed for a FN and they have no other one marked as current, this page will display blank and all of the widgets will appear empty.
If any tasks still need to be completed, a thin blue bar will appear on this page under any Welcome Message or instructions. This bar will notify the FN that they still have tasks to complete and if clicked, will direct users to the My Tasks page.
The widgets are as follows:
- Recent Activity
- Case Information
- Receipt(s)
- Documents for your Review
- Expirations
- Visa Priority
- Submitted Items
- Calendar
Recent Activity
In the upper left is the Recent Activity widget, which will permanently occupy this area on the dashboard. This widget tracks the various case milestones that the case manager allows the Foreign National to view from Edge, and gives a sense of progression. This widget also includes any receipt numbers associated with the given activity for users to click and follow status.
Case Information
In the upper right is a section summarizing the FN specific information such as case number, case contact, case contact email, etc. This area remains static, unless the case manager makes any changes to this information from the Edge system.
Receipt(s)
This widget will display the last three receipts that were uploaded to the FN process. Receipt type, date and description may all be entered in the Processes Forms tab within the FN Profile under Receipts. Entries are sorted from newest to oldest, with a display limit of three in this widget. Each item may be clicked and routed to the USCIS tracking page, where the number will be automatically populated in the check status area. Clicking Show More Receipts will open an overlay that displays all the receipts attached. If no receipts are uploaded, this widget will not be displayed.
Documents for Your Review
Located directly underneath the My Information section, this widget will highlight documents that were shared with FNs by case managers. This widget has a display limit of three, but users can click Show More Documents to view older items. In the Show More Documents view, documents will have a checkmark to indicate that the FN has already viewed it before.
This widget will always be present on the Case Status page, regardless of documents needing review or not (if no documents are present, widget will only have title and nothing else). FNs may not upload documents from this widget.
Expirations
In the instance that a FN carries applications, processes or statuses with an expiration date, these relevant dates will be displayed in the Expirations widget. The widget will only display two upcoming expiration dates (determined by the fewest amount of days till it occurs), with a Show More button to accommodate other dates that are further out. If a Foreign National has no expiration dates on their file, this widget will not be displayed.
Visa Priority
For Foreign Nationals that are applying for various visa types, the Visa Priority widget will display the appropriate dates and preference category for them. In addition, it will supply dates for filing and final actions. These dates are the same that are calculated within the Travel Visa Status tab within the FN profile on Edge.
Submitted Items
This widget will display all items completed by the Foreign National and communicated to their case manager. Items such as Required Documents that have been uploaded or pages of a questionnaire that have been completed, will be tallied here. FNs may also upload documents directly via this widget. If a Foreign National has not submitted anything, the Submitted Items module will not be displayed.
Calendar
A convenient area for displaying any calendar events that have been shared with the Foreign National by the case manager. By default the next 3 upcoming events will be displayed, and more can be viewed by clicking the Show More button.
Need Help?
The Help section has not changed from the previous Foreign National Portal. Clicking the option in the navigation will open a single choice that drives to a page with various help material links.
- Documentation here will be updated to accommodate the new redesign and functionalities.
Personal Settings
The Personal Settings page is very similar to the old version. Users may click their names in the upper right to open up a dropdown menu pointing to Personal Settings. On this page, the FN profile photo will be displayed, along with options to modify time zones or set to observe Daylight Savings Time in site timestamps.
FNs may also change their login name and password if so desired. They must follow the directions and requirements laid out in the yellow squares off right of the fields. Users must click Update Settings in the upper or lower right to save any changes made on this page.
Messages
The Messages header will open up a modal displaying the SureMessaging options. The content of this display has not changed from how it functioned previously.
Clicking on Compose will open a new tab/window for users to create their messages, pick templates, add email addresses, etc. All other actions will keep the main modal window as the active one.
Clicking once on the message title will preview the content in the bottom half of the modal, while double-clicking will open the message in its own window. Clicking Close in the lower right will close the modal window and return users to their previously inactive screen.
When there are instances of dependents needing to be deleted, this can be approached a number of ways.
If a dependent record is preventing another case file from being deleted, but you need to retain the dependent data, unlinking the file would be the best way forward.
Unlinking a Linked Dependent
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National file. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	In the list of dependents, click on Break from the Link column to unlink the dependent from the FN. 
Deleting a Dependent
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National file. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	Click the Dependent’s name to display the Personal tab. 
- 
	From the Personal tab, find the section labeled Relationship. Click the drop-down menu next to it and select Other. 
- 
	Further down the screen find the field Applying with Relative? Select No. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button in the lower or upper right of the screen. This will prevent the dependent from appearing on any further forms created for the main Foreign National. 
- 
	Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the Delete This Individual button. 
- 
	A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation. Select Yes if you wish to proceed with the Dependent deletion. 
- 
	In some instances, you may receive an error that the “Individual may not be deleted because of dependents attached.” In these cases, dependents of the dependent in question must be deleted or unlinked to facilitate this deletion. 
Please note that after deletion, the names of the removed Dependent(s) may still appear on the Foreign National’s case overview page until midnight the day of the action.
The LawLogix team understands that Edge users may not always be near a computer when the need to use the Edge system may arise. It is for this reason that a mobile version of the site is available. The mobile site allows for responsive access to key features of the Edge system, enabling users to consult in-system calendars, view Foreign National files, or set appointments, are all items that can be accomplished from a smartphone or tablet device.
Logging In
To sign into your organization’s Edge system, simply start the browser application within your smartphone. For iPhones operating off of iOS this would be Safari, and for Android phones it can vary applications such as Google Chrome, Samsung Internet, etc.
Once opened in browser, type in the following URL www.welcomeclient.com/mobile.
- Please note that the URL may need to change depending on your organization’s URL (i.e. ww2, ww3, ww4, etc.).
The WelcomeClient web page can be saved as a quick-start icon to a given device, generally by tapping the three dots or bookmark icon in the upper right and electing to add the site to the home screen. For full instructions, please consult the help menu of the chosen web browser.
Once the login page displays, existing credentials for the Edge system must be entered to sign on.
By tapping on the slider button next to Remember Me, the username and password will be retained upon next sign in.
Edge Mobile Home Screen
After signing in, the mobile site will present a list of accessible options.
- Calendar
- Address Book
- Reminders
- Case Notes
These areas offer a variety of functionalities that are more streamlined to match the mobile format.
Calendar
Tapping on Calendar will direct the user to a view of the current month and highlight the present day. The view may be switched by tapping the Day or Month buttons in the upper left, and the entire calendar may be refreshed by tapping the semicircle arrow icon in the upper middle. To move forward or backward through the months, tap the right or left facing arrows in the upper right.
Underneath the calendar, any events scheduled for that date will be displayed. Tapping on the names of these events will navigate to a more detailed view of the appointment.
To create a new event for the calendar, tap the ‘+’ icon in the upper right.
Doing so will lead to a new screen to specify the details of the entry including the type of appointment, subject, start time, duration, users assigned to the meeting, and which Foreign National the item is attached to (if applicable).
To have the item added to the calendar, tap Save in the upper right. The event will now show on the calendar, indicated by a star underneath the date.
Address Book
The address book within the mobile site can be utilized to search for Foreign Nationals, individuals, companies or a user’s personal address book for contacts.
Enter in any keyword or name before tapping Search. The results should return any Foreign National or dependent record in an organization’s Edge system, depending on the search filters selected.
Tapping on any of the results returned will open an at-a-glance view of the record, including any current or mailing address, phone number, and associated companies.
If a phone number is present, tapping the phone icon in the right of the entry will populate it in a user’s smartphone dialer. Tapping the pin icon to the right of any address entries will automatically route to Google Maps to display the location. To return to the search page, click List in the upper left.
Reminders
In the mobile version of Edge, reminders can be created and searched for from within the Reminders module. Once tapped, the user will see options for searching through reminders based on their associated roles or users, FN Name, company, case number, date, or subject.
New reminders may be created by tapping the plus icon in the upper right. Once tapped, users will be directed to a page to specify the subject, expiry date, reminder date, description, attached FN/HR profile, and system user assignment as desired. When complete, the reminder can be retained by tapping Save in the upper right.
Case Notes
Within the Case Notes module, users may search for and create case notes for Foreign National processes. After tapping Case Notes in the main menu, a case notes search page will be displayed. Users may specify user, timeframe, status (i.e. viewed, not viewed, unassigned, etc.), user role (FN or HR), date assigned and created for criteria to search by.
Users may also create new notes by tapping the plus icon in the upper right. Once done, a case note creation screen will appear. Users may search for a specific FN or HR to associate the note to, as well as record the activity type, subject, regarding information, details and any users that should also be attached to the note. The note may be saved by tapping Save in the upper right.
Edge allows for the creation of new process types, as well as the customization of a process's default Forms, Questionnaire, Required Documents, and Activities.
To create a new process type, follow the steps below.
Note: The following steps may only be carried out by an administrator. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator(s).
- 
	Click your name at the top-right, and then click Administrative Settings. 
- 
	Click the Processes tab. 
- 
	Enter in a desired process name in the To Create A New Process field. - 
		Note: Once the process has been used it cannot be re-named. 
- 
		[Optional] In the dropdown menu that appears directly under the field, select another existing process that is similar to the one you are creating. This will copy that process’s default Forms, Questionnaire, Required Documents, and Activities. This can help save time so that you don’t have to start from scratch in defining these process defaults. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the New Process button. Users will now be able to create new cases using this process type. 
- 
	[Optional] Now that you’ve created the process, it is recommended to review the process defaults mentioned above and make any desired changes. 
The Edge system allows for a variety of customizations in order to best suit an organization’s workflow. In order to accomplish this, users with administrative access must carry out the steps provided below.
Adding Activities to a Process:
- 
	Click the username displayed in the upper right of the screen. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	From the Activities screen, the left hand side will display the Firm’s Activities and the right hand side will display the Process Activities. 
- 
	From the Process Activities section, select the desired process for customization from the Process drop-down selection. 
- 
	To associate specific activities to the selected process, select the activity from the Firm’s Activities column (hold down Ctrl to select multiple). 
- 
	Once all desired activities are selected, click the Use Firm Activity -> button below the activities column to add the activities to the process. 
- 
	If needed, use the Up and Down arrow buttons to sort the activities, then click on the Update Sort Order button to save the changes. 
Alternatively, users may need certain activities removed from a process. This can be accomplished through the following steps.
Removing Activities from a Process:
(Note: Activities marked as LLX Mandatory-M cannot be deleted from a process)
- 
	Click the username displayed in the upper right of the screen. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the Processes tab and select Activities from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	From the Activities screen, the left hand side will display the Firm’s Activities and the right hand side will display the Process Activities. 
- 
	From the Process Activities section, select the desired process for customization from the Process drop-down selection. 
- 
	To remove specific activities from the selected process, select the activity from the Process Activities column (hold down Ctrl to select multiple). 
- 
	Once all desired activities are selected, click the Delete Process Activity button to remove the activities from the process. 
When company contacts are created within the Edge system, they can be categorized as one of two types: HR-1 and HR-2. The privileges and system experience can change depending on these designations. The differences between the two are detailed below:
HR-1 Company Contacts
HR-1 contacts will have access to the following modules within their portal:
- 
	Firm Information 
- 
	Company Information
	- 
		Jobs 
- 
		Questionnaire 
- 
		Documents and Scans 
 
- 
		
- 
	Employee Status 
- 
	Pending Forms 
- 
	Reports 
- 
	Tutorial 
- 
	Personal Preferences 
- 
	Help 
- 
	Logout 
HR-1 contacts will be able to view and edit certain information for all Foreign Nationals associated with their company, or only those with processes to which they are assigned.
HR-2 Company Contacts
HR-2 contacts will have access to the following modules within their portal:
- 
	Home 
- 
	Messages 
- 
	Employee Status 
- 
	Reports (dependent on administrative settings) 
- 
	Firm Information 
- 
	Personal Preferences 
- 
	Help 
- 
	Logout 
HR-2 contacts can be limited to only viewing and editing Foreign Nationals or employees with processes that they are assigned to. Alternately, if the HR-2 user is allowed to view all HR cases, then they may view or edit all FNs associated with the company.
These users cannot request new cases for new or existing employees, but can request a new case for an existing Foreign National.
Depending on the yes/no selection for the contact's Restrict to HR-2 Privilege setting a company contact can be assigned to a FN's process as the HR-1 Employer Contact or one of the HR-2 Contacts, but not both. Both HR-1 and HR-2 users may be assigned as the Company Signer on a FN’s Forms area.
Session IDs are a unique number that a website server assigns to a specific user for the duration of their visit (session). At times these IDs can cause issues with EDGE operation resulting in a Firm User being logged out randomly with the error message “Signed Out Due to Security Reasons”. When this occurs the Clear SID Values tool must be used.
- Select CS Tools. Then Clear SID Values.
- Select the Law Firm.
- Select the User
- Select Clear
- It is usually recommended that the firm user Clear Cache and Cookies once this is complete.
The Required Documents tile on the Foreign National is a simple means of bringing up the items that a firm needs from the Foreign National on an easy-to-read dashboard. Firm users simply mark documents from the Edge system that are required from the FN, then it will appear to their clients as an item they need to upload. The full workflow is available below.
Marking Documents for a Foreign National
Similar to the legacy version of the FN Portal, the newer version still requires a few things for the documents to actually display to the Foreign National on their My Tasks page.
A Firm user must simply take the following steps:
- 
	Navigate to the Foreign National profile within Edge. - 
		This FN profile must NOT be retired. A retired FN should not have access to the Foreign National Portal. Any changes to required documents for a retired FN will not reflect on the portal. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Hover over the Processes Forms tab and select Required Docs. 
- 
	Ensure that the Current Process is selected. 
- 
		The Required Documents tile only reflects documents marked as required for the current process. 
 
- 
	Once in the Required Documents area, there will be a list of documents that a user may make available. - 
		- 
			Required of FN: Checking this box and clicking Update Info will make the item appear on the FN Portal tile. 
- 
			Required of HR-1: Checking this box and clicking Update Info will make the item appear on the HR Portal for the designated HR rep. 
- 
			Uploaded by FN: A checkmark appearing here indicates that the document has been provided by the FN. If this is marked then the Required document will no longer appear on the FN Portal tile. 
- 
			Uploaded by HR: A checkmark appearing here indicates that the document has been provided by the HR. 
- 
			Received from FN: Marking this box and clicking Update Info will effectively mark this document from the firm side. This item will not reflect as truly received unless there is a document also attached from the firm side. 
- 
			Received from HR-1: Marking this box and clicking Update Info will effectively mark this document from the firm side. This document will be removed from the HR portal dashboard. 
- 
			Upload/View: Area where a firm side upload can take place or a direct link to the uploaded document will appear. 
 
- 
			
 
- 
		
- 
	User can select all applicable documents under Required of FN and click Update Info. 
- 
	Once saved, the FN should see the selected documents on their portal tile. 
- 
		Please note, this item will not automatically refresh the portal for the FN. FNs may have to refresh the page or navigate to another page to see changes. 
 
 
Uploading Documents
The Foreign National can easily progress through the Required Documents by clicking on the Documents tile in their portal. 
 
When clicked, the tile will be highlighted orange and the requested documents will be listed out. A second section called 'Uploaded' will also appear below the required documents, showing the items that the Foreign National has already previously provided through the portal directly or by the firm uploading it from the Edge interface.
From this screen, Foreign Nationals may upload these documents directly or replace/add to previously uploaded documents.
For Foreign Nationals to upload docs:
- 
	Click Upload File within the box of the desired document. 
- 
	A new tab/window will open with an upload module. 
- 
	Click Add Files. 
- 
	Select all desired documents. 
- 
	Click Start Upload. 
- 
	Once the progress bar reads "success" the FN may safely click on the Finished button. 
- 
	Click Close to return to the FN Portal. 
After the upload is completed, FN users will see the previous square drop below the Uploaded Documents line. Firm side users will now see a check mark populate under the Uploaded by FN column in the Required Documents tab.
Required Documents and Activities
Certain activities, when marked as complete, will effectively mark the document as received as well. This will result in the item no longer appearing in the Documents tile on the FN portal.
The following activities, when marked, will remove associated required documents from the FN's portal:
- 
	All Documents Received by FN - 
		This will include any customized processes with this behavior assigned. List attached of all activities with this behavior assigned. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Final Action Completed - 
		Completed Date required 
 
- 
		
- 
	Application Filed - 
		Completed Date required 
 
- 
		
- 
	Date Closed 
Credit Requests are accepted by LawLogix as long as they are for one of following reasons:
- 
        A process was created within the last 90 days and deleted. - 
                Fees are not charged for processes that were created and deleted on the same day. 
- 
                Anything over 90 days is generally not credited. 
 
- 
                
- 
        A process was created based on a recent migration. - 
                Example: The process not being imported as expected. 
 
- 
                
Processes are billed as part of a nightly batch that runs at midnight. Credit Requests must be processed if the request is on the following day.
If the case falls under one of these reasons, a credit request may be submitted. The customer must provide the following information:
- 
        Date Process was created. 
- 
        Process type. - 
                Example: Consultation, L-1A/B, etc. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Foreign National name. 
- 
        Reference number (if available). 
To process the request:
- 
        Create a case in Salesforce marking it as the following: - 
                Type: Billing 
- 
                Case Reason: Credit Request 
 
- 
                
- 
        Obtain the required credit request information (date created, process type, FN name, Reference number) and enter it in the Description field. - 
                Utilize one of the following email templates from Customer Support Current folder in order to obtain the information from the customer: - 
                        Credit Request Information needed-deleted processes 
- 
                        Credit Request Information needed-migrated processes 
 
- 
                        
 
- 
                
- 
        Within the case click New Credit Request button. 
- 
        Enter information in the following fields: - 
                Process Created Date 
- 
                Process Type 
- 
                FN Name 
- 
                Reference Number 
- 
                Select the reason for the request (Process Deleted, Migration Related, Other); if “Process Deleted” is selected review the database and confirm deletion prior to processing. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Save the credit request. 
- 
        Email the requestor utilizing template **Credit Request Processed from the Customer Support Current folder. 
- 
        Close the Salesforce case. 
As part of the Edge suite, LawLogix offers integrators with Microsoft Word and Outlook products. As there are many versions available, please refer to this compatibility matrix:
 
The Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) option available in Edge will allow Edge users to mandate more secure access needs for their Foreign National portals. MFA is an additional layer of secure access to a site that requires a secondary piece of data in order to login.
This feature is available to all Edge users who wish to enable it, and will require Support assistance to turn on for the organization.
Turning On/Off MFA in Firm Admin
Once enabled for the firm, Edge users may turn the feature on or off as they determine is necessary for their organization. To turn the MFA feature on for FN users, the following steps must be completed by someone who has administrative access:
- Sign into the Edge application.
- From the Dashboard screen, click the name displayed in the upper right.
- Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears.  	
- Click the Security tab.
- Select Yes next to the Allow MFA for FN option. 	- Please note that once enabled, this will apply to all FNs. This feature cannot be turned on or off for specific FN profiles.
 
- Click Update Info in the lower right.
When a Foreign National signs into their portals after these steps are taken, they will be prompted with steps to complete MFA setup.
Company Level MFA Control
Should an organization have multiple companies set up within it, MFA can be disabled or enabled at the company level if so desired.
Please note: When MFA is enabled within the Firm Administration settings, it will automatically apply to all Petitioning Companies by default.
To modify MFA settings at the Company level, please proceed with the following steps:
- Sign into Edge.
- Click Companies in the left hand navigation module. 	
- Click the desired company name under the Company column.  	
- Under the General tab select Yes or No next to the Allow MFA for All FN option. 	- Selecting Yes will apply MFA to all FNs existing within the selected company.
- Selecting No will disable MFA and setup instructions will not appear to all FNs linked to the selected company
 
- Click Update Info in the lower right to save.
MFA Experience on the FN Portal
After multi-factor authentication is enabled by a firm administrator, Foreign National users will be shown a pop-up message the next time they attempt to login.
- Please note, this pop-up will appear after the FN user has agreed to terms of service and GDPR consent (if applicable).
- In addition, this pop-up will not appear if a firm user is utilizing the Login as FN function within Edge.
The pop-up will feature a QR code and the following instructions for the Foreign National:
| “You are REQUIRED to set up Multi-Factor Authentication! Please follow the steps below: 
 | 
In addition to these instructions, the FN user may click the Need Help? E-Mail Your Case Manager link in the upper right. This will open a new overlay where a FN may send a SureMessage to their assigned case manager for assistance.
T"
Microsoft Word
| Microsoft Word Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | No | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Word 2016 | Yes | 
| Word 2013 | Yes | 
| Word 2010 | Yes | 
A note about Office 365:
Office 365 is a subscription service that provides users with online-only offerings, as well as the ability to download Office applications directly to a personal computer.
Edge does not currently have an integration with the online-only 365 options (a.k.a. in-browser functionalities), but the existing integrators currently available will work with the downloadable Office applications (desktop apps). For any further issues, feel free to refer to the existing integrator guides and troubleshooting articles.
Microsoft Outlook
| Microsoft Outlook Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | No | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | No | 
As part of the Edge suite, LawLogix offers integrators with Microsoft Word and Outlook products. As there are many versions available, please refer to this compatibility matrix:
Microsoft Word
| Microsoft Word Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | No | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | Yes | 
| Word 2016 | Yes | 
| Word 2013 | Yes | 
| Word 2010 | Yes | 
A note about Office 365:
Office 365 is a subscription service that provides users with online-only offerings, as well as the ability to download Office applications directly to a personal computer.
Edge does not currently have an integration with the online-only 365 options (a.k.a. in-browser functionalities), but the existing integrators currently available will work with the downloadable Office applications (desktop apps). For any further issues, feel free to refer to the existing integrator guides and troubleshooting articles.
Microsoft Outlook
| Microsoft Outlook Version | Compatible? (Yes/No) | 
| Office 365 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Office 365 (64bit) | No | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (32bit) | Yes | 
| Professional Plus 2019 (64bit) | No | 
Annual Maintenance Fees are charges associated with the storage and maintenance of a firm’s Foreign National files. These fees are triggered on the year anniversary of the Foreign National case creation, but are only billed if there has been 100KB (or more) of data stored in OnDocs during the past year.
These fees vary depending on your firm’s agreement, but they are charged to help offset the cost of storing, insuring, and backing up the data stored within the Foreign National’s file. Below are some common questions users may have on Annual Maintenance Fees.
What information is counted toward the 100KB threshold?
SureMessages, Case Notes, and uploaded files (including e-mails) to the OnDocs folder count toward the 100KB threshold.
Will we still incur an AMF is the case is closed or inactive?
Yes, as the documents are still being stored, insured, and backed up by LawLogix these cases would incur an AMF if they are larger 100KB or larger.
How can I see the size of my files?
The amount of data storage being used by documents in a Foreign National's case file is available in the OnDocs Notes tab of their profile. The AMF Info is located on the lower left side of the page, just below the OnDocs History active links.
What are the benefits of storing documents in LawLogix?
Storing documents within your LawLogix client files provides:
- 
	Secure access of any client document or form 
- 
	Ability to view documents anywhere with an internet connection 
- 
	Reduces the need for physical storage 
- 
	Increases office efficiency through a centralized location for all client related information/documents 
- 
	Helps to comply with state bar client retention requirements 
How can I avoid Annual Maintenance Fees?
Firms who find they are surpassing the 100KB threshold included in the traditional pricing structure have the ability to opt into one of the unlimited storage options. These options increase the one-time case activation fee (as to bundle the AMF charges at a substantial discount), but provide unlimited storage for either five or ten years.
If you are interested in this option, please contact us.
What are the advantages of opting into one of these unlimited storage options?
Opting into an unlimited storage option allows firms to pass along the case activation/storage fee upfront, as it is difficult to pass along the yearly AMF charge for $3.95.
Many firms use this option to move to a paperless environment, saving office space and employee time.
Can we avoid the AMF by deleting data prior to the anniversary date?
The AMF is triggered when the FN storage size reaches 100KB, so deleting the documents will not prevent the charge for the upcoming anniversary. However, if you delete the documents and the FN file remains below 100KB, the firm will not be charged the 2nd anniversary.
The Reports module within the Edge portal allows users to compile data within a scope across their client base. These reports can be when completed, or saved as a template for future use.
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select Case Status Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	Click the New Template button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	Enter a Report name, then click the Update Settings button. 
- 
	Leave report filters set to All for a more comprehensive report, or use the filter options to filter the report by: - Responsible Attorney
- Case Manager
- Case Status
- Date Range Types
- Process type
 
- 
	Select the Multiple FN Rows option to Include All Rows. 
- 
	Omit Closed Processes option. 
- 
	Click the Update Settings in the left hand navigation to save any changes. 
- 
	Underneath Update Settings, click Select Columns to Add/Remove data columns for the report. 
- 
	From the Available Columns section; select the data columns to include them in the report. (Hold down the Ctrl key to make multiple column selections) then click Add Columns. 
- 
	From the Selected columns section, remove data columns you don’t want on the report by selecting the column (Hold Ctrl key to make multiple column selections) then click the Remove Columns button. 
- 
	Use the Move Column Up or Move Column Down button to sort the columns, then click on Update to save changes. 
- 
	Use the Group & Sort By fields will further organize the way the data will populate the Report. 
- 
	Click the Update Settings button to save changes made. 
- 
	Click the Calculate button, the system will show the number of records to Print/Display. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports. 
Note: There are limits on the overall size of any single report. Click the Calculate button to determine if your report falls within these limits: Manually run reports have a limit of 1000 records. Scheduled reports are limited to 5,000 records.
To schedule a report, select a day of the week from the Automatic Update popup menu. No report containing more than 10,000 records can ever be produced.
In order for forms to pull in the firm address (or an attorney address) when the form is initially added to the Forms list, the following steps should be verified.
Please note that the following steps require administrative permissions.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Click the Addresses Phones tab and verify firm information is listed. - 
		If any item is missing, click Add Phone Number or Add Address to input the information. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Users tab. 
- 
	Click the name of the attorney user. 
- 
	Verify all relevant information is present within user profile. - 
		If any are missing, enter information within the blank fields and click Update Info to save. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Verify the correct case assignments from the FN’s case file in the Process Forms Assignments section. 
- 
	Information from the above sections is what will populate the form when it is opened. 
The Reports module in Edge allows for users to pull from a wide selection of values within a given Foreign National record or process.
FN Report
Currently the FN Report will pull all values appearing in the Default FN Values area of Processes Forms within the FN Profile.
When utilized in a FN Report, these values will override what is selected in the Report Criteria tab of a given report.
FN+Process Report
When a user applies the FN+Process report, the values seen in the Assignment tab of the Processes Forms dropdown in a FN profile are the ones that can be pulled into the report.
In the scenario of a problematic filter, confirm which report type the user is employing first before troubleshooting unresponsive data pulls.
For organizations that have numerous clients and users, getting an update to the overall status of a firm may be necessary. To generate a report for tracking the activities of an organization across multiple users within a specific date range, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select Firm Activity Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	A default Firm Activity Report will appear, you can use this default template or click the New Template button to add a new report. 
- 
	If adding a new template enter a Report name, then click Update Settings. 
- 
	Select the following report filter options: - 
		Shared or Private 
- 
		Automatic Update 
- 
		Date Range 
- 
		Users 
- 
		Group By 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings to save changes. 
- Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports.
Note: There are limits on the overall size of any single report. Manually run reports have a limit of 1000 records. Scheduled reports are limited to 5,000 records. To schedule a report, select a day of the week from the Automatic Update popup menu. No report containing more than 10,000 records can ever be produced.
The Edge system offers a great deal of flexibility for users to customize it to best fit their own practices. One such example is creating custom questionnaires and attaching them to existing processes. This can be accomplished within the Edge system with a few steps.
Please note that the following steps require administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your administrator to secure rights or assistance.
Creating Your Questionnaire
- 
        Click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
        Click Administrative Settings within the dropdown. 
- 
        Hover cursor over the Templates tab and click Custom Questions from within the dropdown. 
- 
        Click Add Question in the upper right. 
- 
        Add Category, Description, and Question. 
- 
        Click Update Info in upper or lower right to save. 
- 
        Repeat as necessary until all questions are created. 
- 
        From the Administrative settings area, hover cursor over the Processes tab and click Custom Questionnaires. 
- 
        Click Create Questionnaire. 
- 
        Name the questionnaire and define its type. 
- 
        Click the plus icon button. 
- 
        In the new model that appears, check the box next to every question desired for the questionnaire. 
- 
        Rearrange the question order by clicking to highlight the question title, click the up or down arrows to move it, and click Update Sort Order to save it. 
- 
        Click Update Info to save the questionnaire. 
Attaching the Questionnaire
 
- 
        Return to the Custom Questionnaires area. 
- 
        Next to Selected Process, select the desired process from the dropdown menu for which the questionnaire was created. 
- 
        Click to highlight the desired questionnaire in the left hand listing. - 
                To select multiple questionnaires, hold down Ctrl (or apple key) and click each one as desired. Release key when finished.. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Click Select Required Questionnaires. - 
                Questionnaire will now bear an asterisk to indicate the attachment. 
 
- 
                
Making Questionnaire Visible to the FN
In order to ensure that a FN can see the questionnaire, it can be added to the FN profile.
- 
        Navigate to the FN profile. 
- 
        Hover cursor over Processes Forms and select Questionnaire. 
- 
        Scroll to the Custom Questionnaires area and click Add Questionnaire in the lower right. 
- 
        Click the checkbox for the specific questionnaire. 
- 
        Click Return to FN. 
Please note, in order for the FN to see the questionnaire pages attached to the specified process, the process must be either the most recently created or marked as the Current Process. Data entered into Custom Questionnaires will not populate form
The Reports module within Edge allows users to compile report data within a scope across their client base. Reports can be run once completed, or saved as a template for future use. The steps below are more commonly used for creating reports of Foreign National clients.
- 
	Click the Reports button from the Menu selection. 
- 
	Under Select Report Type, pick Interactive from the dropdown menu and then click View. 
- 
	After the screen refreshes, click New from the action bar top of screen, then select Report. 
- 
	Select FN + Process as the data type, then click Continue. 
- 
	This setting will pull all FN and Process level data and make them available as the report column selections. 
- 
	Click the General tab and enter/select the following: - 
		Report Name 
- 
		Sharing Options 
- 
		Report Folder 
- 
		Report Generation Mode 
- 
		Report Style 
- 
		Click Update Info. 
 
- 
		
- 
	In the Reports Columns tab, select the specific information you want displayed on the report. - 
		(e.g. Beneficiary Name, Citizenship, Process, Current Status, various expiration types). 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making the appropriate selections, click Update Info. 
- 
	In the Report Criteria tab, select the items you wish to use in order to filter the report (e.g. Case Status, Process types, Company Petitioner, etc.), then click Update Info. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
Users within the Edge system have the ability to add various files to the built-in OnDocs repository. This storage area can host a variety of file types that suit the specific needs of a given process. See the full list of supported types below:
| Extension | File Type | 
| 7z | Zipped files (Archive Data) | 
| bmp | Bitmap | 
| cpy | Document | 
| csv | Comma-separated Value (Computable Document Format) | 
| dat | Generic binary or text file (Archive Data) | 
| db | Windows Database file (Archive Data) | 
| doc | Word processing file (Computable Document Format) | 
| docm | Macro-enabled word processing file (Archive Data) | 
| docx | Rich text word processing file (Archive Data) | 
| dot | Document template file (Computable Document Format) | 
| efx | eFax document (data) | 
| eml | E-mail message (text) | 
| fdf | Text file export from PDF (document) | 
| gif | image | 
| hfd | Form document generally associated with HotDocs application (data) | 
| hpd | Portable form document generally associated with HotDocs application (document) | 
| iaf | Settings file exported by older versions of Microsoft Outlook (text) | 
| jpeg | image | 
| jpg | image | 
| kes | Document file type generally associated with Kurzweil applications for blind and visually impaired users (document) | 
| log | File with a log of data (text) | 
| lwp | Document file type generally associated with Lotus Suite of applications (Lotus) | 
| mdi | Proprietary Microsoft Document Imaging file type (document) | 
| mp3 | Audio file | 
| msg | Mail message from Microsoft Outlook or Exchange (document) | 
| odg | OpenDocument vector file type | 
| odt | OpenDocument text file type | 
| oft | OpenType font file (Computable Document Format) | 
|  | Portable Document Format | 
| png | Portable Network Graphics (image) | 
| ppt | Microsoft PowerPoint file | 
| pptx | Microsoft PowerPoint file, XML version (archive data) | 
| pptm | Macro-enabled Microsoft PowerPoint file, XML version (archive data) | 
| psd | PhotoShop Document (image) | 
| pub | Document file generally associated with Microsoft Publisher application (Computable Document Format) | 
| rar | Native to WinRAR archiver for compressing files (archive data) | 
| rtf | Text file format commonly used by Microsoft products. | 
| sxw | Document file generally associated with StarOffice Writer applications. | 
| tif | Tagged Image File (image) | 
| tiff | Tagged Image File Format (image) | 
| txt | Unformatted (plain) text file. | 
| vsd | Vector graphics file format generally associated with Microsoft Visio application. (Computable Document Format) | 
| wav | Uncompressed audio file. | 
| wbk | Backup file for Microsoft Word documents. (Computable Document Format) | 
| wpd | Text document generally associated with WordPerfect applications. | 
| wps | Text document file that does not carry any advanced formatting or macros. (Computable Document Format) | 
| xfd | File used to populate PDF forms with data. (document) | 
| xls | Excel Spreadsheet file generally used with Microsoft Excel. (Computable Document Format) | 
| xlsm | Macro-enabled Excel Spreadsheet file. (archive data) | 
| xml | Extensible Markup Language file used for internet information formatting and data. (text) | 
| xps | XML Paper Specification file containing fixed page layout data. (archive data) | 
| dotx | Template files generally created by Microsoft Word applications. (archive data) | 
| zipx | Compressed, zipped data file that requires a special utility application to unpack the individual files within. | 
| htm | Hypertext Markup file more that is compatible with older OS systems. (text) | 
| html | HyperText Markup Language file in use with current systems. (text) | 
| ptn | Data file generally used with PaperPort (ScanSoft) application to display thumbnail images. | 
Edge system administrators have the ability to retire users profiles rather than outright deleting them. Retired user profiles do not incur a monthly user fee, and can be viewed and/or restored at the discretion of the administrator.
To retire a user, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard page, click the user name displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Click the Users tab. 
- 
	Click the name of the user that needs to be retired. 
- 
	Click Retire This User in the lower right. This will remove the user name from the list of active users. 
Please note that every process assignment with the retired user (e.g. Case Manager) will display with an (R) next to their name. Reminders and case notes that were created by the user will still display their name as the Created By/Entered By individual.
To view retired user profiles, navigate to the Users tab of the administrative settings and click Show Retired Users in the upper right.
File Location settings can be used to track where the physical copy of a Foreign National’s file is located. Settings can be used to reflect that the file is located in a certain section of the office, offsite storage, or with a certain user.
Please note, the following steps require administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator for further assistance or proper rights.
- 
	From Edge, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click the Choice Lists tab. 
- 
	In the dropdown next to Choice List, select File Location. 
- 
	In the blank field below the Default Type buttons, enter in a custom file location. - 
		i.e. “Intake Cabinet,” “Offsite Storage,” etc. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Add Custom Type. 
Repeat steps as necessary.
The new file location will appear in the right hand selection area. Once the list is customized, users will be able to assign any one of the new file locations (or a user’s name) to a Foreign National process’ file location by using the following steps:
- 
	Search for the Foreign National by using the FN/Individual module or FN Search field in the Action bar. 
- 
	Select the Foreign National. 
- 
	Hover over the Process Forms tab and select Assignment. 
- 
	Click the drop down selection in the File Location section to select where the physical file is located. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right to save. 
The Edge system provides users with the ability to add a Case Note to a Foreign National’s process, as well as customize who gets to view and access the information within it.
To add a Case Note to a Foreign National:
- 
	Navigate to the desired Foreign National record. 
- 
	Click the FN Action button in upper left. 
- 
	Click Add Case Note. 
- 
	Add any relevant details, such as: - 
		Which Process the note relates to. Alternatively, relate the note to All processes. 
- 
		An Activity Type, useful for categorization and reporting of notes. 
- 
		A Subject/Reference that provides a brief description of the note. 
- 
		The Details of the note, which provides a large text area to include as much detail as needed. - 
			Please note, there is a 32,000 character limit for this area. If users go over this limit, the note will automatically be truncated to fit the limit. 
 
- 
			
 
- 
		
- 
	Optionally, share the case note by configuring the View options: - 
		FN Viewable: Makes the case note visible to the FN via the FN Portal 
- 
		HR-1 Viewable: Makes the case note visible to the HR-1 who is assigned to the case, as well as any other HR-1’s with permission to access all Company cases. 
- 
		HR-2 Viewable: Makes the case note visible to any HR-2’s assigned to the case. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Optionally, assign the note to other users. Case notes assigned to a user will appear on their Case Notes module as a note that is Not Viewed yet. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save, and/or click Update & Return to return to the FN record. 
As part of the Foreign National Portal suite of features, the ability for firm users to view the questionnaires completed by Foreign Nationals is important. With this update, users may now access Foreign National submitted information, make amendments or submit the data on behalf of the FN if needed.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
Edge system users can be subject to Annual Maintenance Fees depending on their plan. This fee is dictated by the amount of file storage being utilized per a Foreign National. To pull the AMF information and create a report in order to better estimate these fees ahead of time, please proceed through the following steps:
- 
	Sign into your Edge portal. 
- 
	Click the New button in the upper left of the screen. 
- 
	From the dropdown menu that appears, click the Report button. 
- 
	A new screen will appear asking for the data type to be selected: - 
		If you need only the AMF and related FN information, select FN from the dropdown menu. 
- 
		If you need to include process-specific data (i.e. activities), then select FN + Process from the dropdown menu. 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making your selections, click the Continue button. 
- 
	A new screen will load directly to a General Information tab. In the Report Name field, enter in your preferred reference title for this report, as well as any applicable selections. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Columns tab. 
- 
	Hold down the Ctrl key and select AMF Date, AMF Current Size KB, AMF Max Size KB, and First Case Initiation Date from the Available Columns list, then release the Ctrl key and click Add Columns. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Criteria tab. 
- 
	Once the tab is loaded, ensure that every selection is set to All, with Case Status being set to All + Retired. All other fields should be blank. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
The system will return a report with all FNs and their associated AMF data, sorted by the last name of the beneficiary as a default.
To further refine your data:
If you would like to filter your results based on a maximum amount of allowable data per FN, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	Click the Report Criteria tab for the report. 
- 
	Scroll down to the Search Criteria area. 
- 
	Select AMF Max Size KB from the leftmost dropdown menu, then select Greater or equal in the second dropdown menu. 
- 
	Type “100” in the field to the right of the second dropdown selector. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button in the lower right corner of the screen. 
Using this criteria, the report that is generated will show a list of FNs that have exceeded 100KB, and therefore have triggered an AMF fee.
Users may click the Duplicate Template button to create a copy of the report, then change the Search Criteria accordingly to generate a list of FNs whose AMF Max Size is approaching the 100 KB limit. The duplicate template will be named "Copy of (template name)" by default, but can be changed within the General Info tab of the new template.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
- Click on the hyperlinked name of the questionnaire. 
	
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
Part of Edge's billing functionalities includes the option to add your organization's information at the top of any invoices or statements generated from the system. In order to make changes to this area to better suit your organization's workflows, please proceed with the following steps.
Note: These steps must be performed by an administrative user within your organization.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the name displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings in the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Click the Billing Setup tab. 
- 
	Under the Invoices & Statements section, location the Letterhead: Omit Firm name & address option. - 
		To remove the contact information, select Yes. 
- 
		To add the firm contact information, select No. 
 
- 
		
If No is selected, the next option Letterhead: Division allows for users to select their specific division from which they wish to populate an address and contact number.
If necessary, this information may be modified within the Administrative Settings area under the Addresses Phones tab (address changes) and Divisions Companies tab (contact number) respectively.
- 
	Sign into your Edge portal. 
- 
	Click the New button in the upper left of the screen. 
- 
	From the dropdown menu that appears, click the Report button. 
- 
	A new screen will appear asking for the data type to be selected: - 
		If you need only the AMF and related FN information, select FN from the dropdown menu. 
- 
		If you need to include process-specific data (i.e. activities), then select FN + Process from the dropdown menu. 
 
- 
		
- 
	After making your selections, click the Continue button. 
- 
	A new screen will load directly to a General Information tab. In the Report Name field, enter in your preferred reference title for this report, as well as any applicable selections. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Columns tab. 
- 
	Hold down the Ctrl key and select AMF Date, AMF Current Size KB, AMF Max Size KB, and First Case Initiation Date from the Available Columns list, then release the Ctrl key and click Add Columns. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	After the page reloads, click the Report Criteria tab. 
- 
	Once the tab is loaded, ensure that every selection is set to All, with Case Status being set to All + Retired. All other fields should be blank. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button. 
The system will return a report with all FNs and their associated AMF data, sorted by the last name of the beneficiary as a default.
 
To further refine your data:
If you would like to filter your results based on a maximum amount of allowable data per FN, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	Click the Report Criteria tab for the report. 
- 
	Scroll down to the Search Criteria area. 
- 
	Select AMF Max Size KB from the leftmost dropdown menu, then select Greater or equal in the second dropdown menu. 
- 
	Type “100” in the field to the right of the second dropdown selector. 
- 
	Click the Update Info button. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button in the lower right corner of the screen. 
Using this criteria, the report that is generated will show a list of FNs that have exceeded 100KB, and therefore have triggered an AMF fee.
Users may click the Duplicate Template button to create a copy of the report, then change the Search Criteria accordingly to generate a list of FNs whose AMF Max Size is approaching the 100 KB limit. The duplicate template will be named "Copy of (template name)" by default, but can be changed within the General Info tab of the new template.
The Firm view of the questionnaire is enabled by default for users of the new Foreign National Portal. This release ads display and navigation enhancements.
Accessing Questionnaires
After a questionnaire has been completed by a Foreign National in their portal, the contents can be viewed from the users side in Edge. To access, please follow these steps:
- Navigate to the desired FN/Individual profile in Edge.
- Hover cursor over the Processes Forms tab and select Questionnaire from the dropdown.
- Click on the hyperlinked name of the questionnaire. 
	
Once clicked, a new tab will open displaying the questionnaire with similar user interface and functions to match the Foreign National Portal view.
The questionnaire will display all values input by the FN, as well as highlight required fields. Certain fields may not be edited such as the First and Family Names.
For viewing responses only, users should simply click the tabs to navigate through the questionnaire’s pages. Do not click any fields.
For editing responses, users may click and freely edit fields that are open. Please note that this will trigger the questionnaire’s required fields protocol. This means that if any required fields are not filled, the questionnaire will prevent further navigation.
Clicking Save or the Save & Next buttons in the upper right will save any data input on these fields. This can be utilized if a correction needs to be made.
- Please note that deleting or editing any values and clicking either of the save buttons will result in the fields being overwritten with the new inputs.
To return to the firm questionnaire view, click Questionnaire Home.
LawLogix E-File Extension
The Foreign Labor Application Gateway is one of the tools introduced by the government in order to digitally facilitate the submission of immigration applications. To more seamlessly integrate the Edge system into this new website, our developers have crafted an extension for use in the Google Chrome web browser.
This extension will work to bridge the specified Foreign National data collected in your Edge instance and communicate it to government sites with just a few clicks.
Before you Begin
Before using the extension, users must have valid credentials for accessing government sites and Edge. This is important as both items need to be open and active windows for the extension to function.
It is highly recommended that your Chrome browser be updated to the latest version available. Extension use must be enabled if it is not already permitted by your organization’s administrator.
To install the extension, simply navigate to the Chrome Web Store and search for ‘LawLogix.’ Click on the extension name and then select Add to Chrome in the upper right.
Form Filling in Edge
Filling out application forms in Edge has not changed. Users may still manually add pertinent Foreign National information, or utilize the Foreign National Portal to collect information directly from their client.
Once the application is filled out in Edge, then users may proceed to the specific government sites.
Using the Extension
Once the extension is installed, users can quickly start populating information into a corresponding application on FLAG.
To begin, the user must open their populated worksheet first. To do this, users must navigate to the desired FN profile, click Forms under the Process/Forms tab and then click Add Form to generate a new form or click the hyperlink to the prepared form in the list within the tab.
Once the worksheet has been opened, review that all information has been entered as desired and no required fields are missing.
If the worksheet meets expectations, click the LLX FLAG extension icon in the upper right of the Chrome browser window to open the loading dialogue. Click to select the type of form that will be populated into the FLAG portal.
Once selected, a series of options will appear in an extended menu below the form selection.
Filing with an ETA-9035
In this example, we will be using the ETA-9035 application to walk through the extension functionality.
Once the form worksheet is opened and ETA-9035 is chosen from the extension menu, click Load From Edge to temporarily load the data from this worksheet.
A disclaimer will appear when the data is being loaded from Edge. This is an important item that must be accepted before continuing.
When the action is successfully completed, the job and associated company will appear in the same line. This indicates that the data is fully loaded and prepared for population to FLAG.
After the load is completed, users must navigate to the FLAG website. This can be accomplished by simply opening a new tab or clicking the Open FLAG Site option in the LLX FLAG extension menu.
This selection will simply open flag.dol.gov in a new tab within the currently opened browser. Users must still log in with their DOL credentials as appropriate.
After signing into the FLAG site and opening a new/existing application for the corresponding form, users will be able to populate each page with data by clicking the Populate to FLAG option in the LLX extension menu.
When navigating from page to page, users need only click the population button from the extension menu to automatically feed in data from the worksheet to FLAG.
Due to technical limitations, some of the fields such as NAICS and SOC numbers cannot be populated through the use of the extension. When this occurs, a pop-up will appear highlighting the code that the user should copy into FLAG manually.
Worksite Locations (Employment and Wage Information)
As far as worksite locations, this can vary between applications and FNs. On the FLAG site it is a singular page, rather than multiple.
To add these using the Chrome extension, users will click the number of the Location they wish to populate. Each entry in the extension menu will display the city to assist users in keeping track of their information.
In this example, our application only has data for a single worksite. Clicking Location 1 (City) will populate the data for that worksite location.
After each location data is populated, users will click the Add Place of Employment button at the bottom of the page. Then they may click the second worksite button in the Chrome extension to populate the next set of information and so on.
As users progress through the application and populate their FLAG forms, any errors in data will be reflected immediately in the FLAG site. Users are always encouraged to review their information before submission.
It is important to note that users must navigate through submissions in order, or the extension will not perform correctly.
Filing the ETA-9141
The process for using the extension with the 9141 form is similar to the 9035. First, users must open the worksheet version of the completed form on the Edge application. Then in the extension, click Flag 9141 and then click Load from Edge.
Note: Once data is loaded, the space next to Load from Edge will read the (Job Title, Company) to indicate the application that is currently being used.
After the load is completed, users must navigate to the FLAG website. This can be accomplished by simply opening a new tab or clicking the Open FLAG Site option in the LLX FLAG extension menu.
After signing into the FLAG site and opening a new/existing application for the corresponding form, users will be able to populate each page with data by clicking the Populate to FLAG option in the LLX extension menu.
Please note: Even if continuing a case, when the extension is in use, users must always start at the first step of the application in the FLAG site.
As this application does not require worksite information, this option is removed from the menu when utilizing the extension for ETA-9141 purposes.
Once finished with an application, repeat steps as needed to fulfill other submissions.
Hotkeys
To assist with quick form-filling, the following functions are available for input with the extension installed.
- Alt+O = Open the extension’s pop-up menu.
        - This will allow for the rest of the macros to be used.
 
- Alt+9 = Load data from the ETA-9035 form on Edge.
        - A disclaimer will appear and must be agreed to before continuing.
 
- Alt+0 = Load data from the ETA-9141 form on Edge.
        - A disclaimer will appear and must be agreed to before continuing
 
- Alt+P = Populate previously loaded data to the chosen form on FLAG.
The I-864-CO and I-864-P represents the I-864A form used by USCIS (Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member). For the I-864-CO, the letters “CO” indicate the form will populate with the co-sponsor's household member’s information. The letter "P" in the I-864-P indicates the form will populate with the primary sponsor's information. In some cases, the co-sponsor or primary sponsor may choose to include the income of other qualifying family members.
The following steps should be completed to ensure all data is populated correctly when adding income from either sponsor's additional family members:
- 
	Search for the primary or co-sponsor by using the Advanced Search options in the Address Book module. 
- 
	Navigate to the co-sponsor’s profile. 
- 
	Click the Dependents Sponsors tab. 
- 
	Click the Add Individual button to enter additional family member(s). 
- 
	Click the Go Back to Primary FN button to access the foreign national’s profile. 
- 
	Hover cursor over Processes Forms, then select Forms from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click Add Form button. 
- 
	Click I-864-CO or I-864-P in the dropdown list. Click Add USCIS Form. 
- 
	The form will open in Draft stage, click on Save and Close to exit the form. 
- 
	In the Forms section, change the stage of the I-864-CO or I-864-P from Draft to Worksheet then click on Update Info to save. 
- 
	Click on the I-864-CO or I-864-P form to open it in Worksheet stage. 
- 
	Scroll to Part 6 – Sponsor’s income and employment section. 
- 
	Click the Select Family Members button. 
- 
	Family Member screen will appear displaying Sponsor’s family members. 
- 
	Click on the number next to the family member, then move it to the DRAG AND DROP RECORDS HERE section. 
- 
	If needed add additional information for each record: - 
		Middle Name 
- 
		A-Number 
- 
		ELIS Number 
- 
		SSN 
- 
		Income 
 
- 
		
- Click on Update Info to save changes.
- 
	Once all information has been entered into the form, click Update and Return. 
In the Forms section, change the stage of the I-864-CO or I-864-P from Worksheet to Review, click on Update Info to save.
An enhanced I-944 Form and questionnaire are now available. The questionnaire has been introduced for use on the new Foreign National portal, where users can quickly supply information that will feed into the upgraded I-944 form.
Enhanced I-944 for New FN Portal Users
To assist users in gathering up important information relating to Public Charge requirements, the I-944 form on Edge has been upgraded. The latest version offers an enhanced workflow as follows. As there are a number of questions in regards to family members, household income, and assets, several pop-ups have been implemented to the form in order to assist with preparation.
- To access this latest version, users must click the Upgrade button next to a I-944 already attached to a FN profile OR, add the form to the profile after 4/9/2020.
- Users must review and save all data in their I-944 forms prior to upgrading as a precaution.
Adding I-944 Questionnaire for FN Use
Enabling this questionnaire for FNs to access on their portal can be done easily from the FN Profile.
- Navigate to the FN Profile.
- Under the Processes/Forms tab select Questionnaires.
- Select the checkboxes next Declaration of Self-Sufficiency (I-944) as desired.
- Click Update Info in the upper right.
At this point in time, no questions can be viewed, hidden, or customized by administrators at this time. The status of the questionnaire will be displayed, but these other options will be implemented at a later date.
I-944 Questionnaire on the New FN Portal
When made viewable to the FN via the Questionnaires tab on the FN profile, the I-944 will appear as a new tile labeled Declaration of Self Sufficiency (I-944).
Once Get Started is clicked, users will be presented with all relevant questions pertaining to the I-944, spread out across multiple tabs:
- Personal/Income
	- Contains questions in regards to the Foreign National, their income and types of assets.
 
- Liabilities/Credit/Insurance
	- Areas for the FN to disclose any liabilities (mortgage, car loans, etc.), credit score, and any health insurance.
 
- Education
	- Details about the Foreign National such as any occupational skills, retirement status, being a caregiver, etc.
 
- Public Benefits 
	- Pertinent form questions in regards to the receipt of or application for public benefits at any time.
 
- Household Income 
	- Area for the Foreign National to disclose income and types of assets of their household members (including dependents).
 
- Additional Income
	- Questions regarding any extra income pulled from other sources not already disclosed in other areas of the questionnaire.
 
- Income Source
	- Details as to the source of income for the Foreign National or their household members.
 
Along with multiple tabs for different asset information, there are a few key sections for Foreign Nationals to use when submitting data on their household members.
When filling out Household Income data, the questionnaire will automatically populate the members of the household disclosed previously in the My Immediate Family questionnaire. Here the FN may input data and save asset, income, and informational data on each person.
The Additional Income tab will allow for a FN to add or delete entries denoting other assets at will. The FN must click one of the Save buttons in the upper right to ensure this data is retained.
At this time there is a limit to how many entries a Foreign National may supply in regards to assets or benefits they list throughout the questionnaire. The ability to allow for more entries and eventual overflow into the addendum is planned for a future release.
I-944 Questionnaire-To-Form Workflow
As these items work best in tandem, the data input by the Foreign National can be selected as needed by the form preparer.
Once in the questionnaire, the Foreign National will be presented with several tabs of questions asking about assets, household members, etc.
In the Part 3 (Your and Your Household Members’ Assets, etc) of the form, the preparer can click on the Select Household Member button. This will display a pop-up of the household members that the FN supplied information about through the questionnaire.
Later in the same part of the form, preparers can also make selections as far as any Additional Income the FN has provided via the questionnaire. Clicking Select Additional Income on the form will present a pop-up displaying every entry supplied by the FN. Users may populate this information to the form by clicking and dragging the desired items to the top of the pop-up window and clicking Update Info in the lower left. If an item must be added to this record manually, users can click on the + icon in the upper right to generate a blank line where additional income may be added within the modal.
Finally, preparers can easily add the types of assets provided by the FN in the questionnaire. Within the Your Household’s Assets and Resources section, users may click the Select Assets button appearing within the I 944 draft form. A pop-up will appear, showing each entry that the FN provided in the Information About Your Assets area of the questionnaire.
Here as well, users are free to click and drag up to seven entries and have it populate in the form.
With the upgraded form and questionnaire working in tandem, the preparation of the I-944 is clear and concise.
If there are folders for reports that are no longer needed or should be added, this can be managed from within the administrative settings area.
Please note, the following steps require administrative privileges to proceed. If you are unable to carry out these steps, please contact your Edge administrator for appropriate permissions or assistance.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click the Choice Lists tab. 
- 
	Select Report Folders within dropdown next to Choice Lists in center. 
To create a new folder
- 
	Enter in desired folder name in blank center field. 
- 
	Click Add Custom Type. 
The new folder will be added for use within the Reports module.
To delete a folder
- 
	Click to highlight the desired folder in the right hand column. 
- 
	Click Remove Type. 
Please note: Administrators will not be able to remove custom folders that contain reports. Reports must first be moved to a different location, before deleting the report folder.
Edge allows foreign nationals to access a portal where they can check on their case status, upload documents, and fill out questionnaires. The following are steps on how you can give the foreign national access to the portal, where they can then fill out the questionnaires.
- 
	Navigate to the foreign nationals case file. 
- 
	If the foreign national has multiple process assigned, select the Process Forms tab then the Assignments folder. 
- 
	Click the drop down arrow in the Case Assignment section and verify the correct process type is selected as the current process (* will be displayed next to current process name) 
- 
	Click the Questionnaires folder. 
- 
	Verify the correct questionnaires are selected from the Set 1 for this Process column, and make any changes if necessary. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save any changes made. 
- 
	Next click on the Activities folder, then click the Send Welcome Email button. 
- 
	Verify the foreign national’s email address, and make changes to the welcome email message if necessary, then click on Send. 
The Welcome E-mail will have the login credentials for the foreign national where they can access the portal and fill out the questionnaires. Once the foreign national has completed the questionnaires, they can sign and date the Statement of Truthfullness. After this, the questionnaire may be marked as completed.
This will send an email notification to the Case Manager, detailing that the foreign national has completed the questionnaires.
Note: Questionnaires can be made available in the foreign national’s language. To change the language of the questionnaire from the default (English), go to the Personal tab of the foreign national’s case file and change the Language (for the online questionnaire) by using the dropdown list and selecting a different language. Click Update Info to save the changes.
To better fit your organization’s daily needs, the Edge system has the functionality for custom processes to be utilized. These custom processes may serve a more niche need that falls outside of the default ones already provided by LawLogix.
Note: The following steps may only be carried out by an administrator. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights.
 
- 
	From within the Edge system, click on the name displayed in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
	Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	In the administrative screen, click on the Process tab. 
- 
	Enter the name for the custom process in the To Create A New Process field. - 
		To pre-bundle the new process, select a current process type from the behaves like dropdown list to bundle forms, required documents, questionnaires, and activities. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the New Process button on the right hand side of the screen to add the process. 
Processes marked with empty parentheses ( ) are not in use, and will not be available to your users, although you can use the "Mark as Used" button to add an unused process to the list of available process types. Before adding a new custom process, we recommend reviewing the current list of process types to ensure that you do not create a duplicate process type.
INTERNAL ONLY
If a firm wishes to implement the webcapture option to allow Foreign Nationals to request cases please do the following:
 
- Navigate to the LLX Admin module for the firm.
- Enable Allow FN Request Cases.
- Set max daily limit to 25.
- Ensure that the firm customizes the Consultation/Webcapture tab under the General Tab in Administrative Settings.
- From the case within Salesforce, create an email using the template email found in All Folders – LLX Customer Support – Foreign National Case Request Feature - Do not send email yet!)
- Modify ‘step 4’ of the email to reflect the specific production site and firm key within the form ID code.
	- E.g. “
- Example: demo should be (www, ww1, ww2, ww3) and 113 is the Firm Key.
- Do not insert the leading zeroes.
 
- Send email.
 The Edge system can be accessed via the web on a PC, Mac or mobile device, so the requirements are dictated by the browser you utilize to sign into the program. 
 
Compatible browsers:
 
- Safari (version 7 and above)
- Mozilla Firefox (version 32 and above)
- Chrome (version 46 and above)
- Microsoft Edge (current version and one previous)
Connectivity: For optimal access to the Edge system, it is recommended that users utilize a DSL, cable, or broadband internet connection.
 
Note: Microsoft Edge is not officially compatible with the Edge system. If using Microsoft Edge, you may open an Internet Explorer window through the command on the settings menu. 
 
Adobe Acrobat Requirements:
 
In order to optimally view and edit forms within the Edge system, users are encouraged to utilize the free PDF software Adobe Reader (Acrobat in later versions). The software has some operating specifications in order to function properly on your device. 
 
- Adobe Reader 8 - Any system utilizing an OS below Mac OS X 10.7 or Windows 7.
- Adobe Reader 9 - Any PC. Minimum Mac OS X 10.6.8 with Safari 5.0..
- Adobe Reader 10 - Any PC. Mac OS 10.6.8 with Safari 5.0.5 or Mac OS X 10.7.4 with Firefox 12.0 using Adobe 10.1.2 plugin.
Note: Improper install or uninstall of Adobe programs may result in difficulties uploading/downloading forms from the Edge system. 
 
Scanner Settings:
 
During the course of multiple workflows, Edge users will need to scan in applicable documentation. In order to maximize the quality and printability of the documents processed, the following settings are recommended for your scanning device. 
 
- Resolution set at either 72-100 dpi, or 8-bit grayscale.
- Scan size set to auto-detect.
- Image files formatted to JPEG, PDF, or TIFF (single or multi-page).
Save for multi-page TIFFs, image files should ideally be less than 200K in size to allow for minimal impact on loading times.
Document Upload Limits:
 
- File names should not exceed a maximum of 80 characters (this includes the file extension).
- File size should not exceed 150 MB.
- Foreign characters cannot be used in file names.
The Edge system is highly customizable and this extends to system default questionnaires. Questionnaires can be modified for each process type to better suit your organizational needs.
 
Note: The following may only be performed by a user with administrative privileges. If you are unable to proceed through the steps, please contact your Edge administrator for assistance.
 
To customize a default questionnaire for a process type:
- 
	Click on the username displayed in the upper right of the page and select Administrative Settings from the dropdown. 
- 
	In the Firm Administration module, click the Processes tab. 
- 
	Click the Default Questionnaires tab. 
- 
	The left hand side of the page will display all of the Questionnaires that are available. 
- 
	Click the dropdown arrow in the Selected Process section and select the process to customize the questionnaires for. 
- 
	From the Questionnaires section, use the checkbox in the Show column to include or remove Questionnaires for the selected process. 
- 
	Clicking the name of the questionnaire will display all of the questions associated with it. 
- 
	Use the checkbox in the Hide column to hide the questions you don’t want displayed. 
- 
	Click Update Info to save changes. 
LawLogix allows a firm administrator to create custom email templates and set any of them as a 'Welcome Email' type for Foreign National or HR users. When the Send Welcome Email button is clicked within a given FN’s Activities page, the user may select one of their custom created templates to be sent.
 
To create a new template, a user must have administrative privileges. If you are unable to complete the steps listed below, please contact your Edge administrator to secure the proper rights or assistance.
 
- 
        From the Edge system, click the username displayed in the upper right. 
- 
        Select Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
        Hover your cursor over Templates and select E-Mail & Reminder from the dropdown. 
- 
        Click Add E-mail Template in the upper right. 
- 
        A modal will appear to pick the email type. Click Plain Text Format. 
- 
        Next to Welcome E-mail? Make a selection between Foreign National or HR as the type of end recipient. - 
                Select No if the template is not meant for use as a Welcome Email. 
- 
                Select the new FN or HR email template as the system default by selecting Yes or No in the Set as default option. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Name your template in the Template Class field. 
- 
        Add your custom e-mail text within the blank description field. - 
                You may also add any attachments as necessary by clicking Upload Document in the lower left. 
 
- 
                
- 
        Once finished, click Update Info to save the template. 
When the Send Welcome Email button is selected within an FN/Individual’s profile, users will have the ability to select the newly created welcome email from the template dropdown list.
Please see the following tutorial video on adjusting your settings. 
LawLogix provides a tool that allows users to create a relationship between individual records within a case file. For example, users can establish a link between siblings whose records both exist within the Primary Foreign National's Dependents Sponsors tab, but are not listed on each other's Dependents Sponsors tab. This eliminates the need for recreating dependent records within each family member's dependents area.
You can link two individuals' records to each other as follows:
- 
	Navigate to either of the unlinked Foreign National’s unlinked family member profiles. 
- 
	Click Dependents Sponsors. 
- 
	Click Show Non Linked Family Dependents in the upper right.
	- This should display all other individual records that have been created within the primary case file, but are not yet linked to the person.
 
- 
	Click Create under the Link column heading. 
- 
	In the next page, choose a relationship from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Make a selection if Applying With. 
- 
	Click Update in the upper right. 
The two family members will now be linked and listed on each other’s Dependents Sponsors tab.
For security purposes, the LawLogix Foreign National billing module does not allow for the complete deletion of an invoice. These items are best retained for accurate record keeping. However, users can delete charges or add credits to offset charges made to an FN.
To delete charges, proceed with the following steps:
- 
	Navigate to the FN file with the invoice issue. 
- 
	Hover your cursor over the FN Billing tab and select Billing History from the dropdown menu that appears. 
- 
	Click the number of the invoice that needs charges deleted. 
- 
	Once loaded into the invoice review screen, find the charge(s) that need to be removed and click the Charge Date. 
- 
	Another screen with specific information about the charge will load. click the Delete This Charge button in the bottom right corner of the screen. - 
		This button may not appeared if this charge was spread over time and cannot be edited. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Delete in the action confirmation window that appears. 
Note: If the invoice was created by the Create Blank Invoice button, then it can be deleted so long as it adheres to the following criteria:
- 
	All charges are deleted from the invoice. 
- 
	It is the most recent invoice on the FN’s file. 
Should your organization experience issues with emails being sent from the Edge system being caught in spam filters of your recipients (or never received at all), there could be an issue with how the messages are recognized by email programs.
The following settings will assist in “whitelisting” your firm’s communications, so they may be sent and received without any further problems.
Please have your IT Administrator add the following information to your Sender Policy Framework (SPF) record:
 
Host names:
- 
        mail.welcomeclient.com 
 
A law firm or organization e-mail system contains protections against unauthorized use of its e-mail domain. A common tactic of Spam senders is to forge the identity of the sender of an e-mail so that it appears that the email originated from a safe or familiar mail server.
 
To protect against this the organization has what is called a mail server Sender Policy Framework (SPF). The SPF system allows recipients of email to verify that the mail server sending the email from the lawfirm or organization domain is authorized.
 
By adding the mail server addresses listed above to the SPF record of the organization, mail issued from the EDGE system from the organization's email domain will be authorized and will not be rejected.
 
Note: The Edge system sends messages using the email address stored in the user profile of whomever is logged in. For example, if a user has entered in user@lawfirm.com as their contact email, Edge will send emails from its own server with this address. This can cause some email systems to block communications since it is unsure of where the message is coming from exactly.
In certain instances, you may need to delete a process from a Foreign National’s file. Maybe an individual does not wish to pursue all the processes they started, or the process was created in error. In any case, deleting a process can be done easily.
Please note that new cases or processes will not generate a case creation fee if deleted within 24 hours.
The following steps apply only if a Foreign National’s case has more than one process assigned to it. If there is only one process and you still wish to remove it, then the entire Foreign National file must be deleted.
Note: Once processes are deleted, they cannot be restored.
- 
        Search for the Foreign National you want to delete the process for. 
- 
        Select the Processes Forms tab from the FN’s case file, then click Assignments. 
- 
        Select the specific process you wish to delete from the dropdown list that appears in the Case Assignment section. Once selected, the screen will refresh to show the process. 
- 
        Click the Delete Process button in the lower right. 
- 
        A warning box will appear asking for verification of the deletion. Click Yes to proceed. 
The forms created in Edge are protected with PDF Document Security that restrict editing and modification of the form. This security is intended to protect the work product of our users and to prevent unintended changes that could impact a client’s case.
Attempting to make certain changes to the form may prompt for a password. If additional changes need to be made to the form, such changes should be made within Edge by placing the form back into the “Draft” stage.
The Edge system carries the flexibility to create custom fields for users to provide additional data fields to be used and reported on as necessary. Setting these items however, is something only administrators can carry out and apply across an organization’s system for use.
To set custom fields, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, click the username in the upper right. 
- 
	Click Administrative Settings from the dropdown menu. 
- 
	Within the Admin settings page, click Custom Fields. 
- 
	Enter in desired custom labels for FN, Process, HR,or Address Book . 
- 
	Click Update Info. 
Once these custom fields are added, they will appear in different areas dependent on their categorization.
- 
	FN Fields - Located under Financial Misc tab within FN profile. 
- 
	Process Fields - Located under Processes Forms tab, Assignment folder within FN profile. 
- 
	Address Book Data - Located in Address Book Contact record. 
- 
	HR Fields - Located in the Misc tab within the HR contact record 
In order to generate a set of completed questionnaire pages in a printable format, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
	From the Edge dashboard, navigate to the profile of the Foreign National that completed the questionnaire. 
- 
	From the FN profile, hover your cursor over Processes/Forms and click Questionnaire from the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Select checkboxes for each desired under the Locked (Set I) column. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right. 
- 
	Click the paper document icon underneath the Locked (Set I) column header. 
- 
	A message will appear reading: “Locked Questionnaires in PDF is being generated and will be available in OnDocs shortly!” 
- 
	Hover cursor over OnDocs Notes and select Documents from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click PDF Locked Questionnaire Set I. 
- 
	Click Download Document. 
- 
	Once document is opened, click the Adobe printer icon to print page(s). 
To generate and print a blank questionnaire, please proceed with the following: 
- 
	From the FN profile, hover your cursor over Processes/Forms and click Questionnaire from the dropdown that appears. 
- 
	Check the pages needed by selecting the appropriate boxes in the Set I for this Process column. 
- 
	Click Update Info in the upper right. 
- 
	Click the paper document icon underneath the Set I for this Process column header. 
- 
	A message will appear reading “Selected Blank Questionnaires in PDF is being generated and will be available in OnDocs shortly!” 
- 
	Hover cursor over OnDocs Notes and select Documents from the dropdown. 
- 
	Click PDF Blank Questionnaires Set I. 
- 
	Click Download Document. 
- 
	Once document is opened, click the Adobe printer icon to print page(s). 
There are a variety of reports available for pulling information within the Edge system. In order to create a specific A/R Report, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
	In Edge, select the Reports module. 
- 
	From the Report Type drop down list, select A/R Report, then click on View. 
- 
	The report Templates screen will appear. 
- 
	A default Firm Activity Report will appear, you can use this default template or click the New Template button to add a new report. 
- 
	If adding a new template enter a Report name, then click Update Settings. 
- 
	Select the following report filter options: - 
		Shared or Private 
- 
		Report Type 
- 
		Scope 
- 
		Level 
- 
		Show FN’s 
- 
		Date Range 
- 
		Group By 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings to save changes. 
- 
	Click the Run Report button to generate the report, or schedule the report to run on a specific day for larger size reports. 
E-Verify & I-9 Management Articles
See below for Guardian User Guides and Tutorials.
Administration
Getting Started
- Standard User Interface Overview
- Location Manager Interface Overview
- Dashboard Overview
- I-9 Section 1
- I-9 Section 2
- I-9 Section 3
- I-9 Preparer/Translator Certification
- Create Employee Login
- Uploading Documents
- Document Capture Enforcement
- Updating Employment History
- E-Verify Compliance Requirements
- Case Notes
General I-9 Workflows
Special I-9 Workflows
- In-Person Replacement Receipt
- Remote Hire Replacement Receipt
- Employee without Social Security Number
- H-1B Portability
- F-1 Curricular Practical Training (CPT)
- Work Authorization Special Amendments
- J-1 Student/Exchange Visitor
- Lawful Permanent Resident I-94 and I-551 stamp Receipt
- Minors Without a List B Identity Document
- New Hire Paper I-9
- Archival Paper I-9
- Uploading Paper I-9
E-Verify Workflows
- Employment Authorized Result
- Typographical Errors
- Late Submission
- Duplicate Case Alert
- Photo Matching Tool
- In Person SSA TNC
- Remote Employee SSA TNC
- In Person DHS Photo No Match TNC
- Remote Employee DHS Photo No Match TNC
- Navigation and E-Verify Update FAQ (2020)
Remote Agent I-9 Processing
- Remote Hire with Agent Workflow
- Remote I-9 Management
- Remote Section 3 Reverification
- PAN - Remote Verification Network Overview
I-9 Remediation
FAR Federal Contractor Tools
Advanced Features
Guardian Reports Module
There are two types of reports available to create in the Guardian system:
1) Standard Reports are pre-configured templates
- 
Organizations on the hierarchical model of Guardian (G2) have these basic reports: 
- 
Pending Reverifications - employees with temporary work authorization that require reverification. 
- 
I-9 Issues - employees who have issues flagged on their primary I-9 record. 
- 
Employee Groups - displays details about the organization’s locations & employee groups 
- 
Organizations on the Occupation Class structure of Guardian (G1) have these basic reports: 
- 
Pending I-9s 
- 
Completed I-9s 
- 
I-9 Summary 
- 
Pending Reverifications 
- 
Pending Receipts 
- 
I-9 Issues 
- 
E-Verify Status 
- 
Employee 
- 
User 
2) Interactive Reports are customizable reports. The listing and definitions of the available Base Tables are the following:
- 
HR Users: this is the main table to pull information related to a user 
- 
Business Units: this table pulls information related to business units 
- 
Contracts: this table will pull information related to all contracts for employers that participate in E-Verify under a federal contract containing the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clause 
- 
Dashboard: this table will generate reports from any of the available dashboard panels (see the Dashboard Reports slide for more information) 
- 
Documents: this table will pull information related to any items in OnDocs. 
- 
E-Verify: this table will pull information from any E-Verify cases 
- 
Employee Address: this table will generate reports related to employee’s address 
- 
Employee Group Assignments: this table will identify which Employee Groups the user is assigned to. 
- 
Employee: this table will pull information related to all employees 
- 
FAR: this table will pull information related to the FAR clause 
- 
I-9 Issues: this table will pull information related to any existing I-9 issues for remediation purposes. 
- 
I-9 Section 3: this table will pull information related to all Section 3’s 
- 
I-9: this table will pull information related to any existing I-9’s 
- 
Locations: this table provides a yes/no indicator of which user is the default user for the HR Group. 
- 
Multi-Business Units: this table will identify which Multi-Business Units the user is assigned to. 
- 
Remote Agents: this table will pull information related to all Remote Agents used in processing Section 2’s 
- 
Remote I-9s: this table will pull information related to any remote I-9s 
- 
State Affidavits: this table will pull information related to any State Affidavits 
- 
Tasks: this table will pull information related to all pending Tasks. 
Reports Scheduler:
In the Scheduler Options section, the user can create Interactive reports that run automatically on a routine basis:
- 
The Daily option will run the report either All Days or Weekdays only. 
- 
The Weekly option will run the report on the same day of the week on a weekly basis. 
- 
The Monthly option will run the report on the specified day of the month. 
Please register for upcoming Guardian live webcasts Here!
The Pending Reverifications report is an off-the-shelf report that does not allow users to remove or add report columns. However, an interactive report can be adjusted to mirror the Pending Reverifications report, as well as additional data points as needed.
To create this custom report, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard area, click Reports in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Select Interactive as the Report Type 
- 
Click New+. 
- 
Next to Base Table, select I9. 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click Columns in the upper most tabs. 
- 
Under Select Table, click Employee. 
- 
Under Select Field, double click or drag and drop the following to add it to the Build Fields in Reports section. - 
Employee Name 
- 
Responsible HR/Group 
- 
Date Hired 
 
- 
- 
Under Select Table, click I-9. 
- 
Under Select Field, double click or drag and drop the following to add it to the Build Fields in Reports section. - 
I-9 Days to Expiration 
- 
I-9 Expiration Date 
 
- 
- 
Repeat steps 7-8 to add as many data points as desired for the report to pull. 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click Settings in the upper most tabs. 
- 
Within Date Range section, select I-9 Expiration Date from dropdown next to Date to Search. 
- 
Enter desired date within From field. - 
This will filter out I-9s that do not have an expiration date. (i.e. 1/1/1980) 
- 
By adding an old value (that is not applicable) only those I-9s with expiration dates on or after the filter date will be displayed. 
- 
To search for only those with future expiration dates then add a current date value. 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in lower left. 
- 
Click Run Report Now. 
With the ever changing landscape due to the coronavirus, LawLogix compiled the following resources and frequently asked questions to help organizations maintain I-9 compliance during this unprecedented time. This page will be updated continuously as new information, resources, or practices are introduced.
Remote Onboarding Resources
DHS' 'Virtual Verification' Announcement
LawLogix 'Virtual Verification' Blog
LawLogix Webinar: 5 Strategies for Managing Remote I-9 and E-Verify Compliance
Remote Verification Now Guardian Implementation Overview
Remote Verification Guardian Workflow Tutorial
Remote Verification Configuration Guide
Remote Verification Workflow Training Video
Virtual Verification Now Guardian Implementation Overview
Virtual Verification Configuration Guide
COVID-19 Physical Inspection Guide
Form I-9 COVID-19 Exception Scenarios
Frequently Asked Questions
General
Do we still need to complete Form I-9 within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay?
Yes, DHS has not relaxed this requirement. Organizations can fulfill this requirement by completing the I-9 in-person with the employee, remotely by designating an individual to act as the authorized representative of your organization, or virtually, utilizing DHS' temporary allowance which permits 'virtual verification' of the identity and employment authorization documents. Moreover, the requirement that the employee complete Section 1 of Form I-9 by their first day of work also remains in effect.
Can we complete an I-9 before an employee starts work for pay?
Yes, per USCIS guidelines, the law requires that a Form I-9 be completed when the person actually begins working for pay. However, once an official offer of employment has been accepted by the prospect/new hire, the form may be completed earlier.
Please note: The Form I-9 process may not be used to screen job applications.
Are we required to provide an employee a login and password to access Guardian to complete Section 1?
No, Guardian offers two different access methods for employees. While there is the option to provide the employee a login and password (i.e. permanent login) and administrator may change to Guardian’s ‘unique link’ access method whereby the employee receives a temporary link to access Guardian to complete the task.
Can I accept an expired driver license/state ID for an employee in which the office is closed?
Many states across the US closed their DMV branch offices to the public in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). To minimize customer inconvenience, many of these states auto-extended the validity of the driver’s licenses.
In response, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published the following Form I-9 guidance related to this issue:
Q. Many states are extending the expiration date of state IDs and/or driver's licenses. How should the extension be documented in Section 2?
A. If the employee's state ID or driver's license expired on or after March 1, 2020, and the document expiration date has been extended by their state due to COVID-19, then it is acceptable as a List B document for Form I-9. Enter the document's expiration date in Section 2 and enter "COVID-19 EXT" in the Additional Information field. Employers may also attach a copy of the state motor vehicle department’s webpage or other notice indicating that their documents have been extended.
The USCIS officially announced on May 1st that all List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes. In this case, the receipt is valid for 90 days from the date DHS terminates this temporary policy. In response to an inquiry made by LawLogix, DHS further clarified expectations related to E-Verify. Specifically, that I-9 forms completed with non-auto extended expired documents should not be submitted to E-Verify. Instead, E-Verify submission should occur once the valid document is provided later.
This means that more than one workflow may be applicable depending on whether the document was automatically extended. LawLogix analyzed these announcements and has set forth the following recommendations.
Managing this Process in Guardian When the Document is Auto-Extended
If a new hire presents an expired driver’s license for List B purposes during the COVID-19 pandemic, and you have confirmed that it was auto-extended by the state, you should enter the expired date in the List B expiration date field in Guardian. When the expiration date is on or after March 1, 2020, an additional ‘expiration exception’ checkbox will appear in List B. Checking this box allows the document verifier to proceed with Section 2 completion while also auto-inserting ‘COVID-19 Ext’ into the Additional Information field. The auto-insertion of this text is not dependent on whether or not your organization has enabled the ability to edit this field. 
In addition, as indicated in the USCIS announcement, you may wish to maintain a copy of the state DMV announcement in the employee’s OnDocs to further document this exception.
The I-9 should be marked ‘Approved’ at the time of completion and submitted to E-Verify, if applicable.
Managing this Process in Guardian When the Document is NOT Auto-Extended
For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy). 
Since DHS indicates that such I-9s should not be submitted to E-Verify, users should mark the I-9 ‘Completed’, but refrain from marking the I-9 ‘Approved’.
To help facilitate a follow up workflow for this situation, organizations are further advised to create a custom field. A custom field labeled ‘COVID List B Exception’ may be created by an administrator and used to report on employees who require follow up once DHS ends the temporary policy. 
Please note that when the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should edit Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date, re-sign Section 2, and Approve the I-9 to facilitate E-Verify submission.
If your organization does not participate in E-Verify you may wish to follow this abbreviated procedure instead:
When processing the I-9 initially, proceed with marking the I-9 ‘Approved’, and when the employer later presents the unexpired document, amend Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date.
Is an employee allowed to use an EAD Approval Notice as an acceptable document?
Yes. The USCIS affirmed that employers may continue to accept a qualifying Form I-797 approval notice in place of an actual EAD until February 1, 2021. Approval notices can be accepted for either newly hired employees or reverifications.
In order to qualify, the I-797 approval notice must have a Notice Date from December 1, 2019 through and including August 20, 2020, and indicate that the employee’s I-765 form (Application for Employment Authorization) has been approved by the USCIS. Newly hired employees must also present a List B document to demonstrate identity as required in Section 2 of the Form I-9.
If you previously accepted and recorded an I-797 EAD approval notice in Section 2 of the Form I-9 with a December 1, 2020 expiration date, you will need to update the Form I-9 to indicate the new extended work authorization date of February 1, 2021.
While the USCIS recommends adding a note to the ‘Additional Information’ field, Guardian users should instead take the following steps to ensure appropriate reverification reminders are activated:
1. Amend the List C Expiration Date with the new extended expiration date of February 1, 2021.
2. In the ‘Note of Record’ field within the amendment, enter “Employment Authorization Ext”
Once the amendment is approved, Guardian will properly annotate the I-9 with updated work authorization expiration date and set a new reverification deadline of February 1, 2021.
For more information on this temporary policy and how to fulfill an I-9 using a Form I-797, please refer to our blog.
How should we reverify the work authorization of a furloughed employee?
Assuming the employee’s visa allows for furlough without pay, you may reverify the employee’s work authorization once he or she returns to work by completing Section 3 in Guardian. It is advisable to create an audit case note as well, indicating that the employee was not working (and off payroll) during the gap between the end of their work authorization and the reverification period. Employers with questions about the impact of a furlough on foreign national employees should consult with their legal counsel.
 
E-Verify
Do we still need to create a case with E-Verify within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay?
Yes, regardless of the I-9 completion option your organization chooses, DHS expects the I-9 information to be submitted to E-Verify within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay.
What happens if an employee receives a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) response from E-Verify?[]
The employee should be notified as soon as possible once the TNC is received. If the employee chooses to take action, DHS has noted that the final response may be delayed (past the expected resolution deadline as noted on the Referral Date Confirmation) due to Social Security Administration (SSA) office closures. During this time, while the case remains referred, no adverse action may be taken against the employee. These cases will continue to reflect the following status in Guardian: Pending Further SSA/DHS Action as well as Employee Referred.
 
Can I process a Tentative Nonconfirmation with a remote employee?
Yes, Guardian supports a remote workflow in order to notify and provide the employee with access to review and electronically sign the Further Action Notice (FAN).
See this tutorial for detailed steps on how to initiate the remote workflow.
In Person Remote Agent Verification
How can we create an I-9 that utilizes the remote agent workflow to verify documents?
An I-9 that is flagged for ‘remote processing’ can be created manually within Guardian or programmatically for those organizations that have a data integration. To place the employee in this type of workflow manually, select ‘Logins Required’ (option 3) for the Login Type when creating a new employee record, or click ‘Add I-9 for Remote Processing’ on the I-9 Forms tab of an existing employee record. These actions provide unique access links for both the employee and remote agent to complete the I-9 electronically.
 
Is the remote agent able to upload the supporting documents to Guardian?
Yes, a document retention step can be added to the remote agent’s workflow. This is a configuration option that a Guardian administrator can enable.
Is LawLogix’ ‘Remote Verification Network’ still accepting appointments to verify I-9 documents?
As the coronavirus has spread and states and cities enact additional ‘shelter in place’ or ‘stay at home’ strategies, many businesses that are part of the verification network have closed temporarily.
Click here for an up-to-date list of site closures.
Am I able to convert an electronic I-9 to a ‘remote processing’ I-9?
No, the functionality to change an I-9 to a remote I-9 is not available in Guardian currently. If the employee will now see a remote agent to complete the I-9 process we recommend ‘parking’ the original I-9 and creating an I-9 for remote processing. Note that the ability to park an I-9 (i.e. maintain it within the system and prevent future editing) is an administrative option your organization must enable.
Can we customize the employee and agent instructions?
Yes, an administrator has the ability to update the instruction templates for this remote hire workflow.
Can we automate the sending of both the employee and agent instructions?
Through data feed or web service integrations your organization can automate the creation of I-9s for remote processing. The employee instructions specific to the remote hire workflow are also emailed as part of the automation. However, since the agent instructions are often intended for an unknown recipient, there is no automatic emailing of agent instructions. These instructions are available to the employee through their Guardian portal workflow. This allows the employee to provide the instructions to the agent when appropriate.
If you wish to provide both steps to the employee upfront you may customize the employee instructions and combine both the employee and agent instructions and access links in the same email, first noting the responsibilities of the employee and then of the agent.
Organizations should maintain the separate agent instructions as well because an instruction link is available within the agent’s portal that utilizes the remote agent instructions template. Additionally, maintenance of the distinct agent instructions template ensures that the access URL is generated properly for the agent.
 
Virtual Verification
What is the ‘virtual verification’ exception?
On March 20, 2020, DHS announced the temporary allowance to inspect I-9 documents ‘virtually’ for those organizations forced to a remote/’work from home’ workforce to abide by social distancing policies to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. DHS indicated that this is a temporary exception that is valid for 60 days from the announcement or within three business days once the state of national emergency has ended, whichever is sooner.
LawLogix released an administrative option that, when enabled, allows an organization to flag I-9s that have been completed via the virtual verification exception. The exception can be indicated on an I-9 by I-9 basis by toggling ‘on’ the selection.
The following information will appear at the top of the I-9 Details page when the feature is activated.
Is LawLogix making any changes to Guardian to support this temporary exception?
Yes, LawLogix has introduced the 'COVID-19 Exception' option into the system. This option can allow users to flag an I-9 that was completed using virtual verification, so it may be followed up on after normal business resumes.
More details about these changes can be found in our New and Notable section.
More features that support the utilization of this exception including extending document upload functionality to employees and managing the deferred physical inspection I-9 annotation are also in the works. Changes are forthcoming and releases will be announced within Guardian.
Must Section 2 be completed within 3 days of employment start?
Yes, even when taking advantage of the temporary ‘virtual verification’ option, the employer is obligated to complete the I-9 within 3 business days of the employee starting work for pay.
Should we be making special notations on the I-9 at the time of ‘virtual verification’?
Yes, as a best practice LawLogix recommends annotating the I-9 with the words ‘COVID-19’ at the time of Section 2 completion. This note should be added to the 'Additional Information' field. An administrator should confirm in the I-9 Preferences and Policy section that your organization has not restricted this field from editing.
Note, DHS has not definitively stated that this annotation has to be done during the initial I-9 completion, but we find it is a good idea in the off-chance that you receive a Notice of Inspection before you’ve had an opportunity to conduct the in-person verification.
What if we did not input ‘COVID-19’ in the Additional Information field at the time of Section 2 completion? 
If there already are virtual I-9s completed without this annotation, or your organization does not permit the editing of the Section 2 Additional Information box, this requirement can still be met. When you do conduct the in-person verification later-on, Guardian will enable you to enter the COVID-19 wording along with the date of physical inspection through a streamlined amendment workflow specific to this exception case. More information about that functionality will be forthcoming.
To ensure that your organization can take advantage of the upcoming amendment workflow, select the COVID-19 virtual verification flag on those I-9s using the virtual verification exception. We designed this feature primarily to help you manage and track those I-9s that will need to be updated when normal business operations resume.
We have been virtually verifying I-9s, but do not have the Guardian administrative option activated. Can we still utilize it? 
Yes, the virtual verification exception can be enabled at any time by an administrator. Users may return to an I-9 at any time to indicate the I-9 was completed virtually.
 
Are we able to flag I-9s for the ‘Virtual Verification’ exception after the I-9 is approved? 
Yes, as long as virtual verification has been enabled by an administrator, users may return to an I-9 at any time to indicate the I-9 was completed virtually.
 
What should we do if we flagged an I-9 incorrectly for virtual verification? 
The virtual verification exception flag can be removed at any time. If there is an I-9 that was incorrectly flagged for virtual verification, simply navigate to the I-9 Details tab and deselect the option.
Will I-9s remain flagged for virtual verification if we disable the administrative option? 
Yes, when an I-9 is flagged for virtual verification, that flag remains regardless of whether the virtual verification administrative setting is active. The COVID-19 exception message remains visible on the I-9 Details tab. If the I-9 was incorrectly flagged for virtual verification, a user may deselect the option to remove the flag.
If we are tracking virtual verification outside of Guardian should we be utilizing the administrative option? 
LawLogix recommends flagging virtual verification I-9s in Guardian even if tracking externally in order to take advantage of future functionality intended to streamline the physical inspection annotation.
How can we update virtual verification I-9s once physical inspection takes place?
LawLogix is planning to release functionality that streamlines the annotation of the physical inspection notation so that the I-9 properly reflects when and by whom physical inspection of documents was completed. Users will be able to take advantage of this streamlined workflow for those I-9s flagged with the virtual verification exception.
Can we annotate the physical inspection process before LawLogix releases the special virtual verification amendment workflow?
Yes, organizations may utilize in-system tools to document the physical inspection process prior to LawLogix’ release of new functionality.
We recommend the use of the ‘Audit Note’ case note to document the date physical inspection was completed as well as who completed the inspection. Additionally, to formalize the process more fully we suggest the verifier complete a document attesting to the physical inspection.
How can we utilize a remote agent to complete the physical inspection requirement?
If your organization needs to utilize a remote agent to perform this function, this process requires steps both internal and external to Guardian in order to fulfill the requirement. LawLogix has put together a best practice recommendation to address this temporary and unique situation. Please find below a list of recommended activities when having a remote agent complete the deferred physical inspection when normal business operations resume.
1. Identify, either through Guardian reports or another HR-related system, those employees who presented documents virtually and remain remote, requiring an agent/authorized representative to complete physical inspection.
2. Print or save an electronic copy of the completed Form I-9 for each of these employees.
3. Through secure means, contact each employee and provide them with their previously completed I-9, as well as a supplemental “Physical Inspection Attestation” to be signed by their chosen remote agent.
4. Direct the employee to choose a remote agent that may perform the in-person document inspection.
5. Instruct the employee to present to the agent the same original documents that were previously provided, regardless of document expiration date.
6. Advise the remote agent to compare the documents presented to the information contained in Section 2 of the employee’s Form I-9, and sign the Physical Inspection Attestation.
7. Through secure means, the employee returns the Physical Inspection Attestation to the HR team.
8. A Guardian user uploads the attestation to the employee’s I-9 OnDocs as a supporting document. 9. The Guardian user may toggle off* the COVID-19 exception from the employee profile to remove the exception alert from the dashboard.
**Note: in the workflow described above, the physical inspection will only be recorded on the supplemental attestation uploaded to the employee’s OnDocs file. If your organization wishes to also record the COVID-19 physical document information on the Form I-9 itself, a Guardian user may instead initiate the streamlined amendment process in Guardian which will record the inspection date and name of inspector in the Section 2 Additional Information field, and remove the exception alert from Guardian.
Should we wait to submit the I-9 to E-Verify until the documents have been physically inspected?
No, you should not delay E-Verify case creation. The I-9 should be completed and approved in Guardian at the time of ‘virtual verification’.
Do we need to retain the I-9 supporting documents if that is not our normal policy?
Yes, based on DHS guidance, the documents utilized to complete I-9s with this COVID-19 exception must be retained. You may utilize the employee’s ‘I-9 OnDocs’ to permanently store the documents within Guardian.
 
Can we use the new “virtual verification” option if only a portion of our workforce is working remotely due to COVID-19? For example, we have certain job roles for whom it is essential to work onsite at our facilities despite our overall policy that employees should work from home?
According to the DHS memo published on March 20, 2020, the virtual verification option is only available to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19. The memo goes on to state that if there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of the I-9 documents. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
This “case-by-case” basis language provides employers with an opportunity to interpret the memo and requirements based on their own unique circumstances and conditions. For example, an employer with on-site employees may have a good argument for using the virtual verification option if a new hire will be working remotely from the beginning. Similarly, an employer might take the position that virtual verification is appropriate since their “existing” HR employees (who would normally complete Section 2) are working remotely, due to a lockdown protocol. Other employers may choose to make a blanket argument that virtual verification is essential in order to maintain the safety and well-being of their staff.
Ultimately, employers will need to analyze and interpret this memo, ideally with the help of their legal counsel, to make this decision.
We recommend consulting our blog post on this particular issue, which weighs the potential risks in detail.
 
How do we give the employee access to Guardian to complete Section 1 electronically?
Employees may be given login credentials or a unique link (depending on your organization’s configuration) to access an employee interface for purposes of completing Section 1 of the I-9. To do so, please proceed with the following steps. Users can generate the welcome email by performing the following steps:
- Navigate to the employee profile.
- Click the Login Info tab.
- Under Contact Information, enter the employee's email address.
- Click Update Info in the upper right to save.
- Click Create Login in the lower left.
- Review and/or edit from within the subsequent email preview window and click Send Email.
- Work Authorization Reverification (Section 3)
Are we able to utilize a remote agent to document our employee’s work authorization extension?
Yes, Guardian supports remote processing (utilizing a remote agent to act as the organization’s authorized representative) to fulfill both Section 2 and Section 3 documentation requirements. To generate a remote Section 3, access the employee’s I-9 record, navigate to the I-9 Details tab, scroll down to Section 3 and select Add Remote Section 3. This process generates a new electronic Section 3 as well as an access link an agent can use to complete the process.
Can we utilize the ‘Virtual Verification’ exception to complete reverification?
Yes, DHS’ announcement extended the use of this exception to fulfill hiring and reverification requirements.
 
How should I track reverifications completed with the ‘virtual verification’ exception?
LawLogix recommends enabling a custom field in Guardian to flag reverification employee records that require physical inspection later. LawLogix suggests labeling it ‘COVID 19 Reverification Exception’, or similar and consider making it a choice list (Yes/No) to capture information consistently.
 
How should we manage the physical inspection annotation in Section 3 once normal business operations resume?
LawLogix recommends utilizing Guardian’s amendment feature to amend Section 3 to include the note."
There are several reasons why an amendment may not be able to be approved.
 
- 
There are valid issues appearing on the Amendments tab within the Issues with I-9 Amendments section. If there are any issues listed that are not exempted or deferred, the issues will be seen as still valid and prevent users from approving pending amendments. 
This can be corrected by either resolving or exempting the issue(s) present on the I-9. Users with the appropriate privilege can exempt the issue by clicking the Valid link for the entry within the Issues with Amendments section. Please note that the exemption should occur in the Amendments tab, not the Issues tab.
 
- 
The user does not have the appropriate privileges to approve amendments. Guardian administrators grant permissions on a user-by-user basis to approve amendments. If a user does not have the permission to approve amendments, then that action will not be enabled within the Amendments tab. 
- 
The pending amendment relates to Section 1. Organizations may restrict Section 1 approval to employees only. If your database has been configured in this way then the Approve Section 1 action within the Amendments tab will not be enabled. In these instances, a user may initiate the approval step by selecting the action Employee Approve Section 1 if the employee is present or Notify Employee by E-Mail if the employee is not present. 
The decision of whether or not a specific document should be accepted generally falls into legal advice that LawLogix cannot give as a software company.  
 
Fortunately though, we can refer you to some guidance which may help. In the M-274 Handbook for Employers, it advises that an employer cannot accept a receipt notice for an I-766 employment authorization document which is expired on its face.  
 
Handbook Reference:
Q. My employee has applied for a new Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766). Is the USCIS receipt notice covered by the Form I-9 receipt rule?  
 
A. In this case, the USCIS receipt notice is not an acceptable receipt for Form I-9 purposes. An employee with temporary employment authorization and holding an Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) should apply for a new card at least 90 days before the expiration of his or her current document.
 
If your employee applied for a new card at least 90 days before his or her current card expired but is nearing the end of the 90-day processing period without a decision from USCIS, instruct your employee to call the National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283 or 1-800-767-1833 (TDD) about the status of his or her application. USCIS strongly encourages that employees first call the National Customer Service Center before visiting a USCIS office to prevent possible delays.
 
If your employee prefers to check on the status of his or her application at a USCIS office, he or she may schedule an InfoPass appointment at www.infopass.uscis.gov. When your employee's current Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires, he or she must be able to present a List A document, a List C document, or an acceptable receipt under the receipt rule to satisfy Form I-9 reverification requirements. Please note, however, that there are some situations when an employer can accept an expired I-766 for qualified students who are in F-1 visa status and working pursuant to optional practical training.
 
For more information, please refer to the M-274 handbook which describes these situations.
If your organization is considering utilizing this “virtual verification” option allotted by the USCIS, there are some important considerations to keep in mind:
 
Virtual verification limitations and requirements
Please note that virtual verification option is only available to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19 
 
- 
This option is currently only valid for 60 days from the date of the DHS announcement (made 3/20/20) or within three business days once the state of national emergency is ended, whichever is sooner 
- 
Virtual verification allows completion of Section 2 or 3 NOW and in-person inspection of the documents LATER (i.e. two-part I-9 process) 
- 
Employers must obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the supporting documents, within 3 business days 
- 
Employers must also provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee 
- 
Employers must complete in-person I-9 verification within 3 business days once normal business operations resume 
- 
Employers must annotate I-9s that leveraged this exception at the time of the physical inspection (i.e. creating a special amendment that reads ‘COVID-19’) 
Implementation Checklist
If your organization has decided you meet the criteria laid out by DHS to utilize this temporary solution, LawLogix recommends completing the following activities:
 
- 
Determine and document the method of virtual verification - 
As the employer you must virtually inspect the I-9 documents to complete Section 2. While there are several options available, we encourage your organization to review the security and coordination of each option which includes: video conferencing, secure online document repository (e.g. Dropbox, Google Docs, Sharebase), FedEx/UPS, fax, and e-mail. 
 
- 
- 
Determine who will be responsible for the virtual verification and in-person verification processes 
- 
Determine how your organization will schedule the virtual verification appointments and who is responsible for scheduling and Section 2 completion 
- 
Document your written onboarding policy for this COVID-19 I-9 exception - 
LawLogix recommends making the policy available to all associates and advising that they add the policy statement as an I-9 audit note for each exception employee. 
 
- 
- 
Create an in-person verification policy that outlines the timeline and requirements document verifiers must fulfill once normal business operations resume - 
This policy should include the additional I-9 notations that accompany the physical inspection. Specifically, verifiers are advised to annotate the I-9 and write “COVID-19,” along with the date the in-person verification occurred. 
 
- 
- 
Create training materials for your document verifiers 
- 
Determine how your organization will collect the documents to meet the USCIS requirement to retain documents pursuant to this exception 
LawLogix further recommends the following Guardian-specific activities:
- 
Enable a Custom Field option to flag the employee records with I-9s that will require in-person verification later. (User must have the ‘administrator’ permission to complete this step.) - 
If implementing this policy immediately, LawLogix recommends that you label the Custom Field ‘COVID 19 Exception’ for easy identification and provide guidance to document verifiers for populating this field. 
- 
LawLogix is working on creating an easier in-app option to facilitate the flagging of these I-9s. This item is on track to be released in the coming week. 
 
- 
- 
Customize the employee ‘welcome email’ to include instructions for both the virtual verification and the in-person verification (User must have the ‘administrator’ permission to complete this step.) 
- 
Set up an interactive report in Guardian to track these I-9s 
- 
Provide instruction and documentation to verifiers to enter an audit note that details this exception per I-9 record 
COVID-19 Virtual Verification Exception Frequently Asked Questions
Must Section 2 be completed within 3 days of employment start? 
Yes, even when taking advantage of the temporary ‘virtual verification’ option, the employer is obligated to complete the I-9 within 3 business days of the employee starting work for pay.
 
Should we be making special notations on the I-9 at the time of ‘virtual verification’? 
No, based on the guidance from DHS, the I-9 should be annotated with the words ‘COVID-19’ and ‘Documents physically inspected on’ at the time of physical inspection (i.e. once normal business operations resume).
Should we wait to submit the I-9 to E-Verify until the documents have been physically inspected? 
No, you should not delay E-Verify case creation.  The I-9 should be completed and approved in Guardian at the time of ‘virtual verification’.
Do we need to retain the I-9 supporting documents if that is not our normal policy?
Yes, based on DHS guidance, the documents utilized to complete I-9s with this COVID-19 exception must be retained.  You may utilize the employee’s ‘I-9 OnDocs’ to permanently store the documents within Guardian.
Can we use the new “virtual verification” option if only a portion of our workforce is working remotely due to COVID-19? For example, we have certain job roles for whom it is essential to work onsite at our facilities despite our overall policy that employees should work from home.
 
According to the DHS memo published on March 20, 2020, the virtual verification option is only available to  employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19. The memo goes on to state that if there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of the I-9 documents. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
 
This “case-by-case” basis language provides employers with an opportunity to interpret the memo and requirements based on their own unique circumstances and conditions. For example, an employer with on-site employees may have a good argument for using the virtual verification option if a new hire will be working remotely from the beginning. Similarly, an employer might take the position that virtual verification is appropriate since their “existing” HR employees (who would normally complete Section 2) are working remotely, due to a lockdown protocol.  Other employers may choose to make a blanket argument that virtual verification is essential in order to maintain the safety and well-being of their staff. 
 
Ultimately, employers will need to analyze and interpret this memo, ideally with the help of their legal counsel, to make this decision.
COVID-19 Product Enhancements
LawLogix is working to incorporate additional tools within Guardian to help organizations that utilize this exemption option.  These tools and features will be rolled out in phases over the coming weeks and include:
 
- 
Add ability to designate an I-9 with the ‘COVID-19 Exception’ 
- 
Update reporting to provide visibility of exception I-9s 
- 
Extend document capture to allow employee capture 
- 
Streamlined COVID-19 I-9 annotation workflow 
In some instances a system user or employee may not receive email generated from Guardian. This is often the result of rules defined on the recipient's email server.
If an email is missing, users should first check their Spam/Junk folders to ensure that the Guardian messages are not being captured by those filters.
Other measures can be taken in order to ensure that Guardian emails can be received appropriately.
 
“Do Not Reply” Method
Emails sent from the Guardian system can be modified to show donotreply@perfectcompliance.com as the sender. This can often resolve the issues that cause most mail servers to decline messages from a third-party sender such as Guardian.
 
To enable this feature, please have a Guardian administrator within your organization proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration. 
- 
Click Preferences in the left hand menu. 
- 
Click the E-Mail tab. 
- 
Click the box next to Use “Do Not Reply” E-Mail Method. 
- 
Click the box next to Do not use sender info. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right. 
“Whitelisting” Method
Your organization may also need to make an exception on your mail server to allow emails sent from the LawLogix mail relay.
 
Please provide the following LawLogix mail relay information to your IT resource to add to your organization's SPF record. This will create an exception for incoming Guardian messages:
LawLogix mail relay:
Host Names:
Primary: iad-smtp.lawlogix.com
Disaster Recovery: bkl-smtp.lawlogix.com
When an I-9 record is deleted, a document is created indicating when the I-9 was created, the I-9 number, and the HR User who deleted the I-9 record. To confirm that an I-9 record was deleted, HR Users can run an interactive report.
 
- 
	Within the Guardian system, click Reports in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	Within Report Types, click Interactive. 
- 
	Click New in the Interactive Reports Menu. 
- 
	Name your report as desired. 
- 
	Select Documents as the Base Table. - 
		All filters should be set to All, except the filter for “Documents” which should be updated to Documents Not Attached to I-9s. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Update Settings. 
- 
	Click the Columns tab. 
- 
	Select the Documents table. 
- 
	Drag (or double click) any fields you would like to appear as columns within the report. Include the following fields: - 
		Doc Date Captured – this will assist you in narrowing down the range in which the I-9 was deleted. 
- 
		Doc Subject/Reference – the subject of any deleted I9 records will read as “I-9 Form Deleted” 
- 
		Doc Description – this contains the information as to the HR User who deleted the I-9. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings button to save the selected fields. 
- 
	Click the Settings tab. There should be a date range section now. 
- 
	Within Date Range section, select Doc Date Captured. - 
		Adjust the date range to include the month in which the billing discrepancy occurred to the present date (i.e. if there is a discrepancy on the February Invoice you would have a start date of February 1 and the end date as the present date). 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Update Settings. 
- 
	Click Run Report Now. 
Once the report has run, download the report as an Excel file, and search for the word “deleted.” This will allow you to quickly find the document containing the details of the deleted I-9 record.
If a user is unable to create an Archival I-9 record, it could be due to their set privilege settings or the organization's configuration. Only users with the privilege to add Archival I-9 record types will see that I-9 type as an available option on the I-9 Type field dropdown when creating a new record. Please consult your system administrator to update your I-9 privileges.
If a user is attempting to add an Archival I-9 for an employee and receives a message indicating that the “employee's start date must be before xx date,” then a setting must be adjusted by a system administrator. By default, the Archival I-9 type is intended to be used to capture historical I-9s (those I-9s completed on paper prior to utilizing Guardian). Consequently, if the employee's hire date is after your company's "go live" date, the system will prevent creation of the Archival I-9. To permit the creation of Archival I-9s for new/recent hires a setting:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Preferences in the left hand navigation. 
- 
The General tab should load. Click the I-9 Preferences dropdown towards the bottom. 
- 
Select Allow Current Archival Dates. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right. 
When this option is enabled, Guardian will permit the use of the Archival Paper I-9 type regardless of the employee's hire date.
OnDocs serves as a type of repository for employee documents including any supporting pieces to their I-9 forms for processing. Items can be easily uploaded to this area by proceeding with the following steps:
- 
From your Guardian dashboard, click on Employees in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Search for the employee that needs an item uploaded. 
- 
Click the employee name. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab in the top navigation. 
- 
Click Upload Document in the upper right. 
- 
In the modal that appears, click the dropdown menu to select the type of document being uploaded. 
- 
Click Next. 
- 
Click Select File. 
- 
Find the file loaded on your computer and click OK. 
- 
Click the Upload button. - 
If document fails or successfully uploads, a notification will appear in this window. 
 
- 
- 
Click Close. 
The file should appear in the OnDocs tab for this employee. The item can be deleted by clicking to highlight it and clicking Delete in the upper right.
In the instance of an employee not showing up for work on their hire date, Guardian users generally set the employee status as Terminated within the system. The employee I-9 in this scenario however, is often left incomplete. This leads to a lot of questions for the user: Should the I-9 be parked or should the employee record be deleted entirely? Is there a different action needed if the employee has a possibility of being rehired?
LawLogix has observed that most employers delete the incomplete I-9 record, as there is technically no legal requirement to retain it if the individual never actually performed any work for pay.
- 
The main item of consideration is whether or not the employee was on the payroll. 
Deleting the record will also avoid any potential confusion if the incomplete I-9 is ever presented to ICE during an audit. As a precautionary measure, employers may add case notes to the employee record under the OnDocs tab, where further documentation on the situation may be stored. 
 
Please note, this is a recommendation only and not a rule. Users are advised to consult with their organization's counsel to decide the best practice to follow.
Use of Guardian as a web services designated agent allows organizations to run E-Verify reports within the system to review data submitted to E-Verify and the results of those submissions.
 
At times an agency may request that the organization provide an E-Verify Audit report. This is a report type available through the E-Verify interface for those organizations who access E-Verify directly in lieu of a designated agent. The following is a set of instructions to create an equivalent audit report within Guardian:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click the Reports button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Interactive in the upper left. 
- 
Click New in the Reports: Interactive section in the lower left. 
- 
Next to Base Table, select E-Verify from the dropdown. 
- 
Click the Columns tab. 
- 
If your organization utilizes multiple business units select the Employee table and add the Business Unit field as a report column. 
- 
Select i9 in the leftmost column and double click S2 Company Name to add it. 
- 
Select E-Verify in the leftmost column and double click the following fields in the second column: - 
EV Date Initially Submitted 
- 
EV Submitted by 
- 
EV Case No 
- 
EV Last Name Submitted 
- 
EV First Name Submitted 
- 
EV SS No Submitted 
- 
EV I-94 No Submitted 
- 
EV A No Submitted 
- 
EV Card No Submitted 
- 
EV Date Hired Submitted 
- 
EV Overdue Reason 
- 
EV Overdue Reason Other 
- 
EV Initial Eligibility 
- 
EV DHS Response 
- 
EV Last Return Msg 
- 
EV Case Resolved 
- 
EV Final Option 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click the Settings tab. 
- 
Click Run Report Now. 
The results may be exported to Excel for further manipulation, or saved locally if running the report for a specific location. Then the employee location may be added as a report column as well. Otherwise, utilize the Filter Options on the report Settings tab to narrow down the report results (e.g. location, occupation class, EV date hired submitted).
Yes, Guardian provides a method for users to adjust the start date in Section 2 that is independent of Section 2 completion. This functionality is helpful when the employee has completed Section 1 in advance and the employee's start date changes. This change will also ensure that all dashboard items will reflect the most up-to-date priority needs according to the new start date.
 
To adjust the hire date so that the Dashboard is updated (without processing the I-9), please proceed with the following steps:
- 
In the Top Pending I-9s dashboard area, click the Date I-9 Created link for the desired record. 
- 
Click I-9 Details. 
- 
Click Edit Date. 
- 
Enter the new start date in the Date Hired field. 
- 
Click Update Info. 
The above actions update both the start date in Section 2 of the I-9, as well as the hire date in the Employment History. Please note, if the hire date has already been adjusted in the Employment History section, these actions cannot be taken.
Should an organization open or acquire a new location, this can be configured within the Guardian system to match. To add a new location, a Guardian administrator must proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click the Administration button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click the Locations tab. 
- 
Click Add in the upper right. 
- 
Enter in the new Location Name and Number. - 
This is the name and number that will reflect within the Guardian system. 
 
- 
- 
Complete all fields that appear on screen. 
- Click Update Info in the upper right to save all changes.
Employees who are Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries may receive an auto extension of their work authorization status by the federal government, as published in the Federal Register.
 
When the employee's work authorization as noted on their employment authorization document (EAD) card expires before the document can be re-issued, the auto extension as published in the Federal Register provides authorization for the employee to continue to work.
 
In such instances the Special Amendment Option in Guardian can be used to document the auto extension before the new card is issued.
- 
Within the Guardian system, navigate to the primary I-9 record for the employee desired. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click TPS Auto Extension. 
- 
Enter the EAD auto-extension date as noted in the Federal Register in the New Expiration Date field. 
- 
Click Update Info. This will save the pending amendment. 
The special amendment will adjust the Section 1 “work until” expiration date, as well as the Section 2 document expiration date.
 
The user and employee should approve the corresponding pending amendments to finalize the changes. Upon approval of the changes, the new reverification date will become the primary date being used.  
 
Guardian provides a Special Amendment Option to document the auto extension as it relates to the employee's work authorization status, as well as amending the work expiration dates present on Section 1 and 2.
 
As a result, any I-9 for the employee that has been subsequently reverified (Section 3 completed) following initial employment and prior to the auto extension will be ineligible for the special amendment, as it adjusts both the work authorization expiration date documented in Section 1 as well as Section 2 of the current I-9 record (that also contains a later reverification and work authorization expiration date).  
 
If the special amendment tool is not active 
There may be instances when the TPS auto extension button is disabled in the Special Amendments section of the Amendments tab. In this case, it is recommended that the user Amend the most recent Section 3 Expiration date, then enter the EAD auto-extension date as noted in the Federal Register.  
 
Once the employee has the new card, an HR user can complete a new Section 3 for reverification.
Managing the employment status of individuals is crucial to maintaining an accurate employee database within the Guardian system. In order to indicate that an employee has been terminated, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
Access the employee record within Guardian. 
- 
Click the Job Details tab. 
- 
Click Terminate Employee. 
- 
Enter the appropriate date for Date Terminated. 
- 
Click Update Info. 
Once a termination date is entered, the system will automatically calculate the purge date of the employee record based on the 3-year/1-year rule. Terminated employees will appear in the system as either Terminated-Retain or Terminated-Purgeable. Purgeable records can be permanently removed from the system by an administrator.
Please find attached a PDF run through of automated emails sent to users from the Guardian system (G1). 
 
| Communication | Example E-Mail/Task Event | Trigger | Frequency | Customizable | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-Verify prompted amended I-9 | Subject: Amended I-9 needs employee's review and approval. Please note that the work authorization information submitted to E-Verify for [employee name] was modified to correct a clerical error on the I-9. This has caused a proposed amendment has been added to Section 1 to make the information on the Form I-9 consistent with this modification. Please have the employee review this amendment and enter his or her electronic signature to approve the amendment and confirm that the modified information is true and accurate. If permitted, the responsible company official may also electronically sign to approve the amendment and confirm that the modified information is true and accurate. | I-9 Information changes during E-Verify submission and the organization has the following setting enabled on the E-Verify tab in Administration: Amend existing I-9 after data changes made during E-Verify process. | Once | No | 
| E-Verify prompted new updated I-9 | Subject: Updated I-9 was created As part of the E-Verify submission process, the work authorization information for [employee name] has been updated to correct a previous clerical error on the employee's I-9. In accordance with federal law, a second, corrected Form I-9 #999999 has been automatically created, and has replaced the original I-9 as the primary I-9. If the original paper I-9 form signed by the employee was the source of the original, incorrect information, please manually update the paper form with the corrected data shown on the newly created paper I-9 in the Guardian system. If the corrected error was due to a transcription error from the original paper form, no further action is required. | I-9 Information changes during E-Verify submission and the organization does not have the following setting enabled on the E-Verify tab in Administration: Amend existing I-9 after data changes made during E-Verify process. | Once | No | 
| H-1B Petition | Subject: H-1B Petition Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 05/31/2012 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: H-1B Petition Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's I-129 Change of Employer Petition is pending with USCIS pursuant to the rules governing H-1B portability. Please confirm whether this petition has been approved, and if so, promptly re-verify employee based on his/her new H-1B work authorization. | During Section 2 completion of Form I-9 the user activates the “Special Rule” for H-1B Portability (employee begins work with I-94 record issued during his or her previous employment and the current I-129 application is in process). | Multiple; First email is triggered based on value entered in Administration H-1B Portability Days field; subsequent reminders are dependent on subsequent reminder values entered in Administration. | No | 
| H-1B Extension | Subject: Extension Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2013 Date Entered: 05/31/2012 Expiry Date: 09/29/2013 Subject: Extention Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's temporary work authorization recorded on I9 #999999 is about to expire. Please contact employee to check whether their temporary work authorization has been extended and then re-verify. | User enters Extension special amendment to indicate work authorization for NIV worker has been extended 240 days based on I-129 petition filed. | Multiple emails follow reverification and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module | No | 
| I-9 Receipt | Subject: Receipt Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 05/31/2011 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: Receipt Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee has presented you with an application receipt for a lost, stolen or misplaced employment authorization document in lieu of the original document. Please followup with the employee to make sure he or she receives their original replacement work authorization document within 90 days of their hire date. | Section 2 of form I-9 is completed and a receipt for a lost, stolen or replacement document is indicated for one or more documents. | Multiple; E-mails follow receipt and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module. | No | 
| Name Change Notification | Subject: Notification of Name Change The HR system has recorded a name change for [employee name] Please follow your company's protocol for updating your I-9 records. | Employee Update data feed or web services call sent from the organization contains a change to the employee’s last name field value. | Once | No | 
| Remote Agent document selection | Subject: Notification of Remote Agent Document Selection The Remote Agent has chosen to have the employee be responsible for the required documents. | Remote Hire Preferences setting in the Administration is enabled for setting “Notify of document selection on step 3.” and I-9 is processed by a remote agent. Email is sent after the remote agent selects the disposition of the documents within the remote agent interface. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee SSA TNC Notice Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the SSA TNC Notice. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Notice. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee SSA TNC Referral Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the SSA Referral Letter processing. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Referral letter. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee DHS TNC Notice Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the DHS TNC Notice. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Notice. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee DHS TNC Referral Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the DHS Referral Letter processing. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Referral letter. | Once | No | 
| Reverification | Subject: Reverification Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 04/28/2011 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: Reverification Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's temporary work authorization recorded on I9 #999999 is about to expire. Please contact employee to check whether their temporary work authorization has been extended and then re-verify. | Form I-9 indicates the employee has temporary work authorization. | Multiple; E-mails follow receipt and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module. | No | 
| User Welcome email Login | Subject: Your account has been created. Dear [First Name], Your account for the I-9 system has been created as follows: Login URL: www.perfectcompliance.com Login Name: Please note that both the login and password are case sensitive! Thank You! | Administrator clicks “Reset Password” within the user’s profile. | As needed. | No | 
| User Welcome email Password | Subject: Access information enclosed Here is the information you requested: | Administrator clicks “Reset Password” within the user’s profile. | As needed. | No | 
When an employee is marked as terminated within the Guardian, the system automatically calculates the I-9 retention period. The retention window is either three years after the individual was hired or one year after they were terminated, whichever is later.
 
The records become eligible for purging from the system after the required retention period. This can be accomplished through the Administration module in Guardian.
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal. 
- 
Click the Administration button in the left hand navigation pane. 
- 
Once loaded into the Administration screen, click the Purge Data button in the left hand series of options. 
- 
A new screen for purging data will display all the employees and I-9 records that are eligible to be purged. Click to select which employees you wish to delete from the system. - 
100 records will be displayed per page. Only one page of entries can be purged at a time. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Purge I-9 forms only button if you wish to retain the employee record, or click the Purge Employees & I-9 Forms to delete both items. - 
This process is irreversible and will result in complete deletion of data. 
 
- 
Note: Purges are queued and processing is dependent on the number of purges in the queue.
Does the RVN partner restrict appointment dates presented to the employee?
No, the scheduler shows all available appointments. As a result, appointment dates are not related to the
employee's hire date.
Can an employee reschedule an appointment in person?
No, all appointment scheduling must be completed online. The employee may utilize the appointment link provided in the confirmation email, or return to the Guardian employee portal to create a new verification appointment.
Can an employee cancel an appointment?
Yes, an employee can cancel a confirmed appointment as long as the appointment is more than 24 hours away.
Can an employee schedule an appointment for the same day?
Yes, in general employees are encouraged to schedule in advance. However, appointments may be scheduled the same day. Note that appointments scheduled the same day cannot be cancelled and as a result, would incur a full appointment fee if not attended.
When are the processing centers open?
In general, processing centers offer appointments during normal business hours of M-F, 8am-5pm. When making an appointment the employee will see time slots available for scheduling, broken down in 30 minute increments (e.g. 8:30am, 9:00am, and so forth).
Why does the employee have to provide a phone number when scheduling an appointment?
Phone information is collected in the event of an emergency or an unplanned processing center closure. Should this happen, contact is attempted (utilizing the phone number). Examples of unplanned events include weather emergencies, power outage, internet outage.
How can an employee cancel or reschedule an appointment?
The employee can return to the confirmation email and access the included link to cancel or reschedule. Similarly, the employee can return to the Guardian employee instructions email and re-access the employee portal to review the scheduled appointment and cancel or reschedule.
If the employee requires a new, additional, appointment because they were a No Show or unable to complete the I-9 process due to insufficient documentation, he/she must return to Guardian's employee portal to initiate a new appointment.
Can the employee use a non-network agent?
Yes, if the employee is unable to locate a partner verifier they can choose to "Find My Own" during the Guardian workflow. This allows the employee access to the traditional remote agent instructions and access URL.
Can the organization report on all appointments for the employee?
Yes, all unique chargeable appointments are reportable. An appointment that has been rescheduled within the allowable time frame of the original appointment is considered one appointment (reporting will show details related to the most recent scheduling information).
Will centers within the PAN network have PAN's name noted on the outside of the building?
No, partner centers consist of educational institutions, government workforce agencies, training and learning centers, private businesses, and staffing and recruiting firms, each noted by the location name presented to the employee during the scheduling process.
What email communications does the employee receive from PAN?
The appointment scheduling service triggers a confirmation email after an appointment has been scheduled. Appointment reminder emails are sent 7 and 3 days ahead of the scheduled appointment (appointment date -7, and appointment date -3). For instance, if an appointment was made for May 25th then reminder emails would be sent May 18th and May 22nd.
Does the employee need to provide the verifier agent instructions or a Guardian link?
No, the verifier utilizes the established integration to launch Section 2 for the employee (i.e. PAN provides Guardian information related to the verifier and Guardian returns a link to Section 2 which PAN presents to the agent).
The verifier's name and title pre-populate the Section 2 certification area based on the information supplied by the RVN partner. Following Section 2 completion, the verifier is directed to the document retention step when enabled by the organization.
Can the employee complete Section 1 with the verifier?
No, the RVN is not equipped to handle the employee portion of the process. Employees for which the I-9 is not in a state for section 2 completion will be sent home and requested to reschedule an additional appointment.
Can the verifier copy and mail I-9 supporting documents to the organization?
No, RVN partners have agreed to fulfill the I-9 document retention requirement through electronic scanning means only.
Is the hiring manager responsible for scheduling the verification appointment?
No, the employee is responsible for scheduling the verification appointment. The employee portal is equipped with the scheduling workflow for organizations enabled with the RVN service (and I-9 marked as "remote").
What does it mean when the RVN partner attempts to obtain the Section 2 URL for the proctor and receives the following error message back from Guardian: redirect_url was provided, but the remote agent is not associated with a login?
This indicates that an active login record does not exist for the agent. This may happen if the organization removed the agent login merge tag from the remote agent instructions template (and thus no login was generated when the instructions were created), or the agent instructions have been deleted for the I-9 record (and so, too, deleting the agent login record).
To correct, either update the agent instructions to include the login link merge variable, or instruct the organization to re-generate the agent instructions for the individual I-9 record.
Have clients using the RVN service had trouble scheduling due to availability?
No, we have not received reports about this scenario. However, we encourage employers to use center availability reports as general guides only since availability fluctuates.
Are technical resources required by the client in order to activate the service?
No, integration with RVN partners is managed by LawLogix. However, there will be a nominal time investment by I-9 managers charged with overseeing remote hires for training on the service and review of the current workflow.
Does LawLogix have a list of available PAN centers?
LawLogix has access to general information related to the number of centers available by zip code. Please note, center availability is dynamic and the list may not reflect these changes.
With the RVN process how are receipts handled?
At present, our RVN partners do not offer "receipt updating" verification at their centers, so no further appointments (or charges) will be applicable. If an employee presents an acceptable receipt during the initial RVN appointment, you can assist the employee in finding another verifier (outside of the network) to review the replacement document and update section 2.
As previously discussed, you can technically choose any individual to serve as your authorized representative (employee’s colleague, friend, bank representative, etc.) based on your company’s own policy. Once you have identified the individual, you can enable the remote processing of receipts for the particular I-9 and send an email to the verifier which includes a link to access the I-9 record in Guardian.
With the RVN process how are reverifications handled?
Most reverifications can be handled by your central I-9 team (without a remote verifier) based on their review of the original DHS document which grants the employee continuing work authorization. For example, if you are filing an extension of your employee’s nonimmigrant status (H-1B, L-1, TN, etc.), you will typically receive the original I-797 approval notice and attached I-94 (neither of which have a photo or require you to meet in-person with the employee). For that reason, most of our clients will complete section 3 reverifications without the employee (or agent’s) involvement while still satisfying I-9 requirements.
 
In other reverification scenarios (particularly involving documents with photos), you may need to arrange for an in-person review of the replacement document (e.g., a new EAD, recently obtained green card, etc.). In these situations, you can create a one-time limited user profile (using the Location Manager interface) for an authorized representative so that he or she may login to Guardian and complete the section 3 reverification after reviewing the original document. Once the reverification is complete, you can then disable the account.
I-9s completed and approved are submitted to E-Verify, even if the start date is in the future. The hire date is the date the employee begins work for pay and the information submitted to E-Verify is taken from Section 2 of the I-9.
 
If the employee's start date changes after the information has been submitted to E-Verify, no additional action is required in E-Verify. However, the I-9 form should be amended to indicate the correct hire date. A user with the appropriate privileges may add an amendment to the employee record through the following actions:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that needs the amendment. 
- 
Click the created date of the employee I-9 with the incorrect start date. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Add in the upper right. 
- 
Click Section 2 in the left hand area of the window that pops up. 
- 
Scroll down in the list in the right hand area and click Employment Start Date. 
- 
Click Edit Field in the upper left. 
- 
In the New Value area, insert the new start date. - 
A note may be added within the Note of Record field, but it is not required. This note will appear at the bottom of the I-9 PDF. 
 
- 
- 
Click Create Amendment. 
Once the amendment is created, it must be approved in order to be committed to the employee record. To approve an amendment, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
Navigate to the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Actions in the upper right. 
- 
Select Approve Non Section 1 Amendments from the dropdown menu. 
- 
A warning box will appear notifying about the changes. Enter in Guardian password and click Submit. 
Now the employee record will reflect the appropriate date of hire as a called out amendment.
Guardian reports allow organizations to track I-9 compliance, specifically for missing or late I-9s, by extracting data from the system. This timeliness report is not recommended for archival I-9 records. The following are steps to build a similar report:
- 
Add a new Interactive report template and select the Dashboard base table. - 
Do NOT make a selection from the Dashboard filter option. This will allow the system to include data from the I-9 and Employee tables, including all employees regardless of the I-9 action item. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Columns tab. 
- 
There are several tables where values must be dragged into the Build Fields in Report column. 
- 
Include the following columns from the associated tables: - 
Employee - 
Responsible HR/Group 
- 
Occupation Class 
- 
Employee Name 
- 
Employee ID 
 
- 
- 
I-9 - 
I-9 Number 
- 
Date Hired 
- 
S1 Date 
- 
Employee Hired 
- 
I-9 Ontime Margin* 
- 
I-9 Days to File* 
 
- 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left to save. 
- 
Once the columns are selected and report has been previewed, return to the Settings tab of your report and adjust filters as desired. - 
e.g., Date Hired can be used as the Date Range filter. 
 
- 
- 
Run your report. 
- 
Once the report is returned download/open the report in Excel. 
Column J is added to determine the "timeliness" of the I-9 completion based on a comparison of columns E, H, and I (I-9 Ontime Margin and I-9 Days to File).** With these values it can be determined if an I-9 exists and whether it was completed on time.
 
If your report contains the same report columns you can simply copy and paste the formula from cell J2 to your own spreadsheet column J. Otherwise, you can update the formula to reference the correct columns. The high level overview comes in the Excel workbook when the data from the sheet "DashI9Compliance (1)" is evaluated using a pivot table (see "I-9 Status Pivot Table" sheet).
 
Next steps can include grouping by status type (i.e. entire organization), or adding additional layers such as location or occupation class above the status to see the breakdown across the organization. **The pivot table sheet and the formula used to create the data in Column J on the "DashI9Compliance (1)" sheet were provided as a courtesy and example only.
 
Excel is not a LawLogix-supported feature so Customer Support will not be able to address questions related to the spreadsheet. *Brief overview of I-9 Ontime Margin and I-9 Days to File: Ontime margin is calculated based on the I-9 due date (3 day rule). This due date is established based on the Sec 2 hire date when the I-9 is created.
 
The value is populated when the I-9 is marked completed. A value greater than 0 indicates that the I-9 was completed after the due date. A negative or zero value indicates the I-9 was completed prior to the due date. I-9 Days to File is a simple calculation of the report generation date and the I-9 due date. A negative number indicates the due date was in the past. The I-9 Days to File value does NOT take into account the actual I-9 or E-Verify Status.
Employees have 90 days to present an actual document after they provide receipt for replacement of a lost, stolen or damaged original document. At the time of hire, a Section 2 should be completed utilizing the provided receipt.
 
The Guardian system provides a receipt checkbox beneath each Section 2 list, so that users may designate a document as a "receipt" document (and proceed with Section 2 completion). When this occurs, the system creates a reminder task and the employee appears in the Needing Further Action section of the Dashboard.
 
The I-9 information does not submit to E-Verify until the actual document(s) are presented, as there is no designation in E-Verify to denote receipt versus actual document/document number. When the employee returns with the actual document and the I-9 is updated to reflect the new information, the employee will submit to E-Verify upon approval of the I-9.
 
To update an I-9 receipt, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that requires the update. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created hyperlink of the I-9 record desired. 
- 
Click Update I-9 Receipt. 
This action will create a new I-9 form and allow the user to enter in the Section 2 documents. Once the documents have been updated, the Guardian user must electronically sign the Section 2, mark the I-9 as complete, and approve it. Once approved, this I-9 form will be submitted to E-Verify.
Archival I-9 records cannot be submitted to E-Verify. The only exception to this rule is in the case of an organization being subject to the FAR E-Verify clause and submitting existing employees.
If this is a case of a rehire and was completed on paper, the user must enter it as a New Hire Paper I-9 record. That record will be submitted to E-Verify automatically upon approval, as long as the employment history reflects the rehire situation.
Guardian reverifications are based on employee work authorization. As a result, the system automatically generates reverification tasks (which appear on the dashboard) and reverification reminders (viewable in the employee file and sent to the responsible user(s) at the designated time prior to the document expiration).
 
Reverifications are triggered based on the data in the I-9 record. Tasks and reminders are automatically generated based on the document expiration date entered for a List A or List C document in Section 2 when the employee attests to being an alien authorized to work until a certain date.
 
In addition, reverification tasks and reminders are triggered if the employee attests to being a legal permanent resident, and provides an unexpired foreign passport with an I-551 stamp (documented in List A of Section 2). Reminder notification lead days can be established in the administration section of Guardian and are customizable based on the organization's needs and protocol.
The Guardian system has a few criteria users must meet in order to have an optimal login and password for access.
 
Login Name
- 
6 characters minimum. 
- 
20 characters maximum. 
- 
Cannot be the first initial and last name. 
- 
Cannot be your last initial and first name. 
- 
Cannot be your last name and first initial. 
Password
- 
At least 8 characters in length. 
- 
At least 1 uppercase letter. 
- 
At least 1 lowercase letter. 
- 
At least 1 number. 
- 
At least 1 special character from these valid characters: !#$%^&*()_+=-`~{}][|?/.>, 
Certain employees who are working pursuant to their F-1 Student Status and are not required to apply for an EAD work authorization card, as well as certain J-1 Exchange Visitors who are pursuing an internship or training program, will not have an expiration date written on their I-94 card. Instead, they will have a D/S for Duration of status annotated on the I-94.
 
In this case, employees must present an additional document besides their foreign passport and I-94 record to document the expiration of their temporary work status. This additional document is typically issued by the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), and contains a number beginning with the letter "N." On this document there should be a program expiration date, which should be used for the alien authorized to work date in Section 1 and the re-verification date in Section 2.
 
In order to complete an I-9 in this situation, the following steps must be taken.
- 
In the I-9 form, the employee must select An Alien Authorized to Work Until option. 
- 
Employee enters the expiration date from the I-20/DS-2019. 
- 
Employee enters the I-94 admission number or corresponding foreign passport information, when applicable. 
- 
In Section 2, the user selects Foreign Passport, I-94/I-94A, and DS-2019 option. - 
This action will insert I-94/I-94A in the second Document Title and DS-2019 in the third Document Title. 
 
- 
- 
User selects D/S box next to Expiration Date field within I-94/I-94A area. 
- 
User completes remaining fields for passport document number, expiration date, selecting I-20 or DS-2019 as the third document title, and entering the corresponding document number and expiration date. 
The term “park” or “parked” within the Guardian system refers to an I-9 that has been locked. This functionality does not use a traditional approval process and is generally used to lock an incomplete I-9.  
 
Any New Hire paper or electronic I-9 that has not been marked approved can be parked (e.g. only Section 1 complete, Section 1 and 2 complete, I-9 marked "Completed"). Users may park I-9s if:
- 
The organization has enabled the feature and, 
- 
The user profile has been provided the privilege to park. This is a privilege that must be granted by the Guardian administrator of an organization. 
An I-9 may be parked by the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, navigate to the employee record. 
- 
Click I-9 Details. 
- 
Click Park This I-9. - 
If button is unavailable, click View and choose All Panels to confirm that it is not hidden. 
 
- 
- 
A pop-up box will appear to confirm the action. Click Yes to proceed. 
Please note: users with incomplete archival Paper I-9s should utilize the complete and approve process to "complete despite issues" incomplete historical I-9 records.
 
Once an I-9 is parked, it cannot be “un-parked” or unlocked for further editing.
The following document represents a sample template that organizations may utilize when asking a remote agent to perform a physical inspection requirement remotely for those I-9s that were initially completed via the ‘virtual verification’ exception. Organizations are encouraged to review this sample template with their legal counsel and adjust to best suit the organization’s HR policies and best practices.
| FORM I-9 PHYSICAL INSPECTION ATTESTATION FOR AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE DHS COVID-19 TEMPORARY POLICY The following attestation is being made in connection with the Department of Homeland Security’s temporary policy for completing the Form I-9 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Per the DHS guidance, our organization reviewed the identity and employment authorization document(s) of this employee remotely, as recorded on the attached Form I-9. We are now asking the individual indicated below to act as our authorized representative to perform the required in-person physical inspection of the documents previously presented and sign this attestation. Employee Name: [HR: Enter full name as indicated at the top of Page 2 of the Form I-9] ______________________________________________________________________________ ATTESTATION 
 I attest, under penalty of perjury, that (1) I have examined the document(s) presented by the above-named employee, (2) the document(s) appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee named, (3) the documents are the same as those recorded on the attached Form I-9, and (4) to the best of my knowledge the employee is authorized to work in the United States. 
 ________________________________ Signature of Authorized Representative 
 ________________________________ Print Name of Authorized Representative 
 ________________________________ Date of Physical Inspection | 
Employees have 90 days to present an actual document after they provide receipt for replacement of a lost, stolen or damaged original document. At the time of hire, a Section 2 should be completed utilizing the provided receipt.
 
The Guardian system provides a receipt checkbox beneath each Section 2 list, so that users may designate a document as a "receipt" document (and proceed with Section 2 completion). When this occurs, the system creates a reminder task and the employee appears in the Needing Further Action section of the Dashboard.
 
The I-9 information does not submit to E-Verify until the actual document(s) are presented, as there is no designation in E-Verify to denote receipt versus actual document/document number. When the employee returns with the actual document and the I-9 is updated to reflect the new information, the employee will submit to E-Verify upon approval of the I-9.
 
To update an I-9 receipt, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that requires the update. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created hyperlink of the I-9 record desired. 
- 
Click Update I-9 Receipt. 
This action will create a new I-9 form and allow the user to enter in the Section 2 documents. Once the documents have been updated, the Guardian user must electronically sign the Section 2, mark the I-9 as complete, and approve it. Once approved, this I-9 form will be submitted to E-Verify.
The Guardian Interactive report type allows users to customize report creation and column display in the report results. As a result, the number of columns and rows for a given report may be rather large.
 
If the report contains a high amount of cells of data (Guardian will flag and state "9,999" cells), the exported file will appear as a zipped text (or .txt) file. In order to open the zipped file in Excel, do the following:
- 
In Guardian, click the Download Report link that displays after the report has been run and save the file to an appropriate location. 
- 
Open the zip file and click the .txt document. It will likely open in Notepad or a similar text editor on your computer. 
- 
Save the document as a .txt file and close the window. 
- 
Open Microsoft Excel and File, then Open, and Browse. 
- 
In the pop-up window that appears, click the drop-down that reads All Excel Files and change it to All Files. 
- 
Find your .txt file in this window and click Open. 
- 
A Text Import Wizard module will appear. Select Delimited as the import setting and click the Next button. 
- 
In the next screen, select Tab for Delimiters and click the Finish button. 
- 
Manipulate the report as needed and when finished, save the document as an Excel sheet. 
The following is the method best recommended by our compliance expert to document extensions that occur after a Section 3 re-verification has been previously processed.
- 
Initiate a regular amendment to the latest Section 3 re-verification. - 
This will manually indicate the new extended work authorization expiration date (either 240 or 180 days, as applicable). 
- 
Example: An employee Section 3 expiration is currently 5/31/2018 can be amended to 01/26/2019, which is 240 days in the future. 
- 
Use calendar days, not business days, for calculating the approximate expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
When amending the Section 3 document expiration field, an additional Note of Record may be included to speak to the basis of the extension. - 
Example: For an H-1B situation, a note could be “240-day Ext. Petition Filed on [date]”. 
- 
This note will appear on the I-9 PDF as a footnote at the bottom of the page. 
 
- 
- 
After the amendment is approved, the Guardian dashboard and related notifications will follow the updated expiration date. 
- 
Add the additional Section 3s once the new document (i.e. H-1B, etc.) is received. 
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous government agencies and their offices have sustained prolonged closures, impacting a variety of services including the processing of renewal applications for Social Security cards, Driver’s Licenses, and other documents. 
 
Under the Form I-9 rules, an employee may present a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document while completing their I-9 as long as they present a replacement document within 90 days of their start date. The Guardian system will automatically create a reminder for users to follow up when the 90-day grace period is finished. However, your employee may be unable to present a replacement document within the 90 day period because the government agency has not yet completed their renewal. 
 
In this scenario, the USCIS recommends that employees follow-up with the issuing agency through phone calls, emails, or other online portals (as available) with regards to the replacement document application. The USCIS also notes that this is an ongoing issue, and they will reassess this policy if necessary. 
 
From an employer compliance perspective, Guardian will continue to alert users on the Top I-9s Needing Further Action panel to the “overdue” receipt when the 90-day period has passed. While the USCIS has not provided any specific instructions on how to document this scenario from an I-9 perspective, LawLogix recommends the following.
 
Documenting the Delay in OnDocs
Users are advised to create an Audit note in the I-9 record detailing the extenuating circumstances of the delayed document replacement. 
 
The notation itself can simply contain messaging in regards to the reason why the document was not received by the due date (ex. DMV closed for the month due to COVID-19; employee unable to present replacement document). This audit note will automatically be included with the I-9 in the event of a government Form I-9 inspection.
 
Tracking Receipt Follow-up With Tasks
The Guardian system will automatically flag I-9 receipts in the ‘Top I-9s Needing Further Action’ dashboard panel until the replacement document is received and the I-9 is updated. Since these alerts will always show as overdue for receipts that are pending more than 90 days, users may also wish to use the Task functionality within Guardian to create a future follow-up reminder. 
 
Within the employee profile, select the Tasks tab and click Add Task in the upper right. This will open a dialogue where users can document the circumstances and notes for following up.
The Expiry date in this instance can be any future date when you should follow-up with the employee to see if the replacement document has been received. Once saved, this task will appear on its own dashboard panel Top Pending Tasks. This is where these special cases may be more easily tracked by users. In addition, the dates can be changed should the office closures continue or lift early. 
 
LawLogix is monitoring this situation very closely and will post any additional guidance from the USCIS once received.
The USCIS officially announced on May 1 that all List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.
The temporary policy now mandates employers notate I-9s using such documentation with ‘COVID-19’ in the Additional Information field. Once the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ends this policy, employees have up to 90 days to present a valid unexpired document to replace the previously submitted one.
For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy).
Organizations are further advised to create a custom field to track the follow up requirement of such I-9s. A custom field labeled ‘COVID List B Exception’ may be created by an administrator and used to report on employees who require follow up once DHS ends the temporary policy.
Please note that when the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should amend Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date. Note, too, that this additional step is not necessary for List B expired documents that were auto-extended by the state authority.
The Guardian system is accessible from the web and LawLogix supports several major browsers. Below we have included, if applicable, the lowest version supported for the browser. Each browser is supported to the most recent major version (e.g. 2.0, 3.0, etc.).
- 
Mozilla Firefox Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Google Chrome Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Microsoft Edge Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Apple Safari Current version (plus 1 previous) - 
Please note that Safari is only supported when used with Mac OS and iOS devices. 
 
- 
- 
*Third-party web browser plug-ins and extensions may interfere with functionality. 
Mobile Devices
Guardian does not utilize a mobile app for I-9 completion, but rather utilizes the device's native browser to navigate the site and perform I-9 and E-Verify actions. I-9 completion and E-Verify case processing is supported on both Android (phone and tablet) and Apple devices (iPhone and iPad).
- 
Safari on Apple iOS devices - 
Use of iPad over iPhone is preferred 
 
- 
- 
Latest version of Chrome on Android devices - 
Given the variety of manufacturers, browsing experiences may differ. LawLogix tests with the following devices: Samsung S21 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7. 
 
- 
Screen Resolution Requirements
| Screen Resolution | Result | 
| 1024 x 768 | Minimum | 
| 1280 x 1024 | Better | 
| System recommended highest display resolution (exceeding the above) | Best | 
PDF Viewing Requirements
PDF documents stored in Guardian can be accessed with any PDF viewer (either the browser’s native PDF viewer or a plug-in such as Adobe Reader)
Welcoming employees back to your organization is made very easy by the Guardian system. If an employee is already present in the Guardian system as a terminated employee, there are a few steps to take in getting them reinstated.
 
First off, the employee’s status must be changed from its terminated state.
- 
Navigate to the employee record within Guardian. 
- 
Click on the Job Details tab. 
- 
In the Employment History section, click on the Re-Hire Employee button. 
- 
A re-hire date field will present itself, enter in the employee’s new effective date of employment and click the Update Info button. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click Add I-9 in upper right. 
- 
Click Create New I-9 and proceed. 
The next steps will vary depending on your organization’s protocols. If a Section 3 may be completed to accommodate the rehire, then proceed with the steps below.
- 
Navigate to the employee’s record within Guardian. 
- 
Click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date under the Date Created of the active I-9 in the display. 
- 
In the I-9 Details tab, scroll down to the Section 3 area and click the Add button. 
- 
Select the applicable reason for the Section 3 entry. 
- 
Enter in the information needed for the applicable Section 3 fields and electronically sign the document. 
Once this step is done, the Section 3 must be approved.
- 
Under the same I-9 Details tab, scroll to the Section 3 area. 
- 
Click the Approve link. 
- 
Enter your Guardian password and click the Electronically Approve button. 
If a Section 3 is not permissible, then proceed with creating a new I-9 for the employee.
If an employee has an incorrect hire date on their I-9 record, it must be addressed in two separate spots within the employee’s file in Guardian.
 
Note: The following steps may be performed by those with permissions to amend employee files and change settings. This does not have to be an administrative user. 
 
The first area where the hire date may be changed is within the employee’s Job Details tab.
- 
Search for the employee record that requires the change and click on their name. 
- 
Once loaded into their record, click on the Job Details tab. 
- 
Click the hyperlinked Hire Date on the right hand side of the page underneath Employment History. 
- 
A new window will open with two fields. Delete the date input under Date Hired and fill in the correct date. 
- 
Click the Update Info button. 
The second area for the hire date to be corrected lies in amending the I-9 itself.
- 
From within the employee record, click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date of the I-9 record with the incorrect hire time. 
- 
A new screen with I-9 details will appear. Click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Add button in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
From the options presented, click on Section 2. This will display a list of fields that can be changed in that section of the I-9 form. 
- 
Double-click Employment Start Date. 
- 
Ensure that Strike-out Original Value is checked. 
- 
Enter the correct hire date in the field titled New Value. - 
You may add an accompanying note if you wish. This note will display at the bottom of the I-9 pdf export. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Amendment button. 
- 
Once back at the I-9 amendment tab, click the Actions button in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
Click Approve Non-Section 1 Amendments. 
- 
Enter password for logging into Guardian system in order to approve. 
The Guardian system allows organizations to set their own I-9 policy in regards to rehires. If 'Require re-hires to complete new I-9' is enabled, then a Section 3 may not be used to process a rehire.
If this setting is not enabled, then a Section 3 can be used for rehiring purposes when the following criteria are met:
- 
The employee is rehired within 3 years of the initial hire date. 
- 
The employee's work authorization has expired, but is now eligible to work under new work authorization or, the employee is eligible to work on the same basis as attested to on the original I-9. 
If any of these conditions are not met, then you need to create a new Electronic I-9 in Guardian for re-hiring purposes and complete Section 1 and 2 just like for a regular new hire.
As part of the Form I-9 process, a lawful permanent resident (LPR) employee may present an expired Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, along with a Form I-797 receipt notice which indicates that the card is valid for an additional year. Under the Form I-9 rules, this combination of documents qualifies as an acceptable List C employment authorization document which is valid for one year as indicated on the Form I-797 receipt notice. At the end of the one-year period, the employer must re-verify work authorization by completing a Section 3.
 
To validate this case within the Guardian system.
- 
In Section 2 of an I-9, choose the List C option Employment Authorization Document Issued by DHS. 
- 
For the document number, enter the 13-digit receipt number from the Form I-797 receipt notice. 
- 
For the expiration date, enter a date which is one-year from the expiration date listed on the expired permanent resident card. 
- 
Ask the employee to provide an acceptable List B document and record the information in Guardian as per regular process. 
Please note, users should not click the Replacement Receipt checkbox when performing these steps. The Replacement Receipt is only to be used when an employee presents a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the USCIS has implemented a number of temporary policies to facilitate the completion of the Form I-9 for newly hired employees. These policy exceptions enable employers to inspect documents remotely under certain conditions (virtual verification) and accept certain expired driver’s licenses and state IDs for employees who are unable to obtain replacement documents. 
 
Earlier this spring, the USCIS issued a series of FAQs which generally described the process for completing the Form I-9 when using these exception scenarios. More recently, they have now provided several Form I-9 mockups which illustrate how employers can update and annotate the Form I-9 for these unique situations.
Below is a summary of the Form I-9 exception scenarios, which includes both the USCIS recommendation and LawLogix instructions for how this can be achieved within the Guardian system. 
Important: the USCIS has clearly stated that employers DO NOT need to go back and update their previously completed I-9s if they used a different process or wording for these I-9 exception cases. See our blog here for more information.  
 
I-9 Scenarios
Completing a Section 2 When Inspecting Documents Remotely (Virtual Verification)
The following guidance has been provided in regards to appropriately notating a Section 2 when the identity and employment authorization documents were inspected virtually (i.e. over video conferencing, through Guardian’s employee document upload, or other means of remote communication).
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| User enters “Remote inspection completed on xx/xx/xxxx” in the Additional Info box | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| Previously, LawLogix recommended annotating the I-9 with the words ‘COVID-19’ at the time of Section 2 completion based on the USCIS FAQ at the time. We are now recommending entering ‘Remote Inspection Completed on XX/XX/XXXX’ as per the USCIS. This note should be added to the 'Additional Information' field. An administrator should confirm in the I-9 Preferences and Policy section that your organization has not restricted this field from editing. In accordance with this emerging guidance, the previously entered annotations of ‘COVID-19’ are still acceptable. | 
Follow-Up Physical Inspection Once Normal Operations Resume
The following guidance has been provided on how to appropriately notate an I-9 after performing the required in-person physical inspection once normal business operations resume.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| If the person who performed the remote inspection also performs the physical inspection, they should indicate the date they physically examined the documents then add their initials in the Additional Information field. Example: COVID-19 Documents physically Examined on mm/dd/yyyy By AA | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| When entering the inspection information on the I-9 Details tab in Guardian, users will be prompted to enter the date of physical inspection and the person who performed the inspection. Users may enter the individual’s full name or simply write their initials in the context of the same inspector being used to perform the follow-up. Guardian will automatically insert the COVID-19 text and the supplied information in the Additional Information box in Section 2. | 
Follow-Up Physical Inspection by a Different Person Once Normal Operations Resume
In the scenario that the inspector that initially examined the employment authorization documents during a virtual verification differs from the one that will perform the follow-up physical inspection, there is a slight change in the way it must be notated. In this instance, the person performing the follow-up must provide their full name and title.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| If the person who performed the remote inspection cannot also perform the physical inspection, the person who performs the physical inspection should indicate the date they physically examined the documents as well as their full name and title in the Additional Information field. Example: COVID-19 Documents physically Examined on mm/dd/yyyy By HR Manager Betsy Ross | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| When a different Guardian user performs the physical inspection, they should enter their full name and title per the USCIS example. When an employer uses a non-Guardian user (such as an authorized representative) to perform the physical inspection, LawLogix suggests printing or saving an electronic copy of the Form I-9 PDF outside of Guardian and providing it to the representative along with the supplemental attestation referenced in our FAQ. When updating the form I-9, the title should be “Authorized Representative.” | 
Notating Remote and Physical Inspection for Reverification
The following guidance has been provided on how to appropriately notate an I-9 after performing a reverification and subsequent physical inspection remotely.
| USCIS Guidance | 
| Employers should make required notations for remote and subsequent physical inspections of reverifications in the Additional Information field in Section 2. If the same person performs both the remote and subsequent physical inspections for a reverification, complete as shown. If a different person performs the physical inspection, that person should write their full name and title, instead of their initials. | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| LawLogix recommends utilizing Guardian’s amendment feature to amend Section 3 to include the note. | 
Entering a List B Document Extended by Issuing Authority in Section 2
To help slow the spread of COVID-19, many different states enacted various lockdowns. This impacted several government offices as well, which resulted in driver’s licenses and state IDs being granted expiration date extensions.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| Enter expired List B document and “COVID-19 Ext” in the Additional Information box | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| Enter the expired date in the List B expiration date field in Guardian. When the expiration date is on or after March 1, 2020, an additional ‘expiration exception’ checkbox will appear in List B. Checking this box allows the document verifier to proceed with Section 2 completion while also auto-inserting ‘COVID-19 Ext’ into the Additional Information field. | 
Entering a List B Document NOT Extended by Issuing Authority in Section 2
The USCIS has stated that beginning on May 1, List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.
| USCIS Guidance | 
| (a) Enter expired List B document and “COVID-19” in the Additional Information box (b) If the same person performs both the remote and subsequent physical inspections, enter the replacement doc info in the Additional Info field. Note that if a different person performs the physical inspection, that person should write their full name and title, instead of their initials. | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy). Since DHS indicates that such I-9s should not be submitted to E-Verify, users should mark the I-9 ‘Completed’, but refrain from marking the I-9 ‘Approved’. When the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should edit Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date, re-sign Section 2, and Approve the I-9 to facilitate E-Verify submission. | 
Adding new users is a relatively simple process and will likely be needed a lot as your organization continues to grow.
Note: The following steps require administrative access. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Guardian administrator to secure proper rights.
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal, then click the Administration tab. 
- 
In the administration screen, click the HR Users tab. 
- 
Click the Add button in the top right corner of the HR Users screen. 
- 
A modal window will appear, enter all applicable information about the new user. 
- 
Click the Update and Continue button in the bottom right corner of the modal. 
- 
Set the desired privileges and permissions this new user must have, then click the Update Info button to save the changes. 
- 
Click the Reset Password button to generate a random password and send an email to the new user with login setup information. 
Note: The following are steps for users that need to make an amendment denoting Physical Document Inspection as it pertains to a Section 3 Reverification. Please note that this is a specialized workflow and may not be applicable for all organizations/use cases. 
 
- 
Navigate to the I-9 Record and click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the +Add button on the right side of the page. 
- 
Click on Section 3 (1) (or the appropriate section 3 Record if multiple). 
- 
Double click the desired field for the amendment (Document Number is recommended). 
- 
When double-clicking the chosen field to amend - 
Uncheck the “Strike-out Original Value” box. 
- 
Do not enter anything into the “New Value” field. 
 
- 
- 
Enter the COVID-19 physical document inspection notation in the Note of Record field (there is a 40-character limit in the “Note of Record” field). Examples include: - 
Without Inspector initials: COV-19 physical inspection on 04/04/2020 
- 
With inspector initials: COV-19 physical inspection 04/04/2020(CB) 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Amendment button to return to the I-9 Amendments page. 
- 
Click the Actions pull down menu 
- 
The Form I-9 amendment notations can be viewed prior to final approval by clicking the View PDF link on the amendment approval screen. 
- 
The amendment notation will appear in the margin. (Prior to final approval the audit will show ??? in place of the user’s initials). 
- 
Enter the Guardian password or SSO ID and click the Submit button to approve and finalize the amendment. 
- 
The Form I-9 finalized amendment will include the audit with the initials of the user who approved the amendment. 
If a new employee is unable to provide documentation from the List of Acceptable Documents that is not expired, they may elect to present a receipt instead. Employees that choose to do this must provide a valid receipt within three (3) business days of their first day of employment.
If an employer is reverifying an employee's employment authorization, and they choose to present a receipt for reverification, the receipt must be presented by the date the employment authorization expires. Receipts are not acceptable if employment last fewer than three (3) business days.
There are three types of acceptable receipts:
- 
A receipt showing that the employee has applied to replace a document that was lost, stolen or damaged. The employee must present the actual document within 90 days from the date of hire or, in the case of reverification, within 90 days from the date the original employment authorization expires. 
- 
The arrival portion of Form I-94/I-94A containing a temporary I-551 stamp and a photograph of the individual. The employee must present the actual Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) by the expiration date of the temporary I-551 stamp, or, if there is no expiration date, within one (1) year from the date of admission. 
- 
The departure portion of Form I-94/I-94A with a refugee admission stamp. The employee must present an unexpired Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) or a combination of a List B document and an unrestricted Social Security Card within 90 days from the date of hire or, in the case of reverification, within 90 days from the date the original employment authorization expires. 
Receipts showing that the employee applied for an initial grant of employment authorization, or for renewal of their expiring or expired employment authorization, are not acceptable.
In November 2021 USCIS revised its policy regarding automatic employment authorization extensions for H-4, L-2, and E dependent spouses as a result of a class action lawsuit. This revision allows for the automatic extension of employment authorization for such individuals who file for renewal of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) prior to expiration.
The policy grants the work authorization extension until the earliest of any of the following actions:
- The date of the ‘Admin Until’ documented on Form I-94
- The approval or denial of the renewal application
- 180 days from the expiration date of the EAD
This additional auto extension allowance requires the capture of certain information for Form I-9 purposes.
The following provides guidance on how to document the employment authorization auto extension within Guardian.
New Employees
Section 1
- Employee selects “An alien authorized to work until;” and
- Enters the date 180 days from either the “Card Expires” on the EAD or the end date of the Form I-94, whichever is earlier
Section 2
- Verifier selects List A I-766 document type and records the following
- Enters the I-797 receipt number in the document number field
- Enters the earlier of the 180 day extension or I-94 end date for the document expiration date
- Adds the following comment in the Additional Information field:
EAD EXT
I-94 info
Issuing Auth: USCIS
Doc #: [I-94 number]
Exp: [I-94 expiration date]
Existing Employees
Section 3
- Verifier adds a new Section 3 for Reverification
- Verifier select Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) and records the following
- Enters the I-797 receipt number in the document number field
- Enters the earlier of the 180 day extension or I-94 end date for the document expiration date
- Sign and approve Section 3
Audit Note: The verifier an audit note to capture the additional I-94 information
- From the OnDocs tab of the I-9 the verifier clicks ‘Add Case Note’ and updates the case note as follows
- Updates the ‘Activity Type’ to Audit Note
- Records ‘EAD Auto-extension of dependent spouse’ in the ‘Subject/Reference’ field
- Includes the following in the ‘Notes’ box:
Per USCIS policy on documenting EAD auto-extensions of H-4, E, and L-2 dependent spouses, we are adding this note to capture the employee’s current I-94 information.
Issuing Auth: USCIS
Doc #: [I-94 number]
Exp: [I-94 expiration date]
In the fall of 2020, E-Verify announced a policy clarification related to the timeliness of Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) processing. This clarification explicitly stated that employers must process (i.e. notify E-Verify of the employee’s decision) TNC cases within 10 federal government workdays. Additionally, the E-Verify Monitoring and Compliance team is notifying employers of their obligations when either cases that received Final Nonconfirmation (FNC) results remain open or have been closed indicating the employee was retained.
There are a number of tools within Guardian organizations can use to maintain E-Verify compliance and identify such types of cases.
Reporting on Open TNC or FNC Cases Requiring Action
LawLogix recommends creating an interactive report which includes the columns ‘EV Status Detail’, ‘EV Current Status’ and ‘EV Status Date Changed’*.
*As of March 22, 2021, LawLogix introduced a new E-Verify tracking field: EV Date Status Changed. Cases updated after March 22nd reflect the date of the latest change to the case. This is a useful tool in determining when the 10-day clock began for an unprocessed TNC.
To create the report please proceed with the following steps:
- Click on the Reports tab of the Guardian top navigation bar.
- Click to select Interactive from the Report Types box in the upper left.
- Click New in the lower right of the left side column to begin building a new report.
- The page will refresh on the right side to show a Settings tab. Under Base Table click to select E-Verify.
- To minimize the report results, set the following under the Filter Options section.
- E-Verify Status - HR Hold
- Initial TNC - Yes
 
- Click the Columns tab.
- Click E-Verify under the Tables column, then click and drag the following fields to the Build Fields in Report column:
- EV Status Detail
- EV Current Status
- EV Status Date Changed
 
- Click the Settings tab once again.
- Click Save Settings in the lower left, then Run Report Now.
Tentative Nonconfirmation Results
Items on the report that are ‘On Hold, waiting for user interaction’ with an EV Initial Eligibility that contains the terms ‘Tentative Nonconfirmation’ require immediate attention.
Example output:
As shown in the screenshot above, the highlighted fields indicate an 'unprocessed TNC'. Note the text in the EV Initial Eligibility column may vary depending on the type of TNC returned. Cases in this status should be reviewed to determine first if the information sent to E-Verify was correct, and if so, then take steps to work with the employee to review the Further Action Notice and make a decision on whether or not to take action to resolve the TNC.
Processing a TNC that includes incorrect data:
When the TNC could be the result of incorrect information recorded on the I-9 access the TNC workflow and select the option in Step 2: No, we need to close this case due to a clerical error and resubmit.
Amend the incorrect I-9 form fields and then return to the employee’s E-Verify tab and use the Send to E-Verify button to initiate a new submission to E-Verify.
Processing a TNC for an Active employee:
Meet with or send the employee an access link to login and review the Further Action Notice. Once the employee has provided their decision, follow the next steps to refer the case or notify E-Verify of the employees’ decision not to take action. Visit the User Guides & Tutorials section of Help for detailed step by step processing instructions.
Processing a TNC for a Terminated employee:
If the employee is terminated the unprocessed TNC should be closed as follows:
1. Access the E-Verify Summary screen for the employee.
2. Click Continue E-Verify Process on the Case Status card.
3. On the Tentative Nonconfirmation page, click to select Yes
Section 3s are commonly used to reverify existing employees with work authorizations, but may also be used to document name or status changes as well.
Electronic Section 3s can be added to any I-9 type (Archival, New Hire Paper, Electronic) that has been approved. Any user type may create a Section 3, as long as they have permission to approve I-9s.
A Section 3 entry must be made from within the current I-9 and can be accomplished with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee’s I-9 record. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created link for the desired record that needs a Section 3. 
- 
Scroll down the page to the Section 3 area. 
- 
Click Add Section 3 in the upper right. - 
Click Add Remote Section 3 if the employee is to be verified remotely. 
 
- 
- 
Select the appropriate reason for the Section 3 Update. - 
Reverification 
- 
Reverification and Rehire 
 
- 
- 
Click Add Section 3 Entry. 
Once the Section 3 is filled out, the user must make sure to approve it by clicking the Approve link on the Details tab of the I-9 page. Once approved, the entry will be locked in.
When the need arises for a legal entity to be created under an existing Guardian account, this can be done through a series of steps. Please note that the following directions must be performed by  Guardian administrative user within your organization.
 
1. Creating the Entity
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration in the lower left. 
- 
Click Locations & E-Verify in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Legal Entites in the upper left. 
- 
Click New EIN in the upper right. 
- 
Enter in the Entity Name, EIN, E-Verify ID, and E-Verify Effective Date in the modal that appears. - 
If the entity will not use E-Verify, leave the E-Verify ID and E-Verify Effective Date fields blank. 
 
- 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
2. Adding a New Location (Optional)
If the new legal entity is also a new location, it may be created through the following steps. If creating a new location is not desired (i.e. the new entity is part of an existing location), then this step may be skipped.
- 
Within the Guardian Administration area from the preceding steps, click Locations in the upper left. 
- 
Click + New Location in the upper right. 
- 
A new modal will appear. Under the Details tab, enter the following information: - 
Name 
- 
Loc. Number 
- 
Phone 
- 
Fax (as applicable) 
- 
Line 1 (as applicable) 
- 
Line 2 (as applicable) 
- 
City 
- 
State 
- 
Zip code 
 
- 
- 
Click the Policies tab in the upper left of the modal. 
- 
Set all desired policies for this location. - 
Note: If this new location should not follow the default location policies set at the Guardian administrative level, then users are advised to set their preferred policies within this tab. 
 
- 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
3. Adding an Employee Group
After creating the new entity (and the new location if needed), users need to add the entity as a new Employee Group.
- 
Within the Administration area, click Employee Records in the upper left. 
- 
Click Manage Group Structure in the upper left. 
- 
Click + Add New Employee Group in the upper right. 
- 
Within the Legal Entity field, begin typing the name of the newly added entity. Once it appears in the dropdown options that generate, select it. 
- 
Enter the Location Name. 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
When an I-9 is completed within Guardian, the system only allows for the record to be purged after a specific amount of time has passed. This is based off a 3-year/1-year rule, in which the file can be deleted if the employee was terminated and:
- 
The current date is 3 years after the initial hire date OR 
- 
The current date is 1 year after the employee’s termination date. 
To delete an employee record, please make any applicable notes or backups of data and proceed with the following steps:
 
Note: The following procedure must be performed by a user with administrative privileges.
 
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal and access the employee’s record. 
- 
Click the employee name hyperlink. 
- 
Click the Job Details tab. 
- 
From here, change the hire and termination dates as needed. 
- 
Once modified, refreshing the page will update the eligible Date purgeable field. 
- 
If the Date purgeable shows a past date, then users may access the Administrative button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
The screen will refresh to admin commands. Click Purge Data in the top navigation. 
- 
All employee records that are now eligible to be purged will show up in this screen. Click the checkbox next to the employee file you wish to purge and then click the red Purge button. 
- 
A small pop-up will appear asking to confirm the action. Select Yes if you wish to proceed with the record purge. 
Once an I-9 is purged, the action cannot be reversed by LawLogix.
There are several types of I-9 records utilized and/or referenced within the Guardian system.
Electronic I-9: Used for a new or rehired employee. With this I-9 type all information is entered on the user’s computer. If enrolled in E-verify
New Hire Paper I-9: The New Hire Paper I-9 type is reserved for employees hired on or after your organization began using the Guardian system. It is used to electronically represent those I-9s completed on paper outside of the system. For organizations enrolled with E-Verify
Archival Paper I-9: The Archival Paper I-9 type denotes those historical I-9s (in general)
This is a 4-step process, in order to amend the I-9 the E-Verify record must be deleted first, and in order for the I-9 to be re-submitted to E-Verify the amendment must be approved.
Delete the E-Verify record.
- 
Access the E-Verify record. 
- 
Click on the Overview tab. 
- 
Click the Delete button. A warning window will appear. Confirm your selection by clicking the second Delete button. 
Amend and approve amendment for the I-9
- 
Access the employee’s I-9 record. 
- 
Click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Add button. 
- 
The Amend I-9 window will open. Click the Section 1 or Section 2 buttons on the left side of the page, for the desired section fields to appear. 
- 
Double-click on the field to be amended. 
- 
Ensure that Strike-Out Original Value has a checkmark next to it. 
- 
Enter the correct value in the New Value field. 
- 
For single amendment, click the Create Amendment button to create the item and return to the amendments tab. - 
For multiple amendments, click the Create Amendment and Add Another button. This will create the amendment and take you back Amend I-9 window to add the next amendment. 
 
- 
- 
When done with the last amendment click the Create Amendment button, this will create the amendment and take you back to the Amendments Tab. 
Approve the amendments
- 
For Section 1 Amendments click on the Actions button and choose Approve Section 1 Amendments enter the password used to log into Guardian. 
- 
If this option is grayed out, this will require employee approval of the amendment. Users will need to choose the method in which the employee will sign off on the amendment. 
- 
For Section 2 Amendments Click on Actions button Approve Non Section 1 Amendments enter the password used to log into Guardian. 
Use the Submit to E-Verify button within the E-Verify module. If unavailable, please contact LawLogix Support to manually push the submission again.
In order to keep your system lean and free of unnecessary files, Guardian carries the flexibility to delete records that are not being used as the primary I-9 for an employee.
Note: The following steps are for administrators only. If you are unable to proceed through, please contact your Guardian administrator to secure proper rights or get assistance.  
Caution should always be exercised when deleting I-9 records.  
First, the feature to allow I-9s to be deleted must be enabled.
- 
Once signed into Guardian, click on the Administration button in the left hand navigation menu. 
- 
The Preferences area should load by default. - 
If it doesn’t, please click on its associated button in the left hand menu. 
 
- 
- 
Under the General tab, click the I-9 Preferences dropdown. 
- 
Of the options revealed, click to leave a checkmark in the box labeled Allow deletion of non-current I-9s. 
- 
Click the Update Info button in the upper right of the screen to save the selection. 
After this setting is enabled, administrators may delete “non-primary” records, or records that are not actively being referenced.
- 
Navigate to the employee record within Guardian and click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Confirm that the record for deletion is marked with an [H], indicating that it is a historical record and not the primary. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date under the Date Created column. 
- 
In the details page, click the Delete button. 
LawLogix Guardian offers an innovative workflow solution for delegating the Form I-9 completion task to an authorized agent, providing for a flexible yet compliant way to complete Form I-9 for remote hires or reverification of existing employees.  Prior to leveraging the Remote Agent workflow, review the Administration settings outlined below to ensure alignment with your organization’s policies and procedures.
Remote Hire Preferences
From within the Administration tab, select I-9 Policy > Portals and Remote Processing.
Should remote agent manage document retention?: If Yes, Remote Agents will be prompted to upload or provide copies of the employee documents provided for Section 2, using one of the Document Retention Options enabled via the related setting (see bottom of guide).
 
| Recommendation: 
 | 
Trigger notification email of document selection?: If Yes, sends an email to the Responsible HR user notifying them of the Agent’s decision when prompted with document retention.  The email serves as a call to action for the HR to follow up on the document retention requirement (review the uploaded document copies, contact the employee directly to receive document copies, etc).
- Recommendation: Yes
Choose default Guardian contact: Provides the name, phone number and email addresses of the selected user on the employee and agent instruction emails. Employee and Agent are instructed to contact this user in the event of questions.
- Recommendation: Identify and select a user to be the point of contact for supporting the remote I-9 process. Alternatively, create a placeholder user associated with a group email and phone number (one-time user activation fee may apply depending on your contract and current active user count).
Require remote agent to provide e-mail address and pre-identify?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide and validate their e-mail address before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. A confirmation email with a validation code will be sent to the Agent. Enabling this setting ensures the organization has validate contact information for the Agent in the event they need to contact them.
- Recommendation: Yes
Require remote agents to provide contact phone number?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide their phone number before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. Note: the phone number is not validated (e.g., via SMS text).
- Recommendation: Yes
Remote Hire Document Retention Options
If the organization has elected to have the Remote Agent manage document retention, these are the options that will be displayed to the agent after completing Section 2.
- Recommendation: Enable only the Scan and Upload Documents option. In the event the Agent is unable to perform the retention at the time of Section 2 completion they are able to indicate so, at which point the employer would need to work with the employee directly to receive and upload the required document copies, when applicable.
Remote Hire Email Templates
From within the Administration tab, select Communication > Email/Receipt Templates.
| Recommendation: Review and customize the following email templates: 
 | 
Remote Hire Custom Help Text
From Communication > Customize Help Text, customizations can be made to the various on-screen instructions provided to employees completing a Remote I-9.
Pay particular attention to the Appointment Message 1 Remote Hire.  This is the last screen the employee sees after completing Section 1, and is where the Verifier Instructions are provided to the employee.  Consider advising the employee to Copy-Paste these instructions into an email to their agent, or to themselves if they have not yet identified who their agent will be.
LawLogix Guardian offers an innovative workflow solution for delegating the Form I-9 completion task to an authorized agent, providing for a flexible yet compliant way to complete Form I-9 for remote hires or reverification of existing employees.  Prior to leveraging the Remote Agent workflow, review the Administration settings outlined below to ensure alignment with your organization’s policies and procedures.
 
Remote Hire Preferences
From within the Administration tab, select Preferences > Remote Hire.
Use Pre-defined Remote Agents:  If checked, the organization must identify who the agent will be for a particular I-9 ahead of time, create them in the Guardian system, and assign them to the desired I-9(s).  This provides more control over who the Agent will be, but requires significantly more administrative overhead. If unchecked, the employee can meet with anyone who the organization authorizes to be an Agent without needing to add them into the Guardian system.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Remote Agents must be a Notary: If checked, all Remote Agents must be licensed Notaries. This setting only applies when enabling the Pre-defined Remote Agents setting.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Do not use Notary Affidavit: If checked, Notary Remote Agents will not be asked to fill out the Notary Affidavit. This setting only applies when enabling the Pre-defined Remote Agents setting.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Remote Agent Handles Documents: If checked, Remote Agents will be prompted to upload or provide copies of the employee documents provided for Section 2, using one of the Document Retention Options enabled via the related setting (see bottom of guide).
- 
Recommendation: - 
If you are currently retaining copies of ALL documents: Checked 
- 
If you are NOT retaining copies of documents, and are NOT an E-Verify participant: Not Checked 
- 
If you are ONLY retaining documents required by E-Verify: Checked - 
Note: This will result in a retention prompt for ALL documents, not just those required by E-Verify, for I-9’s completed via the Remote Agent workflow. It is recommended to create and document a policy exception which explains that you are retaining ALL documents for those I-9’s completed remotely by 3rd-party agents. If you choose not to enable this option you will need to work with your employees directly to receive and upload required document copies into Guardian. 
 
- 
 
- 
Default HR Contact: Provides the name, phone number and email addresses of the selected user on the employee and agent instruction emails. Employee and Agent are instructed to contact this user in the event of questions.
- 
Recommendation: Identify and select a user to be the point of contact for supporting the remote I-9 process. Alternatively, create a placeholder user associated with a group email and phone number (one-time user activation fee may apply depending on your contract and current active user count). 
Notify of document selection on step 3: If checked, sends an email to the Responsible HR user notifying them of the Agent’s decision when prompted with document retention. The email serves as a call to action for the HR to follow up on the document retention requirement (review the uploaded document copies, contact the employee directly to receive document copies, etc).
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Remote Agents must enter employee SSN: If checked, Remote Agents must enter in the Social Security number of the employee before being able to view and complete their Form I-9. The Agent has three chances to enter in the correct SSN before their access link is deactivated.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Require remote agent to provide e-mail address and pre-identify?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide and validate their e-mail address before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. A confirmation email with a validation code will be sent to the Agent. Enabling this setting ensures the organization has validate contact information for the Agent in the event they need to contact them. This option also prevents the employee from using their own email address (on file in Guardian) in an attempt to act as their own agent.
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Require remote agents to provide contact phone number?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide their phone number before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. Note: the phone number is not validated (e.g., via SMS text).
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Remote Hire Document Preferences
At the bottom of the page, click Documents to open another page containing important settings for the Remote Agent workflow.
Remote Hire Templates: These are the instructional emails that will be provided to the employee and their agent, containing the link to access the employee portal and agent portal, respectively.
- 
Recommendation: Click Edit Template and review and customize the Employee Instructions, Remote Agent Instructions (Sec 2), and Remote Agent Instructions (Sec 3) as desired. 
Document Retention Options: If the organization has elected to have the Remote Agent manage document retention, these are the options that will be displayed to the agent after completing Section 2.
Recommendation: Enable only the Scan and Upload Documents option.  In the event the Agent is unable to perform the retention at the time of Section 2 completion they are able to indicate so, at which point the employer would need to work with the employee directly to receive and upload the required document copies, when applicable.
 
Remote Hire Custom Help Text
From Custom Help > Remote Employee I-9 Form, customizations can be made to the various on-screen instructions provided to employees completing a Remote I-9.
Pay particular attention to the Appointment Message 1 Remote Hire.  This is the last screen the employee sees after completing Section 1, and is where the Verifier Instructions are provided to the employee.  Consider advising the employee to Copy-Paste these instructions into an email to their agent, or to themselves if they have not yet identified who their agent will be.
How can we re-issue the remote agent login link when the link expires?
Remote agent login links will expire approximately one month after they are generated, when the I-9 is approved by a Guardian user, or when the remote process is disabled from the Guardian system. These links can be reissued, but requires a Guardian user to delete and recreate the agent instruction email with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee profile within Guardian. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab. 
- 
Click on the Date Created hyperlink of the Remote Agent Instruction E-Mail. 
- 
Click Delete in the upper right. 
- 
Click View Employee. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the asterisk (*) to access the Remote Hire/Remote Agent Settings page. 
- 
Click Create Agent Instructions. 
- 
Update the email if desired, then click Send. 
The updated instructions will also be available through the Remote Agent Instructions link within the employee's interface.
An F-1 academic student who received a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (a STEM field) may apply for a one-time, 17-month extension of his or her initial 1 year period of work authorization pursuant to Optional Practical Training (OPT), provided the employer is enrolled in E-Verify.
If the student's Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires while his or her STEM extension application is pending, they are authorized to work until USCIS makes a decision on their application, but not more than 180 days from the date the student's initial Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires.
The student's expired Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766), together with their  Form I-20 endorsed by the designated school official recommending the STEM extension, are acceptable proof of identity and employment authorization for Form I-9 purposes.
 
New Hire Process
To document the period of interim work authorization on a new I-9, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Create a new I-9. 
- 
Include the expired work authorization date from the I-766 document. 
- 
In Section 2, the verifier will select the I-766 and input all details, including the expired work authorization date. 
- 
Once entered, the Section 2 will refresh. 
- 
Select F-1/OPT STEM Extension in the Work Authorization field. 
- 
Enter SEVIS number of I-20 document. - 
This document should have been endorsed by a Designated School Official for the STEM extension. 
- 
The Guardian system will determine the 180 interim work authorization based on the I-766 expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
Finish filling out the Section 2. 
The reverification date for the employee will also be based on this 180-day extension. Once the new EAD card is issued, the employee should be re-verified in Section 3 with the EAD as the basis of the re-verification and the 17-month STEM Extension date as shown on the EAD card serving as the new re-verification date.
 
Existing Employee Process
An employee can file a Form I-765 application to renew their EAD prior to the expiration of their current status. Pending the adjudication of the I-765 application, the employee is allowed to work for a period of 180 days beyond the expiration of their EAD expiration or until the new EAD card is issued. Outlined below is how to document this 180 day interim extension on the Form I-9. How to document a STEM Extension:
- 
Access the employee's I-9 record that reflects the expiring/expired EAD work authorization. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Special Amendments header at the bottom of the page to expand the section. 
- 
Click the F-1/OPT STEM Extension button. 
- 
Enter the SEVIS No. of the employee's I-20 that has been properly endorsed. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right to save the change. - 
The basis for the interim extension will automatically populate on the Special Amendment interface and a new re-verification date will be auto-calculated based on 180 days from the current EAD expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
On the Amendment tab select Approve Non Section 1 Amendments from the Actions drop down. 
Upon updating, the I-20 SEVIS No. and the words "180 day Ext." will appear on the PDF image of the I-9 in red font (indicating this is an update to the original approved I-9) adjacent to List A, and the new re-verification date is reflected.
If your organization is one of many that has participated in the use of ‘virtual verification’ while observing social distancing/lockdown procedures due to the COVID-19 national emergency, the DHS included a follow up requirement indicating that the employee must present the documents to the employer within three business days after normal business operations resume. The employer should review the documentation presented by the employee and annotate the I-9 with the date of physical inspection and the name of the person performing the inspection.
If your organization needs to utilize a remote agent to perform this function, this process requires steps both internal and external to Guardian in order to fulfill the requirement. LawLogix has put together a best practice recommendation to address this temporary and unique situation. Please find below a list of recommended activities when having a remote agent complete the deferred physical inspection when normal business operations resume.
Steps for Follow-Up Inspections
- Identify, either through Guardian reports or another HR-related system, those employees who presented documents virtually and remain remote, requiring an agent/authorized representative to complete physical inspection.
- Print or save an electronic copy of the completed Form I-9 for each of these employees.
- Through secure means, contact each employee and provide them with their previously completed I-9, as well as a supplemental “Physical Inspection Attestation” to be signed by their chosen remote agent.
- Direct the employee to choose a remote agent that may perform the in-person document inspection.
- Instruct the employee to present to the agent the same original documents that were previously provided, regardless of document expiration date.
- Advise the remote agent to compare the documents presented to the information contained in Section 2 of the employee’s Form I-9, and sign the Physical Inspection Attestation.
- Through secure means, the employee returns the Physical Inspection Attestation to the HR team.
- A Guardian user uploads the attestation to the employee’s I-9 OnDocs as a supporting document.
- The Guardian user may toggle off* the COVID-19 exception from the employee profile to remove the exception alert from the dashboard.
**Note: in the workflow described above, the physical inspection will only be recorded on the supplemental attestation uploaded to the employee’s OnDocs file. If your organization wishes to also record the COVID-19 physical document information on the Form I-9 itself, a Guardian user may instead initiate the streamlined amendment process in Guardian which will record the inspection date and name of inspector in the Section 2 Additional Information field, and remove the exception alert from Guardian.
Frequently Asked Questions
Collected below are a few questions that may arise during this process.
My remote hires normally schedule appointments with a PAN center. Can I utilize a PAN center to fulfill this follow-up inspection?
- No. PAN Centers are unable to assist with this particular type of follow-up document inspection at this time.
The employee originally presented a license that was expired but temporarily extended by the DMV. Should they present that document again or their recently renewed one for the follow up inspection?
- The employee must provide the documents they originally used for their virtual verification, regardless of their expiration status at the time of the physical inspection. USCIS provided no indication that an additional reverification of expired documents is required.
The employee no longer has the documents they originally presented, but have different ones that are still valid and verifiable. Can these be used instead?
- The expectation is that the employee should provide the original documents in order to meet the stated requirement of the ‘virtual verification’ process. If the employee is unable to present the original documents for physical inspection, the organization may wish to complete a new I-9 in Guardian with the new documents provided. In the event a new I-9 is created, LawLogix recommends creating an audit note in Guardian which explains the situation.
What should we do if the agent noted that the document information on the I-9 differs from the document presented by the employee?
- A Guardian user should ask the employee to provide copies of the documents presented to the agent and compare with the originally retained documents in Guardian. If a transcription error is found, the Guardian user may complete an amendment to correct the discrepancy.
Should the supplemental attestation be included with the I-9 in the event of an ICE audit?
- Yes, the supplemental document should be stored in the employee’s I-9 OnDocs folder. In the future, if the I-9 is subject to audit, Guardian’s export process includes all documents associated with the I-9. This supplemental attestation clarifies that the physical inspection was performed by a remote agent.
Remote agent login links will expire approximately one month after they are generated, when the I-9 is approved by a Guardian user, or when the remote process is disabled from the Guardian system. These links can be reissued, but requires a Guardian user to delete and recreate the agent instruction email with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee profile within Guardian. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab. 
- 
Click on the Date Created hyperlink of the Remote Agent Instruction E-Mail. 
- 
Click Delete in the upper right. 
- 
Click VIew Employee. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the asterisk (*) to access the Remote Hire/Remote Agent Settings page. 
- 
Click Create Agent Instructions. 
- 
Update the email if desired, then click Send. 
The updated instructions will also be available through the Remote Agent Instructions link within the employee's interface.
If you determine an Employment Authorization Document has been auto-extended, please follow the guidance below when completing Form I-9. Employees who present an EAD with a category code of A12 or C19 are Temporary Protected Status beneficiaries. TPS beneficiaries may receive an automatic extension of their EAD on an alternate basis. Employers can learn more about TPS beneficiaries later in this Fact Sheet.
Instructions for an employee completing Section 1 of Form I-9
If this is a new employee: 
When completing Section 1, new employees should:
- 
Select the option “An alien authorized to work until”; and 
- 
Enter the date that is 180 days from the “card expires” date of their EAD as the “employment authorized until mm/dd/yyyy” date. 
If this is a current employee:
For Current employees whose employment authorization was automatically extended:
- 
Amend the “employment authorized until” date in Section 1; 
- 
Enter the date that is 180 days from the date their current EAD expires; and 
- 
Complete and approve the Amendment. 
Instructions for Employers Completing Section 2 of Form I-9
If your employee is new and presents an automatically extended EAD that is still within the 180-day extension period:
When completing Section 2, the HR User should:
- 
Enter into the “Expiration Date” field the date upon which the automatic extension period expires, not the expiration date on the face of the expired EAD. The automatic extension expiration date is the date 180 days from the “card expires” date on the EAD; and 
- 
Enter the List A Document as a Receipt in the “Document Number” field. Note that this expiration date may be cut short if the employee’s renewal application is denied before the 180-day period expires. 
If your employee is currently working for you: 
For a current employee, Amend Section 2 of Form I-9 with the new expiration date as follows:
- 
Amend section 2 and type in the new expiration date; 
- 
Type EAD EXT in the “Note of Record” field of Section 2; and 
- 
Complete and approve the Amendment. 
The new expiration date the employer should enter is the date 180 days from the “card expires” date, which is the date on the face of the EAD.
Note: This is not considered a reverification; do not complete Section 3 until either the 180-day extension has ended or the employee presents a new document to show continued employment authorization, whichever is sooner. At the end of the 180-day extension, the employer must reverify the employee’s employment authorization in Section 3 of Form I-9.
For additional info please see: https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Verification/I-9%20Central/FactSheets/Fact-Sheet-AutoExtendEAD.pdf
Guardian has the ability to pull robust reports on a variety of data fields within the system. The following is a collection of these tables and fields available for reporting:
 
| Base Table | Included Tables | 
| HR Group Assignments | Group Locations HRs HR Groups | 
| HR Groups | HR Groups | 
| HR Locations | HR Locations HRs Locations | 
| Occupation Class | Occupation Class | 
| Business Units | Business Units | 
| Contracts | Contracts | 
| Dashboard | Dashboard I-9 Employee E-Verify Business Unit HRs | 
| Documents | Documents I-9 Employee | 
| E-Verify | E-Verify FAR I-9 Employee Business Unit Locations | 
| Employee Address | Address Employee | 
| Employee | Employee I-9 E-verify FAR Locations Business Unit Login | 
| FAR | FAR E-Verify I-9 | 
| I9 Issues | I-9 Issues I-9 Employee Business Unit | 
| I9 Section 3 | I-9 Section 3 I-9 Employee Business Unit | 
| I9 | I-9 Employee Business Unit Locations | 
| Locations and Occupation Class Assignments | Location & Occupation Class HRs Locations Occupation Class HR Groups | 
| Locations | Locations Address Business Units | 
| Multi-Business Units | Multi-Business Units I-9 Employee E-Verify Business Unit | 
| Remote Agents | Remote Agent | 
| Remote I-9s | I-9 Remote Agent Locations Employee | 
| State Affidavits | I-9 State Affidavits I-9 State Affidavits | 
| Tasks | Tasks Employee | 
Field Names
| Table | Field Name | 
| Address | Address Type Address Line 1 Address Line 2 Address City Address State Address County Address Country Address Zip Code Address Apt No | 
| Business Unit | Business Unit Guardian ID Business Unit Name Business Unit EIN No Business Unit E-Verify ID Business Unit E-Verify Effective Date Business Unit is Inactive | 
| Contracts | Contract Date Created Contract Date Modified Contract Scope Contract Effective Date Contract End Date Contract COTS Only Contract Amount Contract is Outside US Contract Number Contract Name Contract Notes | 
| Dashboard | Employee Name Employee Hire Date I-9 Type I-9 Date Created I-9 Date Due I-9 Date Expires EV Status EV Initial Date Submitted I-9 Receipt I-9 Status I-9 Date Approved I-9 Date Amended I-9 Date Completed | 
| Documents | ID Doc Date Captured Doc Date Modified Doc Subject / Reference Doc Description Doc Received From Doc Sent By Doc Sent To Doc Internal Document Type Doc Type Doc Size Doc Original File Name Doc File Extension Doc Employee Can View Doc Expert Name Doc HR Signed Doc Date Employee Signed Doc History | 
| Employee | Employee Guardian ID Responsible HR/Group Date Created First Name Middle Name Last Name Other Names Used Employee Name Employee Phone Number Title Date of Birth Social Security Number Date Hired Date Terminated Location Occupation Class Business Unit Employee ID Purge Eligibility Date Do Not Purge Language Has HSPD-12 Exemption Has Top Secret Clearance Provides Support Services Only Is On Leave Emp Work email Emp Income Emp FICA Exempt Status Emp DACA Notification E-Mail 1 Notification E-Mail 2 | 
| E-Verify | EV Guardian ID EV Case No Date EV Created EV Date Initially Submitted EV Current Status EV Date Next Submit EV CPS State EV Hold Until EV Last Submitted EV Last Name Submitted EV First Name Submitted EV Middle Initial Submitted EV Other Names Used Submitted EV DOB Submitted EV Date Hired Submitted EV Citizenship Submitted EV A No Submitted EV I-94 No Submitted EV SS No Submitted EV S2 Document Submitted EV S2 Document Expires EV Visa Submitted EV Card No Submitted EV Passport No Submitted EV Submitted By EV Returned First Name EV Returned Last Name EV Last Return Msg EV Initial Eligibility EV Initial Eligibility Reason EV Returned Letter EV Secondary Performed EV Date Referred EV TNC Contested EV TNC Final EV Date Re-Submitted EV Last Name Re-Submitted EV First Name Re-Submitted EV Middle Initial Re-Submitted EV Other Names Used Re-Submitted EV Social Security No Re-Submitted EV DOB Re-Submitted EV Re-Submitted Official EV Secondary Performed EV DHS Response EV DHS Response Date EV Contested SSA EV Contested DHS EV Case Resolved EV Final Option EV Photo Tool Used EV Days to Submit EV Photo Confirmation EV Overdue Reason EV Overdue Reason Other EV DHS Deadline | 
| FAR | FAR Date Created FAR Exempt FAR Exempt Status FAR Final E-Verify FAR Contract FAR Next Status FAR E-Verify Status FAR Batch Name | 
| Group Locations | Default in Group | 
| HR Groups | Group Name Group is Interactive | 
| HR Locations | Location Privilege | 
| HRs | HR Name Last Name First Name Middle Name Title ID Is Admin Work Phone Number Date Created Date Last Retired Date Last Unretired View Emps Privilege I-9 Default Occupation Class I-9 Default Location I-9 Default Language I-9 Default I-9 Type Default Business Unit Type Cannot Approve I-9s Cannot Create Electronic I-9 Cannot Create Archival I-9s Cannot Create Paper I-9s Has E-Verify Privilege Can Amend I-9 Can Approve I-9 Amendments Can Exempt Issues Can Park I-9s Can Approve I-9s in Batch Can Close E-Verify Cases in Batch Can View Dash Mini Charts Can Create Employees Is Expert Is the Default HR | 
| I-9 | I-9 Status I-9 Type I-9 Imported Type I-9 Number I-9 Date Created I-9 Date Completed I-9 Date Approved I-9 Approved by I-9 Days to File I-9 Ontime Margin I-9 Visa No I-9 Card Number I-9 Error Count I-9 E-Verify Error Count I-9 FAR Error Count I-9 Due Date I-9 Expiration Date I-9 Days to Expiration I-9 Remote Agent I-9 Business Unit I-9 Location S1 First Name S1 Middle Initial S1 Last Name S1 Other Names Used S1 Address S1 Apartment No S1 City S1 State S1 Zip Code S1 Social Security Number S1 Date of Birth S1 A Number S1 Work Until Date S1 A No or Admission No S1 Citizenship Attestation S1 Date Signed S1 Date First Signed S2 Date Employee Hired S1 Foreign Passport No S1 Country of Issuance P/T Name P/T Address P/T City P/T State P/T Zip Code P/T Date Signed S2 List A Authority S2 List A Document S2 Document Name S2 List A Document #1 S2 List A Document Uploaded S2 List A Expiration Date #1 S2 List A Doc Name #2 S2 List A Document #2 S2 List A Authority #2 S2 List A Expiration Date #2 S2 List A Doc Name #3 S2 List A Document #3 S2 List A Authority #3 S2 List A Expiration Date #3 S2 Unknown Document List A S2 List B Document S2 Document B Name S2 List B Authority S2 List B Document No S2 List B Document Uploaded S2 List B Expiration Date S2 Unknown Document List B S2 List B Photo Affirmed S2 List C Document S2 Document C Name S2 List C Authority S2 List C Document No S2 List C Expiration Date S2 Unknown Document List C S2 List C Document Issued Date S2 HR Last Name S2 HR First Name S2 HR Title S2 Header First Name S2 Header Last Name S2 Header Middle Initial S2 Header Immigration Status S2 Company Name S2 Company Address S2 Company City S2 Company State S2 Company Zip Code S2 Date Signed S2 Date First Signed S2 Misc Entry S2 Additional Information I-9 Form Version | 
| I-9 Issues | ID Error I9 No Error I9 Section 3 No Error Class Error Type Error Section Error Object Error Explanation Error Ignored Error Exempted by Error not Exemptable | 
According to updated guidance provided by the DHS, if an employee first presents a receipt for a document, then later provides a different, acceptable document for identity purposes within the 90-day period, employers may accept them.
If an employee presents a different document than the original receipt document, LawLogix recommends performing the following steps:
- Make no additional changes to the original receipt I-9 and Park the form.
- Create a new I-9 for the employee.
- Direct the employee to complete Section 1 again.
- Record the new document(s) in Section 2, and within the Additional Information box write a notation.
- Example text: ‘Employee originally presented a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document. In lieu of presenting the original document for which the receipt was issued, the employee has presented alternate documentation which is acceptable. Per DHS guidance, we have created this new I-9 to record the alternate documents.’
 
- Approve the I-9 (this will automatically send the information to E-Verify, if applicable)
For employees who present the same document as the receipt, the process remains unchanged: Update the document information via the employee’s I-9 Details tab ‘Update Receipt’ button and follow the steps to approve the receipt amendments.
In certain instances there is a need for an I-9 to be created and completed remotely. Guardian can accommodate this with a special remote agent I-9 within the system. To create such an I-9, please proceed through the following steps:
 
Creating a remote I-9 for an existing employee
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal and access the employee record by clicking on their name. 
- 
Once loaded into the employee’s page, click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Add I-9 Remote Processing button in the top right corner of the screen. - 
Note: this cannot be done if there is already an I-9 pending in the system. 
 
- 
- 
Select the appropriate remote agent (if necessary) and the Remote Hire HR Contact. - 
The Remote Hire HR Contact is the Guardian user to be contacted if questions arise. 
 
- 
- 
Create or Review the Agent Instructions. (Email the instructions if the agent is known). 
- 
Create or Review the Employee Instructions. 
- 
Click the Send or Edit Email button to begin the send process. 
- 
Click the Send the Email button to send instructions to the employee for completing the I-9. 
To create the I-9 for a new employee  
- 
Sign into the Guardian system and access the Employees module. 
- 
Click the Add button in the top right corner of the screen. 
- 
Enter the social security number for the new hire OR choose Create Employee w/o Social Security No to proceed without one. 
- 
Complete all of the required fields to create the employee. - 
i.e. location, start date, and occupation class. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Employee with Remote Agent button. 
- 
Select the appropriate remote agent (if necessary) and the Remote Hire HR Contact. - 
The Remote Hire HR Contact is the Guardian user to be contacted if questions arise. 
 
- 
- 
Create or Review the Agent Instructions. (Email the instructions if the agent is known). 
- 
Create or Review the Employee Instructions. 
- 
Click the Send or Edit Email button to begin the send process. 
- 
Click the Send the Email button to send instructions to the employee for completing the I-9. 
There are plenty of situations in which a change needs to be made to an Form I-9. Wrong address, misspelled name or any other item can be amended in either section of the form.
This can be done easily in the Guardian system. Please follow the steps below according to which section needs to be modified.
- 
From your Guardian portal, access the employee's I-9 record either through the I-9 Forms module or Employees module. 
- 
Once loaded into the I-9 form that needs changes, click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Section 1 or Section 2 (dependent on where the change is needed) on the left hand side of the page. 
- 
Double click Item to be amended. 
- 
Ensure that there is a check mark in the Strike-Out Original Value line. 
- 
Enter the correct value in the New Value field. 
- 
Click Create Amendment. - 
If you have more than one amendment to make in this section, click Create Amendment and Add Another to repeat this process. 
 
- 
Once the amendment is added, it is ready to be approved.
 
Section 2 Amendment Approvals:
To approve a section 2 amendment, click the Actions button and choose the last option that reads Approve Non Section 1 Amendments. Then enter your password used for your Guardian login.
 
Section 1 Amendment Approvals:
To approve a section 1 amendment, click the Actions button and choose Approve Section 1 Amendments.
- 
This option will only be available if your organization has set preferences for the HR user to approve Section 1 Amendments. 
- 
If this option is grayed out, then it means the employee will need to approve the amendment. If this is the case, then select the most suitable option for the employee to approve the amendment. 
Note: Once a data field has been amended, it cannot be modified again.
When a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) is issued from E-Verify, employees have the options to take actions in response to it. In certain instances an employee may simply self-terminate and never sign the Final Action Notice (FAN) letter.
Should a case like this arise, users are advised to proceed through the following steps.
- 
		On the E-Verify Summary screen for the employee in question, click Continue E-Verify Process on the Case Status card. 
- 
		On the Tentative Nonconfirmation page click the Yes radio button in Step 2 and select Review and sign the FAN manually outside of Guardian , and click Continue . 
- 
		Select the checkboxes for the 'Acknowledge' and 'Confirm' sections then select Employee does not want to take action to resolve this case and understands their employment may be terminated and click Continue Process . 
- 
		On the 'Close Case' step click Close Case . 
- 
		Select the third radio button option: Neither of the options above apply- I am closing this case for a different reason , enter 'Employee self-terminated' in the text field, and click Continue . 
	As the DHS extension for I-9 verification rules has been in place for approximately a year, there is a chance that Virtual Verifications (and their relaxed rules) could be removed soon.
	
	This has always come "built-in" with the very use of Virtual Verification, but there are a few things an organization must do when they must "resume normal business operations."
	
	
			 The rules established by USCIS circa March 2020:
	
	
	"Due to precautions being implemented by employers and employees related to physical proximity associated with COVID-19, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it will exercise discretion to defer the physical presence requirements associated with Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Employers with employees taking physical proximity precautions due to COVID-19 will not be required to review the employee’s identity and employment authorization documents in the employee’s physical presence. However, employers must inspect the Section 2 documents remotely (e.g., over video link, fax or email, etc.) and obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the documents, within three business days for purposes of completing Section 2. Employers also should enter “COVID-19” as the reason for the physical inspection delay in the Section 2 Additional Information field once physical inspection takes place after normal operations resume. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate. These provisions may be implemented by employers for a period of 60 days from the date of this notice OR within 3 business days after the termination of the National Emergency, whichever comes first.
	
	Employers who avail themselves of this option must provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee. This burden rests solely with the employers.
	
	Once normal operations resume, all employees who were onboarded using remote verification, must report to their employer within three business days for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate.
	
	Any audit of subsequent Forms I-9 would use the “in-person completed date” as a starting point for these employees only.
	
	This provision only applies to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely. If there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis. Additionally, employers may designate an authorized representative to act on their behalf to complete Section 2. An authorized representative can be any person the employer designates to complete and sign Form I-9 on their behalf. The employer is liable for any violations in connection with the form or the verification process, including any violations in connection with the form or the verification process, including any violations of the employer sanctions laws committed by the person designated to act on the employer’s behalf.”
	
	Effective March 19, 2020, any employers who were served NOIs by DHS during the month of March 2020 and have not already responded will be granted an automatic extension for 60 days from the effective date. At the end of the 60-day extension period, DHS will determine if an additional extension will be granted.
	
	Going forward DHS will continue to monitor the ongoing National Emergency and provide updated guidance as needed. Employers are required to monitor the DHS and ICE websites for additional updates regarding when the extensions will be terminated, and normal operations will resume."
	
	
		 As per the USCIS, once the window of virtual verification use is concluded, users must fulfill physical inspection of documents presented by ALL employees that were originally hired on using this exception.
	
	
What Guardian Users Need to Do
	If and when the date for "resuming normal business operations" and officially ending the exception is determined by the USCIS, Guardian users must act quickly to physically inspect all documents within three business days.
	
Reporting on 'Virtual Verification' I-9s
	Guardian users that were employing the 'Covid-19 Exception' option within the application could create a report to pull all employees that were flagged with such I-9s. This can be done at any time, even before an official end date is declared.
	
	Example of the flag being used in an employee profile:
	
	To extend visibility of I-9s flagged with 'virtual verification', LawLogix introduced a new reportable field. This field,
	
		 I-9 Exception
	
	 , can be added to any Interactive Report that can include I-9 information. When included, the field notes
	
		 COVID-19
	
	 for any I-9 flagged for the exception.
	
	To add the field to a report:
	
- 
		Access the Reports module 
- 
		Select Interactive from the Report Types list 
- 
		Create or edit an existing report 
- 
		Select the Columns tab within the report details 
- 
		Select I-9 from the Tables list 
- 
		Scroll through the Field Name list and drag and drop I-9 Exception to the third list(the field should appear towards the top of the list, just below I-9 Ontime Margin ) 
- 
		Click Update Settings to save the changes 
Example New I-9 Exception Report Field:
Entering a Date of Normal Business Operations
	This date, when determined, must be entered into the Guardian system in order to kick off the physical inspection workflow. This must be performed by a Guardian administrator within the Policy/Preferences section of the Guardian Administration settings.
	
	Once this date is entered in the Administrative Settings, the I-9s flagged using the Virtual Verification Exception will appear on the
	
		 I-9s Needing Further Action
	
	 dashboard panel.
	
	Once this date is entered in the Administrative Settings, the I-9s flagged using the Virtual Verification Exception will appear on the
	
		 I-9s Needing Further Action
	
	 dashboard panel.
	
Noting Physical Inspection on I-9s
	After an virtual verification employee has their documents physically inspected, Guardian users can notate this directly in their profile.
	
Once clicked, a popup will appear with information on entering the date of physical inspection, as well as who inspected it.
	Once that is performed, similar to other amendments, users must approve the changes made.
	
	Once this is approved, the physical inspection note will appear in Section 2 of the employee profile.
	
Guardian Process – Different Individual Conducts Physical Inspection
	When the physical inspection of documents is conducted by a different person, employers using Guardian have two options:
	
Option 1 – Virtual Verification Amendment
	If the document verifier is a Guardian user with access to the I-9 record, the verifier can use the amendment workflow highlighted above and enter their full name and title in field when prompted:
	
	
	 If the verifier is NOT a Guardian user, the employer will need to complete the amendment process outside of Guardian (i.e., you will need to download the I-9, provide a copy to the employee along with instructions for the verifier to handwrite their name, title, and date of inspection, obtain the updated I-9 from the employee once completed, and upload to Guardian). Given the number of steps involved, this is not the recommended practice.
	
Option 2 – New Attestation (Recommended)
	If the verifier performing the physical inspection is NOT a Guardian user, the employer may choose to complete an entirely new I-9 (i.e., both sections 1 and 2) to document the physical inspection. Completing a new I-9 has the following benefits:
	
- 
		Completing a new Section 1 ensures you have the most recent (and up-to-date) information from the employee, which may be important if the employee has changed immigration status since the virtual I-9 was originally completed. 
- 
		Completing a new Section 2 enables employers to capture the authorized representative’s attestation and signature in Section 2 (per the ICE guidance). 
- 
		Employers using our Remote Verification Network can direct the employee to schedule an appointment with a nearby verification center for purposes of reviewing the original documents and completing Section 2. 
	Additional Compliance Pointers for Employers Creating a New I-9
	
- 
		Although the ICE guidance referenced above mentions completing a new Section 2 alone (which is not possible in Guardian), completing a new I-9 in this scenario should be permissible so long as the employer follows this process without regard to an employee's citizenship status, immigration status, or national origin. 
- 
		By design, Guardian will NOT submit these newly created I-9s for existing employees to E-Verify (assuming that an E-Verify case was properly created from the original virtual I-9). 
- 
		Once the second I-9 has been approved, employers should add an “Audit Note” to the I-9 which explains why a second record was created. 
	The following is a sample “Audit Note” to create for a new “physical inspection” I-9 record
	
| 
					
						 Date Entered
					
					 : 01/05/2021
					 
					
						 Entered By:
					
					 HR Rep
					 
					
						 Subject/Reference:
					
					 New I-9 for Physical Inspection
					 Note: This employee was originally verified by a different individual through the COVID-19 remote inspection process. ICE guidance indicates that employers should complete a new second page (Section 2) for the physical inspection in this scenario, which is not possible in our electronic I-9 solution. Accordingly, we have created this new Form I-9 (both Section 1 and 2) to document the physical inspection. Please see the prior I-9 for the remote inspection. | 
Getting Started
- Standard User Interface Overview
- Location Manager Interface Overview
- Dashboard Overview
- I-9 Section 1
- I-9 Section 2
- I-9 Section 3
- I-9 Preparer/Translator Certification
- Create Employee Login
- Uploading Documents
- Document Capture Enforcement
- Updating Employment History
- E-Verify Compliance Requirements
- Case Notes
General I-9 Workflows
Special I-9 Workflows
- In-Person Replacement Receipt
- Remote Hire Replacement Receipt
- Employee without Social Security Number
- H-1B Portability
- F-1 Curricular Practical Training (CPT)
- Work Authorization Special Amendments
- J-1 Student/Exchange Visitor
- Lawful Permanent Resident I-94 and I-551 stamp Receipt
- Minors Without a List B Identity Document
- New Hire Paper I-9
- Archival Paper I-9
- Uploading Paper I-9
E-Verify Workflows
- Employment Authorized Result
- Typographical Errors
- Late Submission
- Duplicate Case Alert
- Photo Matching Tool
- In Person SSA TNC
- Remote Employee SSA TNC
- In Person DHS Photo No Match TNC
- Remote Employee DHS Photo No Match TNC
- Navigation and E-Verify Update FAQ (2020)
Remote Agent I-9 Processing
- Remote Hire with Agent Workflow
- Remote I-9 Management
- Remote Section 3 Reverification
- PAN - Remote Verification Network Overview
I-9 Remediation
FAR Federal Contractor Tools
Advanced Features
See below for Guardian User Guides and Tutorials.
Administration
Guardian Reports Module
There are two types of reports available to create in the Guardian system:
1) Standard Reports are pre-configured templates
- 
Organizations on the hierarchical model of Guardian (G2) have these basic reports: 
- 
Pending Reverifications - employees with temporary work authorization that require reverification. 
- 
I-9 Issues - employees who have issues flagged on their primary I-9 record. 
- 
Employee Groups - displays details about the organization’s locations & employee groups 
- 
Organizations on the Occupation Class structure of Guardian (G1) have these basic reports: 
- 
Pending I-9s 
- 
Completed I-9s 
- 
I-9 Summary 
- 
Pending Reverifications 
- 
Pending Receipts 
- 
I-9 Issues 
- 
E-Verify Status 
- 
Employee 
- 
User 
2) Interactive Reports are customizable reports. The listing and definitions of the available Base Tables are the following:
- 
HR Users: this is the main table to pull information related to a user 
- 
Business Units: this table pulls information related to business units 
- 
Contracts: this table will pull information related to all contracts for employers that participate in E-Verify under a federal contract containing the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clause 
- 
Dashboard: this table will generate reports from any of the available dashboard panels (see the Dashboard Reports slide for more information) 
- 
Documents: this table will pull information related to any items in OnDocs. 
- 
E-Verify: this table will pull information from any E-Verify cases 
- 
Employee Address: this table will generate reports related to employee’s address 
- 
Employee Group Assignments: this table will identify which Employee Groups the user is assigned to. 
- 
Employee: this table will pull information related to all employees 
- 
FAR: this table will pull information related to the FAR clause 
- 
I-9 Issues: this table will pull information related to any existing I-9 issues for remediation purposes. 
- 
I-9 Section 3: this table will pull information related to all Section 3’s 
- 
I-9: this table will pull information related to any existing I-9’s 
- 
Locations: this table provides a yes/no indicator of which user is the default user for the HR Group. 
- 
Multi-Business Units: this table will identify which Multi-Business Units the user is assigned to. 
- 
Remote Agents: this table will pull information related to all Remote Agents used in processing Section 2’s 
- 
Remote I-9s: this table will pull information related to any remote I-9s 
- 
State Affidavits: this table will pull information related to any State Affidavits 
- 
Tasks: this table will pull information related to all pending Tasks. 
Reports Scheduler:
In the Scheduler Options section, the user can create Interactive reports that run automatically on a routine basis:
- 
The Daily option will run the report either All Days or Weekdays only. 
- 
The Weekly option will run the report on the same day of the week on a weekly basis. 
- 
The Monthly option will run the report on the specified day of the month. 
Please register for upcoming Guardian live webcasts Here!
The Pending Reverifications report is an off-the-shelf report that does not allow users to remove or add report columns. However, an interactive report can be adjusted to mirror the Pending Reverifications report, as well as additional data points as needed.
To create this custom report, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard area, click Reports in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Select Interactive as the Report Type 
- 
Click New+. 
- 
Next to Base Table, select I9. 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click Columns in the upper most tabs. 
- 
Under Select Table, click Employee. 
- 
Under Select Field, double click or drag and drop the following to add it to the Build Fields in Reports section. - 
Employee Name 
- 
Responsible HR/Group 
- 
Date Hired 
 
- 
- 
Under Select Table, click I-9. 
- 
Under Select Field, double click or drag and drop the following to add it to the Build Fields in Reports section. - 
I-9 Days to Expiration 
- 
I-9 Expiration Date 
 
- 
- 
Repeat steps 7-8 to add as many data points as desired for the report to pull. 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click Settings in the upper most tabs. 
- 
Within Date Range section, select I-9 Expiration Date from dropdown next to Date to Search. 
- 
Enter desired date within From field. - 
This will filter out I-9s that do not have an expiration date. (i.e. 1/1/1980) 
- 
By adding an old value (that is not applicable) only those I-9s with expiration dates on or after the filter date will be displayed. 
- 
To search for only those with future expiration dates then add a current date value. 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in lower left. 
- 
Click Run Report Now. 
With the ever changing landscape due to the coronavirus, LawLogix compiled the following resources and frequently asked questions to help organizations maintain I-9 compliance during this unprecedented time. This page will be updated continuously as new information, resources, or practices are introduced.
Remote Onboarding Resources
DHS' 'Virtual Verification' Announcement
LawLogix 'Virtual Verification' Blog
LawLogix Webinar: 5 Strategies for Managing Remote I-9 and E-Verify Compliance
Remote Verification Now Guardian Implementation Overview
Remote Verification Guardian Workflow Tutorial
Remote Verification Configuration Guide
Remote Verification Workflow Training Video
Virtual Verification Now Guardian Implementation Overview
Virtual Verification Configuration Guide
COVID-19 Physical Inspection Guide
Form I-9 COVID-19 Exception Scenarios
Frequently Asked Questions
General
Do we still need to complete Form I-9 within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay?
Yes, DHS has not relaxed this requirement. Organizations can fulfill this requirement by completing the I-9 in-person with the employee, remotely by designating an individual to act as the authorized representative of your organization, or virtually, utilizing DHS' temporary allowance which permits 'virtual verification' of the identity and employment authorization documents. Moreover, the requirement that the employee complete Section 1 of Form I-9 by their first day of work also remains in effect.
Can we complete an I-9 before an employee starts work for pay?
Yes, per USCIS guidelines, the law requires that a Form I-9 be completed when the person actually begins working for pay. However, once an official offer of employment has been accepted by the prospect/new hire, the form may be completed earlier.
Please note: The Form I-9 process may not be used to screen job applications.
Are we required to provide an employee a login and password to access Guardian to complete Section 1?
No, Guardian offers two different access methods for employees. While there is the option to provide the employee a login and password (i.e. permanent login) and administrator may change to Guardian’s ‘unique link’ access method whereby the employee receives a temporary link to access Guardian to complete the task.
Can I accept an expired driver license/state ID for an employee in which the office is closed?
Many states across the US closed their DMV branch offices to the public in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). To minimize customer inconvenience, many of these states auto-extended the validity of the driver’s licenses.
In response, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published the following Form I-9 guidance related to this issue:
Q. Many states are extending the expiration date of state IDs and/or driver's licenses. How should the extension be documented in Section 2?
A. If the employee's state ID or driver's license expired on or after March 1, 2020, and the document expiration date has been extended by their state due to COVID-19, then it is acceptable as a List B document for Form I-9. Enter the document's expiration date in Section 2 and enter "COVID-19 EXT" in the Additional Information field. Employers may also attach a copy of the state motor vehicle department’s webpage or other notice indicating that their documents have been extended.
The USCIS officially announced on May 1st that all List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes. In this case, the receipt is valid for 90 days from the date DHS terminates this temporary policy. In response to an inquiry made by LawLogix, DHS further clarified expectations related to E-Verify. Specifically, that I-9 forms completed with non-auto extended expired documents should not be submitted to E-Verify. Instead, E-Verify submission should occur once the valid document is provided later.
This means that more than one workflow may be applicable depending on whether the document was automatically extended. LawLogix analyzed these announcements and has set forth the following recommendations.
Managing this Process in Guardian When the Document is Auto-Extended
If a new hire presents an expired driver’s license for List B purposes during the COVID-19 pandemic, and you have confirmed that it was auto-extended by the state, you should enter the expired date in the List B expiration date field in Guardian. When the expiration date is on or after March 1, 2020, an additional ‘expiration exception’ checkbox will appear in List B. Checking this box allows the document verifier to proceed with Section 2 completion while also auto-inserting ‘COVID-19 Ext’ into the Additional Information field. The auto-insertion of this text is not dependent on whether or not your organization has enabled the ability to edit this field. 
In addition, as indicated in the USCIS announcement, you may wish to maintain a copy of the state DMV announcement in the employee’s OnDocs to further document this exception.
The I-9 should be marked ‘Approved’ at the time of completion and submitted to E-Verify, if applicable.
Managing this Process in Guardian When the Document is NOT Auto-Extended
For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy). 
Since DHS indicates that such I-9s should not be submitted to E-Verify, users should mark the I-9 ‘Completed’, but refrain from marking the I-9 ‘Approved’.
To help facilitate a follow up workflow for this situation, organizations are further advised to create a custom field. A custom field labeled ‘COVID List B Exception’ may be created by an administrator and used to report on employees who require follow up once DHS ends the temporary policy. 
Please note that when the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should edit Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date, re-sign Section 2, and Approve the I-9 to facilitate E-Verify submission.
If your organization does not participate in E-Verify you may wish to follow this abbreviated procedure instead:
When processing the I-9 initially, proceed with marking the I-9 ‘Approved’, and when the employer later presents the unexpired document, amend Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date.
Is an employee allowed to use an EAD Approval Notice as an acceptable document?
Yes. The USCIS affirmed that employers may continue to accept a qualifying Form I-797 approval notice in place of an actual EAD until February 1, 2021. Approval notices can be accepted for either newly hired employees or reverifications.
In order to qualify, the I-797 approval notice must have a Notice Date from December 1, 2019 through and including August 20, 2020, and indicate that the employee’s I-765 form (Application for Employment Authorization) has been approved by the USCIS. Newly hired employees must also present a List B document to demonstrate identity as required in Section 2 of the Form I-9.
If you previously accepted and recorded an I-797 EAD approval notice in Section 2 of the Form I-9 with a December 1, 2020 expiration date, you will need to update the Form I-9 to indicate the new extended work authorization date of February 1, 2021.
While the USCIS recommends adding a note to the ‘Additional Information’ field, Guardian users should instead take the following steps to ensure appropriate reverification reminders are activated:
1. Amend the List C Expiration Date with the new extended expiration date of February 1, 2021.
2. In the ‘Note of Record’ field within the amendment, enter “Employment Authorization Ext”
Once the amendment is approved, Guardian will properly annotate the I-9 with updated work authorization expiration date and set a new reverification deadline of February 1, 2021.
For more information on this temporary policy and how to fulfill an I-9 using a Form I-797, please refer to our blog.
How should we reverify the work authorization of a furloughed employee?
Assuming the employee’s visa allows for furlough without pay, you may reverify the employee’s work authorization once he or she returns to work by completing Section 3 in Guardian. It is advisable to create an audit case note as well, indicating that the employee was not working (and off payroll) during the gap between the end of their work authorization and the reverification period. Employers with questions about the impact of a furlough on foreign national employees should consult with their legal counsel.
 
E-Verify
Do we still need to create a case with E-Verify within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay?
Yes, regardless of the I-9 completion option your organization chooses, DHS expects the I-9 information to be submitted to E-Verify within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay.
What happens if an employee receives a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) response from E-Verify?[]
The employee should be notified as soon as possible once the TNC is received. If the employee chooses to take action, DHS has noted that the final response may be delayed (past the expected resolution deadline as noted on the Referral Date Confirmation) due to Social Security Administration (SSA) office closures. During this time, while the case remains referred, no adverse action may be taken against the employee. These cases will continue to reflect the following status in Guardian: Pending Further SSA/DHS Action as well as Employee Referred.
 
Can I process a Tentative Nonconfirmation with a remote employee?
Yes, Guardian supports a remote workflow in order to notify and provide the employee with access to review and electronically sign the Further Action Notice (FAN).
See this tutorial for detailed steps on how to initiate the remote workflow.
In Person Remote Agent Verification
How can we create an I-9 that utilizes the remote agent workflow to verify documents?
An I-9 that is flagged for ‘remote processing’ can be created manually within Guardian or programmatically for those organizations that have a data integration. To place the employee in this type of workflow manually, select ‘Logins Required’ (option 3) for the Login Type when creating a new employee record, or click ‘Add I-9 for Remote Processing’ on the I-9 Forms tab of an existing employee record. These actions provide unique access links for both the employee and remote agent to complete the I-9 electronically.
 
Is the remote agent able to upload the supporting documents to Guardian?
Yes, a document retention step can be added to the remote agent’s workflow. This is a configuration option that a Guardian administrator can enable.
Is LawLogix’ ‘Remote Verification Network’ still accepting appointments to verify I-9 documents?
As the coronavirus has spread and states and cities enact additional ‘shelter in place’ or ‘stay at home’ strategies, many businesses that are part of the verification network have closed temporarily.
Click here for an up-to-date list of site closures.
Am I able to convert an electronic I-9 to a ‘remote processing’ I-9?
No, the functionality to change an I-9 to a remote I-9 is not available in Guardian currently. If the employee will now see a remote agent to complete the I-9 process we recommend ‘parking’ the original I-9 and creating an I-9 for remote processing. Note that the ability to park an I-9 (i.e. maintain it within the system and prevent future editing) is an administrative option your organization must enable.
Can we customize the employee and agent instructions?
Yes, an administrator has the ability to update the instruction templates for this remote hire workflow.
Can we automate the sending of both the employee and agent instructions?
Through data feed or web service integrations your organization can automate the creation of I-9s for remote processing. The employee instructions specific to the remote hire workflow are also emailed as part of the automation. However, since the agent instructions are often intended for an unknown recipient, there is no automatic emailing of agent instructions. These instructions are available to the employee through their Guardian portal workflow. This allows the employee to provide the instructions to the agent when appropriate.
If you wish to provide both steps to the employee upfront you may customize the employee instructions and combine both the employee and agent instructions and access links in the same email, first noting the responsibilities of the employee and then of the agent.
Organizations should maintain the separate agent instructions as well because an instruction link is available within the agent’s portal that utilizes the remote agent instructions template. Additionally, maintenance of the distinct agent instructions template ensures that the access URL is generated properly for the agent.
 
Virtual Verification
What is the ‘virtual verification’ exception?
On March 20, 2020, DHS announced the temporary allowance to inspect I-9 documents ‘virtually’ for those organizations forced to a remote/’work from home’ workforce to abide by social distancing policies to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. DHS indicated that this is a temporary exception that is valid for 60 days from the announcement or within three business days once the state of national emergency has ended, whichever is sooner.
LawLogix released an administrative option that, when enabled, allows an organization to flag I-9s that have been completed via the virtual verification exception. The exception can be indicated on an I-9 by I-9 basis by toggling ‘on’ the selection.
The following information will appear at the top of the I-9 Details page when the feature is activated.
Is LawLogix making any changes to Guardian to support this temporary exception?
Yes, LawLogix has introduced the 'COVID-19 Exception' option into the system. This option can allow users to flag an I-9 that was completed using virtual verification, so it may be followed up on after normal business resumes.
More details about these changes can be found in our New and Notable section.
More features that support the utilization of this exception including extending document upload functionality to employees and managing the deferred physical inspection I-9 annotation are also in the works. Changes are forthcoming and releases will be announced within Guardian.
Must Section 2 be completed within 3 days of employment start?
Yes, even when taking advantage of the temporary ‘virtual verification’ option, the employer is obligated to complete the I-9 within 3 business days of the employee starting work for pay.
Should we be making special notations on the I-9 at the time of ‘virtual verification’?
Yes, as a best practice LawLogix recommends annotating the I-9 with the words ‘COVID-19’ at the time of Section 2 completion. This note should be added to the 'Additional Information' field. An administrator should confirm in the I-9 Preferences and Policy section that your organization has not restricted this field from editing.
Note, DHS has not definitively stated that this annotation has to be done during the initial I-9 completion, but we find it is a good idea in the off-chance that you receive a Notice of Inspection before you’ve had an opportunity to conduct the in-person verification.
What if we did not input ‘COVID-19’ in the Additional Information field at the time of Section 2 completion? 
If there already are virtual I-9s completed without this annotation, or your organization does not permit the editing of the Section 2 Additional Information box, this requirement can still be met. When you do conduct the in-person verification later-on, Guardian will enable you to enter the COVID-19 wording along with the date of physical inspection through a streamlined amendment workflow specific to this exception case. More information about that functionality will be forthcoming.
To ensure that your organization can take advantage of the upcoming amendment workflow, select the COVID-19 virtual verification flag on those I-9s using the virtual verification exception. We designed this feature primarily to help you manage and track those I-9s that will need to be updated when normal business operations resume.
We have been virtually verifying I-9s, but do not have the Guardian administrative option activated. Can we still utilize it? 
Yes, the virtual verification exception can be enabled at any time by an administrator. Users may return to an I-9 at any time to indicate the I-9 was completed virtually.
 
Are we able to flag I-9s for the ‘Virtual Verification’ exception after the I-9 is approved? 
Yes, as long as virtual verification has been enabled by an administrator, users may return to an I-9 at any time to indicate the I-9 was completed virtually.
 
What should we do if we flagged an I-9 incorrectly for virtual verification? 
The virtual verification exception flag can be removed at any time. If there is an I-9 that was incorrectly flagged for virtual verification, simply navigate to the I-9 Details tab and deselect the option.
Will I-9s remain flagged for virtual verification if we disable the administrative option? 
Yes, when an I-9 is flagged for virtual verification, that flag remains regardless of whether the virtual verification administrative setting is active. The COVID-19 exception message remains visible on the I-9 Details tab. If the I-9 was incorrectly flagged for virtual verification, a user may deselect the option to remove the flag.
If we are tracking virtual verification outside of Guardian should we be utilizing the administrative option? 
LawLogix recommends flagging virtual verification I-9s in Guardian even if tracking externally in order to take advantage of future functionality intended to streamline the physical inspection annotation.
How can we update virtual verification I-9s once physical inspection takes place?
LawLogix is planning to release functionality that streamlines the annotation of the physical inspection notation so that the I-9 properly reflects when and by whom physical inspection of documents was completed. Users will be able to take advantage of this streamlined workflow for those I-9s flagged with the virtual verification exception.
Can we annotate the physical inspection process before LawLogix releases the special virtual verification amendment workflow?
Yes, organizations may utilize in-system tools to document the physical inspection process prior to LawLogix’ release of new functionality.
We recommend the use of the ‘Audit Note’ case note to document the date physical inspection was completed as well as who completed the inspection. Additionally, to formalize the process more fully we suggest the verifier complete a document attesting to the physical inspection.
How can we utilize a remote agent to complete the physical inspection requirement?
If your organization needs to utilize a remote agent to perform this function, this process requires steps both internal and external to Guardian in order to fulfill the requirement. LawLogix has put together a best practice recommendation to address this temporary and unique situation. Please find below a list of recommended activities when having a remote agent complete the deferred physical inspection when normal business operations resume.
1. Identify, either through Guardian reports or another HR-related system, those employees who presented documents virtually and remain remote, requiring an agent/authorized representative to complete physical inspection.
2. Print or save an electronic copy of the completed Form I-9 for each of these employees.
3. Through secure means, contact each employee and provide them with their previously completed I-9, as well as a supplemental “Physical Inspection Attestation” to be signed by their chosen remote agent.
4. Direct the employee to choose a remote agent that may perform the in-person document inspection.
5. Instruct the employee to present to the agent the same original documents that were previously provided, regardless of document expiration date.
6. Advise the remote agent to compare the documents presented to the information contained in Section 2 of the employee’s Form I-9, and sign the Physical Inspection Attestation.
7. Through secure means, the employee returns the Physical Inspection Attestation to the HR team.
8. A Guardian user uploads the attestation to the employee’s I-9 OnDocs as a supporting document. 9. The Guardian user may toggle off* the COVID-19 exception from the employee profile to remove the exception alert from the dashboard.
**Note: in the workflow described above, the physical inspection will only be recorded on the supplemental attestation uploaded to the employee’s OnDocs file. If your organization wishes to also record the COVID-19 physical document information on the Form I-9 itself, a Guardian user may instead initiate the streamlined amendment process in Guardian which will record the inspection date and name of inspector in the Section 2 Additional Information field, and remove the exception alert from Guardian.
Should we wait to submit the I-9 to E-Verify until the documents have been physically inspected?
No, you should not delay E-Verify case creation. The I-9 should be completed and approved in Guardian at the time of ‘virtual verification’.
Do we need to retain the I-9 supporting documents if that is not our normal policy?
Yes, based on DHS guidance, the documents utilized to complete I-9s with this COVID-19 exception must be retained. You may utilize the employee’s ‘I-9 OnDocs’ to permanently store the documents within Guardian.
 
Can we use the new “virtual verification” option if only a portion of our workforce is working remotely due to COVID-19? For example, we have certain job roles for whom it is essential to work onsite at our facilities despite our overall policy that employees should work from home?
According to the DHS memo published on March 20, 2020, the virtual verification option is only available to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19. The memo goes on to state that if there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of the I-9 documents. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
This “case-by-case” basis language provides employers with an opportunity to interpret the memo and requirements based on their own unique circumstances and conditions. For example, an employer with on-site employees may have a good argument for using the virtual verification option if a new hire will be working remotely from the beginning. Similarly, an employer might take the position that virtual verification is appropriate since their “existing” HR employees (who would normally complete Section 2) are working remotely, due to a lockdown protocol. Other employers may choose to make a blanket argument that virtual verification is essential in order to maintain the safety and well-being of their staff.
Ultimately, employers will need to analyze and interpret this memo, ideally with the help of their legal counsel, to make this decision.
We recommend consulting our blog post on this particular issue, which weighs the potential risks in detail.
 
How do we give the employee access to Guardian to complete Section 1 electronically?
Employees may be given login credentials or a unique link (depending on your organization’s configuration) to access an employee interface for purposes of completing Section 1 of the I-9. To do so, please proceed with the following steps. Users can generate the welcome email by performing the following steps:
- Navigate to the employee profile.
- Click the Login Info tab.
- Under Contact Information, enter the employee's email address.
- Click Update Info in the upper right to save.
- Click Create Login in the lower left.
- Review and/or edit from within the subsequent email preview window and click Send Email.
- Work Authorization Reverification (Section 3)
Are we able to utilize a remote agent to document our employee’s work authorization extension?
Yes, Guardian supports remote processing (utilizing a remote agent to act as the organization’s authorized representative) to fulfill both Section 2 and Section 3 documentation requirements. To generate a remote Section 3, access the employee’s I-9 record, navigate to the I-9 Details tab, scroll down to Section 3 and select Add Remote Section 3. This process generates a new electronic Section 3 as well as an access link an agent can use to complete the process.
Can we utilize the ‘Virtual Verification’ exception to complete reverification?
Yes, DHS’ announcement extended the use of this exception to fulfill hiring and reverification requirements.
 
How should I track reverifications completed with the ‘virtual verification’ exception?
LawLogix recommends enabling a custom field in Guardian to flag reverification employee records that require physical inspection later. LawLogix suggests labeling it ‘COVID 19 Reverification Exception’, or similar and consider making it a choice list (Yes/No) to capture information consistently.
 
How should we manage the physical inspection annotation in Section 3 once normal business operations resume?
LawLogix recommends utilizing Guardian’s amendment feature to amend Section 3 to include the note."
There are several reasons why an amendment may not be able to be approved.
 
- 
There are valid issues appearing on the Amendments tab within the Issues with I-9 Amendments section. If there are any issues listed that are not exempted or deferred, the issues will be seen as still valid and prevent users from approving pending amendments. 
This can be corrected by either resolving or exempting the issue(s) present on the I-9. Users with the appropriate privilege can exempt the issue by clicking the Valid link for the entry within the Issues with Amendments section. Please note that the exemption should occur in the Amendments tab, not the Issues tab.
 
- 
The user does not have the appropriate privileges to approve amendments. Guardian administrators grant permissions on a user-by-user basis to approve amendments. If a user does not have the permission to approve amendments, then that action will not be enabled within the Amendments tab. 
- 
The pending amendment relates to Section 1. Organizations may restrict Section 1 approval to employees only. If your database has been configured in this way then the Approve Section 1 action within the Amendments tab will not be enabled. In these instances, a user may initiate the approval step by selecting the action Employee Approve Section 1 if the employee is present or Notify Employee by E-Mail if the employee is not present. 
The decision of whether or not a specific document should be accepted generally falls into legal advice that LawLogix cannot give as a software company.  
 
Fortunately though, we can refer you to some guidance which may help. In the M-274 Handbook for Employers, it advises that an employer cannot accept a receipt notice for an I-766 employment authorization document which is expired on its face.  
 
Handbook Reference:
Q. My employee has applied for a new Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766). Is the USCIS receipt notice covered by the Form I-9 receipt rule?  
 
A. In this case, the USCIS receipt notice is not an acceptable receipt for Form I-9 purposes. An employee with temporary employment authorization and holding an Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) should apply for a new card at least 90 days before the expiration of his or her current document.
 
If your employee applied for a new card at least 90 days before his or her current card expired but is nearing the end of the 90-day processing period without a decision from USCIS, instruct your employee to call the National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283 or 1-800-767-1833 (TDD) about the status of his or her application. USCIS strongly encourages that employees first call the National Customer Service Center before visiting a USCIS office to prevent possible delays.
 
If your employee prefers to check on the status of his or her application at a USCIS office, he or she may schedule an InfoPass appointment at www.infopass.uscis.gov. When your employee's current Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires, he or she must be able to present a List A document, a List C document, or an acceptable receipt under the receipt rule to satisfy Form I-9 reverification requirements. Please note, however, that there are some situations when an employer can accept an expired I-766 for qualified students who are in F-1 visa status and working pursuant to optional practical training.
 
For more information, please refer to the M-274 handbook which describes these situations.
If your organization is considering utilizing this “virtual verification” option allotted by the USCIS, there are some important considerations to keep in mind:
 
Virtual verification limitations and requirements
Please note that virtual verification option is only available to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19 
 
- 
This option is currently only valid for 60 days from the date of the DHS announcement (made 3/20/20) or within three business days once the state of national emergency is ended, whichever is sooner 
- 
Virtual verification allows completion of Section 2 or 3 NOW and in-person inspection of the documents LATER (i.e. two-part I-9 process) 
- 
Employers must obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the supporting documents, within 3 business days 
- 
Employers must also provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee 
- 
Employers must complete in-person I-9 verification within 3 business days once normal business operations resume 
- 
Employers must annotate I-9s that leveraged this exception at the time of the physical inspection (i.e. creating a special amendment that reads ‘COVID-19’) 
Implementation Checklist
If your organization has decided you meet the criteria laid out by DHS to utilize this temporary solution, LawLogix recommends completing the following activities:
 
- 
Determine and document the method of virtual verification - 
As the employer you must virtually inspect the I-9 documents to complete Section 2. While there are several options available, we encourage your organization to review the security and coordination of each option which includes: video conferencing, secure online document repository (e.g. Dropbox, Google Docs, Sharebase), FedEx/UPS, fax, and e-mail. 
 
- 
- 
Determine who will be responsible for the virtual verification and in-person verification processes 
- 
Determine how your organization will schedule the virtual verification appointments and who is responsible for scheduling and Section 2 completion 
- 
Document your written onboarding policy for this COVID-19 I-9 exception - 
LawLogix recommends making the policy available to all associates and advising that they add the policy statement as an I-9 audit note for each exception employee. 
 
- 
- 
Create an in-person verification policy that outlines the timeline and requirements document verifiers must fulfill once normal business operations resume - 
This policy should include the additional I-9 notations that accompany the physical inspection. Specifically, verifiers are advised to annotate the I-9 and write “COVID-19,” along with the date the in-person verification occurred. 
 
- 
- 
Create training materials for your document verifiers 
- 
Determine how your organization will collect the documents to meet the USCIS requirement to retain documents pursuant to this exception 
LawLogix further recommends the following Guardian-specific activities:
- 
Enable a Custom Field option to flag the employee records with I-9s that will require in-person verification later. (User must have the ‘administrator’ permission to complete this step.) - 
If implementing this policy immediately, LawLogix recommends that you label the Custom Field ‘COVID 19 Exception’ for easy identification and provide guidance to document verifiers for populating this field. 
- 
LawLogix is working on creating an easier in-app option to facilitate the flagging of these I-9s. This item is on track to be released in the coming week. 
 
- 
- 
Customize the employee ‘welcome email’ to include instructions for both the virtual verification and the in-person verification (User must have the ‘administrator’ permission to complete this step.) 
- 
Set up an interactive report in Guardian to track these I-9s 
- 
Provide instruction and documentation to verifiers to enter an audit note that details this exception per I-9 record 
COVID-19 Virtual Verification Exception Frequently Asked Questions
Must Section 2 be completed within 3 days of employment start? 
Yes, even when taking advantage of the temporary ‘virtual verification’ option, the employer is obligated to complete the I-9 within 3 business days of the employee starting work for pay.
 
Should we be making special notations on the I-9 at the time of ‘virtual verification’? 
No, based on the guidance from DHS, the I-9 should be annotated with the words ‘COVID-19’ and ‘Documents physically inspected on’ at the time of physical inspection (i.e. once normal business operations resume).
Should we wait to submit the I-9 to E-Verify until the documents have been physically inspected? 
No, you should not delay E-Verify case creation.  The I-9 should be completed and approved in Guardian at the time of ‘virtual verification’.
Do we need to retain the I-9 supporting documents if that is not our normal policy?
Yes, based on DHS guidance, the documents utilized to complete I-9s with this COVID-19 exception must be retained.  You may utilize the employee’s ‘I-9 OnDocs’ to permanently store the documents within Guardian.
Can we use the new “virtual verification” option if only a portion of our workforce is working remotely due to COVID-19? For example, we have certain job roles for whom it is essential to work onsite at our facilities despite our overall policy that employees should work from home.
 
According to the DHS memo published on March 20, 2020, the virtual verification option is only available to  employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19. The memo goes on to state that if there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of the I-9 documents. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
 
This “case-by-case” basis language provides employers with an opportunity to interpret the memo and requirements based on their own unique circumstances and conditions. For example, an employer with on-site employees may have a good argument for using the virtual verification option if a new hire will be working remotely from the beginning. Similarly, an employer might take the position that virtual verification is appropriate since their “existing” HR employees (who would normally complete Section 2) are working remotely, due to a lockdown protocol.  Other employers may choose to make a blanket argument that virtual verification is essential in order to maintain the safety and well-being of their staff. 
 
Ultimately, employers will need to analyze and interpret this memo, ideally with the help of their legal counsel, to make this decision.
COVID-19 Product Enhancements
LawLogix is working to incorporate additional tools within Guardian to help organizations that utilize this exemption option.  These tools and features will be rolled out in phases over the coming weeks and include:
 
- 
Add ability to designate an I-9 with the ‘COVID-19 Exception’ 
- 
Update reporting to provide visibility of exception I-9s 
- 
Extend document capture to allow employee capture 
- 
Streamlined COVID-19 I-9 annotation workflow 
In some instances a system user or employee may not receive email generated from Guardian. This is often the result of rules defined on the recipient's email server.
If an email is missing, users should first check their Spam/Junk folders to ensure that the Guardian messages are not being captured by those filters.
Other measures can be taken in order to ensure that Guardian emails can be received appropriately.
 
“Do Not Reply” Method
Emails sent from the Guardian system can be modified to show donotreply@perfectcompliance.com as the sender. This can often resolve the issues that cause most mail servers to decline messages from a third-party sender such as Guardian.
 
To enable this feature, please have a Guardian administrator within your organization proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration. 
- 
Click Preferences in the left hand menu. 
- 
Click the E-Mail tab. 
- 
Click the box next to Use “Do Not Reply” E-Mail Method. 
- 
Click the box next to Do not use sender info. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right. 
“Whitelisting” Method
Your organization may also need to make an exception on your mail server to allow emails sent from the LawLogix mail relay.
 
Please provide the following LawLogix mail relay information to your IT resource to add to your organization's SPF record. This will create an exception for incoming Guardian messages:
LawLogix mail relay:
Host Names:
Primary: iad-smtp.lawlogix.com
Disaster Recovery: bkl-smtp.lawlogix.com
When an I-9 record is deleted, a document is created indicating when the I-9 was created, the I-9 number, and the HR User who deleted the I-9 record. To confirm that an I-9 record was deleted, HR Users can run an interactive report.
 
- 
	Within the Guardian system, click Reports in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	Within Report Types, click Interactive. 
- 
	Click New in the Interactive Reports Menu. 
- 
	Name your report as desired. 
- 
	Select Documents as the Base Table. - 
		All filters should be set to All, except the filter for “Documents” which should be updated to Documents Not Attached to I-9s. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Update Settings. 
- 
	Click the Columns tab. 
- 
	Select the Documents table. 
- 
	Drag (or double click) any fields you would like to appear as columns within the report. Include the following fields: - 
		Doc Date Captured – this will assist you in narrowing down the range in which the I-9 was deleted. 
- 
		Doc Subject/Reference – the subject of any deleted I9 records will read as “I-9 Form Deleted” 
- 
		Doc Description – this contains the information as to the HR User who deleted the I-9. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings button to save the selected fields. 
- 
	Click the Settings tab. There should be a date range section now. 
- 
	Within Date Range section, select Doc Date Captured. - 
		Adjust the date range to include the month in which the billing discrepancy occurred to the present date (i.e. if there is a discrepancy on the February Invoice you would have a start date of February 1 and the end date as the present date). 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Update Settings. 
- 
	Click Run Report Now. 
Once the report has run, download the report as an Excel file, and search for the word “deleted.” This will allow you to quickly find the document containing the details of the deleted I-9 record.
If a user is unable to create an Archival I-9 record, it could be due to their set privilege settings or the organization's configuration. Only users with the privilege to add Archival I-9 record types will see that I-9 type as an available option on the I-9 Type field dropdown when creating a new record. Please consult your system administrator to update your I-9 privileges.
If a user is attempting to add an Archival I-9 for an employee and receives a message indicating that the “employee's start date must be before xx date,” then a setting must be adjusted by a system administrator. By default, the Archival I-9 type is intended to be used to capture historical I-9s (those I-9s completed on paper prior to utilizing Guardian). Consequently, if the employee's hire date is after your company's "go live" date, the system will prevent creation of the Archival I-9. To permit the creation of Archival I-9s for new/recent hires a setting:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Preferences in the left hand navigation. 
- 
The General tab should load. Click the I-9 Preferences dropdown towards the bottom. 
- 
Select Allow Current Archival Dates. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right. 
When this option is enabled, Guardian will permit the use of the Archival Paper I-9 type regardless of the employee's hire date.
OnDocs serves as a type of repository for employee documents including any supporting pieces to their I-9 forms for processing. Items can be easily uploaded to this area by proceeding with the following steps:
- 
From your Guardian dashboard, click on Employees in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Search for the employee that needs an item uploaded. 
- 
Click the employee name. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab in the top navigation. 
- 
Click Upload Document in the upper right. 
- 
In the modal that appears, click the dropdown menu to select the type of document being uploaded. 
- 
Click Next. 
- 
Click Select File. 
- 
Find the file loaded on your computer and click OK. 
- 
Click the Upload button. - 
If document fails or successfully uploads, a notification will appear in this window. 
 
- 
- 
Click Close. 
The file should appear in the OnDocs tab for this employee. The item can be deleted by clicking to highlight it and clicking Delete in the upper right.
In the instance of an employee not showing up for work on their hire date, Guardian users generally set the employee status as Terminated within the system. The employee I-9 in this scenario however, is often left incomplete. This leads to a lot of questions for the user: Should the I-9 be parked or should the employee record be deleted entirely? Is there a different action needed if the employee has a possibility of being rehired?
LawLogix has observed that most employers delete the incomplete I-9 record, as there is technically no legal requirement to retain it if the individual never actually performed any work for pay.
- 
The main item of consideration is whether or not the employee was on the payroll. 
Deleting the record will also avoid any potential confusion if the incomplete I-9 is ever presented to ICE during an audit. As a precautionary measure, employers may add case notes to the employee record under the OnDocs tab, where further documentation on the situation may be stored. 
 
Please note, this is a recommendation only and not a rule. Users are advised to consult with their organization's counsel to decide the best practice to follow.
Use of Guardian as a web services designated agent allows organizations to run E-Verify reports within the system to review data submitted to E-Verify and the results of those submissions.
 
At times an agency may request that the organization provide an E-Verify Audit report. This is a report type available through the E-Verify interface for those organizations who access E-Verify directly in lieu of a designated agent. The following is a set of instructions to create an equivalent audit report within Guardian:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click the Reports button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Interactive in the upper left. 
- 
Click New in the Reports: Interactive section in the lower left. 
- 
Next to Base Table, select E-Verify from the dropdown. 
- 
Click the Columns tab. 
- 
If your organization utilizes multiple business units select the Employee table and add the Business Unit field as a report column. 
- 
Select i9 in the leftmost column and double click S2 Company Name to add it. 
- 
Select E-Verify in the leftmost column and double click the following fields in the second column: - 
EV Date Initially Submitted 
- 
EV Submitted by 
- 
EV Case No 
- 
EV Last Name Submitted 
- 
EV First Name Submitted 
- 
EV SS No Submitted 
- 
EV I-94 No Submitted 
- 
EV A No Submitted 
- 
EV Card No Submitted 
- 
EV Date Hired Submitted 
- 
EV Overdue Reason 
- 
EV Overdue Reason Other 
- 
EV Initial Eligibility 
- 
EV DHS Response 
- 
EV Last Return Msg 
- 
EV Case Resolved 
- 
EV Final Option 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click the Settings tab. 
- 
Click Run Report Now. 
The results may be exported to Excel for further manipulation, or saved locally if running the report for a specific location. Then the employee location may be added as a report column as well. Otherwise, utilize the Filter Options on the report Settings tab to narrow down the report results (e.g. location, occupation class, EV date hired submitted).
Yes, Guardian provides a method for users to adjust the start date in Section 2 that is independent of Section 2 completion. This functionality is helpful when the employee has completed Section 1 in advance and the employee's start date changes. This change will also ensure that all dashboard items will reflect the most up-to-date priority needs according to the new start date.
 
To adjust the hire date so that the Dashboard is updated (without processing the I-9), please proceed with the following steps:
- 
In the Top Pending I-9s dashboard area, click the Date I-9 Created link for the desired record. 
- 
Click I-9 Details. 
- 
Click Edit Date. 
- 
Enter the new start date in the Date Hired field. 
- 
Click Update Info. 
The above actions update both the start date in Section 2 of the I-9, as well as the hire date in the Employment History. Please note, if the hire date has already been adjusted in the Employment History section, these actions cannot be taken.
Should an organization open or acquire a new location, this can be configured within the Guardian system to match. To add a new location, a Guardian administrator must proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click the Administration button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click the Locations tab. 
- 
Click Add in the upper right. 
- 
Enter in the new Location Name and Number. - 
This is the name and number that will reflect within the Guardian system. 
 
- 
- 
Complete all fields that appear on screen. 
- Click Update Info in the upper right to save all changes.
Employees who are Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries may receive an auto extension of their work authorization status by the federal government, as published in the Federal Register.
 
When the employee's work authorization as noted on their employment authorization document (EAD) card expires before the document can be re-issued, the auto extension as published in the Federal Register provides authorization for the employee to continue to work.
 
In such instances the Special Amendment Option in Guardian can be used to document the auto extension before the new card is issued.
- 
Within the Guardian system, navigate to the primary I-9 record for the employee desired. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click TPS Auto Extension. 
- 
Enter the EAD auto-extension date as noted in the Federal Register in the New Expiration Date field. 
- 
Click Update Info. This will save the pending amendment. 
The special amendment will adjust the Section 1 “work until” expiration date, as well as the Section 2 document expiration date.
 
The user and employee should approve the corresponding pending amendments to finalize the changes. Upon approval of the changes, the new reverification date will become the primary date being used.  
 
Guardian provides a Special Amendment Option to document the auto extension as it relates to the employee's work authorization status, as well as amending the work expiration dates present on Section 1 and 2.
 
As a result, any I-9 for the employee that has been subsequently reverified (Section 3 completed) following initial employment and prior to the auto extension will be ineligible for the special amendment, as it adjusts both the work authorization expiration date documented in Section 1 as well as Section 2 of the current I-9 record (that also contains a later reverification and work authorization expiration date).  
 
If the special amendment tool is not active 
There may be instances when the TPS auto extension button is disabled in the Special Amendments section of the Amendments tab. In this case, it is recommended that the user Amend the most recent Section 3 Expiration date, then enter the EAD auto-extension date as noted in the Federal Register.  
 
Once the employee has the new card, an HR user can complete a new Section 3 for reverification.
Managing the employment status of individuals is crucial to maintaining an accurate employee database within the Guardian system. In order to indicate that an employee has been terminated, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
Access the employee record within Guardian. 
- 
Click the Job Details tab. 
- 
Click Terminate Employee. 
- 
Enter the appropriate date for Date Terminated. 
- 
Click Update Info. 
Once a termination date is entered, the system will automatically calculate the purge date of the employee record based on the 3-year/1-year rule. Terminated employees will appear in the system as either Terminated-Retain or Terminated-Purgeable. Purgeable records can be permanently removed from the system by an administrator.
Please find attached a PDF run through of automated emails sent to users from the Guardian system (G1). 
 
| Communication | Example E-Mail/Task Event | Trigger | Frequency | Customizable | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-Verify prompted amended I-9 | Subject: Amended I-9 needs employee's review and approval. Please note that the work authorization information submitted to E-Verify for [employee name] was modified to correct a clerical error on the I-9. This has caused a proposed amendment has been added to Section 1 to make the information on the Form I-9 consistent with this modification. Please have the employee review this amendment and enter his or her electronic signature to approve the amendment and confirm that the modified information is true and accurate. If permitted, the responsible company official may also electronically sign to approve the amendment and confirm that the modified information is true and accurate. | I-9 Information changes during E-Verify submission and the organization has the following setting enabled on the E-Verify tab in Administration: Amend existing I-9 after data changes made during E-Verify process. | Once | No | 
| E-Verify prompted new updated I-9 | Subject: Updated I-9 was created As part of the E-Verify submission process, the work authorization information for [employee name] has been updated to correct a previous clerical error on the employee's I-9. In accordance with federal law, a second, corrected Form I-9 #999999 has been automatically created, and has replaced the original I-9 as the primary I-9. If the original paper I-9 form signed by the employee was the source of the original, incorrect information, please manually update the paper form with the corrected data shown on the newly created paper I-9 in the Guardian system. If the corrected error was due to a transcription error from the original paper form, no further action is required. | I-9 Information changes during E-Verify submission and the organization does not have the following setting enabled on the E-Verify tab in Administration: Amend existing I-9 after data changes made during E-Verify process. | Once | No | 
| H-1B Petition | Subject: H-1B Petition Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 05/31/2012 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: H-1B Petition Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's I-129 Change of Employer Petition is pending with USCIS pursuant to the rules governing H-1B portability. Please confirm whether this petition has been approved, and if so, promptly re-verify employee based on his/her new H-1B work authorization. | During Section 2 completion of Form I-9 the user activates the “Special Rule” for H-1B Portability (employee begins work with I-94 record issued during his or her previous employment and the current I-129 application is in process). | Multiple; First email is triggered based on value entered in Administration H-1B Portability Days field; subsequent reminders are dependent on subsequent reminder values entered in Administration. | No | 
| H-1B Extension | Subject: Extension Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2013 Date Entered: 05/31/2012 Expiry Date: 09/29/2013 Subject: Extention Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's temporary work authorization recorded on I9 #999999 is about to expire. Please contact employee to check whether their temporary work authorization has been extended and then re-verify. | User enters Extension special amendment to indicate work authorization for NIV worker has been extended 240 days based on I-129 petition filed. | Multiple emails follow reverification and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module | No | 
| I-9 Receipt | Subject: Receipt Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 05/31/2011 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: Receipt Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee has presented you with an application receipt for a lost, stolen or misplaced employment authorization document in lieu of the original document. Please followup with the employee to make sure he or she receives their original replacement work authorization document within 90 days of their hire date. | Section 2 of form I-9 is completed and a receipt for a lost, stolen or replacement document is indicated for one or more documents. | Multiple; E-mails follow receipt and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module. | No | 
| Name Change Notification | Subject: Notification of Name Change The HR system has recorded a name change for [employee name] Please follow your company's protocol for updating your I-9 records. | Employee Update data feed or web services call sent from the organization contains a change to the employee’s last name field value. | Once | No | 
| Remote Agent document selection | Subject: Notification of Remote Agent Document Selection The Remote Agent has chosen to have the employee be responsible for the required documents. | Remote Hire Preferences setting in the Administration is enabled for setting “Notify of document selection on step 3.” and I-9 is processed by a remote agent. Email is sent after the remote agent selects the disposition of the documents within the remote agent interface. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee SSA TNC Notice Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the SSA TNC Notice. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Notice. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee SSA TNC Referral Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the SSA Referral Letter processing. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Referral letter. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee DHS TNC Notice Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the DHS TNC Notice. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Notice. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee DHS TNC Referral Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the DHS Referral Letter processing. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Referral letter. | Once | No | 
| Reverification | Subject: Reverification Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 04/28/2011 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: Reverification Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's temporary work authorization recorded on I9 #999999 is about to expire. Please contact employee to check whether their temporary work authorization has been extended and then re-verify. | Form I-9 indicates the employee has temporary work authorization. | Multiple; E-mails follow receipt and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module. | No | 
| User Welcome email Login | Subject: Your account has been created. Dear [First Name], Your account for the I-9 system has been created as follows: Login URL: www.perfectcompliance.com Login Name: Please note that both the login and password are case sensitive! Thank You! | Administrator clicks “Reset Password” within the user’s profile. | As needed. | No | 
| User Welcome email Password | Subject: Access information enclosed Here is the information you requested: | Administrator clicks “Reset Password” within the user’s profile. | As needed. | No | 
When an employee is marked as terminated within the Guardian, the system automatically calculates the I-9 retention period. The retention window is either three years after the individual was hired or one year after they were terminated, whichever is later.
 
The records become eligible for purging from the system after the required retention period. This can be accomplished through the Administration module in Guardian.
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal. 
- 
Click the Administration button in the left hand navigation pane. 
- 
Once loaded into the Administration screen, click the Purge Data button in the left hand series of options. 
- 
A new screen for purging data will display all the employees and I-9 records that are eligible to be purged. Click to select which employees you wish to delete from the system. - 
100 records will be displayed per page. Only one page of entries can be purged at a time. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Purge I-9 forms only button if you wish to retain the employee record, or click the Purge Employees & I-9 Forms to delete both items. - 
This process is irreversible and will result in complete deletion of data. 
 
- 
Note: Purges are queued and processing is dependent on the number of purges in the queue.
Does the RVN partner restrict appointment dates presented to the employee?
No, the scheduler shows all available appointments. As a result, appointment dates are not related to the
employee's hire date.
Can an employee reschedule an appointment in person?
No, all appointment scheduling must be completed online. The employee may utilize the appointment link provided in the confirmation email, or return to the Guardian employee portal to create a new verification appointment.
Can an employee cancel an appointment?
Yes, an employee can cancel a confirmed appointment as long as the appointment is more than 24 hours away.
Can an employee schedule an appointment for the same day?
Yes, in general employees are encouraged to schedule in advance. However, appointments may be scheduled the same day. Note that appointments scheduled the same day cannot be cancelled and as a result, would incur a full appointment fee if not attended.
When are the processing centers open?
In general, processing centers offer appointments during normal business hours of M-F, 8am-5pm. When making an appointment the employee will see time slots available for scheduling, broken down in 30 minute increments (e.g. 8:30am, 9:00am, and so forth).
Why does the employee have to provide a phone number when scheduling an appointment?
Phone information is collected in the event of an emergency or an unplanned processing center closure. Should this happen, contact is attempted (utilizing the phone number). Examples of unplanned events include weather emergencies, power outage, internet outage.
How can an employee cancel or reschedule an appointment?
The employee can return to the confirmation email and access the included link to cancel or reschedule. Similarly, the employee can return to the Guardian employee instructions email and re-access the employee portal to review the scheduled appointment and cancel or reschedule.
If the employee requires a new, additional, appointment because they were a No Show or unable to complete the I-9 process due to insufficient documentation, he/she must return to Guardian's employee portal to initiate a new appointment.
Can the employee use a non-network agent?
Yes, if the employee is unable to locate a partner verifier they can choose to "Find My Own" during the Guardian workflow. This allows the employee access to the traditional remote agent instructions and access URL.
Can the organization report on all appointments for the employee?
Yes, all unique chargeable appointments are reportable. An appointment that has been rescheduled within the allowable time frame of the original appointment is considered one appointment (reporting will show details related to the most recent scheduling information).
Will centers within the PAN network have PAN's name noted on the outside of the building?
No, partner centers consist of educational institutions, government workforce agencies, training and learning centers, private businesses, and staffing and recruiting firms, each noted by the location name presented to the employee during the scheduling process.
What email communications does the employee receive from PAN?
The appointment scheduling service triggers a confirmation email after an appointment has been scheduled. Appointment reminder emails are sent 7 and 3 days ahead of the scheduled appointment (appointment date -7, and appointment date -3). For instance, if an appointment was made for May 25th then reminder emails would be sent May 18th and May 22nd.
Does the employee need to provide the verifier agent instructions or a Guardian link?
No, the verifier utilizes the established integration to launch Section 2 for the employee (i.e. PAN provides Guardian information related to the verifier and Guardian returns a link to Section 2 which PAN presents to the agent).
The verifier's name and title pre-populate the Section 2 certification area based on the information supplied by the RVN partner. Following Section 2 completion, the verifier is directed to the document retention step when enabled by the organization.
Can the employee complete Section 1 with the verifier?
No, the RVN is not equipped to handle the employee portion of the process. Employees for which the I-9 is not in a state for section 2 completion will be sent home and requested to reschedule an additional appointment.
Can the verifier copy and mail I-9 supporting documents to the organization?
No, RVN partners have agreed to fulfill the I-9 document retention requirement through electronic scanning means only.
Is the hiring manager responsible for scheduling the verification appointment?
No, the employee is responsible for scheduling the verification appointment. The employee portal is equipped with the scheduling workflow for organizations enabled with the RVN service (and I-9 marked as "remote").
What does it mean when the RVN partner attempts to obtain the Section 2 URL for the proctor and receives the following error message back from Guardian: redirect_url was provided, but the remote agent is not associated with a login?
This indicates that an active login record does not exist for the agent. This may happen if the organization removed the agent login merge tag from the remote agent instructions template (and thus no login was generated when the instructions were created), or the agent instructions have been deleted for the I-9 record (and so, too, deleting the agent login record).
To correct, either update the agent instructions to include the login link merge variable, or instruct the organization to re-generate the agent instructions for the individual I-9 record.
Have clients using the RVN service had trouble scheduling due to availability?
No, we have not received reports about this scenario. However, we encourage employers to use center availability reports as general guides only since availability fluctuates.
Are technical resources required by the client in order to activate the service?
No, integration with RVN partners is managed by LawLogix. However, there will be a nominal time investment by I-9 managers charged with overseeing remote hires for training on the service and review of the current workflow.
Does LawLogix have a list of available PAN centers?
LawLogix has access to general information related to the number of centers available by zip code. Please note, center availability is dynamic and the list may not reflect these changes.
With the RVN process how are receipts handled?
At present, our RVN partners do not offer "receipt updating" verification at their centers, so no further appointments (or charges) will be applicable. If an employee presents an acceptable receipt during the initial RVN appointment, you can assist the employee in finding another verifier (outside of the network) to review the replacement document and update section 2.
As previously discussed, you can technically choose any individual to serve as your authorized representative (employee’s colleague, friend, bank representative, etc.) based on your company’s own policy. Once you have identified the individual, you can enable the remote processing of receipts for the particular I-9 and send an email to the verifier which includes a link to access the I-9 record in Guardian.
With the RVN process how are reverifications handled?
Most reverifications can be handled by your central I-9 team (without a remote verifier) based on their review of the original DHS document which grants the employee continuing work authorization. For example, if you are filing an extension of your employee’s nonimmigrant status (H-1B, L-1, TN, etc.), you will typically receive the original I-797 approval notice and attached I-94 (neither of which have a photo or require you to meet in-person with the employee). For that reason, most of our clients will complete section 3 reverifications without the employee (or agent’s) involvement while still satisfying I-9 requirements.
 
In other reverification scenarios (particularly involving documents with photos), you may need to arrange for an in-person review of the replacement document (e.g., a new EAD, recently obtained green card, etc.). In these situations, you can create a one-time limited user profile (using the Location Manager interface) for an authorized representative so that he or she may login to Guardian and complete the section 3 reverification after reviewing the original document. Once the reverification is complete, you can then disable the account.
I-9s completed and approved are submitted to E-Verify, even if the start date is in the future. The hire date is the date the employee begins work for pay and the information submitted to E-Verify is taken from Section 2 of the I-9.
 
If the employee's start date changes after the information has been submitted to E-Verify, no additional action is required in E-Verify. However, the I-9 form should be amended to indicate the correct hire date. A user with the appropriate privileges may add an amendment to the employee record through the following actions:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that needs the amendment. 
- 
Click the created date of the employee I-9 with the incorrect start date. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Add in the upper right. 
- 
Click Section 2 in the left hand area of the window that pops up. 
- 
Scroll down in the list in the right hand area and click Employment Start Date. 
- 
Click Edit Field in the upper left. 
- 
In the New Value area, insert the new start date. - 
A note may be added within the Note of Record field, but it is not required. This note will appear at the bottom of the I-9 PDF. 
 
- 
- 
Click Create Amendment. 
Once the amendment is created, it must be approved in order to be committed to the employee record. To approve an amendment, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
Navigate to the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Actions in the upper right. 
- 
Select Approve Non Section 1 Amendments from the dropdown menu. 
- 
A warning box will appear notifying about the changes. Enter in Guardian password and click Submit. 
Now the employee record will reflect the appropriate date of hire as a called out amendment.
Guardian reports allow organizations to track I-9 compliance, specifically for missing or late I-9s, by extracting data from the system. This timeliness report is not recommended for archival I-9 records. The following are steps to build a similar report:
- 
Add a new Interactive report template and select the Dashboard base table. - 
Do NOT make a selection from the Dashboard filter option. This will allow the system to include data from the I-9 and Employee tables, including all employees regardless of the I-9 action item. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Columns tab. 
- 
There are several tables where values must be dragged into the Build Fields in Report column. 
- 
Include the following columns from the associated tables: - 
Employee - 
Responsible HR/Group 
- 
Occupation Class 
- 
Employee Name 
- 
Employee ID 
 
- 
- 
I-9 - 
I-9 Number 
- 
Date Hired 
- 
S1 Date 
- 
Employee Hired 
- 
I-9 Ontime Margin* 
- 
I-9 Days to File* 
 
- 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left to save. 
- 
Once the columns are selected and report has been previewed, return to the Settings tab of your report and adjust filters as desired. - 
e.g., Date Hired can be used as the Date Range filter. 
 
- 
- 
Run your report. 
- 
Once the report is returned download/open the report in Excel. 
Column J is added to determine the "timeliness" of the I-9 completion based on a comparison of columns E, H, and I (I-9 Ontime Margin and I-9 Days to File).** With these values it can be determined if an I-9 exists and whether it was completed on time.
 
If your report contains the same report columns you can simply copy and paste the formula from cell J2 to your own spreadsheet column J. Otherwise, you can update the formula to reference the correct columns. The high level overview comes in the Excel workbook when the data from the sheet "DashI9Compliance (1)" is evaluated using a pivot table (see "I-9 Status Pivot Table" sheet).
 
Next steps can include grouping by status type (i.e. entire organization), or adding additional layers such as location or occupation class above the status to see the breakdown across the organization. **The pivot table sheet and the formula used to create the data in Column J on the "DashI9Compliance (1)" sheet were provided as a courtesy and example only.
 
Excel is not a LawLogix-supported feature so Customer Support will not be able to address questions related to the spreadsheet. *Brief overview of I-9 Ontime Margin and I-9 Days to File: Ontime margin is calculated based on the I-9 due date (3 day rule). This due date is established based on the Sec 2 hire date when the I-9 is created.
 
The value is populated when the I-9 is marked completed. A value greater than 0 indicates that the I-9 was completed after the due date. A negative or zero value indicates the I-9 was completed prior to the due date. I-9 Days to File is a simple calculation of the report generation date and the I-9 due date. A negative number indicates the due date was in the past. The I-9 Days to File value does NOT take into account the actual I-9 or E-Verify Status.
Employees have 90 days to present an actual document after they provide receipt for replacement of a lost, stolen or damaged original document. At the time of hire, a Section 2 should be completed utilizing the provided receipt.
 
The Guardian system provides a receipt checkbox beneath each Section 2 list, so that users may designate a document as a "receipt" document (and proceed with Section 2 completion). When this occurs, the system creates a reminder task and the employee appears in the Needing Further Action section of the Dashboard.
 
The I-9 information does not submit to E-Verify until the actual document(s) are presented, as there is no designation in E-Verify to denote receipt versus actual document/document number. When the employee returns with the actual document and the I-9 is updated to reflect the new information, the employee will submit to E-Verify upon approval of the I-9.
 
To update an I-9 receipt, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that requires the update. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created hyperlink of the I-9 record desired. 
- 
Click Update I-9 Receipt. 
This action will create a new I-9 form and allow the user to enter in the Section 2 documents. Once the documents have been updated, the Guardian user must electronically sign the Section 2, mark the I-9 as complete, and approve it. Once approved, this I-9 form will be submitted to E-Verify.
Archival I-9 records cannot be submitted to E-Verify. The only exception to this rule is in the case of an organization being subject to the FAR E-Verify clause and submitting existing employees.
If this is a case of a rehire and was completed on paper, the user must enter it as a New Hire Paper I-9 record. That record will be submitted to E-Verify automatically upon approval, as long as the employment history reflects the rehire situation.
Guardian reverifications are based on employee work authorization. As a result, the system automatically generates reverification tasks (which appear on the dashboard) and reverification reminders (viewable in the employee file and sent to the responsible user(s) at the designated time prior to the document expiration).
 
Reverifications are triggered based on the data in the I-9 record. Tasks and reminders are automatically generated based on the document expiration date entered for a List A or List C document in Section 2 when the employee attests to being an alien authorized to work until a certain date.
 
In addition, reverification tasks and reminders are triggered if the employee attests to being a legal permanent resident, and provides an unexpired foreign passport with an I-551 stamp (documented in List A of Section 2). Reminder notification lead days can be established in the administration section of Guardian and are customizable based on the organization's needs and protocol.
The Guardian system has a few criteria users must meet in order to have an optimal login and password for access.
 
Login Name
- 
6 characters minimum. 
- 
20 characters maximum. 
- 
Cannot be the first initial and last name. 
- 
Cannot be your last initial and first name. 
- 
Cannot be your last name and first initial. 
Password
- 
At least 8 characters in length. 
- 
At least 1 uppercase letter. 
- 
At least 1 lowercase letter. 
- 
At least 1 number. 
- 
At least 1 special character from these valid characters: !#$%^&*()_+=-`~{}][|?/.>, 
Certain employees who are working pursuant to their F-1 Student Status and are not required to apply for an EAD work authorization card, as well as certain J-1 Exchange Visitors who are pursuing an internship or training program, will not have an expiration date written on their I-94 card. Instead, they will have a D/S for Duration of status annotated on the I-94.
 
In this case, employees must present an additional document besides their foreign passport and I-94 record to document the expiration of their temporary work status. This additional document is typically issued by the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), and contains a number beginning with the letter "N." On this document there should be a program expiration date, which should be used for the alien authorized to work date in Section 1 and the re-verification date in Section 2.
 
In order to complete an I-9 in this situation, the following steps must be taken.
- 
In the I-9 form, the employee must select An Alien Authorized to Work Until option. 
- 
Employee enters the expiration date from the I-20/DS-2019. 
- 
Employee enters the I-94 admission number or corresponding foreign passport information, when applicable. 
- 
In Section 2, the user selects Foreign Passport, I-94/I-94A, and DS-2019 option. - 
This action will insert I-94/I-94A in the second Document Title and DS-2019 in the third Document Title. 
 
- 
- 
User selects D/S box next to Expiration Date field within I-94/I-94A area. 
- 
User completes remaining fields for passport document number, expiration date, selecting I-20 or DS-2019 as the third document title, and entering the corresponding document number and expiration date. 
The term “park” or “parked” within the Guardian system refers to an I-9 that has been locked. This functionality does not use a traditional approval process and is generally used to lock an incomplete I-9.  
 
Any New Hire paper or electronic I-9 that has not been marked approved can be parked (e.g. only Section 1 complete, Section 1 and 2 complete, I-9 marked "Completed"). Users may park I-9s if:
- 
The organization has enabled the feature and, 
- 
The user profile has been provided the privilege to park. This is a privilege that must be granted by the Guardian administrator of an organization. 
An I-9 may be parked by the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, navigate to the employee record. 
- 
Click I-9 Details. 
- 
Click Park This I-9. - 
If button is unavailable, click View and choose All Panels to confirm that it is not hidden. 
 
- 
- 
A pop-up box will appear to confirm the action. Click Yes to proceed. 
Please note: users with incomplete archival Paper I-9s should utilize the complete and approve process to "complete despite issues" incomplete historical I-9 records.
 
Once an I-9 is parked, it cannot be “un-parked” or unlocked for further editing.
The following document represents a sample template that organizations may utilize when asking a remote agent to perform a physical inspection requirement remotely for those I-9s that were initially completed via the ‘virtual verification’ exception. Organizations are encouraged to review this sample template with their legal counsel and adjust to best suit the organization’s HR policies and best practices.
| FORM I-9 PHYSICAL INSPECTION ATTESTATION FOR AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE DHS COVID-19 TEMPORARY POLICY The following attestation is being made in connection with the Department of Homeland Security’s temporary policy for completing the Form I-9 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Per the DHS guidance, our organization reviewed the identity and employment authorization document(s) of this employee remotely, as recorded on the attached Form I-9. We are now asking the individual indicated below to act as our authorized representative to perform the required in-person physical inspection of the documents previously presented and sign this attestation. Employee Name: [HR: Enter full name as indicated at the top of Page 2 of the Form I-9] ______________________________________________________________________________ ATTESTATION 
 I attest, under penalty of perjury, that (1) I have examined the document(s) presented by the above-named employee, (2) the document(s) appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee named, (3) the documents are the same as those recorded on the attached Form I-9, and (4) to the best of my knowledge the employee is authorized to work in the United States. 
 ________________________________ Signature of Authorized Representative 
 ________________________________ Print Name of Authorized Representative 
 ________________________________ Date of Physical Inspection | 
Employees have 90 days to present an actual document after they provide receipt for replacement of a lost, stolen or damaged original document. At the time of hire, a Section 2 should be completed utilizing the provided receipt.
 
The Guardian system provides a receipt checkbox beneath each Section 2 list, so that users may designate a document as a "receipt" document (and proceed with Section 2 completion). When this occurs, the system creates a reminder task and the employee appears in the Needing Further Action section of the Dashboard.
 
The I-9 information does not submit to E-Verify until the actual document(s) are presented, as there is no designation in E-Verify to denote receipt versus actual document/document number. When the employee returns with the actual document and the I-9 is updated to reflect the new information, the employee will submit to E-Verify upon approval of the I-9.
 
To update an I-9 receipt, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that requires the update. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created hyperlink of the I-9 record desired. 
- 
Click Update I-9 Receipt. 
This action will create a new I-9 form and allow the user to enter in the Section 2 documents. Once the documents have been updated, the Guardian user must electronically sign the Section 2, mark the I-9 as complete, and approve it. Once approved, this I-9 form will be submitted to E-Verify.
The Guardian Interactive report type allows users to customize report creation and column display in the report results. As a result, the number of columns and rows for a given report may be rather large.
 
If the report contains a high amount of cells of data (Guardian will flag and state "9,999" cells), the exported file will appear as a zipped text (or .txt) file. In order to open the zipped file in Excel, do the following:
- 
In Guardian, click the Download Report link that displays after the report has been run and save the file to an appropriate location. 
- 
Open the zip file and click the .txt document. It will likely open in Notepad or a similar text editor on your computer. 
- 
Save the document as a .txt file and close the window. 
- 
Open Microsoft Excel and File, then Open, and Browse. 
- 
In the pop-up window that appears, click the drop-down that reads All Excel Files and change it to All Files. 
- 
Find your .txt file in this window and click Open. 
- 
A Text Import Wizard module will appear. Select Delimited as the import setting and click the Next button. 
- 
In the next screen, select Tab for Delimiters and click the Finish button. 
- 
Manipulate the report as needed and when finished, save the document as an Excel sheet. 
The following is the method best recommended by our compliance expert to document extensions that occur after a Section 3 re-verification has been previously processed.
- 
Initiate a regular amendment to the latest Section 3 re-verification. - 
This will manually indicate the new extended work authorization expiration date (either 240 or 180 days, as applicable). 
- 
Example: An employee Section 3 expiration is currently 5/31/2018 can be amended to 01/26/2019, which is 240 days in the future. 
- 
Use calendar days, not business days, for calculating the approximate expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
When amending the Section 3 document expiration field, an additional Note of Record may be included to speak to the basis of the extension. - 
Example: For an H-1B situation, a note could be “240-day Ext. Petition Filed on [date]”. 
- 
This note will appear on the I-9 PDF as a footnote at the bottom of the page. 
 
- 
- 
After the amendment is approved, the Guardian dashboard and related notifications will follow the updated expiration date. 
- 
Add the additional Section 3s once the new document (i.e. H-1B, etc.) is received. 
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous government agencies and their offices have sustained prolonged closures, impacting a variety of services including the processing of renewal applications for Social Security cards, Driver’s Licenses, and other documents. 
 
Under the Form I-9 rules, an employee may present a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document while completing their I-9 as long as they present a replacement document within 90 days of their start date. The Guardian system will automatically create a reminder for users to follow up when the 90-day grace period is finished. However, your employee may be unable to present a replacement document within the 90 day period because the government agency has not yet completed their renewal. 
 
In this scenario, the USCIS recommends that employees follow-up with the issuing agency through phone calls, emails, or other online portals (as available) with regards to the replacement document application. The USCIS also notes that this is an ongoing issue, and they will reassess this policy if necessary. 
 
From an employer compliance perspective, Guardian will continue to alert users on the Top I-9s Needing Further Action panel to the “overdue” receipt when the 90-day period has passed. While the USCIS has not provided any specific instructions on how to document this scenario from an I-9 perspective, LawLogix recommends the following.
 
Documenting the Delay in OnDocs
Users are advised to create an Audit note in the I-9 record detailing the extenuating circumstances of the delayed document replacement. 
 
The notation itself can simply contain messaging in regards to the reason why the document was not received by the due date (ex. DMV closed for the month due to COVID-19; employee unable to present replacement document). This audit note will automatically be included with the I-9 in the event of a government Form I-9 inspection.
 
Tracking Receipt Follow-up With Tasks
The Guardian system will automatically flag I-9 receipts in the ‘Top I-9s Needing Further Action’ dashboard panel until the replacement document is received and the I-9 is updated. Since these alerts will always show as overdue for receipts that are pending more than 90 days, users may also wish to use the Task functionality within Guardian to create a future follow-up reminder. 
 
Within the employee profile, select the Tasks tab and click Add Task in the upper right. This will open a dialogue where users can document the circumstances and notes for following up.
The Expiry date in this instance can be any future date when you should follow-up with the employee to see if the replacement document has been received. Once saved, this task will appear on its own dashboard panel Top Pending Tasks. This is where these special cases may be more easily tracked by users. In addition, the dates can be changed should the office closures continue or lift early. 
 
LawLogix is monitoring this situation very closely and will post any additional guidance from the USCIS once received.
The USCIS officially announced on May 1 that all List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.
The temporary policy now mandates employers notate I-9s using such documentation with ‘COVID-19’ in the Additional Information field. Once the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ends this policy, employees have up to 90 days to present a valid unexpired document to replace the previously submitted one.
For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy).
Organizations are further advised to create a custom field to track the follow up requirement of such I-9s. A custom field labeled ‘COVID List B Exception’ may be created by an administrator and used to report on employees who require follow up once DHS ends the temporary policy.
Please note that when the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should amend Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date. Note, too, that this additional step is not necessary for List B expired documents that were auto-extended by the state authority.
The Guardian system is accessible from the web and LawLogix supports several major browsers. Below we have included, if applicable, the lowest version supported for the browser. Each browser is supported to the most recent major version (e.g. 2.0, 3.0, etc.).
- 
Mozilla Firefox Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Google Chrome Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Microsoft Edge Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Apple Safari Current version (plus 1 previous) - 
Please note that Safari is only supported when used with Mac OS and iOS devices. 
 
- 
- 
*Third-party web browser plug-ins and extensions may interfere with functionality. 
Mobile Devices
Guardian does not utilize a mobile app for I-9 completion, but rather utilizes the device's native browser to navigate the site and perform I-9 and E-Verify actions. I-9 completion and E-Verify case processing is supported on both Android (phone and tablet) and Apple devices (iPhone and iPad).
- 
Safari on Apple iOS devices - 
Use of iPad over iPhone is preferred 
 
- 
- 
Latest version of Chrome on Android devices - 
Given the variety of manufacturers, browsing experiences may differ. LawLogix tests with the following devices: Samsung S21 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7. 
 
- 
Screen Resolution Requirements
| Screen Resolution | Result | 
| 1024 x 768 | Minimum | 
| 1280 x 1024 | Better | 
| System recommended highest display resolution (exceeding the above) | Best | 
PDF Viewing Requirements
PDF documents stored in Guardian can be accessed with any PDF viewer (either the browser’s native PDF viewer or a plug-in such as Adobe Reader)
Welcoming employees back to your organization is made very easy by the Guardian system. If an employee is already present in the Guardian system as a terminated employee, there are a few steps to take in getting them reinstated.
 
First off, the employee’s status must be changed from its terminated state.
- 
Navigate to the employee record within Guardian. 
- 
Click on the Job Details tab. 
- 
In the Employment History section, click on the Re-Hire Employee button. 
- 
A re-hire date field will present itself, enter in the employee’s new effective date of employment and click the Update Info button. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click Add I-9 in upper right. 
- 
Click Create New I-9 and proceed. 
The next steps will vary depending on your organization’s protocols. If a Section 3 may be completed to accommodate the rehire, then proceed with the steps below.
- 
Navigate to the employee’s record within Guardian. 
- 
Click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date under the Date Created of the active I-9 in the display. 
- 
In the I-9 Details tab, scroll down to the Section 3 area and click the Add button. 
- 
Select the applicable reason for the Section 3 entry. 
- 
Enter in the information needed for the applicable Section 3 fields and electronically sign the document. 
Once this step is done, the Section 3 must be approved.
- 
Under the same I-9 Details tab, scroll to the Section 3 area. 
- 
Click the Approve link. 
- 
Enter your Guardian password and click the Electronically Approve button. 
If a Section 3 is not permissible, then proceed with creating a new I-9 for the employee.
If an employee has an incorrect hire date on their I-9 record, it must be addressed in two separate spots within the employee’s file in Guardian.
 
Note: The following steps may be performed by those with permissions to amend employee files and change settings. This does not have to be an administrative user. 
 
The first area where the hire date may be changed is within the employee’s Job Details tab.
- 
Search for the employee record that requires the change and click on their name. 
- 
Once loaded into their record, click on the Job Details tab. 
- 
Click the hyperlinked Hire Date on the right hand side of the page underneath Employment History. 
- 
A new window will open with two fields. Delete the date input under Date Hired and fill in the correct date. 
- 
Click the Update Info button. 
The second area for the hire date to be corrected lies in amending the I-9 itself.
- 
From within the employee record, click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date of the I-9 record with the incorrect hire time. 
- 
A new screen with I-9 details will appear. Click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Add button in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
From the options presented, click on Section 2. This will display a list of fields that can be changed in that section of the I-9 form. 
- 
Double-click Employment Start Date. 
- 
Ensure that Strike-out Original Value is checked. 
- 
Enter the correct hire date in the field titled New Value. - 
You may add an accompanying note if you wish. This note will display at the bottom of the I-9 pdf export. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Amendment button. 
- 
Once back at the I-9 amendment tab, click the Actions button in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
Click Approve Non-Section 1 Amendments. 
- 
Enter password for logging into Guardian system in order to approve. 
The Guardian system allows organizations to set their own I-9 policy in regards to rehires. If 'Require re-hires to complete new I-9' is enabled, then a Section 3 may not be used to process a rehire.
If this setting is not enabled, then a Section 3 can be used for rehiring purposes when the following criteria are met:
- 
The employee is rehired within 3 years of the initial hire date. 
- 
The employee's work authorization has expired, but is now eligible to work under new work authorization or, the employee is eligible to work on the same basis as attested to on the original I-9. 
If any of these conditions are not met, then you need to create a new Electronic I-9 in Guardian for re-hiring purposes and complete Section 1 and 2 just like for a regular new hire.
As part of the Form I-9 process, a lawful permanent resident (LPR) employee may present an expired Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, along with a Form I-797 receipt notice which indicates that the card is valid for an additional year. Under the Form I-9 rules, this combination of documents qualifies as an acceptable List C employment authorization document which is valid for one year as indicated on the Form I-797 receipt notice. At the end of the one-year period, the employer must re-verify work authorization by completing a Section 3.
 
To validate this case within the Guardian system.
- 
In Section 2 of an I-9, choose the List C option Employment Authorization Document Issued by DHS. 
- 
For the document number, enter the 13-digit receipt number from the Form I-797 receipt notice. 
- 
For the expiration date, enter a date which is one-year from the expiration date listed on the expired permanent resident card. 
- 
Ask the employee to provide an acceptable List B document and record the information in Guardian as per regular process. 
Please note, users should not click the Replacement Receipt checkbox when performing these steps. The Replacement Receipt is only to be used when an employee presents a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the USCIS has implemented a number of temporary policies to facilitate the completion of the Form I-9 for newly hired employees. These policy exceptions enable employers to inspect documents remotely under certain conditions (virtual verification) and accept certain expired driver’s licenses and state IDs for employees who are unable to obtain replacement documents. 
 
Earlier this spring, the USCIS issued a series of FAQs which generally described the process for completing the Form I-9 when using these exception scenarios. More recently, they have now provided several Form I-9 mockups which illustrate how employers can update and annotate the Form I-9 for these unique situations.
Below is a summary of the Form I-9 exception scenarios, which includes both the USCIS recommendation and LawLogix instructions for how this can be achieved within the Guardian system. 
Important: the USCIS has clearly stated that employers DO NOT need to go back and update their previously completed I-9s if they used a different process or wording for these I-9 exception cases. See our blog here for more information.  
 
I-9 Scenarios
Completing a Section 2 When Inspecting Documents Remotely (Virtual Verification)
The following guidance has been provided in regards to appropriately notating a Section 2 when the identity and employment authorization documents were inspected virtually (i.e. over video conferencing, through Guardian’s employee document upload, or other means of remote communication).
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| User enters “Remote inspection completed on xx/xx/xxxx” in the Additional Info box | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| Previously, LawLogix recommended annotating the I-9 with the words ‘COVID-19’ at the time of Section 2 completion based on the USCIS FAQ at the time. We are now recommending entering ‘Remote Inspection Completed on XX/XX/XXXX’ as per the USCIS. This note should be added to the 'Additional Information' field. An administrator should confirm in the I-9 Preferences and Policy section that your organization has not restricted this field from editing. In accordance with this emerging guidance, the previously entered annotations of ‘COVID-19’ are still acceptable. | 
Follow-Up Physical Inspection Once Normal Operations Resume
The following guidance has been provided on how to appropriately notate an I-9 after performing the required in-person physical inspection once normal business operations resume.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| If the person who performed the remote inspection also performs the physical inspection, they should indicate the date they physically examined the documents then add their initials in the Additional Information field. Example: COVID-19 Documents physically Examined on mm/dd/yyyy By AA | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| When entering the inspection information on the I-9 Details tab in Guardian, users will be prompted to enter the date of physical inspection and the person who performed the inspection. Users may enter the individual’s full name or simply write their initials in the context of the same inspector being used to perform the follow-up. Guardian will automatically insert the COVID-19 text and the supplied information in the Additional Information box in Section 2. | 
Follow-Up Physical Inspection by a Different Person Once Normal Operations Resume
In the scenario that the inspector that initially examined the employment authorization documents during a virtual verification differs from the one that will perform the follow-up physical inspection, there is a slight change in the way it must be notated. In this instance, the person performing the follow-up must provide their full name and title.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| If the person who performed the remote inspection cannot also perform the physical inspection, the person who performs the physical inspection should indicate the date they physically examined the documents as well as their full name and title in the Additional Information field. Example: COVID-19 Documents physically Examined on mm/dd/yyyy By HR Manager Betsy Ross | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| When a different Guardian user performs the physical inspection, they should enter their full name and title per the USCIS example. When an employer uses a non-Guardian user (such as an authorized representative) to perform the physical inspection, LawLogix suggests printing or saving an electronic copy of the Form I-9 PDF outside of Guardian and providing it to the representative along with the supplemental attestation referenced in our FAQ. When updating the form I-9, the title should be “Authorized Representative.” | 
Notating Remote and Physical Inspection for Reverification
The following guidance has been provided on how to appropriately notate an I-9 after performing a reverification and subsequent physical inspection remotely.
| USCIS Guidance | 
| Employers should make required notations for remote and subsequent physical inspections of reverifications in the Additional Information field in Section 2. If the same person performs both the remote and subsequent physical inspections for a reverification, complete as shown. If a different person performs the physical inspection, that person should write their full name and title, instead of their initials. | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| LawLogix recommends utilizing Guardian’s amendment feature to amend Section 3 to include the note. | 
Entering a List B Document Extended by Issuing Authority in Section 2
To help slow the spread of COVID-19, many different states enacted various lockdowns. This impacted several government offices as well, which resulted in driver’s licenses and state IDs being granted expiration date extensions.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| Enter expired List B document and “COVID-19 Ext” in the Additional Information box | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| Enter the expired date in the List B expiration date field in Guardian. When the expiration date is on or after March 1, 2020, an additional ‘expiration exception’ checkbox will appear in List B. Checking this box allows the document verifier to proceed with Section 2 completion while also auto-inserting ‘COVID-19 Ext’ into the Additional Information field. | 
Entering a List B Document NOT Extended by Issuing Authority in Section 2
The USCIS has stated that beginning on May 1, List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.
| USCIS Guidance | 
| (a) Enter expired List B document and “COVID-19” in the Additional Information box (b) If the same person performs both the remote and subsequent physical inspections, enter the replacement doc info in the Additional Info field. Note that if a different person performs the physical inspection, that person should write their full name and title, instead of their initials. | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy). Since DHS indicates that such I-9s should not be submitted to E-Verify, users should mark the I-9 ‘Completed’, but refrain from marking the I-9 ‘Approved’. When the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should edit Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date, re-sign Section 2, and Approve the I-9 to facilitate E-Verify submission. | 
Adding new users is a relatively simple process and will likely be needed a lot as your organization continues to grow.
Note: The following steps require administrative access. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Guardian administrator to secure proper rights.
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal, then click the Administration tab. 
- 
In the administration screen, click the HR Users tab. 
- 
Click the Add button in the top right corner of the HR Users screen. 
- 
A modal window will appear, enter all applicable information about the new user. 
- 
Click the Update and Continue button in the bottom right corner of the modal. 
- 
Set the desired privileges and permissions this new user must have, then click the Update Info button to save the changes. 
- 
Click the Reset Password button to generate a random password and send an email to the new user with login setup information. 
Note: The following are steps for users that need to make an amendment denoting Physical Document Inspection as it pertains to a Section 3 Reverification. Please note that this is a specialized workflow and may not be applicable for all organizations/use cases. 
 
- 
Navigate to the I-9 Record and click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the +Add button on the right side of the page. 
- 
Click on Section 3 (1) (or the appropriate section 3 Record if multiple). 
- 
Double click the desired field for the amendment (Document Number is recommended). 
- 
When double-clicking the chosen field to amend - 
Uncheck the “Strike-out Original Value” box. 
- 
Do not enter anything into the “New Value” field. 
 
- 
- 
Enter the COVID-19 physical document inspection notation in the Note of Record field (there is a 40-character limit in the “Note of Record” field). Examples include: - 
Without Inspector initials: COV-19 physical inspection on 04/04/2020 
- 
With inspector initials: COV-19 physical inspection 04/04/2020(CB) 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Amendment button to return to the I-9 Amendments page. 
- 
Click the Actions pull down menu 
- 
The Form I-9 amendment notations can be viewed prior to final approval by clicking the View PDF link on the amendment approval screen. 
- 
The amendment notation will appear in the margin. (Prior to final approval the audit will show ??? in place of the user’s initials). 
- 
Enter the Guardian password or SSO ID and click the Submit button to approve and finalize the amendment. 
- 
The Form I-9 finalized amendment will include the audit with the initials of the user who approved the amendment. 
If a new employee is unable to provide documentation from the List of Acceptable Documents that is not expired, they may elect to present a receipt instead. Employees that choose to do this must provide a valid receipt within three (3) business days of their first day of employment.
If an employer is reverifying an employee's employment authorization, and they choose to present a receipt for reverification, the receipt must be presented by the date the employment authorization expires. Receipts are not acceptable if employment last fewer than three (3) business days.
There are three types of acceptable receipts:
- 
A receipt showing that the employee has applied to replace a document that was lost, stolen or damaged. The employee must present the actual document within 90 days from the date of hire or, in the case of reverification, within 90 days from the date the original employment authorization expires. 
- 
The arrival portion of Form I-94/I-94A containing a temporary I-551 stamp and a photograph of the individual. The employee must present the actual Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) by the expiration date of the temporary I-551 stamp, or, if there is no expiration date, within one (1) year from the date of admission. 
- 
The departure portion of Form I-94/I-94A with a refugee admission stamp. The employee must present an unexpired Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) or a combination of a List B document and an unrestricted Social Security Card within 90 days from the date of hire or, in the case of reverification, within 90 days from the date the original employment authorization expires. 
Receipts showing that the employee applied for an initial grant of employment authorization, or for renewal of their expiring or expired employment authorization, are not acceptable.
In November 2021 USCIS revised its policy regarding automatic employment authorization extensions for H-4, L-2, and E dependent spouses as a result of a class action lawsuit. This revision allows for the automatic extension of employment authorization for such individuals who file for renewal of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) prior to expiration.
The policy grants the work authorization extension until the earliest of any of the following actions:
- The date of the ‘Admin Until’ documented on Form I-94
- The approval or denial of the renewal application
- 180 days from the expiration date of the EAD
This additional auto extension allowance requires the capture of certain information for Form I-9 purposes.
The following provides guidance on how to document the employment authorization auto extension within Guardian.
New Employees
Section 1
- Employee selects “An alien authorized to work until;” and
- Enters the date 180 days from either the “Card Expires” on the EAD or the end date of the Form I-94, whichever is earlier
Section 2
- Verifier selects List A I-766 document type and records the following
- Enters the I-797 receipt number in the document number field
- Enters the earlier of the 180 day extension or I-94 end date for the document expiration date
- Adds the following comment in the Additional Information field:
EAD EXT
I-94 info
Issuing Auth: USCIS
Doc #: [I-94 number]
Exp: [I-94 expiration date]
Existing Employees
Section 3
- Verifier adds a new Section 3 for Reverification
- Verifier select Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) and records the following
- Enters the I-797 receipt number in the document number field
- Enters the earlier of the 180 day extension or I-94 end date for the document expiration date
- Sign and approve Section 3
Audit Note: The verifier an audit note to capture the additional I-94 information
- From the OnDocs tab of the I-9 the verifier clicks ‘Add Case Note’ and updates the case note as follows
- Updates the ‘Activity Type’ to Audit Note
- Records ‘EAD Auto-extension of dependent spouse’ in the ‘Subject/Reference’ field
- Includes the following in the ‘Notes’ box:
Per USCIS policy on documenting EAD auto-extensions of H-4, E, and L-2 dependent spouses, we are adding this note to capture the employee’s current I-94 information.
Issuing Auth: USCIS
Doc #: [I-94 number]
Exp: [I-94 expiration date]
In the fall of 2020, E-Verify announced a policy clarification related to the timeliness of Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) processing. This clarification explicitly stated that employers must process (i.e. notify E-Verify of the employee’s decision) TNC cases within 10 federal government workdays. Additionally, the E-Verify Monitoring and Compliance team is notifying employers of their obligations when either cases that received Final Nonconfirmation (FNC) results remain open or have been closed indicating the employee was retained.
There are a number of tools within Guardian organizations can use to maintain E-Verify compliance and identify such types of cases.
Reporting on Open TNC or FNC Cases Requiring Action
LawLogix recommends creating an interactive report which includes the columns ‘EV Status Detail’, ‘EV Current Status’ and ‘EV Status Date Changed’*.
*As of March 22, 2021, LawLogix introduced a new E-Verify tracking field: EV Date Status Changed. Cases updated after March 22nd reflect the date of the latest change to the case. This is a useful tool in determining when the 10-day clock began for an unprocessed TNC.
To create the report please proceed with the following steps:
- Click on the Reports tab of the Guardian top navigation bar.
- Click to select Interactive from the Report Types box in the upper left.
- Click New in the lower right of the left side column to begin building a new report.
- The page will refresh on the right side to show a Settings tab. Under Base Table click to select E-Verify.
- To minimize the report results, set the following under the Filter Options section.
- E-Verify Status - HR Hold
- Initial TNC - Yes
 
- Click the Columns tab.
- Click E-Verify under the Tables column, then click and drag the following fields to the Build Fields in Report column:
- EV Status Detail
- EV Current Status
- EV Status Date Changed
 
- Click the Settings tab once again.
- Click Save Settings in the lower left, then Run Report Now.
Tentative Nonconfirmation Results
Items on the report that are ‘On Hold, waiting for user interaction’ with an EV Initial Eligibility that contains the terms ‘Tentative Nonconfirmation’ require immediate attention.
Example output:
As shown in the screenshot above, the highlighted fields indicate an 'unprocessed TNC'. Note the text in the EV Initial Eligibility column may vary depending on the type of TNC returned. Cases in this status should be reviewed to determine first if the information sent to E-Verify was correct, and if so, then take steps to work with the employee to review the Further Action Notice and make a decision on whether or not to take action to resolve the TNC.
Processing a TNC that includes incorrect data:
When the TNC could be the result of incorrect information recorded on the I-9 access the TNC workflow and select the option in Step 2: No, we need to close this case due to a clerical error and resubmit.
Amend the incorrect I-9 form fields and then return to the employee’s E-Verify tab and use the Send to E-Verify button to initiate a new submission to E-Verify.
Processing a TNC for an Active employee:
Meet with or send the employee an access link to login and review the Further Action Notice. Once the employee has provided their decision, follow the next steps to refer the case or notify E-Verify of the employees’ decision not to take action. Visit the User Guides & Tutorials section of Help for detailed step by step processing instructions.
Processing a TNC for a Terminated employee:
If the employee is terminated the unprocessed TNC should be closed as follows:
1. Access the E-Verify Summary screen for the employee.
2. Click Continue E-Verify Process on the Case Status card.
3. On the Tentative Nonconfirmation page, click to select Yes
Section 3s are commonly used to reverify existing employees with work authorizations, but may also be used to document name or status changes as well.
Electronic Section 3s can be added to any I-9 type (Archival, New Hire Paper, Electronic) that has been approved. Any user type may create a Section 3, as long as they have permission to approve I-9s.
A Section 3 entry must be made from within the current I-9 and can be accomplished with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee’s I-9 record. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created link for the desired record that needs a Section 3. 
- 
Scroll down the page to the Section 3 area. 
- 
Click Add Section 3 in the upper right. - 
Click Add Remote Section 3 if the employee is to be verified remotely. 
 
- 
- 
Select the appropriate reason for the Section 3 Update. - 
Reverification 
- 
Reverification and Rehire 
 
- 
- 
Click Add Section 3 Entry. 
Once the Section 3 is filled out, the user must make sure to approve it by clicking the Approve link on the Details tab of the I-9 page. Once approved, the entry will be locked in.
When the need arises for a legal entity to be created under an existing Guardian account, this can be done through a series of steps. Please note that the following directions must be performed by  Guardian administrative user within your organization.
 
1. Creating the Entity
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration in the lower left. 
- 
Click Locations & E-Verify in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Legal Entites in the upper left. 
- 
Click New EIN in the upper right. 
- 
Enter in the Entity Name, EIN, E-Verify ID, and E-Verify Effective Date in the modal that appears. - 
If the entity will not use E-Verify, leave the E-Verify ID and E-Verify Effective Date fields blank. 
 
- 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
2. Adding a New Location (Optional)
If the new legal entity is also a new location, it may be created through the following steps. If creating a new location is not desired (i.e. the new entity is part of an existing location), then this step may be skipped.
- 
Within the Guardian Administration area from the preceding steps, click Locations in the upper left. 
- 
Click + New Location in the upper right. 
- 
A new modal will appear. Under the Details tab, enter the following information: - 
Name 
- 
Loc. Number 
- 
Phone 
- 
Fax (as applicable) 
- 
Line 1 (as applicable) 
- 
Line 2 (as applicable) 
- 
City 
- 
State 
- 
Zip code 
 
- 
- 
Click the Policies tab in the upper left of the modal. 
- 
Set all desired policies for this location. - 
Note: If this new location should not follow the default location policies set at the Guardian administrative level, then users are advised to set their preferred policies within this tab. 
 
- 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
3. Adding an Employee Group
After creating the new entity (and the new location if needed), users need to add the entity as a new Employee Group.
- 
Within the Administration area, click Employee Records in the upper left. 
- 
Click Manage Group Structure in the upper left. 
- 
Click + Add New Employee Group in the upper right. 
- 
Within the Legal Entity field, begin typing the name of the newly added entity. Once it appears in the dropdown options that generate, select it. 
- 
Enter the Location Name. 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
When an I-9 is completed within Guardian, the system only allows for the record to be purged after a specific amount of time has passed. This is based off a 3-year/1-year rule, in which the file can be deleted if the employee was terminated and:
- 
The current date is 3 years after the initial hire date OR 
- 
The current date is 1 year after the employee’s termination date. 
To delete an employee record, please make any applicable notes or backups of data and proceed with the following steps:
 
Note: The following procedure must be performed by a user with administrative privileges.
 
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal and access the employee’s record. 
- 
Click the employee name hyperlink. 
- 
Click the Job Details tab. 
- 
From here, change the hire and termination dates as needed. 
- 
Once modified, refreshing the page will update the eligible Date purgeable field. 
- 
If the Date purgeable shows a past date, then users may access the Administrative button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
The screen will refresh to admin commands. Click Purge Data in the top navigation. 
- 
All employee records that are now eligible to be purged will show up in this screen. Click the checkbox next to the employee file you wish to purge and then click the red Purge button. 
- 
A small pop-up will appear asking to confirm the action. Select Yes if you wish to proceed with the record purge. 
Once an I-9 is purged, the action cannot be reversed by LawLogix.
There are several types of I-9 records utilized and/or referenced within the Guardian system.
Electronic I-9: Used for a new or rehired employee. With this I-9 type all information is entered on the user’s computer. If enrolled in E-verify
New Hire Paper I-9: The New Hire Paper I-9 type is reserved for employees hired on or after your organization began using the Guardian system. It is used to electronically represent those I-9s completed on paper outside of the system. For organizations enrolled with E-Verify
Archival Paper I-9: The Archival Paper I-9 type denotes those historical I-9s (in general)
This is a 4-step process, in order to amend the I-9 the E-Verify record must be deleted first, and in order for the I-9 to be re-submitted to E-Verify the amendment must be approved.
Delete the E-Verify record.
- 
Access the E-Verify record. 
- 
Click on the Overview tab. 
- 
Click the Delete button. A warning window will appear. Confirm your selection by clicking the second Delete button. 
Amend and approve amendment for the I-9
- 
Access the employee’s I-9 record. 
- 
Click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Add button. 
- 
The Amend I-9 window will open. Click the Section 1 or Section 2 buttons on the left side of the page, for the desired section fields to appear. 
- 
Double-click on the field to be amended. 
- 
Ensure that Strike-Out Original Value has a checkmark next to it. 
- 
Enter the correct value in the New Value field. 
- 
For single amendment, click the Create Amendment button to create the item and return to the amendments tab. - 
For multiple amendments, click the Create Amendment and Add Another button. This will create the amendment and take you back Amend I-9 window to add the next amendment. 
 
- 
- 
When done with the last amendment click the Create Amendment button, this will create the amendment and take you back to the Amendments Tab. 
Approve the amendments
- 
For Section 1 Amendments click on the Actions button and choose Approve Section 1 Amendments enter the password used to log into Guardian. 
- 
If this option is grayed out, this will require employee approval of the amendment. Users will need to choose the method in which the employee will sign off on the amendment. 
- 
For Section 2 Amendments Click on Actions button Approve Non Section 1 Amendments enter the password used to log into Guardian. 
Use the Submit to E-Verify button within the E-Verify module. If unavailable, please contact LawLogix Support to manually push the submission again.
In order to keep your system lean and free of unnecessary files, Guardian carries the flexibility to delete records that are not being used as the primary I-9 for an employee.
Note: The following steps are for administrators only. If you are unable to proceed through, please contact your Guardian administrator to secure proper rights or get assistance.  
Caution should always be exercised when deleting I-9 records.  
First, the feature to allow I-9s to be deleted must be enabled.
- 
Once signed into Guardian, click on the Administration button in the left hand navigation menu. 
- 
The Preferences area should load by default. - 
If it doesn’t, please click on its associated button in the left hand menu. 
 
- 
- 
Under the General tab, click the I-9 Preferences dropdown. 
- 
Of the options revealed, click to leave a checkmark in the box labeled Allow deletion of non-current I-9s. 
- 
Click the Update Info button in the upper right of the screen to save the selection. 
After this setting is enabled, administrators may delete “non-primary” records, or records that are not actively being referenced.
- 
Navigate to the employee record within Guardian and click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Confirm that the record for deletion is marked with an [H], indicating that it is a historical record and not the primary. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date under the Date Created column. 
- 
In the details page, click the Delete button. 
LawLogix Guardian offers an innovative workflow solution for delegating the Form I-9 completion task to an authorized agent, providing for a flexible yet compliant way to complete Form I-9 for remote hires or reverification of existing employees.  Prior to leveraging the Remote Agent workflow, review the Administration settings outlined below to ensure alignment with your organization’s policies and procedures.
Remote Hire Preferences
From within the Administration tab, select I-9 Policy > Portals and Remote Processing.
Should remote agent manage document retention?: If Yes, Remote Agents will be prompted to upload or provide copies of the employee documents provided for Section 2, using one of the Document Retention Options enabled via the related setting (see bottom of guide).
 
| Recommendation: 
 | 
Trigger notification email of document selection?: If Yes, sends an email to the Responsible HR user notifying them of the Agent’s decision when prompted with document retention.  The email serves as a call to action for the HR to follow up on the document retention requirement (review the uploaded document copies, contact the employee directly to receive document copies, etc).
- Recommendation: Yes
Choose default Guardian contact: Provides the name, phone number and email addresses of the selected user on the employee and agent instruction emails. Employee and Agent are instructed to contact this user in the event of questions.
- Recommendation: Identify and select a user to be the point of contact for supporting the remote I-9 process. Alternatively, create a placeholder user associated with a group email and phone number (one-time user activation fee may apply depending on your contract and current active user count).
Require remote agent to provide e-mail address and pre-identify?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide and validate their e-mail address before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. A confirmation email with a validation code will be sent to the Agent. Enabling this setting ensures the organization has validate contact information for the Agent in the event they need to contact them.
- Recommendation: Yes
Require remote agents to provide contact phone number?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide their phone number before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. Note: the phone number is not validated (e.g., via SMS text).
- Recommendation: Yes
Remote Hire Document Retention Options
If the organization has elected to have the Remote Agent manage document retention, these are the options that will be displayed to the agent after completing Section 2.
- Recommendation: Enable only the Scan and Upload Documents option. In the event the Agent is unable to perform the retention at the time of Section 2 completion they are able to indicate so, at which point the employer would need to work with the employee directly to receive and upload the required document copies, when applicable.
Remote Hire Email Templates
From within the Administration tab, select Communication > Email/Receipt Templates.
| Recommendation: Review and customize the following email templates: 
 | 
Remote Hire Custom Help Text
From Communication > Customize Help Text, customizations can be made to the various on-screen instructions provided to employees completing a Remote I-9.
Pay particular attention to the Appointment Message 1 Remote Hire.  This is the last screen the employee sees after completing Section 1, and is where the Verifier Instructions are provided to the employee.  Consider advising the employee to Copy-Paste these instructions into an email to their agent, or to themselves if they have not yet identified who their agent will be.
LawLogix Guardian offers an innovative workflow solution for delegating the Form I-9 completion task to an authorized agent, providing for a flexible yet compliant way to complete Form I-9 for remote hires or reverification of existing employees.  Prior to leveraging the Remote Agent workflow, review the Administration settings outlined below to ensure alignment with your organization’s policies and procedures.
 
Remote Hire Preferences
From within the Administration tab, select Preferences > Remote Hire.
Use Pre-defined Remote Agents:  If checked, the organization must identify who the agent will be for a particular I-9 ahead of time, create them in the Guardian system, and assign them to the desired I-9(s).  This provides more control over who the Agent will be, but requires significantly more administrative overhead. If unchecked, the employee can meet with anyone who the organization authorizes to be an Agent without needing to add them into the Guardian system.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Remote Agents must be a Notary: If checked, all Remote Agents must be licensed Notaries. This setting only applies when enabling the Pre-defined Remote Agents setting.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Do not use Notary Affidavit: If checked, Notary Remote Agents will not be asked to fill out the Notary Affidavit. This setting only applies when enabling the Pre-defined Remote Agents setting.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Remote Agent Handles Documents: If checked, Remote Agents will be prompted to upload or provide copies of the employee documents provided for Section 2, using one of the Document Retention Options enabled via the related setting (see bottom of guide).
- 
Recommendation: - 
If you are currently retaining copies of ALL documents: Checked 
- 
If you are NOT retaining copies of documents, and are NOT an E-Verify participant: Not Checked 
- 
If you are ONLY retaining documents required by E-Verify: Checked - 
Note: This will result in a retention prompt for ALL documents, not just those required by E-Verify, for I-9’s completed via the Remote Agent workflow. It is recommended to create and document a policy exception which explains that you are retaining ALL documents for those I-9’s completed remotely by 3rd-party agents. If you choose not to enable this option you will need to work with your employees directly to receive and upload required document copies into Guardian. 
 
- 
 
- 
Default HR Contact: Provides the name, phone number and email addresses of the selected user on the employee and agent instruction emails. Employee and Agent are instructed to contact this user in the event of questions.
- 
Recommendation: Identify and select a user to be the point of contact for supporting the remote I-9 process. Alternatively, create a placeholder user associated with a group email and phone number (one-time user activation fee may apply depending on your contract and current active user count). 
Notify of document selection on step 3: If checked, sends an email to the Responsible HR user notifying them of the Agent’s decision when prompted with document retention. The email serves as a call to action for the HR to follow up on the document retention requirement (review the uploaded document copies, contact the employee directly to receive document copies, etc).
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Remote Agents must enter employee SSN: If checked, Remote Agents must enter in the Social Security number of the employee before being able to view and complete their Form I-9. The Agent has three chances to enter in the correct SSN before their access link is deactivated.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Require remote agent to provide e-mail address and pre-identify?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide and validate their e-mail address before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. A confirmation email with a validation code will be sent to the Agent. Enabling this setting ensures the organization has validate contact information for the Agent in the event they need to contact them. This option also prevents the employee from using their own email address (on file in Guardian) in an attempt to act as their own agent.
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Require remote agents to provide contact phone number?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide their phone number before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. Note: the phone number is not validated (e.g., via SMS text).
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Remote Hire Document Preferences
At the bottom of the page, click Documents to open another page containing important settings for the Remote Agent workflow.
Remote Hire Templates: These are the instructional emails that will be provided to the employee and their agent, containing the link to access the employee portal and agent portal, respectively.
- 
Recommendation: Click Edit Template and review and customize the Employee Instructions, Remote Agent Instructions (Sec 2), and Remote Agent Instructions (Sec 3) as desired. 
Document Retention Options: If the organization has elected to have the Remote Agent manage document retention, these are the options that will be displayed to the agent after completing Section 2.
Recommendation: Enable only the Scan and Upload Documents option.  In the event the Agent is unable to perform the retention at the time of Section 2 completion they are able to indicate so, at which point the employer would need to work with the employee directly to receive and upload the required document copies, when applicable.
 
Remote Hire Custom Help Text
From Custom Help > Remote Employee I-9 Form, customizations can be made to the various on-screen instructions provided to employees completing a Remote I-9.
Pay particular attention to the Appointment Message 1 Remote Hire.  This is the last screen the employee sees after completing Section 1, and is where the Verifier Instructions are provided to the employee.  Consider advising the employee to Copy-Paste these instructions into an email to their agent, or to themselves if they have not yet identified who their agent will be.
How can we re-issue the remote agent login link when the link expires?
Remote agent login links will expire approximately one month after they are generated, when the I-9 is approved by a Guardian user, or when the remote process is disabled from the Guardian system. These links can be reissued, but requires a Guardian user to delete and recreate the agent instruction email with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee profile within Guardian. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab. 
- 
Click on the Date Created hyperlink of the Remote Agent Instruction E-Mail. 
- 
Click Delete in the upper right. 
- 
Click View Employee. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the asterisk (*) to access the Remote Hire/Remote Agent Settings page. 
- 
Click Create Agent Instructions. 
- 
Update the email if desired, then click Send. 
The updated instructions will also be available through the Remote Agent Instructions link within the employee's interface.
An F-1 academic student who received a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (a STEM field) may apply for a one-time, 17-month extension of his or her initial 1 year period of work authorization pursuant to Optional Practical Training (OPT), provided the employer is enrolled in E-Verify.
If the student's Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires while his or her STEM extension application is pending, they are authorized to work until USCIS makes a decision on their application, but not more than 180 days from the date the student's initial Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires.
The student's expired Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766), together with their  Form I-20 endorsed by the designated school official recommending the STEM extension, are acceptable proof of identity and employment authorization for Form I-9 purposes.
 
New Hire Process
To document the period of interim work authorization on a new I-9, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Create a new I-9. 
- 
Include the expired work authorization date from the I-766 document. 
- 
In Section 2, the verifier will select the I-766 and input all details, including the expired work authorization date. 
- 
Once entered, the Section 2 will refresh. 
- 
Select F-1/OPT STEM Extension in the Work Authorization field. 
- 
Enter SEVIS number of I-20 document. - 
This document should have been endorsed by a Designated School Official for the STEM extension. 
- 
The Guardian system will determine the 180 interim work authorization based on the I-766 expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
Finish filling out the Section 2. 
The reverification date for the employee will also be based on this 180-day extension. Once the new EAD card is issued, the employee should be re-verified in Section 3 with the EAD as the basis of the re-verification and the 17-month STEM Extension date as shown on the EAD card serving as the new re-verification date.
 
Existing Employee Process
An employee can file a Form I-765 application to renew their EAD prior to the expiration of their current status. Pending the adjudication of the I-765 application, the employee is allowed to work for a period of 180 days beyond the expiration of their EAD expiration or until the new EAD card is issued. Outlined below is how to document this 180 day interim extension on the Form I-9. How to document a STEM Extension:
- 
Access the employee's I-9 record that reflects the expiring/expired EAD work authorization. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Special Amendments header at the bottom of the page to expand the section. 
- 
Click the F-1/OPT STEM Extension button. 
- 
Enter the SEVIS No. of the employee's I-20 that has been properly endorsed. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right to save the change. - 
The basis for the interim extension will automatically populate on the Special Amendment interface and a new re-verification date will be auto-calculated based on 180 days from the current EAD expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
On the Amendment tab select Approve Non Section 1 Amendments from the Actions drop down. 
Upon updating, the I-20 SEVIS No. and the words "180 day Ext." will appear on the PDF image of the I-9 in red font (indicating this is an update to the original approved I-9) adjacent to List A, and the new re-verification date is reflected.
If your organization is one of many that has participated in the use of ‘virtual verification’ while observing social distancing/lockdown procedures due to the COVID-19 national emergency, the DHS included a follow up requirement indicating that the employee must present the documents to the employer within three business days after normal business operations resume. The employer should review the documentation presented by the employee and annotate the I-9 with the date of physical inspection and the name of the person performing the inspection.
If your organization needs to utilize a remote agent to perform this function, this process requires steps both internal and external to Guardian in order to fulfill the requirement. LawLogix has put together a best practice recommendation to address this temporary and unique situation. Please find below a list of recommended activities when having a remote agent complete the deferred physical inspection when normal business operations resume.
Steps for Follow-Up Inspections
- Identify, either through Guardian reports or another HR-related system, those employees who presented documents virtually and remain remote, requiring an agent/authorized representative to complete physical inspection.
- Print or save an electronic copy of the completed Form I-9 for each of these employees.
- Through secure means, contact each employee and provide them with their previously completed I-9, as well as a supplemental “Physical Inspection Attestation” to be signed by their chosen remote agent.
- Direct the employee to choose a remote agent that may perform the in-person document inspection.
- Instruct the employee to present to the agent the same original documents that were previously provided, regardless of document expiration date.
- Advise the remote agent to compare the documents presented to the information contained in Section 2 of the employee’s Form I-9, and sign the Physical Inspection Attestation.
- Through secure means, the employee returns the Physical Inspection Attestation to the HR team.
- A Guardian user uploads the attestation to the employee’s I-9 OnDocs as a supporting document.
- The Guardian user may toggle off* the COVID-19 exception from the employee profile to remove the exception alert from the dashboard.
**Note: in the workflow described above, the physical inspection will only be recorded on the supplemental attestation uploaded to the employee’s OnDocs file. If your organization wishes to also record the COVID-19 physical document information on the Form I-9 itself, a Guardian user may instead initiate the streamlined amendment process in Guardian which will record the inspection date and name of inspector in the Section 2 Additional Information field, and remove the exception alert from Guardian.
Frequently Asked Questions
Collected below are a few questions that may arise during this process.
My remote hires normally schedule appointments with a PAN center. Can I utilize a PAN center to fulfill this follow-up inspection?
- No. PAN Centers are unable to assist with this particular type of follow-up document inspection at this time.
The employee originally presented a license that was expired but temporarily extended by the DMV. Should they present that document again or their recently renewed one for the follow up inspection?
- The employee must provide the documents they originally used for their virtual verification, regardless of their expiration status at the time of the physical inspection. USCIS provided no indication that an additional reverification of expired documents is required.
The employee no longer has the documents they originally presented, but have different ones that are still valid and verifiable. Can these be used instead?
- The expectation is that the employee should provide the original documents in order to meet the stated requirement of the ‘virtual verification’ process. If the employee is unable to present the original documents for physical inspection, the organization may wish to complete a new I-9 in Guardian with the new documents provided. In the event a new I-9 is created, LawLogix recommends creating an audit note in Guardian which explains the situation.
What should we do if the agent noted that the document information on the I-9 differs from the document presented by the employee?
- A Guardian user should ask the employee to provide copies of the documents presented to the agent and compare with the originally retained documents in Guardian. If a transcription error is found, the Guardian user may complete an amendment to correct the discrepancy.
Should the supplemental attestation be included with the I-9 in the event of an ICE audit?
- Yes, the supplemental document should be stored in the employee’s I-9 OnDocs folder. In the future, if the I-9 is subject to audit, Guardian’s export process includes all documents associated with the I-9. This supplemental attestation clarifies that the physical inspection was performed by a remote agent.
Remote agent login links will expire approximately one month after they are generated, when the I-9 is approved by a Guardian user, or when the remote process is disabled from the Guardian system. These links can be reissued, but requires a Guardian user to delete and recreate the agent instruction email with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee profile within Guardian. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab. 
- 
Click on the Date Created hyperlink of the Remote Agent Instruction E-Mail. 
- 
Click Delete in the upper right. 
- 
Click VIew Employee. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the asterisk (*) to access the Remote Hire/Remote Agent Settings page. 
- 
Click Create Agent Instructions. 
- 
Update the email if desired, then click Send. 
The updated instructions will also be available through the Remote Agent Instructions link within the employee's interface.
If you determine an Employment Authorization Document has been auto-extended, please follow the guidance below when completing Form I-9. Employees who present an EAD with a category code of A12 or C19 are Temporary Protected Status beneficiaries. TPS beneficiaries may receive an automatic extension of their EAD on an alternate basis. Employers can learn more about TPS beneficiaries later in this Fact Sheet.
Instructions for an employee completing Section 1 of Form I-9
If this is a new employee: 
When completing Section 1, new employees should:
- 
Select the option “An alien authorized to work until”; and 
- 
Enter the date that is 180 days from the “card expires” date of their EAD as the “employment authorized until mm/dd/yyyy” date. 
If this is a current employee:
For Current employees whose employment authorization was automatically extended:
- 
Amend the “employment authorized until” date in Section 1; 
- 
Enter the date that is 180 days from the date their current EAD expires; and 
- 
Complete and approve the Amendment. 
Instructions for Employers Completing Section 2 of Form I-9
If your employee is new and presents an automatically extended EAD that is still within the 180-day extension period:
When completing Section 2, the HR User should:
- 
Enter into the “Expiration Date” field the date upon which the automatic extension period expires, not the expiration date on the face of the expired EAD. The automatic extension expiration date is the date 180 days from the “card expires” date on the EAD; and 
- 
Enter the List A Document as a Receipt in the “Document Number” field. Note that this expiration date may be cut short if the employee’s renewal application is denied before the 180-day period expires. 
If your employee is currently working for you: 
For a current employee, Amend Section 2 of Form I-9 with the new expiration date as follows:
- 
Amend section 2 and type in the new expiration date; 
- 
Type EAD EXT in the “Note of Record” field of Section 2; and 
- 
Complete and approve the Amendment. 
The new expiration date the employer should enter is the date 180 days from the “card expires” date, which is the date on the face of the EAD.
Note: This is not considered a reverification; do not complete Section 3 until either the 180-day extension has ended or the employee presents a new document to show continued employment authorization, whichever is sooner. At the end of the 180-day extension, the employer must reverify the employee’s employment authorization in Section 3 of Form I-9.
For additional info please see: https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Verification/I-9%20Central/FactSheets/Fact-Sheet-AutoExtendEAD.pdf
Guardian has the ability to pull robust reports on a variety of data fields within the system. The following is a collection of these tables and fields available for reporting:
 
| Base Table | Included Tables | 
| HR Group Assignments | Group Locations HRs HR Groups | 
| HR Groups | HR Groups | 
| HR Locations | HR Locations HRs Locations | 
| Occupation Class | Occupation Class | 
| Business Units | Business Units | 
| Contracts | Contracts | 
| Dashboard | Dashboard I-9 Employee E-Verify Business Unit HRs | 
| Documents | Documents I-9 Employee | 
| E-Verify | E-Verify FAR I-9 Employee Business Unit Locations | 
| Employee Address | Address Employee | 
| Employee | Employee I-9 E-verify FAR Locations Business Unit Login | 
| FAR | FAR E-Verify I-9 | 
| I9 Issues | I-9 Issues I-9 Employee Business Unit | 
| I9 Section 3 | I-9 Section 3 I-9 Employee Business Unit | 
| I9 | I-9 Employee Business Unit Locations | 
| Locations and Occupation Class Assignments | Location & Occupation Class HRs Locations Occupation Class HR Groups | 
| Locations | Locations Address Business Units | 
| Multi-Business Units | Multi-Business Units I-9 Employee E-Verify Business Unit | 
| Remote Agents | Remote Agent | 
| Remote I-9s | I-9 Remote Agent Locations Employee | 
| State Affidavits | I-9 State Affidavits I-9 State Affidavits | 
| Tasks | Tasks Employee | 
Field Names
| Table | Field Name | 
| Address | Address Type Address Line 1 Address Line 2 Address City Address State Address County Address Country Address Zip Code Address Apt No | 
| Business Unit | Business Unit Guardian ID Business Unit Name Business Unit EIN No Business Unit E-Verify ID Business Unit E-Verify Effective Date Business Unit is Inactive | 
| Contracts | Contract Date Created Contract Date Modified Contract Scope Contract Effective Date Contract End Date Contract COTS Only Contract Amount Contract is Outside US Contract Number Contract Name Contract Notes | 
| Dashboard | Employee Name Employee Hire Date I-9 Type I-9 Date Created I-9 Date Due I-9 Date Expires EV Status EV Initial Date Submitted I-9 Receipt I-9 Status I-9 Date Approved I-9 Date Amended I-9 Date Completed | 
| Documents | ID Doc Date Captured Doc Date Modified Doc Subject / Reference Doc Description Doc Received From Doc Sent By Doc Sent To Doc Internal Document Type Doc Type Doc Size Doc Original File Name Doc File Extension Doc Employee Can View Doc Expert Name Doc HR Signed Doc Date Employee Signed Doc History | 
| Employee | Employee Guardian ID Responsible HR/Group Date Created First Name Middle Name Last Name Other Names Used Employee Name Employee Phone Number Title Date of Birth Social Security Number Date Hired Date Terminated Location Occupation Class Business Unit Employee ID Purge Eligibility Date Do Not Purge Language Has HSPD-12 Exemption Has Top Secret Clearance Provides Support Services Only Is On Leave Emp Work email Emp Income Emp FICA Exempt Status Emp DACA Notification E-Mail 1 Notification E-Mail 2 | 
| E-Verify | EV Guardian ID EV Case No Date EV Created EV Date Initially Submitted EV Current Status EV Date Next Submit EV CPS State EV Hold Until EV Last Submitted EV Last Name Submitted EV First Name Submitted EV Middle Initial Submitted EV Other Names Used Submitted EV DOB Submitted EV Date Hired Submitted EV Citizenship Submitted EV A No Submitted EV I-94 No Submitted EV SS No Submitted EV S2 Document Submitted EV S2 Document Expires EV Visa Submitted EV Card No Submitted EV Passport No Submitted EV Submitted By EV Returned First Name EV Returned Last Name EV Last Return Msg EV Initial Eligibility EV Initial Eligibility Reason EV Returned Letter EV Secondary Performed EV Date Referred EV TNC Contested EV TNC Final EV Date Re-Submitted EV Last Name Re-Submitted EV First Name Re-Submitted EV Middle Initial Re-Submitted EV Other Names Used Re-Submitted EV Social Security No Re-Submitted EV DOB Re-Submitted EV Re-Submitted Official EV Secondary Performed EV DHS Response EV DHS Response Date EV Contested SSA EV Contested DHS EV Case Resolved EV Final Option EV Photo Tool Used EV Days to Submit EV Photo Confirmation EV Overdue Reason EV Overdue Reason Other EV DHS Deadline | 
| FAR | FAR Date Created FAR Exempt FAR Exempt Status FAR Final E-Verify FAR Contract FAR Next Status FAR E-Verify Status FAR Batch Name | 
| Group Locations | Default in Group | 
| HR Groups | Group Name Group is Interactive | 
| HR Locations | Location Privilege | 
| HRs | HR Name Last Name First Name Middle Name Title ID Is Admin Work Phone Number Date Created Date Last Retired Date Last Unretired View Emps Privilege I-9 Default Occupation Class I-9 Default Location I-9 Default Language I-9 Default I-9 Type Default Business Unit Type Cannot Approve I-9s Cannot Create Electronic I-9 Cannot Create Archival I-9s Cannot Create Paper I-9s Has E-Verify Privilege Can Amend I-9 Can Approve I-9 Amendments Can Exempt Issues Can Park I-9s Can Approve I-9s in Batch Can Close E-Verify Cases in Batch Can View Dash Mini Charts Can Create Employees Is Expert Is the Default HR | 
| I-9 | I-9 Status I-9 Type I-9 Imported Type I-9 Number I-9 Date Created I-9 Date Completed I-9 Date Approved I-9 Approved by I-9 Days to File I-9 Ontime Margin I-9 Visa No I-9 Card Number I-9 Error Count I-9 E-Verify Error Count I-9 FAR Error Count I-9 Due Date I-9 Expiration Date I-9 Days to Expiration I-9 Remote Agent I-9 Business Unit I-9 Location S1 First Name S1 Middle Initial S1 Last Name S1 Other Names Used S1 Address S1 Apartment No S1 City S1 State S1 Zip Code S1 Social Security Number S1 Date of Birth S1 A Number S1 Work Until Date S1 A No or Admission No S1 Citizenship Attestation S1 Date Signed S1 Date First Signed S2 Date Employee Hired S1 Foreign Passport No S1 Country of Issuance P/T Name P/T Address P/T City P/T State P/T Zip Code P/T Date Signed S2 List A Authority S2 List A Document S2 Document Name S2 List A Document #1 S2 List A Document Uploaded S2 List A Expiration Date #1 S2 List A Doc Name #2 S2 List A Document #2 S2 List A Authority #2 S2 List A Expiration Date #2 S2 List A Doc Name #3 S2 List A Document #3 S2 List A Authority #3 S2 List A Expiration Date #3 S2 Unknown Document List A S2 List B Document S2 Document B Name S2 List B Authority S2 List B Document No S2 List B Document Uploaded S2 List B Expiration Date S2 Unknown Document List B S2 List B Photo Affirmed S2 List C Document S2 Document C Name S2 List C Authority S2 List C Document No S2 List C Expiration Date S2 Unknown Document List C S2 List C Document Issued Date S2 HR Last Name S2 HR First Name S2 HR Title S2 Header First Name S2 Header Last Name S2 Header Middle Initial S2 Header Immigration Status S2 Company Name S2 Company Address S2 Company City S2 Company State S2 Company Zip Code S2 Date Signed S2 Date First Signed S2 Misc Entry S2 Additional Information I-9 Form Version | 
| I-9 Issues | ID Error I9 No Error I9 Section 3 No Error Class Error Type Error Section Error Object Error Explanation Error Ignored Error Exempted by Error not Exemptable | 
According to updated guidance provided by the DHS, if an employee first presents a receipt for a document, then later provides a different, acceptable document for identity purposes within the 90-day period, employers may accept them.
If an employee presents a different document than the original receipt document, LawLogix recommends performing the following steps:
- Make no additional changes to the original receipt I-9 and Park the form.
- Create a new I-9 for the employee.
- Direct the employee to complete Section 1 again.
- Record the new document(s) in Section 2, and within the Additional Information box write a notation.
- Example text: ‘Employee originally presented a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document. In lieu of presenting the original document for which the receipt was issued, the employee has presented alternate documentation which is acceptable. Per DHS guidance, we have created this new I-9 to record the alternate documents.’
 
- Approve the I-9 (this will automatically send the information to E-Verify, if applicable)
For employees who present the same document as the receipt, the process remains unchanged: Update the document information via the employee’s I-9 Details tab ‘Update Receipt’ button and follow the steps to approve the receipt amendments.
In certain instances there is a need for an I-9 to be created and completed remotely. Guardian can accommodate this with a special remote agent I-9 within the system. To create such an I-9, please proceed through the following steps:
 
Creating a remote I-9 for an existing employee
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal and access the employee record by clicking on their name. 
- 
Once loaded into the employee’s page, click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Add I-9 Remote Processing button in the top right corner of the screen. - 
Note: this cannot be done if there is already an I-9 pending in the system. 
 
- 
- 
Select the appropriate remote agent (if necessary) and the Remote Hire HR Contact. - 
The Remote Hire HR Contact is the Guardian user to be contacted if questions arise. 
 
- 
- 
Create or Review the Agent Instructions. (Email the instructions if the agent is known). 
- 
Create or Review the Employee Instructions. 
- 
Click the Send or Edit Email button to begin the send process. 
- 
Click the Send the Email button to send instructions to the employee for completing the I-9. 
To create the I-9 for a new employee  
- 
Sign into the Guardian system and access the Employees module. 
- 
Click the Add button in the top right corner of the screen. 
- 
Enter the social security number for the new hire OR choose Create Employee w/o Social Security No to proceed without one. 
- 
Complete all of the required fields to create the employee. - 
i.e. location, start date, and occupation class. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Employee with Remote Agent button. 
- 
Select the appropriate remote agent (if necessary) and the Remote Hire HR Contact. - 
The Remote Hire HR Contact is the Guardian user to be contacted if questions arise. 
 
- 
- 
Create or Review the Agent Instructions. (Email the instructions if the agent is known). 
- 
Create or Review the Employee Instructions. 
- 
Click the Send or Edit Email button to begin the send process. 
- 
Click the Send the Email button to send instructions to the employee for completing the I-9. 
There are plenty of situations in which a change needs to be made to an Form I-9. Wrong address, misspelled name or any other item can be amended in either section of the form.
This can be done easily in the Guardian system. Please follow the steps below according to which section needs to be modified.
- 
From your Guardian portal, access the employee's I-9 record either through the I-9 Forms module or Employees module. 
- 
Once loaded into the I-9 form that needs changes, click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Section 1 or Section 2 (dependent on where the change is needed) on the left hand side of the page. 
- 
Double click Item to be amended. 
- 
Ensure that there is a check mark in the Strike-Out Original Value line. 
- 
Enter the correct value in the New Value field. 
- 
Click Create Amendment. - 
If you have more than one amendment to make in this section, click Create Amendment and Add Another to repeat this process. 
 
- 
Once the amendment is added, it is ready to be approved.
 
Section 2 Amendment Approvals:
To approve a section 2 amendment, click the Actions button and choose the last option that reads Approve Non Section 1 Amendments. Then enter your password used for your Guardian login.
 
Section 1 Amendment Approvals:
To approve a section 1 amendment, click the Actions button and choose Approve Section 1 Amendments.
- 
This option will only be available if your organization has set preferences for the HR user to approve Section 1 Amendments. 
- 
If this option is grayed out, then it means the employee will need to approve the amendment. If this is the case, then select the most suitable option for the employee to approve the amendment. 
Note: Once a data field has been amended, it cannot be modified again.
When a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) is issued from E-Verify, employees have the options to take actions in response to it. In certain instances an employee may simply self-terminate and never sign the Final Action Notice (FAN) letter.
Should a case like this arise, users are advised to proceed through the following steps.
- 
		On the E-Verify Summary screen for the employee in question, click Continue E-Verify Process on the Case Status card. 
- 
		On the Tentative Nonconfirmation page click the Yes radio button in Step 2 and select Review and sign the FAN manually outside of Guardian , and click Continue . 
- 
		Select the checkboxes for the 'Acknowledge' and 'Confirm' sections then select Employee does not want to take action to resolve this case and understands their employment may be terminated and click Continue Process . 
- 
		On the 'Close Case' step click Close Case . 
- 
		Select the third radio button option: Neither of the options above apply- I am closing this case for a different reason , enter 'Employee self-terminated' in the text field, and click Continue . 
	As the DHS extension for I-9 verification rules has been in place for approximately a year, there is a chance that Virtual Verifications (and their relaxed rules) could be removed soon.
	
	This has always come "built-in" with the very use of Virtual Verification, but there are a few things an organization must do when they must "resume normal business operations."
	
	
			 The rules established by USCIS circa March 2020:
	
	
	"Due to precautions being implemented by employers and employees related to physical proximity associated with COVID-19, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it will exercise discretion to defer the physical presence requirements associated with Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Employers with employees taking physical proximity precautions due to COVID-19 will not be required to review the employee’s identity and employment authorization documents in the employee’s physical presence. However, employers must inspect the Section 2 documents remotely (e.g., over video link, fax or email, etc.) and obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the documents, within three business days for purposes of completing Section 2. Employers also should enter “COVID-19” as the reason for the physical inspection delay in the Section 2 Additional Information field once physical inspection takes place after normal operations resume. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate. These provisions may be implemented by employers for a period of 60 days from the date of this notice OR within 3 business days after the termination of the National Emergency, whichever comes first.
	
	Employers who avail themselves of this option must provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee. This burden rests solely with the employers.
	
	Once normal operations resume, all employees who were onboarded using remote verification, must report to their employer within three business days for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate.
	
	Any audit of subsequent Forms I-9 would use the “in-person completed date” as a starting point for these employees only.
	
	This provision only applies to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely. If there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis. Additionally, employers may designate an authorized representative to act on their behalf to complete Section 2. An authorized representative can be any person the employer designates to complete and sign Form I-9 on their behalf. The employer is liable for any violations in connection with the form or the verification process, including any violations in connection with the form or the verification process, including any violations of the employer sanctions laws committed by the person designated to act on the employer’s behalf.”
	
	Effective March 19, 2020, any employers who were served NOIs by DHS during the month of March 2020 and have not already responded will be granted an automatic extension for 60 days from the effective date. At the end of the 60-day extension period, DHS will determine if an additional extension will be granted.
	
	Going forward DHS will continue to monitor the ongoing National Emergency and provide updated guidance as needed. Employers are required to monitor the DHS and ICE websites for additional updates regarding when the extensions will be terminated, and normal operations will resume."
	
	
		 As per the USCIS, once the window of virtual verification use is concluded, users must fulfill physical inspection of documents presented by ALL employees that were originally hired on using this exception.
	
	
What Guardian Users Need to Do
	If and when the date for "resuming normal business operations" and officially ending the exception is determined by the USCIS, Guardian users must act quickly to physically inspect all documents within three business days.
	
Reporting on 'Virtual Verification' I-9s
	Guardian users that were employing the 'Covid-19 Exception' option within the application could create a report to pull all employees that were flagged with such I-9s. This can be done at any time, even before an official end date is declared.
	
	Example of the flag being used in an employee profile:
	
	To extend visibility of I-9s flagged with 'virtual verification', LawLogix introduced a new reportable field. This field,
	
		 I-9 Exception
	
	 , can be added to any Interactive Report that can include I-9 information. When included, the field notes
	
		 COVID-19
	
	 for any I-9 flagged for the exception.
	
	To add the field to a report:
	
- 
		Access the Reports module 
- 
		Select Interactive from the Report Types list 
- 
		Create or edit an existing report 
- 
		Select the Columns tab within the report details 
- 
		Select I-9 from the Tables list 
- 
		Scroll through the Field Name list and drag and drop I-9 Exception to the third list(the field should appear towards the top of the list, just below I-9 Ontime Margin ) 
- 
		Click Update Settings to save the changes 
Example New I-9 Exception Report Field:
Entering a Date of Normal Business Operations
	This date, when determined, must be entered into the Guardian system in order to kick off the physical inspection workflow. This must be performed by a Guardian administrator within the Policy/Preferences section of the Guardian Administration settings.
	
	Once this date is entered in the Administrative Settings, the I-9s flagged using the Virtual Verification Exception will appear on the
	
		 I-9s Needing Further Action
	
	 dashboard panel.
	
	Once this date is entered in the Administrative Settings, the I-9s flagged using the Virtual Verification Exception will appear on the
	
		 I-9s Needing Further Action
	
	 dashboard panel.
	
Noting Physical Inspection on I-9s
	After an virtual verification employee has their documents physically inspected, Guardian users can notate this directly in their profile.
	
Once clicked, a popup will appear with information on entering the date of physical inspection, as well as who inspected it.
	Once that is performed, similar to other amendments, users must approve the changes made.
	
	Once this is approved, the physical inspection note will appear in Section 2 of the employee profile.
	
Guardian Process – Different Individual Conducts Physical Inspection
	When the physical inspection of documents is conducted by a different person, employers using Guardian have two options:
	
Option 1 – Virtual Verification Amendment
	If the document verifier is a Guardian user with access to the I-9 record, the verifier can use the amendment workflow highlighted above and enter their full name and title in field when prompted:
	
	
	 If the verifier is NOT a Guardian user, the employer will need to complete the amendment process outside of Guardian (i.e., you will need to download the I-9, provide a copy to the employee along with instructions for the verifier to handwrite their name, title, and date of inspection, obtain the updated I-9 from the employee once completed, and upload to Guardian). Given the number of steps involved, this is not the recommended practice.
	
Option 2 – New Attestation (Recommended)
	If the verifier performing the physical inspection is NOT a Guardian user, the employer may choose to complete an entirely new I-9 (i.e., both sections 1 and 2) to document the physical inspection. Completing a new I-9 has the following benefits:
	
- 
		Completing a new Section 1 ensures you have the most recent (and up-to-date) information from the employee, which may be important if the employee has changed immigration status since the virtual I-9 was originally completed. 
- 
		Completing a new Section 2 enables employers to capture the authorized representative’s attestation and signature in Section 2 (per the ICE guidance). 
- 
		Employers using our Remote Verification Network can direct the employee to schedule an appointment with a nearby verification center for purposes of reviewing the original documents and completing Section 2. 
	Additional Compliance Pointers for Employers Creating a New I-9
	
- 
		Although the ICE guidance referenced above mentions completing a new Section 2 alone (which is not possible in Guardian), completing a new I-9 in this scenario should be permissible so long as the employer follows this process without regard to an employee's citizenship status, immigration status, or national origin. 
- 
		By design, Guardian will NOT submit these newly created I-9s for existing employees to E-Verify (assuming that an E-Verify case was properly created from the original virtual I-9). 
- 
		Once the second I-9 has been approved, employers should add an “Audit Note” to the I-9 which explains why a second record was created. 
	The following is a sample “Audit Note” to create for a new “physical inspection” I-9 record
	
| 
					
						 Date Entered
					
					 : 01/05/2021
					 
					
						 Entered By:
					
					 HR Rep
					 
					
						 Subject/Reference:
					
					 New I-9 for Physical Inspection
					 Note: This employee was originally verified by a different individual through the COVID-19 remote inspection process. ICE guidance indicates that employers should complete a new second page (Section 2) for the physical inspection in this scenario, which is not possible in our electronic I-9 solution. Accordingly, we have created this new Form I-9 (both Section 1 and 2) to document the physical inspection. Please see the prior I-9 for the remote inspection. | 
Getting Started
- Standard User Interface Overview
- Location Manager Interface Overview
- Dashboard Overview
- I-9 Section 1
- I-9 Section 2
- I-9 Section 3
- I-9 Preparer/Translator Certification
- Create Employee Login
- Uploading Documents
- Document Capture Enforcement
- Updating Employment History
- E-Verify Compliance Requirements
- Case Notes
General I-9 Workflows
Special I-9 Workflows
- In-Person Replacement Receipt
- Remote Hire Replacement Receipt
- Employee without Social Security Number
- H-1B Portability
- F-1 Curricular Practical Training (CPT)
- Work Authorization Special Amendments
- J-1 Student/Exchange Visitor
- Lawful Permanent Resident I-94 and I-551 stamp Receipt
- Minors Without a List B Identity Document
- New Hire Paper I-9
- Archival Paper I-9
- Uploading Paper I-9
E-Verify Workflows
- Employment Authorized Result
- Typographical Errors
- Late Submission
- Duplicate Case Alert
- Photo Matching Tool
- In Person SSA TNC
- Remote Employee SSA TNC
- In Person DHS Photo No Match TNC
- Remote Employee DHS Photo No Match TNC
- Navigation and E-Verify Update FAQ (2020)
Remote Agent I-9 Processing
- Remote Hire with Agent Workflow
- Remote I-9 Management
- Remote Section 3 Reverification
- PAN - Remote Verification Network Overview
I-9 Remediation
FAR Federal Contractor Tools
Advanced Features
See below for Guardian User Guides and Tutorials.
Administration
Guardian Reports Module
There are two types of reports available to create in the Guardian system:
1) Standard Reports are pre-configured templates
- 
Organizations on the hierarchical model of Guardian (G2) have these basic reports: 
- 
Pending Reverifications - employees with temporary work authorization that require reverification. 
- 
I-9 Issues - employees who have issues flagged on their primary I-9 record. 
- 
Employee Groups - displays details about the organization’s locations & employee groups 
- 
Organizations on the Occupation Class structure of Guardian (G1) have these basic reports: 
- 
Pending I-9s 
- 
Completed I-9s 
- 
I-9 Summary 
- 
Pending Reverifications 
- 
Pending Receipts 
- 
I-9 Issues 
- 
E-Verify Status 
- 
Employee 
- 
User 
2) Interactive Reports are customizable reports. The listing and definitions of the available Base Tables are the following:
- 
HR Users: this is the main table to pull information related to a user 
- 
Business Units: this table pulls information related to business units 
- 
Contracts: this table will pull information related to all contracts for employers that participate in E-Verify under a federal contract containing the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clause 
- 
Dashboard: this table will generate reports from any of the available dashboard panels (see the Dashboard Reports slide for more information) 
- 
Documents: this table will pull information related to any items in OnDocs. 
- 
E-Verify: this table will pull information from any E-Verify cases 
- 
Employee Address: this table will generate reports related to employee’s address 
- 
Employee Group Assignments: this table will identify which Employee Groups the user is assigned to. 
- 
Employee: this table will pull information related to all employees 
- 
FAR: this table will pull information related to the FAR clause 
- 
I-9 Issues: this table will pull information related to any existing I-9 issues for remediation purposes. 
- 
I-9 Section 3: this table will pull information related to all Section 3’s 
- 
I-9: this table will pull information related to any existing I-9’s 
- 
Locations: this table provides a yes/no indicator of which user is the default user for the HR Group. 
- 
Multi-Business Units: this table will identify which Multi-Business Units the user is assigned to. 
- 
Remote Agents: this table will pull information related to all Remote Agents used in processing Section 2’s 
- 
Remote I-9s: this table will pull information related to any remote I-9s 
- 
State Affidavits: this table will pull information related to any State Affidavits 
- 
Tasks: this table will pull information related to all pending Tasks. 
Reports Scheduler:
In the Scheduler Options section, the user can create Interactive reports that run automatically on a routine basis:
- 
The Daily option will run the report either All Days or Weekdays only. 
- 
The Weekly option will run the report on the same day of the week on a weekly basis. 
- 
The Monthly option will run the report on the specified day of the month. 
Please register for upcoming Guardian live webcasts Here!
The Pending Reverifications report is an off-the-shelf report that does not allow users to remove or add report columns. However, an interactive report can be adjusted to mirror the Pending Reverifications report, as well as additional data points as needed.
To create this custom report, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard area, click Reports in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Select Interactive as the Report Type 
- 
Click New+. 
- 
Next to Base Table, select I9. 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click Columns in the upper most tabs. 
- 
Under Select Table, click Employee. 
- 
Under Select Field, double click or drag and drop the following to add it to the Build Fields in Reports section. - 
Employee Name 
- 
Responsible HR/Group 
- 
Date Hired 
 
- 
- 
Under Select Table, click I-9. 
- 
Under Select Field, double click or drag and drop the following to add it to the Build Fields in Reports section. - 
I-9 Days to Expiration 
- 
I-9 Expiration Date 
 
- 
- 
Repeat steps 7-8 to add as many data points as desired for the report to pull. 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click Settings in the upper most tabs. 
- 
Within Date Range section, select I-9 Expiration Date from dropdown next to Date to Search. 
- 
Enter desired date within From field. - 
This will filter out I-9s that do not have an expiration date. (i.e. 1/1/1980) 
- 
By adding an old value (that is not applicable) only those I-9s with expiration dates on or after the filter date will be displayed. 
- 
To search for only those with future expiration dates then add a current date value. 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in lower left. 
- 
Click Run Report Now. 
With the ever changing landscape due to the coronavirus, LawLogix compiled the following resources and frequently asked questions to help organizations maintain I-9 compliance during this unprecedented time. This page will be updated continuously as new information, resources, or practices are introduced.
Remote Onboarding Resources
DHS' 'Virtual Verification' Announcement
LawLogix 'Virtual Verification' Blog
LawLogix Webinar: 5 Strategies for Managing Remote I-9 and E-Verify Compliance
Remote Verification Now Guardian Implementation Overview
Remote Verification Guardian Workflow Tutorial
Remote Verification Configuration Guide
Remote Verification Workflow Training Video
Virtual Verification Now Guardian Implementation Overview
Virtual Verification Configuration Guide
COVID-19 Physical Inspection Guide
Form I-9 COVID-19 Exception Scenarios
Frequently Asked Questions
General
Do we still need to complete Form I-9 within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay?
Yes, DHS has not relaxed this requirement. Organizations can fulfill this requirement by completing the I-9 in-person with the employee, remotely by designating an individual to act as the authorized representative of your organization, or virtually, utilizing DHS' temporary allowance which permits 'virtual verification' of the identity and employment authorization documents. Moreover, the requirement that the employee complete Section 1 of Form I-9 by their first day of work also remains in effect.
Can we complete an I-9 before an employee starts work for pay?
Yes, per USCIS guidelines, the law requires that a Form I-9 be completed when the person actually begins working for pay. However, once an official offer of employment has been accepted by the prospect/new hire, the form may be completed earlier.
Please note: The Form I-9 process may not be used to screen job applications.
Are we required to provide an employee a login and password to access Guardian to complete Section 1?
No, Guardian offers two different access methods for employees. While there is the option to provide the employee a login and password (i.e. permanent login) and administrator may change to Guardian’s ‘unique link’ access method whereby the employee receives a temporary link to access Guardian to complete the task.
Can I accept an expired driver license/state ID for an employee in which the office is closed?
Many states across the US closed their DMV branch offices to the public in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). To minimize customer inconvenience, many of these states auto-extended the validity of the driver’s licenses.
In response, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published the following Form I-9 guidance related to this issue:
Q. Many states are extending the expiration date of state IDs and/or driver's licenses. How should the extension be documented in Section 2?
A. If the employee's state ID or driver's license expired on or after March 1, 2020, and the document expiration date has been extended by their state due to COVID-19, then it is acceptable as a List B document for Form I-9. Enter the document's expiration date in Section 2 and enter "COVID-19 EXT" in the Additional Information field. Employers may also attach a copy of the state motor vehicle department’s webpage or other notice indicating that their documents have been extended.
The USCIS officially announced on May 1st that all List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes. In this case, the receipt is valid for 90 days from the date DHS terminates this temporary policy. In response to an inquiry made by LawLogix, DHS further clarified expectations related to E-Verify. Specifically, that I-9 forms completed with non-auto extended expired documents should not be submitted to E-Verify. Instead, E-Verify submission should occur once the valid document is provided later.
This means that more than one workflow may be applicable depending on whether the document was automatically extended. LawLogix analyzed these announcements and has set forth the following recommendations.
Managing this Process in Guardian When the Document is Auto-Extended
If a new hire presents an expired driver’s license for List B purposes during the COVID-19 pandemic, and you have confirmed that it was auto-extended by the state, you should enter the expired date in the List B expiration date field in Guardian. When the expiration date is on or after March 1, 2020, an additional ‘expiration exception’ checkbox will appear in List B. Checking this box allows the document verifier to proceed with Section 2 completion while also auto-inserting ‘COVID-19 Ext’ into the Additional Information field. The auto-insertion of this text is not dependent on whether or not your organization has enabled the ability to edit this field. 
In addition, as indicated in the USCIS announcement, you may wish to maintain a copy of the state DMV announcement in the employee’s OnDocs to further document this exception.
The I-9 should be marked ‘Approved’ at the time of completion and submitted to E-Verify, if applicable.
Managing this Process in Guardian When the Document is NOT Auto-Extended
For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy). 
Since DHS indicates that such I-9s should not be submitted to E-Verify, users should mark the I-9 ‘Completed’, but refrain from marking the I-9 ‘Approved’.
To help facilitate a follow up workflow for this situation, organizations are further advised to create a custom field. A custom field labeled ‘COVID List B Exception’ may be created by an administrator and used to report on employees who require follow up once DHS ends the temporary policy. 
Please note that when the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should edit Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date, re-sign Section 2, and Approve the I-9 to facilitate E-Verify submission.
If your organization does not participate in E-Verify you may wish to follow this abbreviated procedure instead:
When processing the I-9 initially, proceed with marking the I-9 ‘Approved’, and when the employer later presents the unexpired document, amend Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date.
Is an employee allowed to use an EAD Approval Notice as an acceptable document?
Yes. The USCIS affirmed that employers may continue to accept a qualifying Form I-797 approval notice in place of an actual EAD until February 1, 2021. Approval notices can be accepted for either newly hired employees or reverifications.
In order to qualify, the I-797 approval notice must have a Notice Date from December 1, 2019 through and including August 20, 2020, and indicate that the employee’s I-765 form (Application for Employment Authorization) has been approved by the USCIS. Newly hired employees must also present a List B document to demonstrate identity as required in Section 2 of the Form I-9.
If you previously accepted and recorded an I-797 EAD approval notice in Section 2 of the Form I-9 with a December 1, 2020 expiration date, you will need to update the Form I-9 to indicate the new extended work authorization date of February 1, 2021.
While the USCIS recommends adding a note to the ‘Additional Information’ field, Guardian users should instead take the following steps to ensure appropriate reverification reminders are activated:
1. Amend the List C Expiration Date with the new extended expiration date of February 1, 2021.
2. In the ‘Note of Record’ field within the amendment, enter “Employment Authorization Ext”
Once the amendment is approved, Guardian will properly annotate the I-9 with updated work authorization expiration date and set a new reverification deadline of February 1, 2021.
For more information on this temporary policy and how to fulfill an I-9 using a Form I-797, please refer to our blog.
How should we reverify the work authorization of a furloughed employee?
Assuming the employee’s visa allows for furlough without pay, you may reverify the employee’s work authorization once he or she returns to work by completing Section 3 in Guardian. It is advisable to create an audit case note as well, indicating that the employee was not working (and off payroll) during the gap between the end of their work authorization and the reverification period. Employers with questions about the impact of a furlough on foreign national employees should consult with their legal counsel.
 
E-Verify
Do we still need to create a case with E-Verify within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay?
Yes, regardless of the I-9 completion option your organization chooses, DHS expects the I-9 information to be submitted to E-Verify within 3 days of the employee starting work for pay.
What happens if an employee receives a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) response from E-Verify?[]
The employee should be notified as soon as possible once the TNC is received. If the employee chooses to take action, DHS has noted that the final response may be delayed (past the expected resolution deadline as noted on the Referral Date Confirmation) due to Social Security Administration (SSA) office closures. During this time, while the case remains referred, no adverse action may be taken against the employee. These cases will continue to reflect the following status in Guardian: Pending Further SSA/DHS Action as well as Employee Referred.
 
Can I process a Tentative Nonconfirmation with a remote employee?
Yes, Guardian supports a remote workflow in order to notify and provide the employee with access to review and electronically sign the Further Action Notice (FAN).
See this tutorial for detailed steps on how to initiate the remote workflow.
In Person Remote Agent Verification
How can we create an I-9 that utilizes the remote agent workflow to verify documents?
An I-9 that is flagged for ‘remote processing’ can be created manually within Guardian or programmatically for those organizations that have a data integration. To place the employee in this type of workflow manually, select ‘Logins Required’ (option 3) for the Login Type when creating a new employee record, or click ‘Add I-9 for Remote Processing’ on the I-9 Forms tab of an existing employee record. These actions provide unique access links for both the employee and remote agent to complete the I-9 electronically.
 
Is the remote agent able to upload the supporting documents to Guardian?
Yes, a document retention step can be added to the remote agent’s workflow. This is a configuration option that a Guardian administrator can enable.
Is LawLogix’ ‘Remote Verification Network’ still accepting appointments to verify I-9 documents?
As the coronavirus has spread and states and cities enact additional ‘shelter in place’ or ‘stay at home’ strategies, many businesses that are part of the verification network have closed temporarily.
Click here for an up-to-date list of site closures.
Am I able to convert an electronic I-9 to a ‘remote processing’ I-9?
No, the functionality to change an I-9 to a remote I-9 is not available in Guardian currently. If the employee will now see a remote agent to complete the I-9 process we recommend ‘parking’ the original I-9 and creating an I-9 for remote processing. Note that the ability to park an I-9 (i.e. maintain it within the system and prevent future editing) is an administrative option your organization must enable.
Can we customize the employee and agent instructions?
Yes, an administrator has the ability to update the instruction templates for this remote hire workflow.
Can we automate the sending of both the employee and agent instructions?
Through data feed or web service integrations your organization can automate the creation of I-9s for remote processing. The employee instructions specific to the remote hire workflow are also emailed as part of the automation. However, since the agent instructions are often intended for an unknown recipient, there is no automatic emailing of agent instructions. These instructions are available to the employee through their Guardian portal workflow. This allows the employee to provide the instructions to the agent when appropriate.
If you wish to provide both steps to the employee upfront you may customize the employee instructions and combine both the employee and agent instructions and access links in the same email, first noting the responsibilities of the employee and then of the agent.
Organizations should maintain the separate agent instructions as well because an instruction link is available within the agent’s portal that utilizes the remote agent instructions template. Additionally, maintenance of the distinct agent instructions template ensures that the access URL is generated properly for the agent.
 
Virtual Verification
What is the ‘virtual verification’ exception?
On March 20, 2020, DHS announced the temporary allowance to inspect I-9 documents ‘virtually’ for those organizations forced to a remote/’work from home’ workforce to abide by social distancing policies to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. DHS indicated that this is a temporary exception that is valid for 60 days from the announcement or within three business days once the state of national emergency has ended, whichever is sooner.
LawLogix released an administrative option that, when enabled, allows an organization to flag I-9s that have been completed via the virtual verification exception. The exception can be indicated on an I-9 by I-9 basis by toggling ‘on’ the selection.
The following information will appear at the top of the I-9 Details page when the feature is activated.
Is LawLogix making any changes to Guardian to support this temporary exception?
Yes, LawLogix has introduced the 'COVID-19 Exception' option into the system. This option can allow users to flag an I-9 that was completed using virtual verification, so it may be followed up on after normal business resumes.
More details about these changes can be found in our New and Notable section.
More features that support the utilization of this exception including extending document upload functionality to employees and managing the deferred physical inspection I-9 annotation are also in the works. Changes are forthcoming and releases will be announced within Guardian.
Must Section 2 be completed within 3 days of employment start?
Yes, even when taking advantage of the temporary ‘virtual verification’ option, the employer is obligated to complete the I-9 within 3 business days of the employee starting work for pay.
Should we be making special notations on the I-9 at the time of ‘virtual verification’?
Yes, as a best practice LawLogix recommends annotating the I-9 with the words ‘COVID-19’ at the time of Section 2 completion. This note should be added to the 'Additional Information' field. An administrator should confirm in the I-9 Preferences and Policy section that your organization has not restricted this field from editing.
Note, DHS has not definitively stated that this annotation has to be done during the initial I-9 completion, but we find it is a good idea in the off-chance that you receive a Notice of Inspection before you’ve had an opportunity to conduct the in-person verification.
What if we did not input ‘COVID-19’ in the Additional Information field at the time of Section 2 completion? 
If there already are virtual I-9s completed without this annotation, or your organization does not permit the editing of the Section 2 Additional Information box, this requirement can still be met. When you do conduct the in-person verification later-on, Guardian will enable you to enter the COVID-19 wording along with the date of physical inspection through a streamlined amendment workflow specific to this exception case. More information about that functionality will be forthcoming.
To ensure that your organization can take advantage of the upcoming amendment workflow, select the COVID-19 virtual verification flag on those I-9s using the virtual verification exception. We designed this feature primarily to help you manage and track those I-9s that will need to be updated when normal business operations resume.
We have been virtually verifying I-9s, but do not have the Guardian administrative option activated. Can we still utilize it? 
Yes, the virtual verification exception can be enabled at any time by an administrator. Users may return to an I-9 at any time to indicate the I-9 was completed virtually.
 
Are we able to flag I-9s for the ‘Virtual Verification’ exception after the I-9 is approved? 
Yes, as long as virtual verification has been enabled by an administrator, users may return to an I-9 at any time to indicate the I-9 was completed virtually.
 
What should we do if we flagged an I-9 incorrectly for virtual verification? 
The virtual verification exception flag can be removed at any time. If there is an I-9 that was incorrectly flagged for virtual verification, simply navigate to the I-9 Details tab and deselect the option.
Will I-9s remain flagged for virtual verification if we disable the administrative option? 
Yes, when an I-9 is flagged for virtual verification, that flag remains regardless of whether the virtual verification administrative setting is active. The COVID-19 exception message remains visible on the I-9 Details tab. If the I-9 was incorrectly flagged for virtual verification, a user may deselect the option to remove the flag.
If we are tracking virtual verification outside of Guardian should we be utilizing the administrative option? 
LawLogix recommends flagging virtual verification I-9s in Guardian even if tracking externally in order to take advantage of future functionality intended to streamline the physical inspection annotation.
How can we update virtual verification I-9s once physical inspection takes place?
LawLogix is planning to release functionality that streamlines the annotation of the physical inspection notation so that the I-9 properly reflects when and by whom physical inspection of documents was completed. Users will be able to take advantage of this streamlined workflow for those I-9s flagged with the virtual verification exception.
Can we annotate the physical inspection process before LawLogix releases the special virtual verification amendment workflow?
Yes, organizations may utilize in-system tools to document the physical inspection process prior to LawLogix’ release of new functionality.
We recommend the use of the ‘Audit Note’ case note to document the date physical inspection was completed as well as who completed the inspection. Additionally, to formalize the process more fully we suggest the verifier complete a document attesting to the physical inspection.
How can we utilize a remote agent to complete the physical inspection requirement?
If your organization needs to utilize a remote agent to perform this function, this process requires steps both internal and external to Guardian in order to fulfill the requirement. LawLogix has put together a best practice recommendation to address this temporary and unique situation. Please find below a list of recommended activities when having a remote agent complete the deferred physical inspection when normal business operations resume.
1. Identify, either through Guardian reports or another HR-related system, those employees who presented documents virtually and remain remote, requiring an agent/authorized representative to complete physical inspection.
2. Print or save an electronic copy of the completed Form I-9 for each of these employees.
3. Through secure means, contact each employee and provide them with their previously completed I-9, as well as a supplemental “Physical Inspection Attestation” to be signed by their chosen remote agent.
4. Direct the employee to choose a remote agent that may perform the in-person document inspection.
5. Instruct the employee to present to the agent the same original documents that were previously provided, regardless of document expiration date.
6. Advise the remote agent to compare the documents presented to the information contained in Section 2 of the employee’s Form I-9, and sign the Physical Inspection Attestation.
7. Through secure means, the employee returns the Physical Inspection Attestation to the HR team.
8. A Guardian user uploads the attestation to the employee’s I-9 OnDocs as a supporting document. 9. The Guardian user may toggle off* the COVID-19 exception from the employee profile to remove the exception alert from the dashboard.
**Note: in the workflow described above, the physical inspection will only be recorded on the supplemental attestation uploaded to the employee’s OnDocs file. If your organization wishes to also record the COVID-19 physical document information on the Form I-9 itself, a Guardian user may instead initiate the streamlined amendment process in Guardian which will record the inspection date and name of inspector in the Section 2 Additional Information field, and remove the exception alert from Guardian.
Should we wait to submit the I-9 to E-Verify until the documents have been physically inspected?
No, you should not delay E-Verify case creation. The I-9 should be completed and approved in Guardian at the time of ‘virtual verification’.
Do we need to retain the I-9 supporting documents if that is not our normal policy?
Yes, based on DHS guidance, the documents utilized to complete I-9s with this COVID-19 exception must be retained. You may utilize the employee’s ‘I-9 OnDocs’ to permanently store the documents within Guardian.
 
Can we use the new “virtual verification” option if only a portion of our workforce is working remotely due to COVID-19? For example, we have certain job roles for whom it is essential to work onsite at our facilities despite our overall policy that employees should work from home?
According to the DHS memo published on March 20, 2020, the virtual verification option is only available to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19. The memo goes on to state that if there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of the I-9 documents. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
This “case-by-case” basis language provides employers with an opportunity to interpret the memo and requirements based on their own unique circumstances and conditions. For example, an employer with on-site employees may have a good argument for using the virtual verification option if a new hire will be working remotely from the beginning. Similarly, an employer might take the position that virtual verification is appropriate since their “existing” HR employees (who would normally complete Section 2) are working remotely, due to a lockdown protocol. Other employers may choose to make a blanket argument that virtual verification is essential in order to maintain the safety and well-being of their staff.
Ultimately, employers will need to analyze and interpret this memo, ideally with the help of their legal counsel, to make this decision.
We recommend consulting our blog post on this particular issue, which weighs the potential risks in detail.
 
How do we give the employee access to Guardian to complete Section 1 electronically?
Employees may be given login credentials or a unique link (depending on your organization’s configuration) to access an employee interface for purposes of completing Section 1 of the I-9. To do so, please proceed with the following steps. Users can generate the welcome email by performing the following steps:
- Navigate to the employee profile.
- Click the Login Info tab.
- Under Contact Information, enter the employee's email address.
- Click Update Info in the upper right to save.
- Click Create Login in the lower left.
- Review and/or edit from within the subsequent email preview window and click Send Email.
- Work Authorization Reverification (Section 3)
Are we able to utilize a remote agent to document our employee’s work authorization extension?
Yes, Guardian supports remote processing (utilizing a remote agent to act as the organization’s authorized representative) to fulfill both Section 2 and Section 3 documentation requirements. To generate a remote Section 3, access the employee’s I-9 record, navigate to the I-9 Details tab, scroll down to Section 3 and select Add Remote Section 3. This process generates a new electronic Section 3 as well as an access link an agent can use to complete the process.
Can we utilize the ‘Virtual Verification’ exception to complete reverification?
Yes, DHS’ announcement extended the use of this exception to fulfill hiring and reverification requirements.
 
How should I track reverifications completed with the ‘virtual verification’ exception?
LawLogix recommends enabling a custom field in Guardian to flag reverification employee records that require physical inspection later. LawLogix suggests labeling it ‘COVID 19 Reverification Exception’, or similar and consider making it a choice list (Yes/No) to capture information consistently.
 
How should we manage the physical inspection annotation in Section 3 once normal business operations resume?
LawLogix recommends utilizing Guardian’s amendment feature to amend Section 3 to include the note."
There are several reasons why an amendment may not be able to be approved.
 
- 
There are valid issues appearing on the Amendments tab within the Issues with I-9 Amendments section. If there are any issues listed that are not exempted or deferred, the issues will be seen as still valid and prevent users from approving pending amendments. 
This can be corrected by either resolving or exempting the issue(s) present on the I-9. Users with the appropriate privilege can exempt the issue by clicking the Valid link for the entry within the Issues with Amendments section. Please note that the exemption should occur in the Amendments tab, not the Issues tab.
 
- 
The user does not have the appropriate privileges to approve amendments. Guardian administrators grant permissions on a user-by-user basis to approve amendments. If a user does not have the permission to approve amendments, then that action will not be enabled within the Amendments tab. 
- 
The pending amendment relates to Section 1. Organizations may restrict Section 1 approval to employees only. If your database has been configured in this way then the Approve Section 1 action within the Amendments tab will not be enabled. In these instances, a user may initiate the approval step by selecting the action Employee Approve Section 1 if the employee is present or Notify Employee by E-Mail if the employee is not present. 
The decision of whether or not a specific document should be accepted generally falls into legal advice that LawLogix cannot give as a software company.  
 
Fortunately though, we can refer you to some guidance which may help. In the M-274 Handbook for Employers, it advises that an employer cannot accept a receipt notice for an I-766 employment authorization document which is expired on its face.  
 
Handbook Reference:
Q. My employee has applied for a new Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766). Is the USCIS receipt notice covered by the Form I-9 receipt rule?  
 
A. In this case, the USCIS receipt notice is not an acceptable receipt for Form I-9 purposes. An employee with temporary employment authorization and holding an Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) should apply for a new card at least 90 days before the expiration of his or her current document.
 
If your employee applied for a new card at least 90 days before his or her current card expired but is nearing the end of the 90-day processing period without a decision from USCIS, instruct your employee to call the National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283 or 1-800-767-1833 (TDD) about the status of his or her application. USCIS strongly encourages that employees first call the National Customer Service Center before visiting a USCIS office to prevent possible delays.
 
If your employee prefers to check on the status of his or her application at a USCIS office, he or she may schedule an InfoPass appointment at www.infopass.uscis.gov. When your employee's current Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires, he or she must be able to present a List A document, a List C document, or an acceptable receipt under the receipt rule to satisfy Form I-9 reverification requirements. Please note, however, that there are some situations when an employer can accept an expired I-766 for qualified students who are in F-1 visa status and working pursuant to optional practical training.
 
For more information, please refer to the M-274 handbook which describes these situations.
If your organization is considering utilizing this “virtual verification” option allotted by the USCIS, there are some important considerations to keep in mind:
 
Virtual verification limitations and requirements
Please note that virtual verification option is only available to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19 
 
- 
This option is currently only valid for 60 days from the date of the DHS announcement (made 3/20/20) or within three business days once the state of national emergency is ended, whichever is sooner 
- 
Virtual verification allows completion of Section 2 or 3 NOW and in-person inspection of the documents LATER (i.e. two-part I-9 process) 
- 
Employers must obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the supporting documents, within 3 business days 
- 
Employers must also provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee 
- 
Employers must complete in-person I-9 verification within 3 business days once normal business operations resume 
- 
Employers must annotate I-9s that leveraged this exception at the time of the physical inspection (i.e. creating a special amendment that reads ‘COVID-19’) 
Implementation Checklist
If your organization has decided you meet the criteria laid out by DHS to utilize this temporary solution, LawLogix recommends completing the following activities:
 
- 
Determine and document the method of virtual verification - 
As the employer you must virtually inspect the I-9 documents to complete Section 2. While there are several options available, we encourage your organization to review the security and coordination of each option which includes: video conferencing, secure online document repository (e.g. Dropbox, Google Docs, Sharebase), FedEx/UPS, fax, and e-mail. 
 
- 
- 
Determine who will be responsible for the virtual verification and in-person verification processes 
- 
Determine how your organization will schedule the virtual verification appointments and who is responsible for scheduling and Section 2 completion 
- 
Document your written onboarding policy for this COVID-19 I-9 exception - 
LawLogix recommends making the policy available to all associates and advising that they add the policy statement as an I-9 audit note for each exception employee. 
 
- 
- 
Create an in-person verification policy that outlines the timeline and requirements document verifiers must fulfill once normal business operations resume - 
This policy should include the additional I-9 notations that accompany the physical inspection. Specifically, verifiers are advised to annotate the I-9 and write “COVID-19,” along with the date the in-person verification occurred. 
 
- 
- 
Create training materials for your document verifiers 
- 
Determine how your organization will collect the documents to meet the USCIS requirement to retain documents pursuant to this exception 
LawLogix further recommends the following Guardian-specific activities:
- 
Enable a Custom Field option to flag the employee records with I-9s that will require in-person verification later. (User must have the ‘administrator’ permission to complete this step.) - 
If implementing this policy immediately, LawLogix recommends that you label the Custom Field ‘COVID 19 Exception’ for easy identification and provide guidance to document verifiers for populating this field. 
- 
LawLogix is working on creating an easier in-app option to facilitate the flagging of these I-9s. This item is on track to be released in the coming week. 
 
- 
- 
Customize the employee ‘welcome email’ to include instructions for both the virtual verification and the in-person verification (User must have the ‘administrator’ permission to complete this step.) 
- 
Set up an interactive report in Guardian to track these I-9s 
- 
Provide instruction and documentation to verifiers to enter an audit note that details this exception per I-9 record 
COVID-19 Virtual Verification Exception Frequently Asked Questions
Must Section 2 be completed within 3 days of employment start? 
Yes, even when taking advantage of the temporary ‘virtual verification’ option, the employer is obligated to complete the I-9 within 3 business days of the employee starting work for pay.
 
Should we be making special notations on the I-9 at the time of ‘virtual verification’? 
No, based on the guidance from DHS, the I-9 should be annotated with the words ‘COVID-19’ and ‘Documents physically inspected on’ at the time of physical inspection (i.e. once normal business operations resume).
Should we wait to submit the I-9 to E-Verify until the documents have been physically inspected? 
No, you should not delay E-Verify case creation.  The I-9 should be completed and approved in Guardian at the time of ‘virtual verification’.
Do we need to retain the I-9 supporting documents if that is not our normal policy?
Yes, based on DHS guidance, the documents utilized to complete I-9s with this COVID-19 exception must be retained.  You may utilize the employee’s ‘I-9 OnDocs’ to permanently store the documents within Guardian.
Can we use the new “virtual verification” option if only a portion of our workforce is working remotely due to COVID-19? For example, we have certain job roles for whom it is essential to work onsite at our facilities despite our overall policy that employees should work from home.
 
According to the DHS memo published on March 20, 2020, the virtual verification option is only available to  employers and workplaces that are operating remotely due to COVID-19. The memo goes on to state that if there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of the I-9 documents. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.
 
This “case-by-case” basis language provides employers with an opportunity to interpret the memo and requirements based on their own unique circumstances and conditions. For example, an employer with on-site employees may have a good argument for using the virtual verification option if a new hire will be working remotely from the beginning. Similarly, an employer might take the position that virtual verification is appropriate since their “existing” HR employees (who would normally complete Section 2) are working remotely, due to a lockdown protocol.  Other employers may choose to make a blanket argument that virtual verification is essential in order to maintain the safety and well-being of their staff. 
 
Ultimately, employers will need to analyze and interpret this memo, ideally with the help of their legal counsel, to make this decision.
COVID-19 Product Enhancements
LawLogix is working to incorporate additional tools within Guardian to help organizations that utilize this exemption option.  These tools and features will be rolled out in phases over the coming weeks and include:
 
- 
Add ability to designate an I-9 with the ‘COVID-19 Exception’ 
- 
Update reporting to provide visibility of exception I-9s 
- 
Extend document capture to allow employee capture 
- 
Streamlined COVID-19 I-9 annotation workflow 
In some instances a system user or employee may not receive email generated from Guardian. This is often the result of rules defined on the recipient's email server.
If an email is missing, users should first check their Spam/Junk folders to ensure that the Guardian messages are not being captured by those filters.
Other measures can be taken in order to ensure that Guardian emails can be received appropriately.
 
“Do Not Reply” Method
Emails sent from the Guardian system can be modified to show donotreply@perfectcompliance.com as the sender. This can often resolve the issues that cause most mail servers to decline messages from a third-party sender such as Guardian.
 
To enable this feature, please have a Guardian administrator within your organization proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration. 
- 
Click Preferences in the left hand menu. 
- 
Click the E-Mail tab. 
- 
Click the box next to Use “Do Not Reply” E-Mail Method. 
- 
Click the box next to Do not use sender info. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right. 
“Whitelisting” Method
Your organization may also need to make an exception on your mail server to allow emails sent from the LawLogix mail relay.
 
Please provide the following LawLogix mail relay information to your IT resource to add to your organization's SPF record. This will create an exception for incoming Guardian messages:
LawLogix mail relay:
Host Names:
Primary: iad-smtp.lawlogix.com
Disaster Recovery: bkl-smtp.lawlogix.com
When an I-9 record is deleted, a document is created indicating when the I-9 was created, the I-9 number, and the HR User who deleted the I-9 record. To confirm that an I-9 record was deleted, HR Users can run an interactive report.
 
- 
	Within the Guardian system, click Reports in the left hand navigation. 
- 
	Within Report Types, click Interactive. 
- 
	Click New in the Interactive Reports Menu. 
- 
	Name your report as desired. 
- 
	Select Documents as the Base Table. - 
		All filters should be set to All, except the filter for “Documents” which should be updated to Documents Not Attached to I-9s. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Update Settings. 
- 
	Click the Columns tab. 
- 
	Select the Documents table. 
- 
	Drag (or double click) any fields you would like to appear as columns within the report. Include the following fields: - 
		Doc Date Captured – this will assist you in narrowing down the range in which the I-9 was deleted. 
- 
		Doc Subject/Reference – the subject of any deleted I9 records will read as “I-9 Form Deleted” 
- 
		Doc Description – this contains the information as to the HR User who deleted the I-9. 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click the Update Settings button to save the selected fields. 
- 
	Click the Settings tab. There should be a date range section now. 
- 
	Within Date Range section, select Doc Date Captured. - 
		Adjust the date range to include the month in which the billing discrepancy occurred to the present date (i.e. if there is a discrepancy on the February Invoice you would have a start date of February 1 and the end date as the present date). 
 
- 
		
- 
	Click Update Settings. 
- 
	Click Run Report Now. 
Once the report has run, download the report as an Excel file, and search for the word “deleted.” This will allow you to quickly find the document containing the details of the deleted I-9 record.
If a user is unable to create an Archival I-9 record, it could be due to their set privilege settings or the organization's configuration. Only users with the privilege to add Archival I-9 record types will see that I-9 type as an available option on the I-9 Type field dropdown when creating a new record. Please consult your system administrator to update your I-9 privileges.
If a user is attempting to add an Archival I-9 for an employee and receives a message indicating that the “employee's start date must be before xx date,” then a setting must be adjusted by a system administrator. By default, the Archival I-9 type is intended to be used to capture historical I-9s (those I-9s completed on paper prior to utilizing Guardian). Consequently, if the employee's hire date is after your company's "go live" date, the system will prevent creation of the Archival I-9. To permit the creation of Archival I-9s for new/recent hires a setting:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Preferences in the left hand navigation. 
- 
The General tab should load. Click the I-9 Preferences dropdown towards the bottom. 
- 
Select Allow Current Archival Dates. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right. 
When this option is enabled, Guardian will permit the use of the Archival Paper I-9 type regardless of the employee's hire date.
OnDocs serves as a type of repository for employee documents including any supporting pieces to their I-9 forms for processing. Items can be easily uploaded to this area by proceeding with the following steps:
- 
From your Guardian dashboard, click on Employees in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Search for the employee that needs an item uploaded. 
- 
Click the employee name. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab in the top navigation. 
- 
Click Upload Document in the upper right. 
- 
In the modal that appears, click the dropdown menu to select the type of document being uploaded. 
- 
Click Next. 
- 
Click Select File. 
- 
Find the file loaded on your computer and click OK. 
- 
Click the Upload button. - 
If document fails or successfully uploads, a notification will appear in this window. 
 
- 
- 
Click Close. 
The file should appear in the OnDocs tab for this employee. The item can be deleted by clicking to highlight it and clicking Delete in the upper right.
In the instance of an employee not showing up for work on their hire date, Guardian users generally set the employee status as Terminated within the system. The employee I-9 in this scenario however, is often left incomplete. This leads to a lot of questions for the user: Should the I-9 be parked or should the employee record be deleted entirely? Is there a different action needed if the employee has a possibility of being rehired?
LawLogix has observed that most employers delete the incomplete I-9 record, as there is technically no legal requirement to retain it if the individual never actually performed any work for pay.
- 
The main item of consideration is whether or not the employee was on the payroll. 
Deleting the record will also avoid any potential confusion if the incomplete I-9 is ever presented to ICE during an audit. As a precautionary measure, employers may add case notes to the employee record under the OnDocs tab, where further documentation on the situation may be stored. 
 
Please note, this is a recommendation only and not a rule. Users are advised to consult with their organization's counsel to decide the best practice to follow.
Use of Guardian as a web services designated agent allows organizations to run E-Verify reports within the system to review data submitted to E-Verify and the results of those submissions.
 
At times an agency may request that the organization provide an E-Verify Audit report. This is a report type available through the E-Verify interface for those organizations who access E-Verify directly in lieu of a designated agent. The following is a set of instructions to create an equivalent audit report within Guardian:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click the Reports button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Interactive in the upper left. 
- 
Click New in the Reports: Interactive section in the lower left. 
- 
Next to Base Table, select E-Verify from the dropdown. 
- 
Click the Columns tab. 
- 
If your organization utilizes multiple business units select the Employee table and add the Business Unit field as a report column. 
- 
Select i9 in the leftmost column and double click S2 Company Name to add it. 
- 
Select E-Verify in the leftmost column and double click the following fields in the second column: - 
EV Date Initially Submitted 
- 
EV Submitted by 
- 
EV Case No 
- 
EV Last Name Submitted 
- 
EV First Name Submitted 
- 
EV SS No Submitted 
- 
EV I-94 No Submitted 
- 
EV A No Submitted 
- 
EV Card No Submitted 
- 
EV Date Hired Submitted 
- 
EV Overdue Reason 
- 
EV Overdue Reason Other 
- 
EV Initial Eligibility 
- 
EV DHS Response 
- 
EV Last Return Msg 
- 
EV Case Resolved 
- 
EV Final Option 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left. 
- 
Click the Settings tab. 
- 
Click Run Report Now. 
The results may be exported to Excel for further manipulation, or saved locally if running the report for a specific location. Then the employee location may be added as a report column as well. Otherwise, utilize the Filter Options on the report Settings tab to narrow down the report results (e.g. location, occupation class, EV date hired submitted).
Yes, Guardian provides a method for users to adjust the start date in Section 2 that is independent of Section 2 completion. This functionality is helpful when the employee has completed Section 1 in advance and the employee's start date changes. This change will also ensure that all dashboard items will reflect the most up-to-date priority needs according to the new start date.
 
To adjust the hire date so that the Dashboard is updated (without processing the I-9), please proceed with the following steps:
- 
In the Top Pending I-9s dashboard area, click the Date I-9 Created link for the desired record. 
- 
Click I-9 Details. 
- 
Click Edit Date. 
- 
Enter the new start date in the Date Hired field. 
- 
Click Update Info. 
The above actions update both the start date in Section 2 of the I-9, as well as the hire date in the Employment History. Please note, if the hire date has already been adjusted in the Employment History section, these actions cannot be taken.
Should an organization open or acquire a new location, this can be configured within the Guardian system to match. To add a new location, a Guardian administrator must proceed with the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click the Administration button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click the Locations tab. 
- 
Click Add in the upper right. 
- 
Enter in the new Location Name and Number. - 
This is the name and number that will reflect within the Guardian system. 
 
- 
- 
Complete all fields that appear on screen. 
- Click Update Info in the upper right to save all changes.
Employees who are Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries may receive an auto extension of their work authorization status by the federal government, as published in the Federal Register.
 
When the employee's work authorization as noted on their employment authorization document (EAD) card expires before the document can be re-issued, the auto extension as published in the Federal Register provides authorization for the employee to continue to work.
 
In such instances the Special Amendment Option in Guardian can be used to document the auto extension before the new card is issued.
- 
Within the Guardian system, navigate to the primary I-9 record for the employee desired. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click TPS Auto Extension. 
- 
Enter the EAD auto-extension date as noted in the Federal Register in the New Expiration Date field. 
- 
Click Update Info. This will save the pending amendment. 
The special amendment will adjust the Section 1 “work until” expiration date, as well as the Section 2 document expiration date.
 
The user and employee should approve the corresponding pending amendments to finalize the changes. Upon approval of the changes, the new reverification date will become the primary date being used.  
 
Guardian provides a Special Amendment Option to document the auto extension as it relates to the employee's work authorization status, as well as amending the work expiration dates present on Section 1 and 2.
 
As a result, any I-9 for the employee that has been subsequently reverified (Section 3 completed) following initial employment and prior to the auto extension will be ineligible for the special amendment, as it adjusts both the work authorization expiration date documented in Section 1 as well as Section 2 of the current I-9 record (that also contains a later reverification and work authorization expiration date).  
 
If the special amendment tool is not active 
There may be instances when the TPS auto extension button is disabled in the Special Amendments section of the Amendments tab. In this case, it is recommended that the user Amend the most recent Section 3 Expiration date, then enter the EAD auto-extension date as noted in the Federal Register.  
 
Once the employee has the new card, an HR user can complete a new Section 3 for reverification.
Managing the employment status of individuals is crucial to maintaining an accurate employee database within the Guardian system. In order to indicate that an employee has been terminated, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
Access the employee record within Guardian. 
- 
Click the Job Details tab. 
- 
Click Terminate Employee. 
- 
Enter the appropriate date for Date Terminated. 
- 
Click Update Info. 
Once a termination date is entered, the system will automatically calculate the purge date of the employee record based on the 3-year/1-year rule. Terminated employees will appear in the system as either Terminated-Retain or Terminated-Purgeable. Purgeable records can be permanently removed from the system by an administrator.
Please find attached a PDF run through of automated emails sent to users from the Guardian system (G1). 
 
| Communication | Example E-Mail/Task Event | Trigger | Frequency | Customizable | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-Verify prompted amended I-9 | Subject: Amended I-9 needs employee's review and approval. Please note that the work authorization information submitted to E-Verify for [employee name] was modified to correct a clerical error on the I-9. This has caused a proposed amendment has been added to Section 1 to make the information on the Form I-9 consistent with this modification. Please have the employee review this amendment and enter his or her electronic signature to approve the amendment and confirm that the modified information is true and accurate. If permitted, the responsible company official may also electronically sign to approve the amendment and confirm that the modified information is true and accurate. | I-9 Information changes during E-Verify submission and the organization has the following setting enabled on the E-Verify tab in Administration: Amend existing I-9 after data changes made during E-Verify process. | Once | No | 
| E-Verify prompted new updated I-9 | Subject: Updated I-9 was created As part of the E-Verify submission process, the work authorization information for [employee name] has been updated to correct a previous clerical error on the employee's I-9. In accordance with federal law, a second, corrected Form I-9 #999999 has been automatically created, and has replaced the original I-9 as the primary I-9. If the original paper I-9 form signed by the employee was the source of the original, incorrect information, please manually update the paper form with the corrected data shown on the newly created paper I-9 in the Guardian system. If the corrected error was due to a transcription error from the original paper form, no further action is required. | I-9 Information changes during E-Verify submission and the organization does not have the following setting enabled on the E-Verify tab in Administration: Amend existing I-9 after data changes made during E-Verify process. | Once | No | 
| H-1B Petition | Subject: H-1B Petition Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 05/31/2012 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: H-1B Petition Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's I-129 Change of Employer Petition is pending with USCIS pursuant to the rules governing H-1B portability. Please confirm whether this petition has been approved, and if so, promptly re-verify employee based on his/her new H-1B work authorization. | During Section 2 completion of Form I-9 the user activates the “Special Rule” for H-1B Portability (employee begins work with I-94 record issued during his or her previous employment and the current I-129 application is in process). | Multiple; First email is triggered based on value entered in Administration H-1B Portability Days field; subsequent reminders are dependent on subsequent reminder values entered in Administration. | No | 
| H-1B Extension | Subject: Extension Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2013 Date Entered: 05/31/2012 Expiry Date: 09/29/2013 Subject: Extention Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's temporary work authorization recorded on I9 #999999 is about to expire. Please contact employee to check whether their temporary work authorization has been extended and then re-verify. | User enters Extension special amendment to indicate work authorization for NIV worker has been extended 240 days based on I-129 petition filed. | Multiple emails follow reverification and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module | No | 
| I-9 Receipt | Subject: Receipt Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 05/31/2011 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: Receipt Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee has presented you with an application receipt for a lost, stolen or misplaced employment authorization document in lieu of the original document. Please followup with the employee to make sure he or she receives their original replacement work authorization document within 90 days of their hire date. | Section 2 of form I-9 is completed and a receipt for a lost, stolen or replacement document is indicated for one or more documents. | Multiple; E-mails follow receipt and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module. | No | 
| Name Change Notification | Subject: Notification of Name Change The HR system has recorded a name change for [employee name] Please follow your company's protocol for updating your I-9 records. | Employee Update data feed or web services call sent from the organization contains a change to the employee’s last name field value. | Once | No | 
| Remote Agent document selection | Subject: Notification of Remote Agent Document Selection The Remote Agent has chosen to have the employee be responsible for the required documents. | Remote Hire Preferences setting in the Administration is enabled for setting “Notify of document selection on step 3.” and I-9 is processed by a remote agent. Email is sent after the remote agent selects the disposition of the documents within the remote agent interface. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee SSA TNC Notice Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the SSA TNC Notice. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Notice. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee SSA TNC Referral Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the SSA Referral Letter processing. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Referral letter. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee DHS TNC Notice Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the DHS TNC Notice. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Notice. | Once | No | 
| Remote Employee DHS TNC Referral Processing | Subject: Employee: [employee name] Employee: [employee name] Please login to Guardian to check the E-Verify status for [employee name]. This employee has completed the DHS Referral Letter processing. | Remote employee accesses the employee interface and reviews and electronically signs the Tentative Nonconfirmation Referral letter. | Once | No | 
| Reverification | Subject: Reverification Reminder Description: Reminder Date: 08/28/2012 Date Entered: 04/28/2011 Expiry Date: 08/29/2012 Subject: Reverification Reminder Employee: [employee name] The employee's temporary work authorization recorded on I9 #999999 is about to expire. Please contact employee to check whether their temporary work authorization has been extended and then re-verify. | Form I-9 indicates the employee has temporary work authorization. | Multiple; E-mails follow receipt and subsequent reminder schedule as configured in the Administration module. | No | 
| User Welcome email Login | Subject: Your account has been created. Dear [First Name], Your account for the I-9 system has been created as follows: Login URL: www.perfectcompliance.com Login Name: Please note that both the login and password are case sensitive! Thank You! | Administrator clicks “Reset Password” within the user’s profile. | As needed. | No | 
| User Welcome email Password | Subject: Access information enclosed Here is the information you requested: | Administrator clicks “Reset Password” within the user’s profile. | As needed. | No | 
When an employee is marked as terminated within the Guardian, the system automatically calculates the I-9 retention period. The retention window is either three years after the individual was hired or one year after they were terminated, whichever is later.
 
The records become eligible for purging from the system after the required retention period. This can be accomplished through the Administration module in Guardian.
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal. 
- 
Click the Administration button in the left hand navigation pane. 
- 
Once loaded into the Administration screen, click the Purge Data button in the left hand series of options. 
- 
A new screen for purging data will display all the employees and I-9 records that are eligible to be purged. Click to select which employees you wish to delete from the system. - 
100 records will be displayed per page. Only one page of entries can be purged at a time. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Purge I-9 forms only button if you wish to retain the employee record, or click the Purge Employees & I-9 Forms to delete both items. - 
This process is irreversible and will result in complete deletion of data. 
 
- 
Note: Purges are queued and processing is dependent on the number of purges in the queue.
Does the RVN partner restrict appointment dates presented to the employee?
No, the scheduler shows all available appointments. As a result, appointment dates are not related to the
employee's hire date.
Can an employee reschedule an appointment in person?
No, all appointment scheduling must be completed online. The employee may utilize the appointment link provided in the confirmation email, or return to the Guardian employee portal to create a new verification appointment.
Can an employee cancel an appointment?
Yes, an employee can cancel a confirmed appointment as long as the appointment is more than 24 hours away.
Can an employee schedule an appointment for the same day?
Yes, in general employees are encouraged to schedule in advance. However, appointments may be scheduled the same day. Note that appointments scheduled the same day cannot be cancelled and as a result, would incur a full appointment fee if not attended.
When are the processing centers open?
In general, processing centers offer appointments during normal business hours of M-F, 8am-5pm. When making an appointment the employee will see time slots available for scheduling, broken down in 30 minute increments (e.g. 8:30am, 9:00am, and so forth).
Why does the employee have to provide a phone number when scheduling an appointment?
Phone information is collected in the event of an emergency or an unplanned processing center closure. Should this happen, contact is attempted (utilizing the phone number). Examples of unplanned events include weather emergencies, power outage, internet outage.
How can an employee cancel or reschedule an appointment?
The employee can return to the confirmation email and access the included link to cancel or reschedule. Similarly, the employee can return to the Guardian employee instructions email and re-access the employee portal to review the scheduled appointment and cancel or reschedule.
If the employee requires a new, additional, appointment because they were a No Show or unable to complete the I-9 process due to insufficient documentation, he/she must return to Guardian's employee portal to initiate a new appointment.
Can the employee use a non-network agent?
Yes, if the employee is unable to locate a partner verifier they can choose to "Find My Own" during the Guardian workflow. This allows the employee access to the traditional remote agent instructions and access URL.
Can the organization report on all appointments for the employee?
Yes, all unique chargeable appointments are reportable. An appointment that has been rescheduled within the allowable time frame of the original appointment is considered one appointment (reporting will show details related to the most recent scheduling information).
Will centers within the PAN network have PAN's name noted on the outside of the building?
No, partner centers consist of educational institutions, government workforce agencies, training and learning centers, private businesses, and staffing and recruiting firms, each noted by the location name presented to the employee during the scheduling process.
What email communications does the employee receive from PAN?
The appointment scheduling service triggers a confirmation email after an appointment has been scheduled. Appointment reminder emails are sent 7 and 3 days ahead of the scheduled appointment (appointment date -7, and appointment date -3). For instance, if an appointment was made for May 25th then reminder emails would be sent May 18th and May 22nd.
Does the employee need to provide the verifier agent instructions or a Guardian link?
No, the verifier utilizes the established integration to launch Section 2 for the employee (i.e. PAN provides Guardian information related to the verifier and Guardian returns a link to Section 2 which PAN presents to the agent).
The verifier's name and title pre-populate the Section 2 certification area based on the information supplied by the RVN partner. Following Section 2 completion, the verifier is directed to the document retention step when enabled by the organization.
Can the employee complete Section 1 with the verifier?
No, the RVN is not equipped to handle the employee portion of the process. Employees for which the I-9 is not in a state for section 2 completion will be sent home and requested to reschedule an additional appointment.
Can the verifier copy and mail I-9 supporting documents to the organization?
No, RVN partners have agreed to fulfill the I-9 document retention requirement through electronic scanning means only.
Is the hiring manager responsible for scheduling the verification appointment?
No, the employee is responsible for scheduling the verification appointment. The employee portal is equipped with the scheduling workflow for organizations enabled with the RVN service (and I-9 marked as "remote").
What does it mean when the RVN partner attempts to obtain the Section 2 URL for the proctor and receives the following error message back from Guardian: redirect_url was provided, but the remote agent is not associated with a login?
This indicates that an active login record does not exist for the agent. This may happen if the organization removed the agent login merge tag from the remote agent instructions template (and thus no login was generated when the instructions were created), or the agent instructions have been deleted for the I-9 record (and so, too, deleting the agent login record).
To correct, either update the agent instructions to include the login link merge variable, or instruct the organization to re-generate the agent instructions for the individual I-9 record.
Have clients using the RVN service had trouble scheduling due to availability?
No, we have not received reports about this scenario. However, we encourage employers to use center availability reports as general guides only since availability fluctuates.
Are technical resources required by the client in order to activate the service?
No, integration with RVN partners is managed by LawLogix. However, there will be a nominal time investment by I-9 managers charged with overseeing remote hires for training on the service and review of the current workflow.
Does LawLogix have a list of available PAN centers?
LawLogix has access to general information related to the number of centers available by zip code. Please note, center availability is dynamic and the list may not reflect these changes.
With the RVN process how are receipts handled?
At present, our RVN partners do not offer "receipt updating" verification at their centers, so no further appointments (or charges) will be applicable. If an employee presents an acceptable receipt during the initial RVN appointment, you can assist the employee in finding another verifier (outside of the network) to review the replacement document and update section 2.
As previously discussed, you can technically choose any individual to serve as your authorized representative (employee’s colleague, friend, bank representative, etc.) based on your company’s own policy. Once you have identified the individual, you can enable the remote processing of receipts for the particular I-9 and send an email to the verifier which includes a link to access the I-9 record in Guardian.
With the RVN process how are reverifications handled?
Most reverifications can be handled by your central I-9 team (without a remote verifier) based on their review of the original DHS document which grants the employee continuing work authorization. For example, if you are filing an extension of your employee’s nonimmigrant status (H-1B, L-1, TN, etc.), you will typically receive the original I-797 approval notice and attached I-94 (neither of which have a photo or require you to meet in-person with the employee). For that reason, most of our clients will complete section 3 reverifications without the employee (or agent’s) involvement while still satisfying I-9 requirements.
 
In other reverification scenarios (particularly involving documents with photos), you may need to arrange for an in-person review of the replacement document (e.g., a new EAD, recently obtained green card, etc.). In these situations, you can create a one-time limited user profile (using the Location Manager interface) for an authorized representative so that he or she may login to Guardian and complete the section 3 reverification after reviewing the original document. Once the reverification is complete, you can then disable the account.
I-9s completed and approved are submitted to E-Verify, even if the start date is in the future. The hire date is the date the employee begins work for pay and the information submitted to E-Verify is taken from Section 2 of the I-9.
 
If the employee's start date changes after the information has been submitted to E-Verify, no additional action is required in E-Verify. However, the I-9 form should be amended to indicate the correct hire date. A user with the appropriate privileges may add an amendment to the employee record through the following actions:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that needs the amendment. 
- 
Click the created date of the employee I-9 with the incorrect start date. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Add in the upper right. 
- 
Click Section 2 in the left hand area of the window that pops up. 
- 
Scroll down in the list in the right hand area and click Employment Start Date. 
- 
Click Edit Field in the upper left. 
- 
In the New Value area, insert the new start date. - 
A note may be added within the Note of Record field, but it is not required. This note will appear at the bottom of the I-9 PDF. 
 
- 
- 
Click Create Amendment. 
Once the amendment is created, it must be approved in order to be committed to the employee record. To approve an amendment, please proceed with the following steps.
- 
Navigate to the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Actions in the upper right. 
- 
Select Approve Non Section 1 Amendments from the dropdown menu. 
- 
A warning box will appear notifying about the changes. Enter in Guardian password and click Submit. 
Now the employee record will reflect the appropriate date of hire as a called out amendment.
Guardian reports allow organizations to track I-9 compliance, specifically for missing or late I-9s, by extracting data from the system. This timeliness report is not recommended for archival I-9 records. The following are steps to build a similar report:
- 
Add a new Interactive report template and select the Dashboard base table. - 
Do NOT make a selection from the Dashboard filter option. This will allow the system to include data from the I-9 and Employee tables, including all employees regardless of the I-9 action item. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Columns tab. 
- 
There are several tables where values must be dragged into the Build Fields in Report column. 
- 
Include the following columns from the associated tables: - 
Employee - 
Responsible HR/Group 
- 
Occupation Class 
- 
Employee Name 
- 
Employee ID 
 
- 
- 
I-9 - 
I-9 Number 
- 
Date Hired 
- 
S1 Date 
- 
Employee Hired 
- 
I-9 Ontime Margin* 
- 
I-9 Days to File* 
 
- 
 
- 
- 
Click Update Settings in the lower left to save. 
- 
Once the columns are selected and report has been previewed, return to the Settings tab of your report and adjust filters as desired. - 
e.g., Date Hired can be used as the Date Range filter. 
 
- 
- 
Run your report. 
- 
Once the report is returned download/open the report in Excel. 
Column J is added to determine the "timeliness" of the I-9 completion based on a comparison of columns E, H, and I (I-9 Ontime Margin and I-9 Days to File).** With these values it can be determined if an I-9 exists and whether it was completed on time.
 
If your report contains the same report columns you can simply copy and paste the formula from cell J2 to your own spreadsheet column J. Otherwise, you can update the formula to reference the correct columns. The high level overview comes in the Excel workbook when the data from the sheet "DashI9Compliance (1)" is evaluated using a pivot table (see "I-9 Status Pivot Table" sheet).
 
Next steps can include grouping by status type (i.e. entire organization), or adding additional layers such as location or occupation class above the status to see the breakdown across the organization. **The pivot table sheet and the formula used to create the data in Column J on the "DashI9Compliance (1)" sheet were provided as a courtesy and example only.
 
Excel is not a LawLogix-supported feature so Customer Support will not be able to address questions related to the spreadsheet. *Brief overview of I-9 Ontime Margin and I-9 Days to File: Ontime margin is calculated based on the I-9 due date (3 day rule). This due date is established based on the Sec 2 hire date when the I-9 is created.
 
The value is populated when the I-9 is marked completed. A value greater than 0 indicates that the I-9 was completed after the due date. A negative or zero value indicates the I-9 was completed prior to the due date. I-9 Days to File is a simple calculation of the report generation date and the I-9 due date. A negative number indicates the due date was in the past. The I-9 Days to File value does NOT take into account the actual I-9 or E-Verify Status.
Employees have 90 days to present an actual document after they provide receipt for replacement of a lost, stolen or damaged original document. At the time of hire, a Section 2 should be completed utilizing the provided receipt.
 
The Guardian system provides a receipt checkbox beneath each Section 2 list, so that users may designate a document as a "receipt" document (and proceed with Section 2 completion). When this occurs, the system creates a reminder task and the employee appears in the Needing Further Action section of the Dashboard.
 
The I-9 information does not submit to E-Verify until the actual document(s) are presented, as there is no designation in E-Verify to denote receipt versus actual document/document number. When the employee returns with the actual document and the I-9 is updated to reflect the new information, the employee will submit to E-Verify upon approval of the I-9.
 
To update an I-9 receipt, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that requires the update. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created hyperlink of the I-9 record desired. 
- 
Click Update I-9 Receipt. 
This action will create a new I-9 form and allow the user to enter in the Section 2 documents. Once the documents have been updated, the Guardian user must electronically sign the Section 2, mark the I-9 as complete, and approve it. Once approved, this I-9 form will be submitted to E-Verify.
Archival I-9 records cannot be submitted to E-Verify. The only exception to this rule is in the case of an organization being subject to the FAR E-Verify clause and submitting existing employees.
If this is a case of a rehire and was completed on paper, the user must enter it as a New Hire Paper I-9 record. That record will be submitted to E-Verify automatically upon approval, as long as the employment history reflects the rehire situation.
Guardian reverifications are based on employee work authorization. As a result, the system automatically generates reverification tasks (which appear on the dashboard) and reverification reminders (viewable in the employee file and sent to the responsible user(s) at the designated time prior to the document expiration).
 
Reverifications are triggered based on the data in the I-9 record. Tasks and reminders are automatically generated based on the document expiration date entered for a List A or List C document in Section 2 when the employee attests to being an alien authorized to work until a certain date.
 
In addition, reverification tasks and reminders are triggered if the employee attests to being a legal permanent resident, and provides an unexpired foreign passport with an I-551 stamp (documented in List A of Section 2). Reminder notification lead days can be established in the administration section of Guardian and are customizable based on the organization's needs and protocol.
The Guardian system has a few criteria users must meet in order to have an optimal login and password for access.
 
Login Name
- 
6 characters minimum. 
- 
20 characters maximum. 
- 
Cannot be the first initial and last name. 
- 
Cannot be your last initial and first name. 
- 
Cannot be your last name and first initial. 
Password
- 
At least 8 characters in length. 
- 
At least 1 uppercase letter. 
- 
At least 1 lowercase letter. 
- 
At least 1 number. 
- 
At least 1 special character from these valid characters: !#$%^&*()_+=-`~{}][|?/.>, 
Certain employees who are working pursuant to their F-1 Student Status and are not required to apply for an EAD work authorization card, as well as certain J-1 Exchange Visitors who are pursuing an internship or training program, will not have an expiration date written on their I-94 card. Instead, they will have a D/S for Duration of status annotated on the I-94.
 
In this case, employees must present an additional document besides their foreign passport and I-94 record to document the expiration of their temporary work status. This additional document is typically issued by the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), and contains a number beginning with the letter "N." On this document there should be a program expiration date, which should be used for the alien authorized to work date in Section 1 and the re-verification date in Section 2.
 
In order to complete an I-9 in this situation, the following steps must be taken.
- 
In the I-9 form, the employee must select An Alien Authorized to Work Until option. 
- 
Employee enters the expiration date from the I-20/DS-2019. 
- 
Employee enters the I-94 admission number or corresponding foreign passport information, when applicable. 
- 
In Section 2, the user selects Foreign Passport, I-94/I-94A, and DS-2019 option. - 
This action will insert I-94/I-94A in the second Document Title and DS-2019 in the third Document Title. 
 
- 
- 
User selects D/S box next to Expiration Date field within I-94/I-94A area. 
- 
User completes remaining fields for passport document number, expiration date, selecting I-20 or DS-2019 as the third document title, and entering the corresponding document number and expiration date. 
The term “park” or “parked” within the Guardian system refers to an I-9 that has been locked. This functionality does not use a traditional approval process and is generally used to lock an incomplete I-9.  
 
Any New Hire paper or electronic I-9 that has not been marked approved can be parked (e.g. only Section 1 complete, Section 1 and 2 complete, I-9 marked "Completed"). Users may park I-9s if:
- 
The organization has enabled the feature and, 
- 
The user profile has been provided the privilege to park. This is a privilege that must be granted by the Guardian administrator of an organization. 
An I-9 may be parked by the following steps:
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, navigate to the employee record. 
- 
Click I-9 Details. 
- 
Click Park This I-9. - 
If button is unavailable, click View and choose All Panels to confirm that it is not hidden. 
 
- 
- 
A pop-up box will appear to confirm the action. Click Yes to proceed. 
Please note: users with incomplete archival Paper I-9s should utilize the complete and approve process to "complete despite issues" incomplete historical I-9 records.
 
Once an I-9 is parked, it cannot be “un-parked” or unlocked for further editing.
The following document represents a sample template that organizations may utilize when asking a remote agent to perform a physical inspection requirement remotely for those I-9s that were initially completed via the ‘virtual verification’ exception. Organizations are encouraged to review this sample template with their legal counsel and adjust to best suit the organization’s HR policies and best practices.
| FORM I-9 PHYSICAL INSPECTION ATTESTATION FOR AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE DHS COVID-19 TEMPORARY POLICY The following attestation is being made in connection with the Department of Homeland Security’s temporary policy for completing the Form I-9 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Per the DHS guidance, our organization reviewed the identity and employment authorization document(s) of this employee remotely, as recorded on the attached Form I-9. We are now asking the individual indicated below to act as our authorized representative to perform the required in-person physical inspection of the documents previously presented and sign this attestation. Employee Name: [HR: Enter full name as indicated at the top of Page 2 of the Form I-9] ______________________________________________________________________________ ATTESTATION 
 I attest, under penalty of perjury, that (1) I have examined the document(s) presented by the above-named employee, (2) the document(s) appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee named, (3) the documents are the same as those recorded on the attached Form I-9, and (4) to the best of my knowledge the employee is authorized to work in the United States. 
 ________________________________ Signature of Authorized Representative 
 ________________________________ Print Name of Authorized Representative 
 ________________________________ Date of Physical Inspection | 
Employees have 90 days to present an actual document after they provide receipt for replacement of a lost, stolen or damaged original document. At the time of hire, a Section 2 should be completed utilizing the provided receipt.
 
The Guardian system provides a receipt checkbox beneath each Section 2 list, so that users may designate a document as a "receipt" document (and proceed with Section 2 completion). When this occurs, the system creates a reminder task and the employee appears in the Needing Further Action section of the Dashboard.
 
The I-9 information does not submit to E-Verify until the actual document(s) are presented, as there is no designation in E-Verify to denote receipt versus actual document/document number. When the employee returns with the actual document and the I-9 is updated to reflect the new information, the employee will submit to E-Verify upon approval of the I-9.
 
To update an I-9 receipt, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee record that requires the update. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created hyperlink of the I-9 record desired. 
- 
Click Update I-9 Receipt. 
This action will create a new I-9 form and allow the user to enter in the Section 2 documents. Once the documents have been updated, the Guardian user must electronically sign the Section 2, mark the I-9 as complete, and approve it. Once approved, this I-9 form will be submitted to E-Verify.
The Guardian Interactive report type allows users to customize report creation and column display in the report results. As a result, the number of columns and rows for a given report may be rather large.
 
If the report contains a high amount of cells of data (Guardian will flag and state "9,999" cells), the exported file will appear as a zipped text (or .txt) file. In order to open the zipped file in Excel, do the following:
- 
In Guardian, click the Download Report link that displays after the report has been run and save the file to an appropriate location. 
- 
Open the zip file and click the .txt document. It will likely open in Notepad or a similar text editor on your computer. 
- 
Save the document as a .txt file and close the window. 
- 
Open Microsoft Excel and File, then Open, and Browse. 
- 
In the pop-up window that appears, click the drop-down that reads All Excel Files and change it to All Files. 
- 
Find your .txt file in this window and click Open. 
- 
A Text Import Wizard module will appear. Select Delimited as the import setting and click the Next button. 
- 
In the next screen, select Tab for Delimiters and click the Finish button. 
- 
Manipulate the report as needed and when finished, save the document as an Excel sheet. 
The following is the method best recommended by our compliance expert to document extensions that occur after a Section 3 re-verification has been previously processed.
- 
Initiate a regular amendment to the latest Section 3 re-verification. - 
This will manually indicate the new extended work authorization expiration date (either 240 or 180 days, as applicable). 
- 
Example: An employee Section 3 expiration is currently 5/31/2018 can be amended to 01/26/2019, which is 240 days in the future. 
- 
Use calendar days, not business days, for calculating the approximate expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
When amending the Section 3 document expiration field, an additional Note of Record may be included to speak to the basis of the extension. - 
Example: For an H-1B situation, a note could be “240-day Ext. Petition Filed on [date]”. 
- 
This note will appear on the I-9 PDF as a footnote at the bottom of the page. 
 
- 
- 
After the amendment is approved, the Guardian dashboard and related notifications will follow the updated expiration date. 
- 
Add the additional Section 3s once the new document (i.e. H-1B, etc.) is received. 
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous government agencies and their offices have sustained prolonged closures, impacting a variety of services including the processing of renewal applications for Social Security cards, Driver’s Licenses, and other documents. 
 
Under the Form I-9 rules, an employee may present a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document while completing their I-9 as long as they present a replacement document within 90 days of their start date. The Guardian system will automatically create a reminder for users to follow up when the 90-day grace period is finished. However, your employee may be unable to present a replacement document within the 90 day period because the government agency has not yet completed their renewal. 
 
In this scenario, the USCIS recommends that employees follow-up with the issuing agency through phone calls, emails, or other online portals (as available) with regards to the replacement document application. The USCIS also notes that this is an ongoing issue, and they will reassess this policy if necessary. 
 
From an employer compliance perspective, Guardian will continue to alert users on the Top I-9s Needing Further Action panel to the “overdue” receipt when the 90-day period has passed. While the USCIS has not provided any specific instructions on how to document this scenario from an I-9 perspective, LawLogix recommends the following.
 
Documenting the Delay in OnDocs
Users are advised to create an Audit note in the I-9 record detailing the extenuating circumstances of the delayed document replacement. 
 
The notation itself can simply contain messaging in regards to the reason why the document was not received by the due date (ex. DMV closed for the month due to COVID-19; employee unable to present replacement document). This audit note will automatically be included with the I-9 in the event of a government Form I-9 inspection.
 
Tracking Receipt Follow-up With Tasks
The Guardian system will automatically flag I-9 receipts in the ‘Top I-9s Needing Further Action’ dashboard panel until the replacement document is received and the I-9 is updated. Since these alerts will always show as overdue for receipts that are pending more than 90 days, users may also wish to use the Task functionality within Guardian to create a future follow-up reminder. 
 
Within the employee profile, select the Tasks tab and click Add Task in the upper right. This will open a dialogue where users can document the circumstances and notes for following up.
The Expiry date in this instance can be any future date when you should follow-up with the employee to see if the replacement document has been received. Once saved, this task will appear on its own dashboard panel Top Pending Tasks. This is where these special cases may be more easily tracked by users. In addition, the dates can be changed should the office closures continue or lift early. 
 
LawLogix is monitoring this situation very closely and will post any additional guidance from the USCIS once received.
The USCIS officially announced on May 1 that all List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.
The temporary policy now mandates employers notate I-9s using such documentation with ‘COVID-19’ in the Additional Information field. Once the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ends this policy, employees have up to 90 days to present a valid unexpired document to replace the previously submitted one.
For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy).
Organizations are further advised to create a custom field to track the follow up requirement of such I-9s. A custom field labeled ‘COVID List B Exception’ may be created by an administrator and used to report on employees who require follow up once DHS ends the temporary policy.
Please note that when the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should amend Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date. Note, too, that this additional step is not necessary for List B expired documents that were auto-extended by the state authority.
The Guardian system is accessible from the web and LawLogix supports several major browsers. Below we have included, if applicable, the lowest version supported for the browser. Each browser is supported to the most recent major version (e.g. 2.0, 3.0, etc.).
- 
Mozilla Firefox Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Google Chrome Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Microsoft Edge Current version (plus 1 previous) 
- 
Apple Safari Current version (plus 1 previous) - 
Please note that Safari is only supported when used with Mac OS and iOS devices. 
 
- 
- 
*Third-party web browser plug-ins and extensions may interfere with functionality. 
Mobile Devices
Guardian does not utilize a mobile app for I-9 completion, but rather utilizes the device's native browser to navigate the site and perform I-9 and E-Verify actions. I-9 completion and E-Verify case processing is supported on both Android (phone and tablet) and Apple devices (iPhone and iPad).
- 
Safari on Apple iOS devices - 
Use of iPad over iPhone is preferred 
 
- 
- 
Latest version of Chrome on Android devices - 
Given the variety of manufacturers, browsing experiences may differ. LawLogix tests with the following devices: Samsung S21 and Samsung Galaxy Tab 7. 
 
- 
Screen Resolution Requirements
| Screen Resolution | Result | 
| 1024 x 768 | Minimum | 
| 1280 x 1024 | Better | 
| System recommended highest display resolution (exceeding the above) | Best | 
PDF Viewing Requirements
PDF documents stored in Guardian can be accessed with any PDF viewer (either the browser’s native PDF viewer or a plug-in such as Adobe Reader)
Welcoming employees back to your organization is made very easy by the Guardian system. If an employee is already present in the Guardian system as a terminated employee, there are a few steps to take in getting them reinstated.
 
First off, the employee’s status must be changed from its terminated state.
- 
Navigate to the employee record within Guardian. 
- 
Click on the Job Details tab. 
- 
In the Employment History section, click on the Re-Hire Employee button. 
- 
A re-hire date field will present itself, enter in the employee’s new effective date of employment and click the Update Info button. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click Add I-9 in upper right. 
- 
Click Create New I-9 and proceed. 
The next steps will vary depending on your organization’s protocols. If a Section 3 may be completed to accommodate the rehire, then proceed with the steps below.
- 
Navigate to the employee’s record within Guardian. 
- 
Click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date under the Date Created of the active I-9 in the display. 
- 
In the I-9 Details tab, scroll down to the Section 3 area and click the Add button. 
- 
Select the applicable reason for the Section 3 entry. 
- 
Enter in the information needed for the applicable Section 3 fields and electronically sign the document. 
Once this step is done, the Section 3 must be approved.
- 
Under the same I-9 Details tab, scroll to the Section 3 area. 
- 
Click the Approve link. 
- 
Enter your Guardian password and click the Electronically Approve button. 
If a Section 3 is not permissible, then proceed with creating a new I-9 for the employee.
If an employee has an incorrect hire date on their I-9 record, it must be addressed in two separate spots within the employee’s file in Guardian.
 
Note: The following steps may be performed by those with permissions to amend employee files and change settings. This does not have to be an administrative user. 
 
The first area where the hire date may be changed is within the employee’s Job Details tab.
- 
Search for the employee record that requires the change and click on their name. 
- 
Once loaded into their record, click on the Job Details tab. 
- 
Click the hyperlinked Hire Date on the right hand side of the page underneath Employment History. 
- 
A new window will open with two fields. Delete the date input under Date Hired and fill in the correct date. 
- 
Click the Update Info button. 
The second area for the hire date to be corrected lies in amending the I-9 itself.
- 
From within the employee record, click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date of the I-9 record with the incorrect hire time. 
- 
A new screen with I-9 details will appear. Click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Add button in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
From the options presented, click on Section 2. This will display a list of fields that can be changed in that section of the I-9 form. 
- 
Double-click Employment Start Date. 
- 
Ensure that Strike-out Original Value is checked. 
- 
Enter the correct hire date in the field titled New Value. - 
You may add an accompanying note if you wish. This note will display at the bottom of the I-9 pdf export. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Amendment button. 
- 
Once back at the I-9 amendment tab, click the Actions button in the upper right corner of the page. 
- 
Click Approve Non-Section 1 Amendments. 
- 
Enter password for logging into Guardian system in order to approve. 
The Guardian system allows organizations to set their own I-9 policy in regards to rehires. If 'Require re-hires to complete new I-9' is enabled, then a Section 3 may not be used to process a rehire.
If this setting is not enabled, then a Section 3 can be used for rehiring purposes when the following criteria are met:
- 
The employee is rehired within 3 years of the initial hire date. 
- 
The employee's work authorization has expired, but is now eligible to work under new work authorization or, the employee is eligible to work on the same basis as attested to on the original I-9. 
If any of these conditions are not met, then you need to create a new Electronic I-9 in Guardian for re-hiring purposes and complete Section 1 and 2 just like for a regular new hire.
As part of the Form I-9 process, a lawful permanent resident (LPR) employee may present an expired Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, along with a Form I-797 receipt notice which indicates that the card is valid for an additional year. Under the Form I-9 rules, this combination of documents qualifies as an acceptable List C employment authorization document which is valid for one year as indicated on the Form I-797 receipt notice. At the end of the one-year period, the employer must re-verify work authorization by completing a Section 3.
 
To validate this case within the Guardian system.
- 
In Section 2 of an I-9, choose the List C option Employment Authorization Document Issued by DHS. 
- 
For the document number, enter the 13-digit receipt number from the Form I-797 receipt notice. 
- 
For the expiration date, enter a date which is one-year from the expiration date listed on the expired permanent resident card. 
- 
Ask the employee to provide an acceptable List B document and record the information in Guardian as per regular process. 
Please note, users should not click the Replacement Receipt checkbox when performing these steps. The Replacement Receipt is only to be used when an employee presents a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the USCIS has implemented a number of temporary policies to facilitate the completion of the Form I-9 for newly hired employees. These policy exceptions enable employers to inspect documents remotely under certain conditions (virtual verification) and accept certain expired driver’s licenses and state IDs for employees who are unable to obtain replacement documents. 
 
Earlier this spring, the USCIS issued a series of FAQs which generally described the process for completing the Form I-9 when using these exception scenarios. More recently, they have now provided several Form I-9 mockups which illustrate how employers can update and annotate the Form I-9 for these unique situations.
Below is a summary of the Form I-9 exception scenarios, which includes both the USCIS recommendation and LawLogix instructions for how this can be achieved within the Guardian system. 
Important: the USCIS has clearly stated that employers DO NOT need to go back and update their previously completed I-9s if they used a different process or wording for these I-9 exception cases. See our blog here for more information.  
 
I-9 Scenarios
Completing a Section 2 When Inspecting Documents Remotely (Virtual Verification)
The following guidance has been provided in regards to appropriately notating a Section 2 when the identity and employment authorization documents were inspected virtually (i.e. over video conferencing, through Guardian’s employee document upload, or other means of remote communication).
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| User enters “Remote inspection completed on xx/xx/xxxx” in the Additional Info box | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| Previously, LawLogix recommended annotating the I-9 with the words ‘COVID-19’ at the time of Section 2 completion based on the USCIS FAQ at the time. We are now recommending entering ‘Remote Inspection Completed on XX/XX/XXXX’ as per the USCIS. This note should be added to the 'Additional Information' field. An administrator should confirm in the I-9 Preferences and Policy section that your organization has not restricted this field from editing. In accordance with this emerging guidance, the previously entered annotations of ‘COVID-19’ are still acceptable. | 
Follow-Up Physical Inspection Once Normal Operations Resume
The following guidance has been provided on how to appropriately notate an I-9 after performing the required in-person physical inspection once normal business operations resume.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| If the person who performed the remote inspection also performs the physical inspection, they should indicate the date they physically examined the documents then add their initials in the Additional Information field. Example: COVID-19 Documents physically Examined on mm/dd/yyyy By AA | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| When entering the inspection information on the I-9 Details tab in Guardian, users will be prompted to enter the date of physical inspection and the person who performed the inspection. Users may enter the individual’s full name or simply write their initials in the context of the same inspector being used to perform the follow-up. Guardian will automatically insert the COVID-19 text and the supplied information in the Additional Information box in Section 2. | 
Follow-Up Physical Inspection by a Different Person Once Normal Operations Resume
In the scenario that the inspector that initially examined the employment authorization documents during a virtual verification differs from the one that will perform the follow-up physical inspection, there is a slight change in the way it must be notated. In this instance, the person performing the follow-up must provide their full name and title.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| If the person who performed the remote inspection cannot also perform the physical inspection, the person who performs the physical inspection should indicate the date they physically examined the documents as well as their full name and title in the Additional Information field. Example: COVID-19 Documents physically Examined on mm/dd/yyyy By HR Manager Betsy Ross | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| When a different Guardian user performs the physical inspection, they should enter their full name and title per the USCIS example. When an employer uses a non-Guardian user (such as an authorized representative) to perform the physical inspection, LawLogix suggests printing or saving an electronic copy of the Form I-9 PDF outside of Guardian and providing it to the representative along with the supplemental attestation referenced in our FAQ. When updating the form I-9, the title should be “Authorized Representative.” | 
Notating Remote and Physical Inspection for Reverification
The following guidance has been provided on how to appropriately notate an I-9 after performing a reverification and subsequent physical inspection remotely.
| USCIS Guidance | 
| Employers should make required notations for remote and subsequent physical inspections of reverifications in the Additional Information field in Section 2. If the same person performs both the remote and subsequent physical inspections for a reverification, complete as shown. If a different person performs the physical inspection, that person should write their full name and title, instead of their initials. | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| LawLogix recommends utilizing Guardian’s amendment feature to amend Section 3 to include the note. | 
Entering a List B Document Extended by Issuing Authority in Section 2
To help slow the spread of COVID-19, many different states enacted various lockdowns. This impacted several government offices as well, which resulted in driver’s licenses and state IDs being granted expiration date extensions.
 
| USCIS Guidance | 
| Enter expired List B document and “COVID-19 Ext” in the Additional Information box | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| Enter the expired date in the List B expiration date field in Guardian. When the expiration date is on or after March 1, 2020, an additional ‘expiration exception’ checkbox will appear in List B. Checking this box allows the document verifier to proceed with Section 2 completion while also auto-inserting ‘COVID-19 Ext’ into the Additional Information field. | 
Entering a List B Document NOT Extended by Issuing Authority in Section 2
The USCIS has stated that beginning on May 1, List B identity documents set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the state’s issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.
| USCIS Guidance | 
| (a) Enter expired List B document and “COVID-19” in the Additional Information box (b) If the same person performs both the remote and subsequent physical inspections, enter the replacement doc info in the Additional Info field. Note that if a different person performs the physical inspection, that person should write their full name and title, instead of their initials. | 
| Guardian Guidance | 
| For Guardian users that are presented with List B documents expiring on or after March 1, 2020, and are not otherwise auto-extended by the state, the COVID-19 Expiration Date Exception workflow may be used to help facilitate this new guidance. When completing Section 2 for an employee, users are advised to click the exception box and edit the automatically generated ‘COVID-19 Ext’ value to only read ‘COVID-19’ (as per the temporary DHS policy). Since DHS indicates that such I-9s should not be submitted to E-Verify, users should mark the I-9 ‘Completed’, but refrain from marking the I-9 ‘Approved’. When the employee later presents the unexpired document, a Guardian user should edit Section 2 of the I-9 to record the replacement document number and expiration date, re-sign Section 2, and Approve the I-9 to facilitate E-Verify submission. | 
Adding new users is a relatively simple process and will likely be needed a lot as your organization continues to grow.
Note: The following steps require administrative access. If you are unable to proceed, please contact your Guardian administrator to secure proper rights.
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal, then click the Administration tab. 
- 
In the administration screen, click the HR Users tab. 
- 
Click the Add button in the top right corner of the HR Users screen. 
- 
A modal window will appear, enter all applicable information about the new user. 
- 
Click the Update and Continue button in the bottom right corner of the modal. 
- 
Set the desired privileges and permissions this new user must have, then click the Update Info button to save the changes. 
- 
Click the Reset Password button to generate a random password and send an email to the new user with login setup information. 
Note: The following are steps for users that need to make an amendment denoting Physical Document Inspection as it pertains to a Section 3 Reverification. Please note that this is a specialized workflow and may not be applicable for all organizations/use cases. 
 
- 
Navigate to the I-9 Record and click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the +Add button on the right side of the page. 
- 
Click on Section 3 (1) (or the appropriate section 3 Record if multiple). 
- 
Double click the desired field for the amendment (Document Number is recommended). 
- 
When double-clicking the chosen field to amend - 
Uncheck the “Strike-out Original Value” box. 
- 
Do not enter anything into the “New Value” field. 
 
- 
- 
Enter the COVID-19 physical document inspection notation in the Note of Record field (there is a 40-character limit in the “Note of Record” field). Examples include: - 
Without Inspector initials: COV-19 physical inspection on 04/04/2020 
- 
With inspector initials: COV-19 physical inspection 04/04/2020(CB) 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Amendment button to return to the I-9 Amendments page. 
- 
Click the Actions pull down menu 
- 
The Form I-9 amendment notations can be viewed prior to final approval by clicking the View PDF link on the amendment approval screen. 
- 
The amendment notation will appear in the margin. (Prior to final approval the audit will show ??? in place of the user’s initials). 
- 
Enter the Guardian password or SSO ID and click the Submit button to approve and finalize the amendment. 
- 
The Form I-9 finalized amendment will include the audit with the initials of the user who approved the amendment. 
If a new employee is unable to provide documentation from the List of Acceptable Documents that is not expired, they may elect to present a receipt instead. Employees that choose to do this must provide a valid receipt within three (3) business days of their first day of employment.
If an employer is reverifying an employee's employment authorization, and they choose to present a receipt for reverification, the receipt must be presented by the date the employment authorization expires. Receipts are not acceptable if employment last fewer than three (3) business days.
There are three types of acceptable receipts:
- 
A receipt showing that the employee has applied to replace a document that was lost, stolen or damaged. The employee must present the actual document within 90 days from the date of hire or, in the case of reverification, within 90 days from the date the original employment authorization expires. 
- 
The arrival portion of Form I-94/I-94A containing a temporary I-551 stamp and a photograph of the individual. The employee must present the actual Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) by the expiration date of the temporary I-551 stamp, or, if there is no expiration date, within one (1) year from the date of admission. 
- 
The departure portion of Form I-94/I-94A with a refugee admission stamp. The employee must present an unexpired Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) or a combination of a List B document and an unrestricted Social Security Card within 90 days from the date of hire or, in the case of reverification, within 90 days from the date the original employment authorization expires. 
Receipts showing that the employee applied for an initial grant of employment authorization, or for renewal of their expiring or expired employment authorization, are not acceptable.
In November 2021 USCIS revised its policy regarding automatic employment authorization extensions for H-4, L-2, and E dependent spouses as a result of a class action lawsuit. This revision allows for the automatic extension of employment authorization for such individuals who file for renewal of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) prior to expiration.
The policy grants the work authorization extension until the earliest of any of the following actions:
- The date of the ‘Admin Until’ documented on Form I-94
- The approval or denial of the renewal application
- 180 days from the expiration date of the EAD
This additional auto extension allowance requires the capture of certain information for Form I-9 purposes.
The following provides guidance on how to document the employment authorization auto extension within Guardian.
New Employees
Section 1
- Employee selects “An alien authorized to work until;” and
- Enters the date 180 days from either the “Card Expires” on the EAD or the end date of the Form I-94, whichever is earlier
Section 2
- Verifier selects List A I-766 document type and records the following
- Enters the I-797 receipt number in the document number field
- Enters the earlier of the 180 day extension or I-94 end date for the document expiration date
- Adds the following comment in the Additional Information field:
EAD EXT
I-94 info
Issuing Auth: USCIS
Doc #: [I-94 number]
Exp: [I-94 expiration date]
Existing Employees
Section 3
- Verifier adds a new Section 3 for Reverification
- Verifier select Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) and records the following
- Enters the I-797 receipt number in the document number field
- Enters the earlier of the 180 day extension or I-94 end date for the document expiration date
- Sign and approve Section 3
Audit Note: The verifier an audit note to capture the additional I-94 information
- From the OnDocs tab of the I-9 the verifier clicks ‘Add Case Note’ and updates the case note as follows
- Updates the ‘Activity Type’ to Audit Note
- Records ‘EAD Auto-extension of dependent spouse’ in the ‘Subject/Reference’ field
- Includes the following in the ‘Notes’ box:
Per USCIS policy on documenting EAD auto-extensions of H-4, E, and L-2 dependent spouses, we are adding this note to capture the employee’s current I-94 information.
Issuing Auth: USCIS
Doc #: [I-94 number]
Exp: [I-94 expiration date]
In the fall of 2020, E-Verify announced a policy clarification related to the timeliness of Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) processing. This clarification explicitly stated that employers must process (i.e. notify E-Verify of the employee’s decision) TNC cases within 10 federal government workdays. Additionally, the E-Verify Monitoring and Compliance team is notifying employers of their obligations when either cases that received Final Nonconfirmation (FNC) results remain open or have been closed indicating the employee was retained.
There are a number of tools within Guardian organizations can use to maintain E-Verify compliance and identify such types of cases.
Reporting on Open TNC or FNC Cases Requiring Action
LawLogix recommends creating an interactive report which includes the columns ‘EV Status Detail’, ‘EV Current Status’ and ‘EV Status Date Changed’*.
*As of March 22, 2021, LawLogix introduced a new E-Verify tracking field: EV Date Status Changed. Cases updated after March 22nd reflect the date of the latest change to the case. This is a useful tool in determining when the 10-day clock began for an unprocessed TNC.
To create the report please proceed with the following steps:
- Click on the Reports tab of the Guardian top navigation bar.
- Click to select Interactive from the Report Types box in the upper left.
- Click New in the lower right of the left side column to begin building a new report.
- The page will refresh on the right side to show a Settings tab. Under Base Table click to select E-Verify.
- To minimize the report results, set the following under the Filter Options section.
- E-Verify Status - HR Hold
- Initial TNC - Yes
 
- Click the Columns tab.
- Click E-Verify under the Tables column, then click and drag the following fields to the Build Fields in Report column:
- EV Status Detail
- EV Current Status
- EV Status Date Changed
 
- Click the Settings tab once again.
- Click Save Settings in the lower left, then Run Report Now.
Tentative Nonconfirmation Results
Items on the report that are ‘On Hold, waiting for user interaction’ with an EV Initial Eligibility that contains the terms ‘Tentative Nonconfirmation’ require immediate attention.
Example output:
As shown in the screenshot above, the highlighted fields indicate an 'unprocessed TNC'. Note the text in the EV Initial Eligibility column may vary depending on the type of TNC returned. Cases in this status should be reviewed to determine first if the information sent to E-Verify was correct, and if so, then take steps to work with the employee to review the Further Action Notice and make a decision on whether or not to take action to resolve the TNC.
Processing a TNC that includes incorrect data:
When the TNC could be the result of incorrect information recorded on the I-9 access the TNC workflow and select the option in Step 2: No, we need to close this case due to a clerical error and resubmit.
Amend the incorrect I-9 form fields and then return to the employee’s E-Verify tab and use the Send to E-Verify button to initiate a new submission to E-Verify.
Processing a TNC for an Active employee:
Meet with or send the employee an access link to login and review the Further Action Notice. Once the employee has provided their decision, follow the next steps to refer the case or notify E-Verify of the employees’ decision not to take action. Visit the User Guides & Tutorials section of Help for detailed step by step processing instructions.
Processing a TNC for a Terminated employee:
If the employee is terminated the unprocessed TNC should be closed as follows:
1. Access the E-Verify Summary screen for the employee.
2. Click Continue E-Verify Process on the Case Status card.
3. On the Tentative Nonconfirmation page, click to select Yes
Section 3s are commonly used to reverify existing employees with work authorizations, but may also be used to document name or status changes as well.
Electronic Section 3s can be added to any I-9 type (Archival, New Hire Paper, Electronic) that has been approved. Any user type may create a Section 3, as long as they have permission to approve I-9s.
A Section 3 entry must be made from within the current I-9 and can be accomplished with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee’s I-9 record. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Date Created link for the desired record that needs a Section 3. 
- 
Scroll down the page to the Section 3 area. 
- 
Click Add Section 3 in the upper right. - 
Click Add Remote Section 3 if the employee is to be verified remotely. 
 
- 
- 
Select the appropriate reason for the Section 3 Update. - 
Reverification 
- 
Reverification and Rehire 
 
- 
- 
Click Add Section 3 Entry. 
Once the Section 3 is filled out, the user must make sure to approve it by clicking the Approve link on the Details tab of the I-9 page. Once approved, the entry will be locked in.
When the need arises for a legal entity to be created under an existing Guardian account, this can be done through a series of steps. Please note that the following directions must be performed by  Guardian administrative user within your organization.
 
1. Creating the Entity
- 
From the Guardian dashboard, click Administration in the lower left. 
- 
Click Locations & E-Verify in the left hand navigation. 
- 
Click Legal Entites in the upper left. 
- 
Click New EIN in the upper right. 
- 
Enter in the Entity Name, EIN, E-Verify ID, and E-Verify Effective Date in the modal that appears. - 
If the entity will not use E-Verify, leave the E-Verify ID and E-Verify Effective Date fields blank. 
 
- 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
2. Adding a New Location (Optional)
If the new legal entity is also a new location, it may be created through the following steps. If creating a new location is not desired (i.e. the new entity is part of an existing location), then this step may be skipped.
- 
Within the Guardian Administration area from the preceding steps, click Locations in the upper left. 
- 
Click + New Location in the upper right. 
- 
A new modal will appear. Under the Details tab, enter the following information: - 
Name 
- 
Loc. Number 
- 
Phone 
- 
Fax (as applicable) 
- 
Line 1 (as applicable) 
- 
Line 2 (as applicable) 
- 
City 
- 
State 
- 
Zip code 
 
- 
- 
Click the Policies tab in the upper left of the modal. 
- 
Set all desired policies for this location. - 
Note: If this new location should not follow the default location policies set at the Guardian administrative level, then users are advised to set their preferred policies within this tab. 
 
- 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
3. Adding an Employee Group
After creating the new entity (and the new location if needed), users need to add the entity as a new Employee Group.
- 
Within the Administration area, click Employee Records in the upper left. 
- 
Click Manage Group Structure in the upper left. 
- 
Click + Add New Employee Group in the upper right. 
- 
Within the Legal Entity field, begin typing the name of the newly added entity. Once it appears in the dropdown options that generate, select it. 
- 
Enter the Location Name. 
- 
Click Save in the lower right. 
When an I-9 is completed within Guardian, the system only allows for the record to be purged after a specific amount of time has passed. This is based off a 3-year/1-year rule, in which the file can be deleted if the employee was terminated and:
- 
The current date is 3 years after the initial hire date OR 
- 
The current date is 1 year after the employee’s termination date. 
To delete an employee record, please make any applicable notes or backups of data and proceed with the following steps:
 
Note: The following procedure must be performed by a user with administrative privileges.
 
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal and access the employee’s record. 
- 
Click the employee name hyperlink. 
- 
Click the Job Details tab. 
- 
From here, change the hire and termination dates as needed. 
- 
Once modified, refreshing the page will update the eligible Date purgeable field. 
- 
If the Date purgeable shows a past date, then users may access the Administrative button in the left hand navigation. 
- 
The screen will refresh to admin commands. Click Purge Data in the top navigation. 
- 
All employee records that are now eligible to be purged will show up in this screen. Click the checkbox next to the employee file you wish to purge and then click the red Purge button. 
- 
A small pop-up will appear asking to confirm the action. Select Yes if you wish to proceed with the record purge. 
Once an I-9 is purged, the action cannot be reversed by LawLogix.
There are several types of I-9 records utilized and/or referenced within the Guardian system.
Electronic I-9: Used for a new or rehired employee. With this I-9 type all information is entered on the user’s computer. If enrolled in E-verify
New Hire Paper I-9: The New Hire Paper I-9 type is reserved for employees hired on or after your organization began using the Guardian system. It is used to electronically represent those I-9s completed on paper outside of the system. For organizations enrolled with E-Verify
Archival Paper I-9: The Archival Paper I-9 type denotes those historical I-9s (in general)
This is a 4-step process, in order to amend the I-9 the E-Verify record must be deleted first, and in order for the I-9 to be re-submitted to E-Verify the amendment must be approved.
Delete the E-Verify record.
- 
Access the E-Verify record. 
- 
Click on the Overview tab. 
- 
Click the Delete button. A warning window will appear. Confirm your selection by clicking the second Delete button. 
Amend and approve amendment for the I-9
- 
Access the employee’s I-9 record. 
- 
Click on the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Add button. 
- 
The Amend I-9 window will open. Click the Section 1 or Section 2 buttons on the left side of the page, for the desired section fields to appear. 
- 
Double-click on the field to be amended. 
- 
Ensure that Strike-Out Original Value has a checkmark next to it. 
- 
Enter the correct value in the New Value field. 
- 
For single amendment, click the Create Amendment button to create the item and return to the amendments tab. - 
For multiple amendments, click the Create Amendment and Add Another button. This will create the amendment and take you back Amend I-9 window to add the next amendment. 
 
- 
- 
When done with the last amendment click the Create Amendment button, this will create the amendment and take you back to the Amendments Tab. 
Approve the amendments
- 
For Section 1 Amendments click on the Actions button and choose Approve Section 1 Amendments enter the password used to log into Guardian. 
- 
If this option is grayed out, this will require employee approval of the amendment. Users will need to choose the method in which the employee will sign off on the amendment. 
- 
For Section 2 Amendments Click on Actions button Approve Non Section 1 Amendments enter the password used to log into Guardian. 
Use the Submit to E-Verify button within the E-Verify module. If unavailable, please contact LawLogix Support to manually push the submission again.
In order to keep your system lean and free of unnecessary files, Guardian carries the flexibility to delete records that are not being used as the primary I-9 for an employee.
Note: The following steps are for administrators only. If you are unable to proceed through, please contact your Guardian administrator to secure proper rights or get assistance.  
Caution should always be exercised when deleting I-9 records.  
First, the feature to allow I-9s to be deleted must be enabled.
- 
Once signed into Guardian, click on the Administration button in the left hand navigation menu. 
- 
The Preferences area should load by default. - 
If it doesn’t, please click on its associated button in the left hand menu. 
 
- 
- 
Under the General tab, click the I-9 Preferences dropdown. 
- 
Of the options revealed, click to leave a checkmark in the box labeled Allow deletion of non-current I-9s. 
- 
Click the Update Info button in the upper right of the screen to save the selection. 
After this setting is enabled, administrators may delete “non-primary” records, or records that are not actively being referenced.
- 
Navigate to the employee record within Guardian and click on the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Confirm that the record for deletion is marked with an [H], indicating that it is a historical record and not the primary. 
- 
Click on the hyperlinked date under the Date Created column. 
- 
In the details page, click the Delete button. 
LawLogix Guardian offers an innovative workflow solution for delegating the Form I-9 completion task to an authorized agent, providing for a flexible yet compliant way to complete Form I-9 for remote hires or reverification of existing employees.  Prior to leveraging the Remote Agent workflow, review the Administration settings outlined below to ensure alignment with your organization’s policies and procedures.
Remote Hire Preferences
From within the Administration tab, select I-9 Policy > Portals and Remote Processing.
Should remote agent manage document retention?: If Yes, Remote Agents will be prompted to upload or provide copies of the employee documents provided for Section 2, using one of the Document Retention Options enabled via the related setting (see bottom of guide).
 
| Recommendation: 
 | 
Trigger notification email of document selection?: If Yes, sends an email to the Responsible HR user notifying them of the Agent’s decision when prompted with document retention.  The email serves as a call to action for the HR to follow up on the document retention requirement (review the uploaded document copies, contact the employee directly to receive document copies, etc).
- Recommendation: Yes
Choose default Guardian contact: Provides the name, phone number and email addresses of the selected user on the employee and agent instruction emails. Employee and Agent are instructed to contact this user in the event of questions.
- Recommendation: Identify and select a user to be the point of contact for supporting the remote I-9 process. Alternatively, create a placeholder user associated with a group email and phone number (one-time user activation fee may apply depending on your contract and current active user count).
Require remote agent to provide e-mail address and pre-identify?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide and validate their e-mail address before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. A confirmation email with a validation code will be sent to the Agent. Enabling this setting ensures the organization has validate contact information for the Agent in the event they need to contact them.
- Recommendation: Yes
Require remote agents to provide contact phone number?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide their phone number before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. Note: the phone number is not validated (e.g., via SMS text).
- Recommendation: Yes
Remote Hire Document Retention Options
If the organization has elected to have the Remote Agent manage document retention, these are the options that will be displayed to the agent after completing Section 2.
- Recommendation: Enable only the Scan and Upload Documents option. In the event the Agent is unable to perform the retention at the time of Section 2 completion they are able to indicate so, at which point the employer would need to work with the employee directly to receive and upload the required document copies, when applicable.
Remote Hire Email Templates
From within the Administration tab, select Communication > Email/Receipt Templates.
| Recommendation: Review and customize the following email templates: 
 | 
Remote Hire Custom Help Text
From Communication > Customize Help Text, customizations can be made to the various on-screen instructions provided to employees completing a Remote I-9.
Pay particular attention to the Appointment Message 1 Remote Hire.  This is the last screen the employee sees after completing Section 1, and is where the Verifier Instructions are provided to the employee.  Consider advising the employee to Copy-Paste these instructions into an email to their agent, or to themselves if they have not yet identified who their agent will be.
LawLogix Guardian offers an innovative workflow solution for delegating the Form I-9 completion task to an authorized agent, providing for a flexible yet compliant way to complete Form I-9 for remote hires or reverification of existing employees.  Prior to leveraging the Remote Agent workflow, review the Administration settings outlined below to ensure alignment with your organization’s policies and procedures.
 
Remote Hire Preferences
From within the Administration tab, select Preferences > Remote Hire.
Use Pre-defined Remote Agents:  If checked, the organization must identify who the agent will be for a particular I-9 ahead of time, create them in the Guardian system, and assign them to the desired I-9(s).  This provides more control over who the Agent will be, but requires significantly more administrative overhead. If unchecked, the employee can meet with anyone who the organization authorizes to be an Agent without needing to add them into the Guardian system.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Remote Agents must be a Notary: If checked, all Remote Agents must be licensed Notaries. This setting only applies when enabling the Pre-defined Remote Agents setting.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Do not use Notary Affidavit: If checked, Notary Remote Agents will not be asked to fill out the Notary Affidavit. This setting only applies when enabling the Pre-defined Remote Agents setting.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Remote Agent Handles Documents: If checked, Remote Agents will be prompted to upload or provide copies of the employee documents provided for Section 2, using one of the Document Retention Options enabled via the related setting (see bottom of guide).
- 
Recommendation: - 
If you are currently retaining copies of ALL documents: Checked 
- 
If you are NOT retaining copies of documents, and are NOT an E-Verify participant: Not Checked 
- 
If you are ONLY retaining documents required by E-Verify: Checked - 
Note: This will result in a retention prompt for ALL documents, not just those required by E-Verify, for I-9’s completed via the Remote Agent workflow. It is recommended to create and document a policy exception which explains that you are retaining ALL documents for those I-9’s completed remotely by 3rd-party agents. If you choose not to enable this option you will need to work with your employees directly to receive and upload required document copies into Guardian. 
 
- 
 
- 
Default HR Contact: Provides the name, phone number and email addresses of the selected user on the employee and agent instruction emails. Employee and Agent are instructed to contact this user in the event of questions.
- 
Recommendation: Identify and select a user to be the point of contact for supporting the remote I-9 process. Alternatively, create a placeholder user associated with a group email and phone number (one-time user activation fee may apply depending on your contract and current active user count). 
Notify of document selection on step 3: If checked, sends an email to the Responsible HR user notifying them of the Agent’s decision when prompted with document retention. The email serves as a call to action for the HR to follow up on the document retention requirement (review the uploaded document copies, contact the employee directly to receive document copies, etc).
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Remote Agents must enter employee SSN: If checked, Remote Agents must enter in the Social Security number of the employee before being able to view and complete their Form I-9. The Agent has three chances to enter in the correct SSN before their access link is deactivated.
- 
Recommendation: Not Checked 
Require remote agent to provide e-mail address and pre-identify?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide and validate their e-mail address before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. A confirmation email with a validation code will be sent to the Agent. Enabling this setting ensures the organization has validate contact information for the Agent in the event they need to contact them. This option also prevents the employee from using their own email address (on file in Guardian) in an attempt to act as their own agent.
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Require remote agents to provide contact phone number?: If checked, Remote Agents must provide their phone number before being able to view and complete the employee’s Form I-9. Note: the phone number is not validated (e.g., via SMS text).
- 
Recommendation: Checked 
Remote Hire Document Preferences
At the bottom of the page, click Documents to open another page containing important settings for the Remote Agent workflow.
Remote Hire Templates: These are the instructional emails that will be provided to the employee and their agent, containing the link to access the employee portal and agent portal, respectively.
- 
Recommendation: Click Edit Template and review and customize the Employee Instructions, Remote Agent Instructions (Sec 2), and Remote Agent Instructions (Sec 3) as desired. 
Document Retention Options: If the organization has elected to have the Remote Agent manage document retention, these are the options that will be displayed to the agent after completing Section 2.
Recommendation: Enable only the Scan and Upload Documents option.  In the event the Agent is unable to perform the retention at the time of Section 2 completion they are able to indicate so, at which point the employer would need to work with the employee directly to receive and upload the required document copies, when applicable.
 
Remote Hire Custom Help Text
From Custom Help > Remote Employee I-9 Form, customizations can be made to the various on-screen instructions provided to employees completing a Remote I-9.
Pay particular attention to the Appointment Message 1 Remote Hire.  This is the last screen the employee sees after completing Section 1, and is where the Verifier Instructions are provided to the employee.  Consider advising the employee to Copy-Paste these instructions into an email to their agent, or to themselves if they have not yet identified who their agent will be.
How can we re-issue the remote agent login link when the link expires?
Remote agent login links will expire approximately one month after they are generated, when the I-9 is approved by a Guardian user, or when the remote process is disabled from the Guardian system. These links can be reissued, but requires a Guardian user to delete and recreate the agent instruction email with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee profile within Guardian. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab. 
- 
Click on the Date Created hyperlink of the Remote Agent Instruction E-Mail. 
- 
Click Delete in the upper right. 
- 
Click View Employee. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the asterisk (*) to access the Remote Hire/Remote Agent Settings page. 
- 
Click Create Agent Instructions. 
- 
Update the email if desired, then click Send. 
The updated instructions will also be available through the Remote Agent Instructions link within the employee's interface.
An F-1 academic student who received a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (a STEM field) may apply for a one-time, 17-month extension of his or her initial 1 year period of work authorization pursuant to Optional Practical Training (OPT), provided the employer is enrolled in E-Verify.
If the student's Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires while his or her STEM extension application is pending, they are authorized to work until USCIS makes a decision on their application, but not more than 180 days from the date the student's initial Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) expires.
The student's expired Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766), together with their  Form I-20 endorsed by the designated school official recommending the STEM extension, are acceptable proof of identity and employment authorization for Form I-9 purposes.
 
New Hire Process
To document the period of interim work authorization on a new I-9, please proceed with the following steps:
- 
Create a new I-9. 
- 
Include the expired work authorization date from the I-766 document. 
- 
In Section 2, the verifier will select the I-766 and input all details, including the expired work authorization date. 
- 
Once entered, the Section 2 will refresh. 
- 
Select F-1/OPT STEM Extension in the Work Authorization field. 
- 
Enter SEVIS number of I-20 document. - 
This document should have been endorsed by a Designated School Official for the STEM extension. 
- 
The Guardian system will determine the 180 interim work authorization based on the I-766 expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
Finish filling out the Section 2. 
The reverification date for the employee will also be based on this 180-day extension. Once the new EAD card is issued, the employee should be re-verified in Section 3 with the EAD as the basis of the re-verification and the 17-month STEM Extension date as shown on the EAD card serving as the new re-verification date.
 
Existing Employee Process
An employee can file a Form I-765 application to renew their EAD prior to the expiration of their current status. Pending the adjudication of the I-765 application, the employee is allowed to work for a period of 180 days beyond the expiration of their EAD expiration or until the new EAD card is issued. Outlined below is how to document this 180 day interim extension on the Form I-9. How to document a STEM Extension:
- 
Access the employee's I-9 record that reflects the expiring/expired EAD work authorization. 
- 
Click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click the Special Amendments header at the bottom of the page to expand the section. 
- 
Click the F-1/OPT STEM Extension button. 
- 
Enter the SEVIS No. of the employee's I-20 that has been properly endorsed. 
- 
Click Update Info in the upper right to save the change. - 
The basis for the interim extension will automatically populate on the Special Amendment interface and a new re-verification date will be auto-calculated based on 180 days from the current EAD expiration date. 
 
- 
- 
On the Amendment tab select Approve Non Section 1 Amendments from the Actions drop down. 
Upon updating, the I-20 SEVIS No. and the words "180 day Ext." will appear on the PDF image of the I-9 in red font (indicating this is an update to the original approved I-9) adjacent to List A, and the new re-verification date is reflected.
If your organization is one of many that has participated in the use of ‘virtual verification’ while observing social distancing/lockdown procedures due to the COVID-19 national emergency, the DHS included a follow up requirement indicating that the employee must present the documents to the employer within three business days after normal business operations resume. The employer should review the documentation presented by the employee and annotate the I-9 with the date of physical inspection and the name of the person performing the inspection.
If your organization needs to utilize a remote agent to perform this function, this process requires steps both internal and external to Guardian in order to fulfill the requirement. LawLogix has put together a best practice recommendation to address this temporary and unique situation. Please find below a list of recommended activities when having a remote agent complete the deferred physical inspection when normal business operations resume.
Steps for Follow-Up Inspections
- Identify, either through Guardian reports or another HR-related system, those employees who presented documents virtually and remain remote, requiring an agent/authorized representative to complete physical inspection.
- Print or save an electronic copy of the completed Form I-9 for each of these employees.
- Through secure means, contact each employee and provide them with their previously completed I-9, as well as a supplemental “Physical Inspection Attestation” to be signed by their chosen remote agent.
- Direct the employee to choose a remote agent that may perform the in-person document inspection.
- Instruct the employee to present to the agent the same original documents that were previously provided, regardless of document expiration date.
- Advise the remote agent to compare the documents presented to the information contained in Section 2 of the employee’s Form I-9, and sign the Physical Inspection Attestation.
- Through secure means, the employee returns the Physical Inspection Attestation to the HR team.
- A Guardian user uploads the attestation to the employee’s I-9 OnDocs as a supporting document.
- The Guardian user may toggle off* the COVID-19 exception from the employee profile to remove the exception alert from the dashboard.
**Note: in the workflow described above, the physical inspection will only be recorded on the supplemental attestation uploaded to the employee’s OnDocs file. If your organization wishes to also record the COVID-19 physical document information on the Form I-9 itself, a Guardian user may instead initiate the streamlined amendment process in Guardian which will record the inspection date and name of inspector in the Section 2 Additional Information field, and remove the exception alert from Guardian.
Frequently Asked Questions
Collected below are a few questions that may arise during this process.
My remote hires normally schedule appointments with a PAN center. Can I utilize a PAN center to fulfill this follow-up inspection?
- No. PAN Centers are unable to assist with this particular type of follow-up document inspection at this time.
The employee originally presented a license that was expired but temporarily extended by the DMV. Should they present that document again or their recently renewed one for the follow up inspection?
- The employee must provide the documents they originally used for their virtual verification, regardless of their expiration status at the time of the physical inspection. USCIS provided no indication that an additional reverification of expired documents is required.
The employee no longer has the documents they originally presented, but have different ones that are still valid and verifiable. Can these be used instead?
- The expectation is that the employee should provide the original documents in order to meet the stated requirement of the ‘virtual verification’ process. If the employee is unable to present the original documents for physical inspection, the organization may wish to complete a new I-9 in Guardian with the new documents provided. In the event a new I-9 is created, LawLogix recommends creating an audit note in Guardian which explains the situation.
What should we do if the agent noted that the document information on the I-9 differs from the document presented by the employee?
- A Guardian user should ask the employee to provide copies of the documents presented to the agent and compare with the originally retained documents in Guardian. If a transcription error is found, the Guardian user may complete an amendment to correct the discrepancy.
Should the supplemental attestation be included with the I-9 in the event of an ICE audit?
- Yes, the supplemental document should be stored in the employee’s I-9 OnDocs folder. In the future, if the I-9 is subject to audit, Guardian’s export process includes all documents associated with the I-9. This supplemental attestation clarifies that the physical inspection was performed by a remote agent.
Remote agent login links will expire approximately one month after they are generated, when the I-9 is approved by a Guardian user, or when the remote process is disabled from the Guardian system. These links can be reissued, but requires a Guardian user to delete and recreate the agent instruction email with the following steps:
- 
Navigate to the employee profile within Guardian. 
- 
Click the OnDocs tab. 
- 
Click on the Date Created hyperlink of the Remote Agent Instruction E-Mail. 
- 
Click Delete in the upper right. 
- 
Click VIew Employee. 
- 
Click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the asterisk (*) to access the Remote Hire/Remote Agent Settings page. 
- 
Click Create Agent Instructions. 
- 
Update the email if desired, then click Send. 
The updated instructions will also be available through the Remote Agent Instructions link within the employee's interface.
If you determine an Employment Authorization Document has been auto-extended, please follow the guidance below when completing Form I-9. Employees who present an EAD with a category code of A12 or C19 are Temporary Protected Status beneficiaries. TPS beneficiaries may receive an automatic extension of their EAD on an alternate basis. Employers can learn more about TPS beneficiaries later in this Fact Sheet.
Instructions for an employee completing Section 1 of Form I-9
If this is a new employee: 
When completing Section 1, new employees should:
- 
Select the option “An alien authorized to work until”; and 
- 
Enter the date that is 180 days from the “card expires” date of their EAD as the “employment authorized until mm/dd/yyyy” date. 
If this is a current employee:
For Current employees whose employment authorization was automatically extended:
- 
Amend the “employment authorized until” date in Section 1; 
- 
Enter the date that is 180 days from the date their current EAD expires; and 
- 
Complete and approve the Amendment. 
Instructions for Employers Completing Section 2 of Form I-9
If your employee is new and presents an automatically extended EAD that is still within the 180-day extension period:
When completing Section 2, the HR User should:
- 
Enter into the “Expiration Date” field the date upon which the automatic extension period expires, not the expiration date on the face of the expired EAD. The automatic extension expiration date is the date 180 days from the “card expires” date on the EAD; and 
- 
Enter the List A Document as a Receipt in the “Document Number” field. Note that this expiration date may be cut short if the employee’s renewal application is denied before the 180-day period expires. 
If your employee is currently working for you: 
For a current employee, Amend Section 2 of Form I-9 with the new expiration date as follows:
- 
Amend section 2 and type in the new expiration date; 
- 
Type EAD EXT in the “Note of Record” field of Section 2; and 
- 
Complete and approve the Amendment. 
The new expiration date the employer should enter is the date 180 days from the “card expires” date, which is the date on the face of the EAD.
Note: This is not considered a reverification; do not complete Section 3 until either the 180-day extension has ended or the employee presents a new document to show continued employment authorization, whichever is sooner. At the end of the 180-day extension, the employer must reverify the employee’s employment authorization in Section 3 of Form I-9.
For additional info please see: https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Verification/I-9%20Central/FactSheets/Fact-Sheet-AutoExtendEAD.pdf
Guardian has the ability to pull robust reports on a variety of data fields within the system. The following is a collection of these tables and fields available for reporting:
 
| Base Table | Included Tables | 
| HR Group Assignments | Group Locations HRs HR Groups | 
| HR Groups | HR Groups | 
| HR Locations | HR Locations HRs Locations | 
| Occupation Class | Occupation Class | 
| Business Units | Business Units | 
| Contracts | Contracts | 
| Dashboard | Dashboard I-9 Employee E-Verify Business Unit HRs | 
| Documents | Documents I-9 Employee | 
| E-Verify | E-Verify FAR I-9 Employee Business Unit Locations | 
| Employee Address | Address Employee | 
| Employee | Employee I-9 E-verify FAR Locations Business Unit Login | 
| FAR | FAR E-Verify I-9 | 
| I9 Issues | I-9 Issues I-9 Employee Business Unit | 
| I9 Section 3 | I-9 Section 3 I-9 Employee Business Unit | 
| I9 | I-9 Employee Business Unit Locations | 
| Locations and Occupation Class Assignments | Location & Occupation Class HRs Locations Occupation Class HR Groups | 
| Locations | Locations Address Business Units | 
| Multi-Business Units | Multi-Business Units I-9 Employee E-Verify Business Unit | 
| Remote Agents | Remote Agent | 
| Remote I-9s | I-9 Remote Agent Locations Employee | 
| State Affidavits | I-9 State Affidavits I-9 State Affidavits | 
| Tasks | Tasks Employee | 
Field Names
| Table | Field Name | 
| Address | Address Type Address Line 1 Address Line 2 Address City Address State Address County Address Country Address Zip Code Address Apt No | 
| Business Unit | Business Unit Guardian ID Business Unit Name Business Unit EIN No Business Unit E-Verify ID Business Unit E-Verify Effective Date Business Unit is Inactive | 
| Contracts | Contract Date Created Contract Date Modified Contract Scope Contract Effective Date Contract End Date Contract COTS Only Contract Amount Contract is Outside US Contract Number Contract Name Contract Notes | 
| Dashboard | Employee Name Employee Hire Date I-9 Type I-9 Date Created I-9 Date Due I-9 Date Expires EV Status EV Initial Date Submitted I-9 Receipt I-9 Status I-9 Date Approved I-9 Date Amended I-9 Date Completed | 
| Documents | ID Doc Date Captured Doc Date Modified Doc Subject / Reference Doc Description Doc Received From Doc Sent By Doc Sent To Doc Internal Document Type Doc Type Doc Size Doc Original File Name Doc File Extension Doc Employee Can View Doc Expert Name Doc HR Signed Doc Date Employee Signed Doc History | 
| Employee | Employee Guardian ID Responsible HR/Group Date Created First Name Middle Name Last Name Other Names Used Employee Name Employee Phone Number Title Date of Birth Social Security Number Date Hired Date Terminated Location Occupation Class Business Unit Employee ID Purge Eligibility Date Do Not Purge Language Has HSPD-12 Exemption Has Top Secret Clearance Provides Support Services Only Is On Leave Emp Work email Emp Income Emp FICA Exempt Status Emp DACA Notification E-Mail 1 Notification E-Mail 2 | 
| E-Verify | EV Guardian ID EV Case No Date EV Created EV Date Initially Submitted EV Current Status EV Date Next Submit EV CPS State EV Hold Until EV Last Submitted EV Last Name Submitted EV First Name Submitted EV Middle Initial Submitted EV Other Names Used Submitted EV DOB Submitted EV Date Hired Submitted EV Citizenship Submitted EV A No Submitted EV I-94 No Submitted EV SS No Submitted EV S2 Document Submitted EV S2 Document Expires EV Visa Submitted EV Card No Submitted EV Passport No Submitted EV Submitted By EV Returned First Name EV Returned Last Name EV Last Return Msg EV Initial Eligibility EV Initial Eligibility Reason EV Returned Letter EV Secondary Performed EV Date Referred EV TNC Contested EV TNC Final EV Date Re-Submitted EV Last Name Re-Submitted EV First Name Re-Submitted EV Middle Initial Re-Submitted EV Other Names Used Re-Submitted EV Social Security No Re-Submitted EV DOB Re-Submitted EV Re-Submitted Official EV Secondary Performed EV DHS Response EV DHS Response Date EV Contested SSA EV Contested DHS EV Case Resolved EV Final Option EV Photo Tool Used EV Days to Submit EV Photo Confirmation EV Overdue Reason EV Overdue Reason Other EV DHS Deadline | 
| FAR | FAR Date Created FAR Exempt FAR Exempt Status FAR Final E-Verify FAR Contract FAR Next Status FAR E-Verify Status FAR Batch Name | 
| Group Locations | Default in Group | 
| HR Groups | Group Name Group is Interactive | 
| HR Locations | Location Privilege | 
| HRs | HR Name Last Name First Name Middle Name Title ID Is Admin Work Phone Number Date Created Date Last Retired Date Last Unretired View Emps Privilege I-9 Default Occupation Class I-9 Default Location I-9 Default Language I-9 Default I-9 Type Default Business Unit Type Cannot Approve I-9s Cannot Create Electronic I-9 Cannot Create Archival I-9s Cannot Create Paper I-9s Has E-Verify Privilege Can Amend I-9 Can Approve I-9 Amendments Can Exempt Issues Can Park I-9s Can Approve I-9s in Batch Can Close E-Verify Cases in Batch Can View Dash Mini Charts Can Create Employees Is Expert Is the Default HR | 
| I-9 | I-9 Status I-9 Type I-9 Imported Type I-9 Number I-9 Date Created I-9 Date Completed I-9 Date Approved I-9 Approved by I-9 Days to File I-9 Ontime Margin I-9 Visa No I-9 Card Number I-9 Error Count I-9 E-Verify Error Count I-9 FAR Error Count I-9 Due Date I-9 Expiration Date I-9 Days to Expiration I-9 Remote Agent I-9 Business Unit I-9 Location S1 First Name S1 Middle Initial S1 Last Name S1 Other Names Used S1 Address S1 Apartment No S1 City S1 State S1 Zip Code S1 Social Security Number S1 Date of Birth S1 A Number S1 Work Until Date S1 A No or Admission No S1 Citizenship Attestation S1 Date Signed S1 Date First Signed S2 Date Employee Hired S1 Foreign Passport No S1 Country of Issuance P/T Name P/T Address P/T City P/T State P/T Zip Code P/T Date Signed S2 List A Authority S2 List A Document S2 Document Name S2 List A Document #1 S2 List A Document Uploaded S2 List A Expiration Date #1 S2 List A Doc Name #2 S2 List A Document #2 S2 List A Authority #2 S2 List A Expiration Date #2 S2 List A Doc Name #3 S2 List A Document #3 S2 List A Authority #3 S2 List A Expiration Date #3 S2 Unknown Document List A S2 List B Document S2 Document B Name S2 List B Authority S2 List B Document No S2 List B Document Uploaded S2 List B Expiration Date S2 Unknown Document List B S2 List B Photo Affirmed S2 List C Document S2 Document C Name S2 List C Authority S2 List C Document No S2 List C Expiration Date S2 Unknown Document List C S2 List C Document Issued Date S2 HR Last Name S2 HR First Name S2 HR Title S2 Header First Name S2 Header Last Name S2 Header Middle Initial S2 Header Immigration Status S2 Company Name S2 Company Address S2 Company City S2 Company State S2 Company Zip Code S2 Date Signed S2 Date First Signed S2 Misc Entry S2 Additional Information I-9 Form Version | 
| I-9 Issues | ID Error I9 No Error I9 Section 3 No Error Class Error Type Error Section Error Object Error Explanation Error Ignored Error Exempted by Error not Exemptable | 
According to updated guidance provided by the DHS, if an employee first presents a receipt for a document, then later provides a different, acceptable document for identity purposes within the 90-day period, employers may accept them.
If an employee presents a different document than the original receipt document, LawLogix recommends performing the following steps:
- Make no additional changes to the original receipt I-9 and Park the form.
- Create a new I-9 for the employee.
- Direct the employee to complete Section 1 again.
- Record the new document(s) in Section 2, and within the Additional Information box write a notation.
- Example text: ‘Employee originally presented a receipt for a lost, stolen, or damaged document. In lieu of presenting the original document for which the receipt was issued, the employee has presented alternate documentation which is acceptable. Per DHS guidance, we have created this new I-9 to record the alternate documents.’
 
- Approve the I-9 (this will automatically send the information to E-Verify, if applicable)
For employees who present the same document as the receipt, the process remains unchanged: Update the document information via the employee’s I-9 Details tab ‘Update Receipt’ button and follow the steps to approve the receipt amendments.
In certain instances there is a need for an I-9 to be created and completed remotely. Guardian can accommodate this with a special remote agent I-9 within the system. To create such an I-9, please proceed through the following steps:
 
Creating a remote I-9 for an existing employee
- 
Sign into your Guardian portal and access the employee record by clicking on their name. 
- 
Once loaded into the employee’s page, click the I-9 Forms tab. 
- 
Click the Add I-9 Remote Processing button in the top right corner of the screen. - 
Note: this cannot be done if there is already an I-9 pending in the system. 
 
- 
- 
Select the appropriate remote agent (if necessary) and the Remote Hire HR Contact. - 
The Remote Hire HR Contact is the Guardian user to be contacted if questions arise. 
 
- 
- 
Create or Review the Agent Instructions. (Email the instructions if the agent is known). 
- 
Create or Review the Employee Instructions. 
- 
Click the Send or Edit Email button to begin the send process. 
- 
Click the Send the Email button to send instructions to the employee for completing the I-9. 
To create the I-9 for a new employee  
- 
Sign into the Guardian system and access the Employees module. 
- 
Click the Add button in the top right corner of the screen. 
- 
Enter the social security number for the new hire OR choose Create Employee w/o Social Security No to proceed without one. 
- 
Complete all of the required fields to create the employee. - 
i.e. location, start date, and occupation class. 
 
- 
- 
Click the Create Employee with Remote Agent button. 
- 
Select the appropriate remote agent (if necessary) and the Remote Hire HR Contact. - 
The Remote Hire HR Contact is the Guardian user to be contacted if questions arise. 
 
- 
- 
Create or Review the Agent Instructions. (Email the instructions if the agent is known). 
- 
Create or Review the Employee Instructions. 
- 
Click the Send or Edit Email button to begin the send process. 
- 
Click the Send the Email button to send instructions to the employee for completing the I-9. 
There are plenty of situations in which a change needs to be made to an Form I-9. Wrong address, misspelled name or any other item can be amended in either section of the form.
This can be done easily in the Guardian system. Please follow the steps below according to which section needs to be modified.
- 
From your Guardian portal, access the employee's I-9 record either through the I-9 Forms module or Employees module. 
- 
Once loaded into the I-9 form that needs changes, click the Amendments tab. 
- 
Click Section 1 or Section 2 (dependent on where the change is needed) on the left hand side of the page. 
- 
Double click Item to be amended. 
- 
Ensure that there is a check mark in the Strike-Out Original Value line. 
- 
Enter the correct value in the New Value field. 
- 
Click Create Amendment. - 
If you have more than one amendment to make in this section, click Create Amendment and Add Another to repeat this process. 
 
- 
Once the amendment is added, it is ready to be approved.
 
Section 2 Amendment Approvals:
To approve a section 2 amendment, click the Actions button and choose the last option that reads Approve Non Section 1 Amendments. Then enter your password used for your Guardian login.
 
Section 1 Amendment Approvals:
To approve a section 1 amendment, click the Actions button and choose Approve Section 1 Amendments.
- 
This option will only be available if your organization has set preferences for the HR user to approve Section 1 Amendments. 
- 
If this option is grayed out, then it means the employee will need to approve the amendment. If this is the case, then select the most suitable option for the employee to approve the amendment. 
Note: Once a data field has been amended, it cannot be modified again.
When a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) is issued from E-Verify, employees have the options to take actions in response to it. In certain instances an employee may simply self-terminate and never sign the Final Action Notice (FAN) letter.
Should a case like this arise, users are advised to proceed through the following steps.
- 
		On the E-Verify Summary screen for the employee in question, click Continue E-Verify Process on the Case Status card. 
- 
		On the Tentative Nonconfirmation page click the Yes radio button in Step 2 and select Review and sign the FAN manually outside of Guardian , and click Continue . 
- 
		Select the checkboxes for the 'Acknowledge' and 'Confirm' sections then select Employee does not want to take action to resolve this case and understands their employment may be terminated and click Continue Process . 
- 
		On the 'Close Case' step click Close Case . 
- 
		Select the third radio button option: Neither of the options above apply- I am closing this case for a different reason , enter 'Employee self-terminated' in the text field, and click Continue . 
	As the DHS extension for I-9 verification rules has been in place for approximately a year, there is a chance that Virtual Verifications (and their relaxed rules) could be removed soon.
	
	This has always come "built-in" with the very use of Virtual Verification, but there are a few things an organization must do when they must "resume normal business operations."
	
	
			 The rules established by USCIS circa March 2020:
	
	
	"Due to precautions being implemented by employers and employees related to physical proximity associated with COVID-19, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that it will exercise discretion to defer the physical presence requirements associated with Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9) under Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Employers with employees taking physical proximity precautions due to COVID-19 will not be required to review the employee’s identity and employment authorization documents in the employee’s physical presence. However, employers must inspect the Section 2 documents remotely (e.g., over video link, fax or email, etc.) and obtain, inspect, and retain copies of the documents, within three business days for purposes of completing Section 2. Employers also should enter “COVID-19” as the reason for the physical inspection delay in the Section 2 Additional Information field once physical inspection takes place after normal operations resume. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate. These provisions may be implemented by employers for a period of 60 days from the date of this notice OR within 3 business days after the termination of the National Emergency, whichever comes first.
	
	Employers who avail themselves of this option must provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy for each employee. This burden rests solely with the employers.
	
	Once normal operations resume, all employees who were onboarded using remote verification, must report to their employer within three business days for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate.
	
	Any audit of subsequent Forms I-9 would use the “in-person completed date” as a starting point for these employees only.
	
	This provision only applies to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely. If there are employees physically present at a work location, no exceptions are being implemented at this time for in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. However, if newly hired employees or existing employees are subject to COVID-19 quarantine or lockdown protocols, DHS will evaluate this on a case-by-case basis. Additionally, employers may designate an authorized representative to act on their behalf to complete Section 2. An authorized representative can be any person the employer designates to complete and sign Form I-9 on their behalf. The employer is liable for any violations in connection with the form or the verification process, including any violations in connection with the form or the verification process, including any violations of the employer sanctions laws committed by the person designated to act on the employer’s behalf.”
	
	Effective March 19, 2020, any employers who were served NOIs by DHS during the month of March 2020 and have not already responded will be granted an automatic extension for 60 days from the effective date. At the end of the 60-day extension period, DHS will determine if an additional extension will be granted.
	
	Going forward DHS will continue to monitor the ongoing National Emergency and provide updated guidance as needed. Employers are required to monitor the DHS and ICE websites for additional updates regarding when the extensions will be terminated, and normal operations will resume."
	
	
		 As per the USCIS, once the window of virtual verification use is concluded, users must fulfill physical inspection of documents presented by ALL employees that were originally hired on using this exception.
	
	
What Guardian Users Need to Do
	If and when the date for "resuming normal business operations" and officially ending the exception is determined by the USCIS, Guardian users must act quickly to physically inspect all documents within three business days.
	
Reporting on 'Virtual Verification' I-9s
	Guardian users that were employing the 'Covid-19 Exception' option within the application could create a report to pull all employees that were flagged with such I-9s. This can be done at any time, even before an official end date is declared.
	
	Example of the flag being used in an employee profile:
	
	To extend visibility of I-9s flagged with 'virtual verification', LawLogix introduced a new reportable field. This field,
	
		 I-9 Exception
	
	 , can be added to any Interactive Report that can include I-9 information. When included, the field notes
	
		 COVID-19
	
	 for any I-9 flagged for the exception.
	
	To add the field to a report:
	
- 
		Access the Reports module 
- 
		Select Interactive from the Report Types list 
- 
		Create or edit an existing report 
- 
		Select the Columns tab within the report details 
- 
		Select I-9 from the Tables list 
- 
		Scroll through the Field Name list and drag and drop I-9 Exception to the third list(the field should appear towards the top of the list, just below I-9 Ontime Margin ) 
- 
		Click Update Settings to save the changes 
Example New I-9 Exception Report Field:
Entering a Date of Normal Business Operations
	This date, when determined, must be entered into the Guardian system in order to kick off the physical inspection workflow. This must be performed by a Guardian administrator within the Policy/Preferences section of the Guardian Administration settings.
	
	Once this date is entered in the Administrative Settings, the I-9s flagged using the Virtual Verification Exception will appear on the
	
		 I-9s Needing Further Action
	
	 dashboard panel.
	
	Once this date is entered in the Administrative Settings, the I-9s flagged using the Virtual Verification Exception will appear on the
	
		 I-9s Needing Further Action
	
	 dashboard panel.
	
Noting Physical Inspection on I-9s
	After an virtual verification employee has their documents physically inspected, Guardian users can notate this directly in their profile.
	
Once clicked, a popup will appear with information on entering the date of physical inspection, as well as who inspected it.
	Once that is performed, similar to other amendments, users must approve the changes made.
	
	Once this is approved, the physical inspection note will appear in Section 2 of the employee profile.
	
Guardian Process – Different Individual Conducts Physical Inspection
	When the physical inspection of documents is conducted by a different person, employers using Guardian have two options:
	
Option 1 – Virtual Verification Amendment
	If the document verifier is a Guardian user with access to the I-9 record, the verifier can use the amendment workflow highlighted above and enter their full name and title in field when prompted:
	
	
	 If the verifier is NOT a Guardian user, the employer will need to complete the amendment process outside of Guardian (i.e., you will need to download the I-9, provide a copy to the employee along with instructions for the verifier to handwrite their name, title, and date of inspection, obtain the updated I-9 from the employee once completed, and upload to Guardian). Given the number of steps involved, this is not the recommended practice.
	
Option 2 – New Attestation (Recommended)
	If the verifier performing the physical inspection is NOT a Guardian user, the employer may choose to complete an entirely new I-9 (i.e., both sections 1 and 2) to document the physical inspection. Completing a new I-9 has the following benefits:
	
- 
		Completing a new Section 1 ensures you have the most recent (and up-to-date) information from the employee, which may be important if the employee has changed immigration status since the virtual I-9 was originally completed. 
- 
		Completing a new Section 2 enables employers to capture the authorized representative’s attestation and signature in Section 2 (per the ICE guidance). 
- 
		Employers using our Remote Verification Network can direct the employee to schedule an appointment with a nearby verification center for purposes of reviewing the original documents and completing Section 2. 
	Additional Compliance Pointers for Employers Creating a New I-9
	
- 
		Although the ICE guidance referenced above mentions completing a new Section 2 alone (which is not possible in Guardian), completing a new I-9 in this scenario should be permissible so long as the employer follows this process without regard to an employee's citizenship status, immigration status, or national origin. 
- 
		By design, Guardian will NOT submit these newly created I-9s for existing employees to E-Verify (assuming that an E-Verify case was properly created from the original virtual I-9). 
- 
		Once the second I-9 has been approved, employers should add an “Audit Note” to the I-9 which explains why a second record was created. 
	The following is a sample “Audit Note” to create for a new “physical inspection” I-9 record
	
| 
					
						 Date Entered
					
					 : 01/05/2021
					 
					
						 Entered By:
					
					 HR Rep
					 
					
						 Subject/Reference:
					
					 New I-9 for Physical Inspection
					 Note: This employee was originally verified by a different individual through the COVID-19 remote inspection process. ICE guidance indicates that employers should complete a new second page (Section 2) for the physical inspection in this scenario, which is not possible in our electronic I-9 solution. Accordingly, we have created this new Form I-9 (both Section 1 and 2) to document the physical inspection. Please see the prior I-9 for the remote inspection. |