© 2025 American Payroll Institute, Inc.
May 5, 2025 Volume 27 Issue 9
Arkansas Requires E-Verify for Public Employers
Effective January 1, 2026, state employers in Arkansas
will be required to verify employees with the federal
E-Verify program [H.B. 1974, L. 2025]. The law only applies to
employees who are hired after January 1, 2026. Employers
will not be required to verify the eligibility of current
employees.
State employers
An employer is defined as a state government
department, board, bureau, political subdivision, or agency.
The law will apply to an employee who has been directed,
allowed, or permitted to perform labor or services for any
kind of state employer.
Employer requirements
Registration. Effective January 1, 2026, employers will
be required to register with E-Verify and create an employer
account.
Employee verification. Effective January 1, 2026,
employers will be prohibited from employing unauthorized
aliens. An unauthorized alien follows the federal definition
to include an employee who is either not admitted for
permanent residence or not otherwise authorized for
employment in the United States.
After hiring an employee, a covered employer will
have to submit the employee’s name and information for
verification to the E-Verify program. Until the employee’s
information has been processed through E-Verify, the
employer must provisionally continue to employ the worker.
Employers will have to submit employee information to the
E-Verify program even if the employee is terminated less
than 3 business days after becoming employed.
If an employee is not verified as authorized to work
in the United States through E-Verify, the employer
may not employ, continue to employ, or reemploy that
employee. However, employers will not be required to
verify employment eligibility through E-Verify for current
employees when the new law takes effect on January 1,
2026.
The new law also excepts employees from the
employment verification requirements if they have been
hired as of January 1, 2026, so an employee who is hired
before January 1, 2026, but begins work after that date
would not need to be verified.
Recordkeeping
Employers will be required to keep records of
verification for the longer of the employee’s duration of
employment or 3 years.
Failure to comply with the registration, verification,
recordkeeping, or other requirements of the law will be
considered a violation. The state law is intended to expand
on federal immigration laws, and it may not be used to
reduce an employer’s obligations under federal law if
any of the employer requirements fall short of federal
requirements.
Enforcement
The Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing
(ADLL) may request documentation from an employer
that it relied upon to make an employment verification
determination. The ADLL will be required to rely on the U.S.
government’s determination through E-Verify whether the
employee is authorized to work in the U.S. The ADLL will not
be allowed to make an independent determination as to
whether the worker is an unauthorized alien.
Effective July 1, 2026, if the ADLL determines that an
employer failed to use E-Verify to confirm the employment
eligibility of an employee, the ADLL will issue a notice of the
ADLL’s determination of noncompliance. After an employer
receives a determination of noncompliance, the employer
will have 30 days to cure the noncompliance.
Other states with employment verification
requirements
Several other states also have new hire employment
verification requirements, including: Alabama, Arizona,
Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana,
Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North
Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Texas, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia. Be sure to check state
laws carefully to see if they apply to public and/or private
employers (see Guide to State Payroll Laws, Table 5.3 – State
Employment Verification Laws).
New Jersey Court Rules Sales Agents Are Employees Under the ABC Test
The Supreme Court of New Jersey recently ruled that sales
agents were properly found to be employees and not
independent contractors under the state ABC Test [Triad
Advisors, LLC v. N.J. Department of Labor and Workforce
Starting with this issue of PAYSTATE UPDATE, references to The Payroll Source® and Guide to State Payroll Laws refer to the
2025 editions of the books, which are printed and available online on the PayrollOrg Bookshelf. The online versions of
The Payroll Source® and Guide to State Payroll Laws will be updated throughout the year.
May 5, 2025 Volume 27 Issue 9
Arkansas Requires E-Verify for Public Employers
Effective January 1, 2026, state employers in Arkansas
will be required to verify employees with the federal
E-Verify program [H.B. 1974, L. 2025]. The law only applies to
employees who are hired after January 1, 2026. Employers
will not be required to verify the eligibility of current
employees.
State employers
An employer is defined as a state government
department, board, bureau, political subdivision, or agency.
The law will apply to an employee who has been directed,
allowed, or permitted to perform labor or services for any
kind of state employer.
Employer requirements
Registration. Effective January 1, 2026, employers will
be required to register with E-Verify and create an employer
account.
Employee verification. Effective January 1, 2026,
employers will be prohibited from employing unauthorized
aliens. An unauthorized alien follows the federal definition
to include an employee who is either not admitted for
permanent residence or not otherwise authorized for
employment in the United States.
After hiring an employee, a covered employer will
have to submit the employee’s name and information for
verification to the E-Verify program. Until the employee’s
information has been processed through E-Verify, the
employer must provisionally continue to employ the worker.
Employers will have to submit employee information to the
E-Verify program even if the employee is terminated less
than 3 business days after becoming employed.
If an employee is not verified as authorized to work
in the United States through E-Verify, the employer
may not employ, continue to employ, or reemploy that
employee. However, employers will not be required to
verify employment eligibility through E-Verify for current
employees when the new law takes effect on January 1,
2026.
The new law also excepts employees from the
employment verification requirements if they have been
hired as of January 1, 2026, so an employee who is hired
before January 1, 2026, but begins work after that date
would not need to be verified.
Recordkeeping
Employers will be required to keep records of
verification for the longer of the employee’s duration of
employment or 3 years.
Failure to comply with the registration, verification,
recordkeeping, or other requirements of the law will be
considered a violation. The state law is intended to expand
on federal immigration laws, and it may not be used to
reduce an employer’s obligations under federal law if
any of the employer requirements fall short of federal
requirements.
Enforcement
The Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing
(ADLL) may request documentation from an employer
that it relied upon to make an employment verification
determination. The ADLL will be required to rely on the U.S.
government’s determination through E-Verify whether the
employee is authorized to work in the U.S. The ADLL will not
be allowed to make an independent determination as to
whether the worker is an unauthorized alien.
Effective July 1, 2026, if the ADLL determines that an
employer failed to use E-Verify to confirm the employment
eligibility of an employee, the ADLL will issue a notice of the
ADLL’s determination of noncompliance. After an employer
receives a determination of noncompliance, the employer
will have 30 days to cure the noncompliance.
Other states with employment verification
requirements
Several other states also have new hire employment
verification requirements, including: Alabama, Arizona,
Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana,
Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North
Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Texas, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia. Be sure to check state
laws carefully to see if they apply to public and/or private
employers (see Guide to State Payroll Laws, Table 5.3 – State
Employment Verification Laws).
New Jersey Court Rules Sales Agents Are Employees Under the ABC Test
The Supreme Court of New Jersey recently ruled that sales
agents were properly found to be employees and not
independent contractors under the state ABC Test [Triad
Advisors, LLC v. N.J. Department of Labor and Workforce
Starting with this issue of PAYSTATE UPDATE, references to The Payroll Source® and Guide to State Payroll Laws refer to the
2025 editions of the books, which are printed and available online on the PayrollOrg Bookshelf. The online versions of
The Payroll Source® and Guide to State Payroll Laws will be updated throughout the year.
