US probing Infosys’ employer eligibility

United States, 23rd April: Here comes yet another blow to Infosys, India’s No. 2 exporter of software services.

The news is that the employer eligibility of Infosys Inc. is being probed by the US Department of Homeland Security following errors found in identity verification forms of some of Infosys’ employees.

Infosys’ employer eligibility verification by DHS-Giving details about the latest happening, Infosys stated during a filing made to the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) that the US DHS (Department of Homeland Security) has discovered notable percentage of errors in the Form I-9 of some of its staff working in the nation.

At the time of hiring, each employee is under obligation to duly complete an I-9 form.

The form is meant for verification of the identity of an employee and for establishing the fact that the concerned employee has the eligibility for accepting employment in the US.

Penalties on Infosys—The leading IT firm based in India is going to face penalties and fines from the DHS due to errors in the Forms I-9. And this is becoming a cause of serious concern for Infosys. It has already begun discussions with the office of the US Attorney to sort out the matter. Meanwhile, the company said it is not clear about the exact amount of loss likely to be incurred if the investigation highlights any errors but it is concerned about the affects of the penalties on its businesses.

As a ruling, the US imposes a fine ranging between $110(US dollars) and $1,100(US dollars) for any errors in the requirements for each I-9 Form.

Passing through bad phase--The company had spelled bad news for the investors after its fiscal fourth quarter earnings were revealed on 13th April this year.

The news led to a decline of 12 percent in the company’s shares and eliminated nearly $3 billion from the market value of the company. Bangalore based Infosys has been in the news for wrong reasons earlier too. It had been accused of violating US visa norms in May 2011 following a petition by its own employee based in the US.

Jack Jay Palmer said the company was guilty of abusing US B1 business visas which are not meant for sending staff onsite on work. US B1 visas allow foreign workers to come as short-term business visitors.