As reported January 28th in The Irish Times, the paper has obtained information using the Freedom of Information Act to discover that the US Chamber of Commerce has suggested that, to encourage them to live and work in Ireland,  top executives working in Ireland should pay no more than twenty-five (25) percent of their total compensation in taxes including the universal social charge (USC).  The Chamber has also proposed that that the present cap on the Special Assignee Relief Programme (SARP) be lifted.  According to The Irish Times, “the chamber said high marginal tax rates were acting as a disincentive for attracting the best talent to live and work in Ireland.”  Click here to view the article.

According to The Irish Times, under the SARP, as modified, an executive earning the top wages covered, € 500,000 which would normally be taxed at 41%, would be exempt from tax on €141,666 of earnings, for savings of €58.083.  “A married executive in a single income household with a salary of €500,000 who avails of the programme now pays €172,540 in income tax and USC contributions. If income tax and USC were capped at 25 per cent of total salary, the same executive would pay €125,000, increasing net earnings by €47,457 a year.” This is in addition to tax breaks on school fees and trips home for the first five years.  Click here to read the article.

While the Irish Minister for Finance has defended the Chamber’s proposals as being necessary to attract extra employment, the common Irish taxpayer is not happy, believing the suggested 25% ceiling on taxes for a foreign executive to be unfair.

Companies with US top executives in Ireland and those thinking of sending top executives to Ireland will want to follow this as it develops.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced yesterday that 652 businesses nationwide have been targeted for in-person inspection of I-9 employment verification forms. Upon initial notification of the inspection, targeted employers are given a very short time frame, as little as three days, to prepare for a meeting with federal officials in which the company's Form I-9 records will be reviewed. Some employers have already begun receiving these audit notices.

According to ICE, the 652 businesses targeted in this nationwide audit have been selected as a result of specific leads and information obtained by the agency. As part of the agency's self-described "bold, new audit initiative," businesses in a wide range of industries have been affected including manufacturing, restaurants, construction and trucking.
All employers are required to complete and retain a Form I-9 for each employee hired after November 6, 1986 to show that the employee is authorized to work in the United States. Additionally, the employer must re-verify documents for any employees whose work authorization documents are expiring.

In addition to a properly completed Form I-9 for all current and recently terminated employees, employers are being asked to turn over payroll documentation, any Social Security "no-match" letters they may have received, and other employee documentation.

If you receive a Notice of Inspection, contact your Fisher & Phillips attorney, or any member of our Global Immigration Practice Group. Our Immigration Rapid Response Team can help you preserve your right to a three-day preparation window, and can conduct an emergency audit of all I-9 forms. The Team can be reached at (404) 240-4224 or via email at immigration@laborlawyers.com.

If you are using the Fisher & Phillips Electronic I-9 Solution program to electronically complete and store I-9 forms, utilizing the "error report" feature can alert you to all I-9 forms that are incomplete, expired, or should be purged.