New hire reporting — 20-day deadline
Arkansas employers must report all newly hired and rehired employees to the Arkansas New Hire Registry within 20 days of the employee's hire date. This reporting obligation is created by Ark. Code § 11-10-902(b)(4), which requires any employer subject to Arkansas unemployment compensation law to report each newly hired individual who is or will be employed for wages in Arkansas. The report must be made within 20 days of the hiring date, or, if filing electronically or magnetically, by transmitting two monthly reports 12–16 days apart, as provided in § 11-10-902(b)(4)(C).
Who must report:
- Any entity or person defined as an “employer” for unemployment insurance purposes in Arkansas must comply.
- Both new hires and employees rehired after a separation of at least 60 consecutive days must be reported as "new hires" (Ark. Code § 11-10-902(5)(A)(ii)).
How to file:
- The Division of Workforce Services prescribes reporting forms and accepts reports by mail, fax, or electronically. The electronic system permits alternative timing of report batches as described above.
- While agency procedures can change, the statutory requirements are fixed in § 11-10-902 and its subsections.
Purpose: Reporting supports child support enforcement and anti-fraud efforts. Employers must retain documentation of timely compliance.
Source: Ark. Code § 11-10-902
E-Verify mandate — July 1, 2026 effective date for private employers
Arkansas Act 948 of 2025 (House Bill 1974) created the E-Verify Requirement Act, effective in two phases: state government employers must use E-Verify for employees hired on or after January 1, 2026, and all other employers must use E-Verify for employees hired on or after July 1, 2026. The Act is codified at Ark. Code §§ 21-3-901 through 21-3-903.
Statutory scope and the "all other employers" language The codified subchapter defines "Employer" as "a state government department, board, bureau, political subdivision, or agency licensed under statute or rule to operate in this state" (Ark. Code § 21-3-902(2)). However, Section 3 of Act 948—the non-codified effective-date provision—establishes that state employers must comply for hires on or after January 1, 2026, and that "all other employers" must comply for hires on or after July 1, 2026. The statute does not further define "all other employers." The Arkansas Department of Labor and industry guidance interpret this phrase to include all private employers regardless of size, making Arkansas one of a handful of states with a universal E-Verify mandate. Employers should confirm applicability with the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing or monitor forthcoming agency rules, but the plain language of Section 3's effective-date clause extends the mandate beyond public entities.
What E-Verify is The statute defines E-Verify as "the electronic verification system operated by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, or its successor program, as authorized by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, Pub. L. No. 104-208" (Ark. Code § 21-3-902(3)). E-Verify compares information from an employee's Form I-9 against Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security records to confirm work authorization.
Verification timing and enrollment Federal E-Verify program rules require employers to open an E-Verify case within three business days of an employee's start date. Arkansas's statute does not add or modify this timing; employers subject to the Arkansas mandate follow the federal E-Verify MOU and operational procedures. Employers must enroll at e-verify.uscis.gov before the applicable effective date.
Current employees The mandate applies prospectively. Employees hired before January 1, 2026 (for state employers) or before July 1, 2026 (for other employers) are not subject to E-Verify verification under the Arkansas statute.
Enforcement and penalties Act 948 does not specify state-level administrative penalties, fines, or enforcement procedures for noncompliance. Federal I-9 and employment-verification penalties under 8 U.S.C. § 1324a continue to apply, and employers who knowingly hire or continue to employ unauthorized workers remain subject to federal civil and criminal liability. The Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing has not yet published enforcement guidance as of the statute's enactment. Employers should watch for administrative rules implementing the Act.
Recordkeeping The Arkansas statute does not prescribe a state-specific retention period for E-Verify records. Employers must comply with federal Form I-9 retention requirements (three years after hire or one year after separation, whichever is later) and retain all E-Verify case documentation in accordance with the federal E-Verify MOU.
Practical onboarding steps Employers not currently enrolled in E-Verify should register, designate an E-Verify administrator, integrate the verification step into their hire checklist, and train HR staff on Tentative Non-Confirmation (TNC) procedures and anti-discrimination rules. E-Verify enrollment does not eliminate the risk of federal I-9 audits or Immigration and Customs Enforcement worksite actions, because the system cannot detect identity theft (an employee presenting another person's valid documents).
Arkansas new-hire reporting — civil penalties under federal floor (Arkansas silent)
Arkansas law requires employers to report all new hires to the state new hire registry within 20 days (see Ark. Code § 11-10-902), but does not impose state statutory penalties for late or missing reports. The Arkansas Code, including § 11-10-902 and related provisions, does not contain any penalty clause or fine amount for failures relating to the new hire reporting obligation. A review of official Arkansas statutes, regulations, and Division of Workforce Services (DWS) publications finds no Arkansas-specific civil penalty schedule for violating the new hire report deadlines.
Federal law, by contrast, authorizes civil penalties for new hire reporting failures. Under 42 U.S.C. § 653a(d), states may impose a civil money penalty on employers who fail to report new hires, up to $25 for each violation (each missed or late report), or up to $500 for a conspiracy between the employer and employee to not report or to submit false information. However, while Arkansas has a statutory reporting requirement, it has not enacted state law or regulation actually imposing these federal-authorized penalties at the state level. Thus, as of June 16, 2026, employers are required to comply with the reporting obligation, but Arkansas law does not itself create or enforce monetary fines for missed or late new hire reports.
Employers should monitor for future changes, as Arkansas could enact penalty rules in the future to align with federal authority. The reporting requirement remains mandatory.
Source: Ark. Code § 11-10-902 | 42 U.S.C. § 653a
Alternative electronic filing deadline for Arkansas new-hire reporting
Arkansas allows employers who submit new-hire reports magnetically or electronically to use an alternative reporting timeline instead of the standard per-hire 20-day deadline. Under Ark. Code § 11-10-902(b)(4)(C), employers that qualify may file their new-hire reports by making two monthly transmissions. These transmissions must be separated by no fewer than 12 days and no more than 16 days—so the first and second monthly reports cannot be less than 12 days apart, nor more than 16 days apart. This rule permits a batch-filing approach for employers whose HR or payroll systems make it more practical to report hires in bulk rather than individually.
Who qualifies:
- Only employers who file new-hire reports electronically or magnetically (such as by disk or through the Division of Workforce Services online portal) can use the alternative timeline. Employers submitting paper reports by mail or fax must still comply with the 20-day per-hire deadline.
- The Arkansas Division of Workforce Services has not published more specific eligibility criteria for this alternative schedule, other than specifying the medium (electronic or magnetic) and the required transmission intervals.
- The employer is responsible for ensuring all hires and rehires who meet the reporting trigger (see prior section on 20-day rule) are included in each batch submission in a timely manner.
Interaction with standard rule:
- Employers not using magnetic or electronic filing must continue to file within 20 days of each hire or rehire.
This alternative timeline is established by statute and does not require special pre-approval, as long as the employer is using a qualified filing method and meets the required intervals.
Source: Ark. Code § 11-10-902(b)(4)(C)
Form I-9 completion and retention requirements for Arkansas employers
Federal I-9 requirement applies Arkansas does not have a separate state version of the employment eligibility verification (Form I-9) requirement. All Arkansas employers must comply with the federal Form I-9 process under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), which is enforced by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). There are no Arkansas statutory or regulatory additions to the federal I-9 rules at this time.
Timing: employee and employer sections
- Section 1 (employee portion) must be completed and signed by the employee no later than the first day of employment (i.e., the start date for wages), but not before the job offer has been accepted.
- Section 2 (employer review and verification) must be completed by the employer no later than the end of the third business day after the employee's first day of paid work.
- If employment lasts less than three business days, Section 2 must be completed on the first day.
Acceptable documents for verification USCIS publishes the official lists of acceptable documents for I-9 verification. Employees must present either:
- One document from List A (establishing both identity and work authorization); or
- One document from List B (identity) and one from List C (work authorization).
Employers cannot specify which documents the employee must supply, but must ensure everything matches the official I-9 lists and appears genuine and relates to the employee.
Retention: how long to keep I-9s Employers must retain each employee’s completed Form I-9 for:
- Three years after the date of hire, or
- One year after the date employment ends—whichever is later.
I-9 forms may be stored on paper, microform, or electronically, but must be available for inspection on three business days’ notice by authorized government officers.
Arkansas-specific context Arkansas’s new E-Verify law (see Act 948 of 2025, codified at Ark. Code § 21-3-901 et seq.) does not alter, replace, or add to the required federal I-9 steps, including completion deadlines, lists of acceptable documents, or retention periods. It does require electronic E-Verify checks for new hires after effective dates but does not affect the underlying I-9 paperwork process. For full E-Verify guidance, see the "E-Verify mandate for private employers" section above.
Source: USCIS Form I-9 Instructions | 8 C.F.R. § 274a.2 | Arkansas Act 948 of 2025 (codified at Ark. Code §§ 21-3-901 through 21-3-903)
E-Verify Requirement Act — Enforcement mechanism and state audit authority
Enforcement authority and compliance monitoring (Act 948 of 2025) Arkansas Act 948 of 2025 (the E-Verify Requirement Act) establishes a statewide mandate that all employers (public and private) use the federal E-Verify system for new hires as of July 1, 2026, but its enforcement terms are sparse. The Act, codified at Ark. Code §§ 21-3-901 through 21-3-903, does not create or specify any state-level administrative penalty, fine, or explicit enforcement procedure for private employers who fail to comply. Critically, the text of the Act does not grant the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing, or any other state agency, an express statutory authority to:
- audit or investigate private employer E-Verify compliance;
- require reporting or submission of E-Verify verification records to state authorities; or
- directly penalize noncompliance with a state-imposed sanction.
Comparative context and reserved rulemaking power Where some states (e.g., Florida, Arizona) have enacted express state-level enforcement layers for their E-Verify mandates—including penalty schedules, random or complaint-driven audits, and affirmative powers to bar violators from government contracts—Arkansas Act 948 is silent on those mechanisms for private-sector employers. Ark. Code § 21-3-903(a) gives the Department of Labor and Licensing the power to “adopt rules to administer this subchapter,” but as of June 16, 2026, the Department has not published rules addressing inspections, audits, or compliance investigations for private employers, nor is such authority conferred in the Act’s operative text.
Effect: compliance tethered to federal enforcement In the absence of state-specific mechanisms, enforcement of E-Verify compliance in Arkansas defaults to existing federal consequences under 8 U.S.C. § 1324a and related DHS/USCIS oversight. Employers remain at risk of federal audits and sanctions for hiring unauthorized workers, but Act 948 itself does not arm state agencies with monitoring or penalty powers over private employers regarding E-Verify obligations. Federal penalties for employment verification violations can be found at 8 U.S.C. § 1324a.