www.E-Verify.govwww.E-Verify.gov
Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification
Disclaimer
This presentation is intended for employers and their authorized
representatives. This presentation provides basic guidance about
the rules and responsibilities during the employment eligibility
verification process. For more information visit the I-9 Central
website.
This presentation is not intended for members of the media. For
all media inquiries visit the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services Media Contacts webpage.
Form I-9 Overview 2
Agenda
• Background
• Completing the Form I-
9
• Storage and Retention
• Form I-9 and E-
Verify
• Resources
Form I-9 Overview 3
Background
In 1986, in an effort to control illegal
immigration, Congress passed the
Immigration Reform and Control Act
(IRCA).
IRCA forbids employers from knowingly
hiring individuals who do not have work
authorization in the United States.
The employment eligibility verification
provisions, and sanctions, of
IRCA are
found in
Section 274A of the
Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA).
Form I-9 Overview 4
Working in the U.S.
• Citizens of the United States
• Noncitizen Nationals of the United States
• Lawful Permanent Residents
• Aliens Authorized to Work
Form I-9 Overview 5
Employment Verification
To comply with the employment eligibility verification provisions
ALL employers must:
For Employees hired after November 6, 1986
• Verify the identity and employment authorization documents
• Complete and retain a Form I-9
Employers MUST refrain from discriminating against individuals on
the basis of actual or perceived national origin, citizenship or
immigration status
Form I-9 Overview 6
Preventing Discrimination
The anti-discrimination provisions of the INA prohibit four types
of unlawful conduct:
Citizenship or immigration status discrimination*
National origin discrimination*
Unfair documentary practices during Form I-9 process
Retaliation
* Actual or perceived
Form I-9 Overview 7
Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER)
The anti-discrimination provisions of the INA are enforced by:
Department of Justice Civil Rights Division
Immigrant and Employee Rights Section
• Employees may contact IER anonymously for information regarding employment
discrimination and employee rights and responsibilities.
1-800-255-7688 (TDD: 1-800-616-5525)
• Employers may also contact IER anonymously.
1-800-255-8155 (TDD: 1-800-362-2735)
Form I-9 Overview 8
See
IER’s “Employer Dos and Don’ts.”
Form I-9 Requirements
As of May 1, 2020 you can only use Form I-9, Employment Eligibility
Verification, with the 10/21/2019 revision date for all new hires and
reverifications.
• Employers are not required to have Forms I-9 for employees hired
on or before November 6, 1986.
You may delegate the authority to complete Form I-
9 to an authorized
representative, however, you will retain liability for any errors.
Visit
I-9 Central Related News for updates.
Form I-9 Overview 9
Completing Form I-9
Form I-9 Overview 10
Form I-9 Exceptions
You are NOT required to complete Form I-9 for:
Casual domestic service employees working in a private household when work
is sporadic, irregular or intermittent;
Independent contractors for whom you do not set work hours or provide tools
to do the job; or
Employees working outside the United States.*
* This statement excludes the 50 States, District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico,
U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
Form I-9 Overview 11
Lists of Acceptable Documents
• Use the most current Form I-9 version,
10/21/2019
• Y
ou must make the Lists of Acceptable
Do
cuments available to your EMPLOYEEs
when they complete the Form I-9.
The EMPLOYEE MUST provide:
• One document from Li
st A (document
that establishes both identity and
employment authorization); or
• One document from List
B (document
that establishes identity) AND one
document from List C (document that
establishes employment authorization).
*If you are an E-Verify employer, you
may only accept List B documents that
contain a photograph.
Form I-9 Overview 12
Form I-9 Section 1: Employee Information and Attestation
• The employee completes
Section 1 no later than 1
st
day of work for pay
• Employees of E-Verify
empl
oyers must provide
their Social Security
Number.
• The email address is
op
tional
If provided, E-Verify
employers must enter it in
E-Verify
• Attestation
• Preparer or Translator
Section 1: Preparer/Translator Certification
Required when Section 1 is prepared by someone other than the employee.
Employees must:
• Check the first box if they don’t use a preparer or translator. They should not enter
anything in these fields, because the check box is equivalent to stating “N/A.”
• Check the second box if they use a preparer or translator, then choose the number
of preparers and translators used from the drop-down menu.
Form I-9 Overview 14
Form I-9 Section 2: Employer Certification of Document Review
• You complete Section 2 no
later than 3 business days
after the employee begins
work for pay.
• The person that examines
the original, unexpired
documents in the presence
of the employee MUST fill
out, sign and date Section 2.
• Date fields
Today’s date
First day of employment
COVID-19:
Form I-9 Physical Document Review Flexibility
On March 20, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) announced flexibility in complying with requirements related to Form I-9,
due to COVID-19. These provisions have been extended through November 19, 2020.
Applies only to employers and workplaces that are operating remotely and employers
must provide written documentation of their remote onboarding and telework policy
for each employee. This burden rests solely with the employers.
Employers must inspect the Section 2 documents remotely and obtain, inspect, and
retain copies of the documents, within three business days of the employee’s start date.
Enter “Remote Inspection completed on MM/DD/YYYY” in the Section 2 Additional
Information field.
Within 3 business days of resuming normal operations, physically inspect documents
with the employee present.
Write “COVID-19 - Documents physically examined on MM/DD/YYYY” as well as the
initials of the person who performed the physical inspection to the Section 2 Additional
Information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate.
See Form I-9 completion examples and the ICE news release for additional information.
Form I-9 Overview 16
Section 2: Examining Documents
You are not required to be a
document expert
• You MUST accept a document your
employee presents if it:
Reasonably appears to be genuine;
and
Relates to the individual presenting it.
• The document must be original
document(s) provided by the employee –
photocopies are NOT acceptable, except
for a certified copy of a birth certificate.
Form I-9 Overview 17
Section 2: Receipt Rule
• A receipt showing that your employee has applied to replace
a document that was lost, stolen or damaged.
• The receipt must come from the originating agency issuing
the replacement document.
• The employee must present the replacement document
within 90 days of the hire date.
Receipts are never acceptable if employment will last less than three business days.
*Do not create the E-Verify case until the employee shows you the replacement
document.
Form I-9 Overview 18
Section 2: Copying Documents
You may choose to make copies of documents employees
present for Section 2.
If you choose to photocopy documents:
• You must do so for all employees; and
• Be consistent and copy all documents
employees provide.
* If you are an E-Verify employer; you must photocopy the following documents if your
employee voluntarily provides them for Section 2:
• Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card (commonly called a Green Card);
• Form I-766, Employment Authorization Document; or
• A U.S. passport or passport card
Form I-9 Overview 19
Form I-9 Section 3: Reverification
• Employers MUST reverify an employee using Form I-9 Section 3 if their temporary
employment authorization or temporary employment authorization document has expired.
• You MAY als
o complete Section 3 if you:
Rehire the employee within 3 years of the date you first completed Form I-9*; or
Update the employee’s biographic information
* Do not create a new E-Verify case for an existing employee you are reverifying.
Form I-9 Overview 20
Section 3: When to Reverify on Form I-9
Reverify
•
An Employment Authorization
Document (Form I-766) with an
expiration date
•
Form I-94 with temporary I-551 stamp
•
Unexpired foreign passport with
temporary I-551 stamp
•
Expired Permanent Resident
Card presented with Form I-797
Do not Reverify
•
U.S. citizens and noncitizen nationals
•
U.S. passports or passport cards
•
Permanent Resident who present
unexpired Permanent Resident or
Alien Registration Receipt card (Form
I-551)
•
List B documents
Form I-9 Overview 21
Correcting Form I-9
Correcting Mistakes
If you discover a mistake on Form I-9, correct the existing form OR prepare a new
Form I-9:
If you choose to correct the existing Form I-9, line out the incorrect portions,
enter the correct information, and initial and date the correction.
If you do a new Form I-9, keep the old form with the new form. You should
also attach a short memo to both the new and old Forms I-9 stating the reason
for your action.
Missing Forms
If you discover you are missing the Form I-9 for an employee:
Give the employee the current version of the Form I-9;
Complete the form as soon as possible;
Do not backdate the form; and
Attach a signed and dated explanation of the corrective action.
Guidance for Conducting Internal Audits
Form I-9 Overview 22
Storage
• You must have a Form I-9 on file for all current employees.
• Store Forms I-9 securely in a way that meets your business needs – on site,
off-site, storage facility.
• Store copies of documents with the Form I-9 or with the employee’s
records.
• Ensure that only authorized personnel have access to stored Forms I-9
.
• Make Forms I-9
available within 3 days of an official request for inspection.
Form I-9 Overview 23
Retention
Calculate how much longer
you must keep an employee’s
Form I-9 once they stop working for
you:
If they worked for less than two
years, retain their form for three
years after the date you entered in
the First Day of Employment field.
OR
If they worked for more than two
years, retain their form for one more
year after the date they stop working
for you.
EXAMPLES:
John Smith (Hired Nov. 1, 2019,
terminated May 5, 2020): John worked for
less than 2 years, keep his form for 3
years, until 11/01/2022
Betsy Ross (Hired Nov. 1, 2002, terminated
May 5, 2020): Betsy worked for more
than 2 years, keep her form for one more
year, until 05/05/2021
Form I-9 Overview 24
Form I-9 and E-Verify
Form I-9 and E-Verify
You must complete Form I-9 before you create a case in E-Verify.
Form I-9 Overview 25
What is E-Verify?
• Free web-based service that’s
fast and easy to use
• Electronically verifies the
emp
loyment eligibility of:
Newly hired employees; and
Existing employees assigned
t
o work on a qualifying
federal contract
• Partnership between the U.S.
Depa
rtment of Homeland
Security (DHS) and the Social
Security Administration (SSA)
Form I-9 Overview 26
E-Verify Goals
Reduce unauthorized
employment
Minimize v
erification-related
discrimination
Be q
uick and non-burdensome
to employers
Protect c
ivil liberties and
employee privacy
Form I-9 Overview 27
How Does E-Verify Work?
Form I-9 Overview 28
Form I-9 Resources
I-9 Central
I-9 Central
Revised I-9 Table of Changes
I-9Central/Espanol (Spanish)
M-274, Handbook for Employers
M-274 Summary of Changes
Mergers & Acquisitions
Examples of documents:
Acceptable Documents
Automatic Extensions
Combination Documents
I-9 Webinar on Demand &
Vignettes
Form I-9 Overview 29
E-Verify Engagement
Take advantage of our FREE Engagement services
Join another public webinar or request a speaker for your event or
customized training.
Topics include: Form I-9 E-Verify Overview, E-Verify for Existing Users, Employee
Rights, myE-Verify
Form I-9 Overview 32
Seek approval for E-Verify® Logo Authorization
You can use logos on websites, job announcements /applications, or company
broadcasts to further advertise your company’s commitment to a legal workforce.
Customer Service Contact Center
E-Verify received the highest rating for customer
service of all federal agencies in the American
Customer Satisfaction Survey!
Employer Hotline: (888) 464-4218
Employee Hotline: (888) 897-7781
Form I-9 E-Mail: i-9Central@uscis.dhs.gov
E-Verify E-Mail: E-Ver[email protected].gov
Form I-9 Website: www.uscis.gov/i-9Central
E-Verify Website: www.E-Verify.gov
Form I-9 Overview 33
