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I-9 revised effective April 3, 2009
U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
changed list of documents acceptable for Employment
Eligibility Verification,
Form I-9
Background:
All employers, agricultural recruiters and referrers for a fee are required to
verify the identity and employment authorization of each person they hire for
employment in the United States. This requirement is set forth by section
274A(a)(1)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(a)(1)(B)).
USCIS has revised the Form I-9 to bring it into compliance with the governing
statutes. The most significant change to the Form I-9 is the requirement that
all documents presented during the Form I-9 completion process be unexpired.
This and other revisions are detailed below.
Questions and Answers:
Q. Why is a revised Form I-9 being released?
A. The revised Form I-9 reflects changes made to the list of documents
acceptable for the Form I-9 in accordance with the Department of Homeland
Security’s (DHS) recent interim final rule. The rule furthers DHS’s ongoing
effort to increase the security of the employment authorization verification
process. The new rule:
- Requires that all documents presented during the verification process be
unexpired;
- Eliminates List A identity and employment authorization documentation
Forms I-688, I-688A, and I-688B (Temporary Resident Card and outdated
Employment Authorization Cards);
- Adds foreign passports containing certain machine-readable immigrant
visas to List A;
- Adds to List A as evidence of identity and employment authorization
valid passports for citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and
the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), along with Form I-94 or Form
I-94A indicating nonimmigrant admission under the Compact of Free
Association Between the United States and the FSM or RMI ; and
- Makes technical updates.
Q: Where can I get the new Form I-9?
A: http://www.buffalostate.edu/offices/hr/forms.asp
Q: What is the difference between the revised Form I-9 and the old one?
A: The biggest difference in the revised Form I-9 is that all
documents presented during the verification process must be
unexpired. Other than several
technical updates, the following documents have been added or removed:
Two documents have been
added to List A (Documents that Establish Both Identity and
Employment Authorization) on the List of Acceptable Documents:
- A temporary I-551 printed notation on a machine-readable
immigrant visa in addition to the foreign passport with a temporary
I-551 stamp; and
- A passport from the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) or the
Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) with a valid Form I-94 or
Form I-94A indicating nonimmigrant admission under the Compact of
Free Association Between the United States and the FSM or RMI.
Although prior regulations refer to temporary I-551 "stamps," the
Department of State for several years has been affixing
machine-readable immigrant visas (MRIVs) that contain a pre-printed
temporary I-551 notation in the foreign passports of aliens
immigrating to the United States. DHS therefore is updating the
regulations to reflect this alternate temporary I-551 document with
the pre-printed temporary I-551 notation on MRIVs.
Additionally, under both the preexisting Compacts with the FSM and
the RMI, and the Compacts as amended, most citizens of the FSM and
RMI are eligible for admission to the United States as nonimmigrants.
Such citizens of the FSM and RMI have the privilege of residing and
working in the United States. Amendments to the Compacts include
provisions that eliminated the need for citizens of the FSM and RMI
to obtain an Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766). By
adding to List A the FSM and RMI passports, with a valid Form I-94
or I-94A, citizens of the FSM and RMI will be able to use their
passports in the I-9 process without the need to obtain a separate
Employment Authorization Document.
Three documents were
removed from List A of the List of Acceptable Documents:
- Form I-688, Temporary Resident Card;
- Form I-688A, Employment Authorization Card; and
- Form I-688B, Employment Authorization Card.
Q. Why can’t I present an expired document?
A. DHS wants to ensure that documents presented for use in the Form I-9 process
must be valid and reliably establish both identity and employment authorization.
Expired documents may not portray a valid status. They are also prone to
tampering and fraudulent use. This change takes into account the limits placed
on these documents by their issuing authorities. If a document does not contain
an expiration date, such as a Social Security card, it is considered unexpired.
Q. Why is only one type of Employment Authorization Document left in List A?
A. Forms I-688, I-688A and I-688B are older employment authorization documents.
These are no longer issued and have now expired.
Q. In Section 1 – Employee Information and Verification, of the revised Form
I-9, an employee can now attest to being either a citizen or noncitizen national
of the United States. Who is a noncitizen national?
A. Noncitizen nationals are persons born in American Samoa, certain former
citizens of the former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and certain
children of noncitizen nationals born abroad. More information on noncitizen
U.S. nationals can be found on the State Department website linked under the
"Related Links" section on the upper right-hand side of this page.Q: As an
employer, can I accept documents that used to be on the Form I-9 but aren’t now?
A: No. Beginning 45 days
after publication in the Federal Register, employers may only accept documents listed on
the List of Acceptable Documents on the revised Form I-9. When an
employee must be reverified because his or her employment authorization has
expired, employers should ensure that they use the revised Form I-9 with its new
List of Acceptable Documents. An employer may not reverify the employee by
completing Section 3 – Updating and Reverification, of the previous version of
the Form I-9.
Q: Are there any changes in the way the revised Form I-9 is completed?
A: No. The revised form should be completed exactly the same way as the old one
was. Employers should be mindful of changes to the types of documents that they
may accept in Section 2 – Employer Review and Verification.
Q. Do I need to complete the revised version of the Form I-9 for all my
employees or just the new ones?
A: Employers only need to complete the revised version of the Form I-9 for new employees. Employers should not be completing
Forms I-9 for existing employees. However, employers must use the Form I-9 when
their employees require reverification.
Q: When should employers begin using the version of Form I-9 marked with a
revision date of “(Rev. 02/02/09) N”?
A: Employers must use the revised
Form I-9 for all new hires (and
reverifications) beginning 45 days after publication in the Federal Register.
The current edition of the Form I-9, dated 06/05/2007, will no longer be valid
for use as of that date. Employers who continue to use the 06/05/2007 edition of
the Form I-9 on or after that date may be subject to civil money penalties. A
For more information, visit USCIS.
If you have any questions, please contact the Payroll Office at ext. 4124.
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