Employment Eligibility Reference Information

Do citizens and nationals of the U. S. need to complete an Employment Eligibility Verification form (Form I-9)?
Yes. Although automatically eligible for employment, citizens and nationals of the U.S. must complete a Form I-9. Citizens of the U.S. include persons born in Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Nationals of the U.S. include persons born in American Samoa, including Swains Island.

Is a completed Form I-9 required for everyone who applies for employment with a company?
No. A completed Form I-9 is only needed for those applicants that are hired. A person is "hired" when they begin to work for compensation.

What is an employer’s responsibility in regards to Form I-9?

• Make sure the entire form is completed.
• Complete section 2 no later than the close of business on employee’s third day.
• Review documentation presented by employee and record applicable information in Form I-9.
• Supply the official list of documents for establishing work eligibility and identity to the employee
• Examine the documents presented and accept if they reasonably appear genuine and relate to the employee that submitted.
• Refuse documents that do not reasonably appear to be genuine or relate to the employee and ask for other documentation that meets the requirements.
• Should not continue to employ a person that cannot submit documentation that meets requirements.

What should an employer do with forms I-9 after they are completed?
The requirement is to maintain I-9 records in their own files for 3 years following the date of hire or 1 year after the date of employment termination. This means the form needs to be retained for all current employees along with terminated employees falling within the designated retention period.

What is an employer’s responsibility regarding the authenticity of documents?
If the documents reasonably appear to be genuine, you must accept them. To do otherwise could be an unfair immigration-related employment practice. If a document does not reasonably appear to be genuine, you must not accept it. You should contact your local ICE office for more information.

The “Handbook for Employers” from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website includes extensive examples of the acceptable forms of documentation. Visit the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services site at: http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/lawsregs/handbook/hand_emp.pdf

May a photocopy of a document be accepted?
No. Employees must present original documents. The only exception is an employee may present a certified copy of a birth certificate.

For additional Frequently Asked Questions, visit the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services site at:
http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/howdoi/EEV.htm

For more information regarding Employment Eligibility Verification, visit the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at: http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/howdoi/faqeev.htm