11/ 26/ 2007
On Nov. 7, 2007, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a new Form I-9—the document all employers must complete to verify employees' employment eligibility. Employers should download the new form, note the form's changes (also discussed below) and begin using the new form immediately.
The revised form reduces the number of documents employers can accept to verify eligibility. According to USCIS, "the revised Form I-9 is a further step in USCIS' ongoing work toward reducing the number of documents used to confirm identity and work eligibility." The government eliminated five documents because they lacked security features necessary to deter counterfeiting, tampering and fraud.
What employers need to know
Who must complete a Form I-9?
The federal government requires all employers to complete a Form I-9 for every employee within the first three days of employment and to retain that form for either one year after termination of employment or three years, whichever is longer. Employers who fail to do this may face serious fines or other penalties.
What changes were made?
The new Form I-9 eliminated five documents that employees can present to establish identity and employment eligibility under Part A. Employers may no longer accept the following five documents:
- Certificate of U.S. Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-561)
- Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550 or N-570)
- Alien Registration Receipt Card (I-151)
- Unexpired Reentry Permit (Form I-327)
- Unexpired Refugee Travel Document (Form I-571).
In addition to eliminating these five forms of acceptable documentation, the new Form I-9 added the newest version of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD I-766) to the list of acceptable documents. Part A on the new form now includes these five documents:
- U.S. Passport (unexpired or expired)
- Permanent Resident Car or Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I0551)
- An unexpired foreign passport with temporary I-551 stamp
- An unexpired Employment Authorization Document that contains a photograph (includes Form I-766 (the newest edition), I-688, I-688A, I-688B
- An unexpired foreign passport with an unexpired Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) for nonimmigrant aliens authorized to work for a specific employer
Instructions regarding Section 1 of Form I-9 now indicate that employees are not obliged to provide the Social Security number in Section 1 of Form I-9, unless they are employed by an employer who participates in E-Verify.
Can I continue to use the old form?
No. According to CIS, employers "must use the 2007 edition of Form I-9, approved on June 5, 2007. All previous versions of Form I-9, in English or Spanish, are no longer valid. The 1988 version of Form I-9 in Spanish expired in 1991. Employers who continue to use the outdated editions of Form I-9 are subject to fines and penalties."
Where do I get the new form?
Download the revised Form I-9 at: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/I-9.pdf.
NFIB members with additional questions can contact the NFIB Employment Law Hotline at 866-678-6342 or e-mail www.nfiblegal.com.
