Requirements for Form I-9
As a new employee in the United States, you’ll have to provide certain background information and documentation to establish both your identity and employment authorization. For your documentation, you’ll be required to provide one (1) document from those identified under List A or one (1) document from List B and one (1) document from List C. The lists are provided on Form I-9, as created by the Department of Homeland Security, to assist in identifying eligible individuals for employment.
In particular, you’ll have to provide the following background information and documentation to properly complete the Form I-9:
Background Information:
- Name
- Address
- Date of birth
- Social Security Number (if you have one)
- An employee does not have to provide his or her Social Security number in Section 1 of Form I-9, unless he or she is employed by an employer who participates in E-Verify (as discussed in the FAQs page).
- Your signature
Documentation of Your Identity
You’ll have the option to provide either:
- one (1) document from List A; or
- one (1) document from List B and one (1) document from List C
List A documents include:
- U.S. Passport or U.S. Passport Card
- Permanent Resident Card or Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-551)
- Foreign passport that contains a temporary I-551 stamp or temporary I-551 printed notation on a machine-readable immigrant visa
- Employment Authorization Document that contains a photograph of you (Form I-766)
- In the case of a nonimmigrant alien authorized to work for a specific employer incident to status, a foreign passport with Form I-94 or Form I-94A bearing the same name as the passport and containing an endorsement of the alien’s nonimmigrant status, as long as the period of endorsement has not yet expired and the proposed employment is not in conflict with any restrictions or limitations
- Passport from the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) or the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) 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
List B documents include:
- Driver’s license or ID card issued by a State or other territory under United States possession as long as it contains a photograph or information such as name, date of birth, gender height, eye color, and address
- ID card issued by a federal, state or local government agency, provided it contains a photograph or information such as name, date of birth, gender, height, eye color, and address
- School ID card with a photograph
- Voter’s registration card
- U.S. military card or draft record
- Military dependent’s ID card
- U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Card
- Native American tribal document
- Driver’s license issued by a Canadian government authority
- For individuals under the age of 18:
- School record or report card
- Clinic, doctor, or hospital record
- Day-care or nursery school record
List C documents include:
- Social Security Account Number card other than the one that specifies on the face that the issuance of the card does not authorize employment in the United States
- Certification of Birth Abroad issued by the Department of State (Form FS-545)
- Certification of Report of Birth issued by the Department of State (Form DS-1350)
- Original or certified copy of birth certificate issued by a state, county, municipal authority, or territory of the United States bearing an official seal
- Native American tribal document
- U.S. Citizen ID Card (Form I-197)
- Identification Card for Use of Resident Citizen in the United States (Form I-179)
- Employment authorization document issued by the Department of Homeland Security
Next, we’ll go over some common questions to keep in mind when dealing with Form I-9.