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Earlier this month, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced Form I-9 updates. The revised form includes minor changes to Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to align with statutory language, and updates to the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) privacy notice. Specifically, the updated form is available with an edition date of 01/20/2025. Employers, however, can continue to use the Form I-9 with an edition date of 08/01/23 until it expires in 2027. Earlier this month, the USCIS updated its policy manual to recognize only two biological sexes.
Brief Overview of Form I-9
Created under the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification helps U.S. employers verify their workers’ identity and employment authorization. Employers must accurately complete a Form I-9 for each employee, whether they are citizens or noncitizens. In addition, employees must present acceptable documents that verify their identity and authorization to work in the U.S. Finally, employers must retain a Form I-9 for each employee for three years after the date of hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later.
The Latest Form I-9 Updates
Markedly, according to the USCIS, the revised Form I-9 is available for download now. As has been noted, the most recent form carries an edition date of 01/20/2025 with an expiration date of 05/31/2027. Comparatively, the following previous editions still remain valid:
- Form I-9 (08/01/23 edition), valid until 05/31/2027.
- Digital version of Form I-9(08/01/23 edition), valid until 07/31/2026. (Employers using this form must update their electronic systems with the 05/31/2027 expiration date by July 31st, 2026.)
Accordingly, the agency lists the following as the key Form I-9 updates:
- renaming the fourth checkbox in Section 1 to “An alien authorized to work,”
- revising the descriptions of two List B documents in the Lists of Acceptable Documents, and
- adding appropriate statutory language and a revised DHS Privacy Notice to the instructions.
Correspondingly, on April 3, E-Verify and E-Verify+ updated the Citizenship Status selection during case creation to reflect this statutory language. Also, the selection “A noncitizen authorized to work” was updated to “An alien authorized to work.”
Employer Takeaways
In conclusion, although these minor Form 1-9 updates did occur, the USCIS made it clear that employers can continue to use Form I-9 (08/01/23 edition) until 05/31/2027. Due to this directive, employers can choose to start implementing the new form at their own leisure, if at all.
In general, to help employers ensure that their I-9 process is complete and complies with federal regulations, WorkWise Compliance has created the I-9 Self-Audit training program.The program is a brief, interactive eLearning resource that provides critical information on Form I-9 compliance, common mistakes, and how to audit existing records.
