Each new hire is a reflection of your growth and success as a company. But before someone can be added to your payroll, you have to verify their identity with Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) to ensure they’re authorized to work in the United States.
In the past, face-to-face physical inspection of the employee’s documents would’ve been expected. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) eased up on the restrictions on in-person verification to support remote work.
What’s important to know about the I-9 form?
The I-9 form is a critical part of the onboarding process, but it’s more than a to-do on a human resources checklist. When you bring on a new employee, they are legally required to fill out Form I-9 to confirm their eligibility to work within the United States. Section 1 is filled out by the employee and Section 2 by the employer; the employer is ultimately accountable for making sure the form is completed, and for maintaining a record of it.
Keep in mind that verifying eligibility is not the same as checking citizenship, national origin, or immigration status. That’s off limits. You are only doing the former, because the latter is actually unlawful.
Section 1 captures the employee information and attestation, while Section 2 covers the employer review of the acceptable Form I-9 documents and the verification of that government-issued identification. The three columns (List A, List B, and List C) list possible forms of ID that can be used.
Someone can provide one form of documentation if it’s from List A, which offers both proof of identity and employment authorization. If someone is providing other proof of their identity that is not from List A, then they need to show a combination of ID from List B and List C, covering proof of identity and employment authorization.
List A
Passport
Passport Card
Permanent Resident Card (aka Green Card held by noncitizens)
Alien Registration Receipt Card
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 (Form I-766)
For an individual temporarily authorized to work for a specific employer because of his or her status or parole:
Foreign passport; and
Form I-94 or Form I-94A that has the following:
The same name as the passport; and
An endorsement of the individual's status or parole as long as that period of endorsement has not yet expired and the proposed employment is not in conflict with any restrictions or limitations identified on the form.
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
Driver's license or ID card issued by a state or outlying possession of the United States provided it contains a photograph or information such as name, date of birth, sex, height, eye color, and address
ID card issued by federal, state or local government agencies or entities, provided it contains a photograph or information such as name, date of birth, sex, height, eye color and address
School ID card with a photograph
Voter's registration card
US Military card or draft record
Military dependent's ID card
US Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Card
Native American tribal document
Driver's license issued by a Canadian government authority
For those under age 18:
School record or report card
Clinic, doctor, or hospital record
Daycare or nursery school record
List C
A Social Security Account Number card, unless the card includes one of the following restrictions:
Not valid for employment
Valid for work only with INS authorization
Valid for work only with DHS authorization
Certification of report of birth issued by the Department of State (Forms DS-1350, FS-545, FS-240)
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
US 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
For examples, see Section 7 and Section 13 of the M-274 on uscis.gov/i-9-central. The Form I-766, Employment Authorization Document, is a List A, Item Number 4. document, not a List C document.
What is E-Verify?
Since the I-9 form always needs to be completed for newly hired employees, the E-Verify federal program can simplify the process while providing quick results. That’s the case whether your staff is on-site at an office or business, or whether you have a distributed team that requires I-9 verification for remote hires.
E-Verify is an online verification system used by employers to confirm worker employment eligibility. Run by the US government, the system compares employee I-9 form responses to records available from the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA). Within seconds, the employee’s info is cross-checked against millions of government records. All that’s needed is access to a web browser and an internet connection.
When E-Verify is used, an employer needs to check the box in Section 2 of the I-9 form that says, “Check here if you used an alternative procedure authorized by DHS to examine documents.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services added that to the form when it revised it in August 2023. The latest I-9 form was updated in 2025 and has an expiration date in 2027. It’s unclear when a new Form I-9 will be released, since there isn’t a revision schedule.
E-Verify+ is an enhanced version of E-Verify that digitally combines the I-9 and E-Verify processes. It streamlines the experience for both the new employees and the employer. After new employees enter their key I-9 Section 1 info along with supporting documents, the system checks the employee’s employment eligibility and will automatically notify the employer, who can then wrap up the verification. Plus, E-Verify+ securely stores all the records electronically for easy retrieval to support I-9 compliance requirements. That’s important if an audit is ever conducted.
Why must employers use E-Verify?
The Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 requires employers to verify the identity of new employees and confirm that they are eligible to work in the United States. Failure to comply can lead to employers being held personally liable and potentially receiving criminal and civil fines for non-compliance.
While the I-9 form is federally mandated, E-Verify is not, although many states require it. State requirements fall into four categories:
voluntary
required for public employees
required for all employers
depends on local municipality
The lists below summarize where states and other locations currently fall in terms of E-Verify regulations:
Where E-Verify is voluntary
Alaska
Arkansas
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia (Washington, DC)
Hawaii
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Dakota
Oregon
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Vermont
Washington (except for certain types of contractors in Clark, Cowlitz, Lewis, Pierce, Whatcom counties)
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Where E-Verify is required for only or mostly public employees
Colorado
Ohio (for nonresidential construction contractors)
Idaho (for state agencies and contractors receiving state/federal funds)
Michigan (for MDOT contractors and DHS contractors)
Minnesota (for state contracts exceeding $50,000)
Missouri (for public employers and state contractors)
Nebraska (for government contractors and tax incentive recipients )
Oklahoma (for public employers and state contractors)
Pennsylvania (for public works contractors and the construction industry)
Texas (for state agencies and state contractors, as well as for employees and independent contractors of sexually-oriented businesses)
Virginia (for state agencies and public contractors with more than 50 employees and contracts exceeding $50,000)
Woodland, Washington (for city contracts exceeding $10,000)
West Virginia (for public employers and contractors)
States where E-Verify is required for all or most businesses (some have thresholds)
Alabama
Arizona
Florida (i.e., 25 or more employees and public employees and contractors)
Hernando County, FL (i.e., contractors and subcontractors in additional to E-Verify state law mandates)
Georgia (i.e., 11 or more employees and public employees)
Idaho
Indiana (i.e., all private employers and public contractors)
Louisiana
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi (i.e., all employers and independent contractors)
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
North Carolina (i.e., 25+ employees and public)
South Carolina
Tennessee (i.e., 35 or more employees)
Utah (i.e., 150 or more employees and public employees)
How do organizations enroll?
To enroll in E-Verify, organizations must set up a new company account at E-Verify.gov and choose from one of the four access methods:
Employer (i.e., to manage new hires; note: E-Verify+ is only available for this option)
E-Verify Employer Agent (i.e., to verify new hires for clients)
Corporate Administrator (i.e., to manage multiple locations from a central office)
Web Services (i.e., to integrate custom software with E-Verify)
After selecting your employer category, such as if you’re a government organization or a federal contractor, you’ll provide company information, which includes the company address, employer identification number, and total number of employees. If you have a Corporate Administrator account, you can link it, too. The system will ask for your North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code, and you need to provide the first three digits. It’s assigned by the US Census Bureau, but if you don’t know it, you can search for it or a code for the closest sector that aligns with your company’s industry by clicking “Look Up a Code.”
When enrolling, you’ll also have to add a hiring site or several of them. That’s where employees are hired and complete new hire paperwork like the I-9 form. It can also be where the work is performed. Before completing enrollment in E-Verify, pick a Program Administrator and a Signatory (who accepts the E-Verify terms and conditions), who can be the same individual. Then employers must review and agree to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) before printing a copy for their records. To remain in good standing with E-Verify, employers need to use it for all hiring sites that remotely examine documents when ensuring employment eligibility.
Using E-Verify step-by-step
Using E-Verify begins when a business enters the information from an employee I-9 form into the E-Verify online portal. This officially opens a case and should happen no later than the third business day after work commences. If the employee presents government-issued photo identification, such as a passport, a Permanent Resident Card, or an Employment Authorization document, the system will prompt the employer to compare the photographs. Once entered, the system will return one of six results:
Employment Authorized: All records will match, and the employment will be authorized
E-Verify Needs More Time: The case requires further investigation by the Department of Homeland Security
Tentative Nonconfirmation: Records did not match, and more action is required to resolve the mismatch.
Case in Continuance: This result means the employee has contacted either a DHS or SSA field office, and more time is needed to verify employment.
Close Case and Resubmit: Either DHS or SSA has requested that the original case be closed and a new case be opened for the employee.
Final Nonconfirmation: E-Verify can not confirm eligibility and closes the case, or the timeline for case handling has expired.
Is there a cost to employers who use E-Verify?
No, it is free for employers to use E-Verify.
How long do results take when using E-Verify?
Results are delivered in as fast as three to five seconds. However, depending on the results outlined above, more action may be required by the employee. If this happens, the timeline is extended accordingly.
How long must employers keep employee I-9 forms?
Organizations must retain completed I-9 forms for as long as a worker is employed. Once employment ends, organizations must retain the paperwork for three years after the date of hire or one year after employment terminates, whichever is later.
If an employee is rehired, is a new Form I-9 necessary?
When an employee is rehired within three years of completing the original I-9, a new form is not necessary. Employers can merely indicate the new rehire date on Supplement B of the form. The only exception is if a new version of the I-9 form has been issued. Then a new form will be necessary.
Supplement B is also used for reverification for a legal name change, or when a worker’s temporary employment authorization or their documents are expiring.
Remote employee I-9 verification process made easy
All employers are required to verify the employment eligibility of new workers within three days of the first day of work. To do this, information following Form I-9 requirements is entered into E-Verify, the official online process for verifying employee identity and eligibility. Once initiated, worker information is compared to information kept on file by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. E-Verify results can take minutes but may take longer if additional information is required to close the case.
State rules vary about whether E-Verify is voluntary, required for certain employers, required for all employers, or must follow local jurisdiction rules. It’s up to employers to know the requirements of the jurisdictions where they operate. Using E-Verify is critically important because employers can receive civil and criminal fines and be held personally liable for non-compliance. But with a straightforward system, most employers find the work authorization process quick and easy to follow.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I-9 verification be done remotely for remote employees?
Yes, with a live video to see the employee and to examine the required documents. It’s the “Optional Alternative Procedure to Physical Document Examination.” You can offer this to remote workers only, or offer it to all new employees at a hiring site, instead of doing a physical examination. If you opt for the latter, though, you wouldn’t be able to offer the alternative procedure to some but not all onsite or hybrid employees. You have to be consistent and not treat employees differently.
Do remote employees need to complete Section 1 and Section 2 of Form I-9?
Yes, every new employee, whether remote or not, needs to complete the I-9 form. The employee needs to complete Section 1 no later than the first day of employment, and not before a job offer is accepted. Then the employer has to complete Section 2 within three business days of that start date.
What documents are acceptable for remote I-9 verification?
The standard list of acceptable documents for employment verification is the same for all new employees, whether they are on-site, hybrid, or remote. They need to be shared with the employer, who must check both sides of them and save hard or electronic copies of the documents.
Can a remote employee use an authorized representative or notary for I-9 verification?
If an authorized representative is selected, it’s the employer who is designating who that will be, because the employer still bears the responsibility of ensuring that the form is filled out and the process is followed correctly. This applies to notaries, too, who in this instance would not be able to act in the capacity of a notary but solely as an authorized representative.
As part of this process for remote I-9 verification, the employee may be presenting the proof for document inspection or during the live video interaction. For the latter, the employee will need to share the eligibility documents with the employer in advance of the live video call when they show those same documents again on the screen. In that instance, the employer is required to check the box that an alternative procedure was used when finalizing Section 2 in the I-9 form.
