I-9 and E-Verify Essentials Manual
Section 3: Updating and reverification
Introduction
When an employee’s temporary work authorization expires, the employer must reverify
that the employee is still authorized to work in the United States no later than the date the
individual’s employment authorization expires.
To do this, employers may use Section 3 of the employee’s Form I-9, assuming the employee’s form is still a version of the Form I-9 that is valid for use. Employers must use a
current version of the Form I-9 when updating or reverifying an employee’s Form I-9. If the
form that was originally filled out for the employee is no longer a valid version, the
employer must use a current form for updating and reverification and attach the new form
to the employee’s original form. Of course, if the form that was originally used is still valid,
the employer may make changes directly on the original form.
An employer may also need to use a new Form I-9 if Section 3 of the employee’s original
form has already been used for a previous reverification or update.
When a new Form I-9 is used, the employer must write the employee’s name in Section 1,
complete Section 3, and retain the new Form I-9 with the employee’s original form. The
employee must present a document that shows current employment authorization — e.g.,
any document from List A or List C (both of which prove work authorization).
Don’t Forget
U.S. citizens and noncitizen nationals never need reverification. Do not
reverify the following documents:
•
An expired U.S. Passport or Passport Card,
•
An Alien Registration Receipt Card/Permanent Resident Card (Form
I-551), or
•
A List B document that has expired.
Employees whose temporary work authorization will expire should file the necessary
application or petition early enough to ensure that they maintain continuous employment
authorization or valid employment authorization documents.
Just as with initial I-9 verification, employees whose Forms I-9 require reverification must
be allowed to choose which document (or combination of documents) they wish to present
for reverification. Employers who require employees to present specific documentation for
reverification purposes could be at risk for a discrimination charge.
Form I-9: Section 3: Updating and reverification–1
I-9 and E-Verify Essentials Manual
If an employee cannot provide proof of current employment authorization on or before the
date that his or her temporary work authorization expires, an employer cannot continue to
employ him or her. Of course, the employer could always rehire the employee when he or
she obtains proper documentation.
Reverification and DACA
On June 15, 2012, the Secretary of Homeland Security announced that certain young
people who came to the United States illegally would be allowed to stay in the country and
apply for temporary work authorization. This program, called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), issues qualifying individuals an Employment Authorization
Document (EAD). DACA may change the way an employer administers the employee
verification process.
In the case of current employees who present their employers with updated documentation, employers will either need to complete Section 3 of the employee’s existing Form I-9
or complete a new Form I-9. Completing Section 3 will suffice when the employee presents
a new EAD and his or her information in Section 1 has not changed. However, a new form
is required when, in Section 1, the employee’s name, date of birth, or Social Security
number (if provided in Section 1) has changed. Where a new form is completed, employers
must attach it to the employee’s original form.
While changes to an employee’s Form I-9 (including a reverification in Section 3) typically
don’t compel running an employee’s information through E-Verify a second time, there is
an exception for DACA employees. When an E-Verify employer completes a new Form I-9
for an individual who has received work authorization under DACA, the employer should
conduct a new E-Verify check on that employee.
In situations in which an employer only completes Section 3 of the DACA employee’s
original Form I-9 or Section 3 of a new Form I-9 (because the employer had previously
completed Section 3 of the original Form I-9), the employer should not conduct a new
E-Verify check.
Reverification and evidence of status for certain categories
Lawful permanent residents
Employees who attest to being a lawful permanent resident in Section 1 of Form I-9 may
choose to present a valid Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) for Section 2 (or Section
3, if the employee’s documentation requires reverification). A lawful permanent resident is
not required to present a Permanent Resident Card, however, and may instead choose to
present a List B and List C document combination, such as a state-issued driver’s license
(List B) and an unrestricted Social Security card (List C).
If an employee presents a Permanent Resident Card, employers should be aware that this
document may not contain an expiration date, may contain a 10-year expiration date, or
may contain a two-year expiration date. Cards that expire in 10 years or not at all are
issued to lawful permanent residents with no conditions on their status. Cards that expire
in two years are issued to lawful permanent residents with conditions on their status.
Conditional residents can lose their status if they fail to remove these conditions. Regardless, Permanent Resident Cards are List A documents that should not be reverified,
regardless of whether they contain an expiration date or not.
2–Form I-9: Section 3: Updating and reverification
I-9 and E-Verify Essentials Manual
Lawful permanent residents and conditional residents may be issued temporary I-551
documents. These documents are acceptable for Form I-9 as follows:
1.
If an employee presents an expired Permanent Resident Card along with a Form
I-797, Notice of Action, that indicates that the card is valid for an additional year,
this combination is acceptable List C evidence of employment authorization for
one year (as indicated on Form I-797). At the end of the one-year period, the
employer must reverify the employee’s documentation using Section 3 of the
Form I-9.
2.
If an employee presents a foreign passport with either a temporary I-551 stamp
or I-551 printed notation on a machine-readable immigrant visa (MRIV), the
employer must reverify when the stamp or MRIV expires, or one year after the
issuance date if the stamp or MRIV does not contain an expiration date.
3.
If an employee presents the arrival portion of Form I-94/I-94A containing an
unexpired temporary I-551 stamp and a photograph of the individual, this combination of documents is an acceptable List A receipt for the Permanent Resident
Card. The employee must present his or her Permanent Resident Card to the
employer no later than when the stamp expires, or one year after the issuance
date of the Form I-94 if the stamp does not contain an expiration date.
Note
If the USCIS has approved an employee’s application to adjust status to that
of a lawful permanent resident, but the employee has not yet received his or
her initial Form I-551, he or she can obtain temporary evidence of permanent
resident status at a local USCIS field office. However, employers may not
accept Form I-797 that acknowledges receipt of an application for an initial
Form I-551 because receipts for an application for a new document are
acceptable only if the original document has been lost, stolen, or damaged.
Cross Reference
For more information about receipts and the Form I-9, see “Receipts” under
“Section 2: Eligibility Verification.”
Form I-9: Section 3: Updating and reverification–3