Form I-9 for First-Time Employers (2026)
Every U.S. employer must complete Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, for each person they hire for employment in the United States, including the first employee and including U.S. citizens. You keep the form on file; you do not send it to the government. The same rules apply to your first hire as to any later one.
Get the current form from USCIS
Download Form I-9 and its instructions from USCIS: Form I-9. As of that page's last review on June 3, 2026, the current edition date is 01/20/25 (printed at the bottom of the form). USCIS also allowed employers to use the 08/01/23 edition that expires May 31, 2027. A separate 08/01/23 edition expired July 31, 2026, and employers using an electronic Form I-9 system were required to update to the version expiring May 31, 2027 by that date. Check the USCIS form page for the edition you should use now.
Only employers located in Puerto Rico may complete the Spanish-language Form I-9 instead of the English version. Any employer may use the Spanish form as a translation aid. The USCIS fillable PDF must be printed and signed by hand; USCIS says that fillable file does not meet DHS standards for an electronic Form I-9 system.
The deadlines
Have the employee complete and sign Section 1 no later than their first day of employment (the first day they work for wages or other pay). They may complete it after they accept the job offer, but not before. You must make the form instructions and the Lists of Acceptable Documents available to them (USCIS: Completing Section 1, last reviewed September 11, 2026).
You, or someone you designate, must examine the employee's documents and complete and sign Section 2 within three business days after that first day of work for pay. If the employee starts on Monday, Section 2 is due by Thursday. If the job lasts less than three business days, complete Section 2 no later than the first day of work for pay (USCIS: Completing Section 2, last reviewed September 18, 2026).
Section 1, in brief
The employee enters their legal name, address, date of birth, and citizenship or immigration status, then signs and dates the form. A Social Security number, email address, and telephone number are optional on the form unless you participate in E-Verify, in which case the Social Security number is required. If a preparer or translator helps with Section 1, that person completes Supplement A, and you keep that supplement with the I-9. You should review Section 1 for completeness and watch for an employment-authorization expiration date that may later need reverification.
Section 2: examine documents the employee chooses
The employee presents unexpired original documents (a certified copy of a birth certificate is also acceptable) from the Lists of Acceptable Documents on the form:
- one document from List A (identity and work authorization), or
- one document from List B (identity) plus one from List C (work authorization).
You must let the employee choose which acceptable documents to present. Don't specify which ones to bring, don't ask for more than the lists require, and don't reject an acceptable document because it has a future expiration date. Treating people differently based on citizenship, immigration status, or national origin can be unlawful. For guidance, see the anti-discrimination notice on the form and the Department of Justice's Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER).
Examine each document to determine whether it reasonably appears to be genuine and relates to the person presenting it. Record the document title, issuing authority, document number (if any), and expiration date (if any), plus the employee's first day of work for pay, your business name, and a physical street address (not a P.O. box). Sign and date Section 2, then return the documents to the employee. The Lists of Acceptable Documents are part of the form; we don't reprint the full lists here because USCIS updates them with the form.
You may designate an authorized representative (for example, a manager or a person at a remote worksite) to complete Section 2. You remain liable for errors. An employee cannot complete Section 2 for themselves. If you ask a notary to act as your representative, they are not acting as a notary and should not affix a notary seal.
Remote examination and E-Verify
The default rule is a physical examination of the original documents. Employers who participate in E-Verify in good standing may, at their E-Verify hiring sites, use a DHS-authorized alternative procedure: review copies of the documents, hold a live video meeting in which the employee presents the same documents, check the alternative-procedure box on the form, and keep clear copies (front and back if two-sided). If you offer that procedure at a site, USCIS says to use it consistently, with a limited exception for remote-only hires that you may not apply in a discriminatory way. Details are in the M-274, section 4.5.
E-Verify itself is voluntary under federal law for most private employers, but some states require it and some federal contractors must use it. We did not independently confirm a current state-by-state list; check E-Verify.gov and your state. If you use E-Verify and the employee presents List B and List C documents, the List B document must include a photograph.
What to do with the completed form
Do not mail Form I-9 to USCIS or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Keep a completed form for each employee required to have one. After employment ends, retain it until the later of three years after the date of hire or one year after employment ends (USCIS: Retention and Storage, last reviewed September 18, 2026).
You may store paper or electronic copies, or a mix. If you make copies of the documents the employee presented, keep them with that Form I-9. Employers who use the alternative procedure must retain those copies. You must be able to present the forms for inspection within three business days of a request by authorized officials from the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, or the Department of Labor. USCIS recommends storing I-9s separately from personnel files so you can produce them without turning over an entire personnel record.
Use Supplement B (Reverification and Rehire) when you need to reverify expiring work authorization or when you choose to document a rehire. You don't need to print or keep Supplement B until one of those events applies.
Form I-9 is for employees you hire. Labeling someone a contractor does not decide the question; classification follows the facts of the relationship. See contractor vs employee. For the rest of first-day paperwork, including the W-4 and new-hire report, use the first-hire checklist. You'll also want an EIN before you run payroll.
FAQ
How long do I have to complete Form I-9?
The employee completes and signs Section 1 no later than the first day of work for pay, and not before accepting the job offer. You complete Section 2 within three business days after that first day. If the job lasts less than three business days, complete Section 2 by the first day.
Do I mail Form I-9 to USCIS or ICE?
No. Keep it on file and be ready to present it within three business days if authorized government officials ask to inspect it. After the job ends, retain it for three years after the hire date or one year after employment ends, whichever is later.
Can I tell a new hire which documents to bring?
No. The employee chooses from the Lists of Acceptable Documents. You may not specify which acceptable documents they must present, and requesting specific documents based on citizenship, immigration status, or national origin may be illegal.