How to Complete Form I-9

Purpose of I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification

An I-9 Form is used to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. Federal law requires that all U.S. employers must properly complete Form I-9 for each individual they hire for employment in the United States. This includes citizens and noncitizens. Both employees and employers must complete the form. When hiring new employees, authorized UNL Human Resources professionals are acting on behalf of UNL, as the employer.

Who Needs to Complete an I-9 Form

All U.S. employers must have a Form I-9 on file for all current employees hired AFTER November 6, 1986.

U.S. employers are not required to complete Form I-9 for:

  • Employees hired BEFORE November 6, 1986
  • Employees working outside the United States
  • Independent contractors
  • Individuals employed for casual domestic work in a private home on a sporadic, irregular or intermittent basis.

NOTE: UNL requires a new Form I-9 and E-Verify to be completed when a current employee has had a change in their citizenship or immigration status.

When the I-9 Must Be Completed

The employee must complete Section 1 by the first day of work for pay.

UNL's HR professional must complete the I-9 Section 2 no later than 3 business days after a newly hired employee’s first day of employment. For example, if a new employee starts work on a Monday, Form I-9 must be completed by Thursday. If an employee will work fewer than 3 days, UNL's HR professional must complete Section 2 on the employee’s first day of employment.

Definitions

These definitions apply to Form I-9 procedures and instructions. They do not apply more broadly to other HR processes.

Form I-9 Original -- The Form I-9 that is completed by the employee either on paper or via DocuSign is the original I-9 Form and cannot be changed by UNL's HR professional. However, when it is necessary for the HR professional to review the "original I-9" for any purpose (for example, to copy the employee's name from the original Form I-9 onto a Supplement B Reverification), the HR professional may be reviewing an original paper I-9 form or an digitally stored version of the original I-9 form -- both are considered valid original documents. Additionally, through the course of their employment at the University of Nebraska, an employee may be required to complete more than one Form I-9. In those circumstances, the "original I-9" refers to the most recently completed I-9 that is retained by the University.

Employer Responsibilities

As the employer's representative, the UNL HR professional must:

  • Treat all people equally when conducting the I-9 process, particularly when verifying employment authorization and identity. Federal law prohibits employers from discriminating against people based on several factors, including their citizenship or immigration status, or their national origin. Read more about avoiding discrimination in the Form 1-9 process on U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) website.
  • Use the most current version of the Form I-9, which may be completed electronically using the Payroll Services-approved DocuSign form with live video document(s) verification, or in-person, having the employee complete the Form I-9 on paper and verifying the documents in-person. For access to the DocuSign template, contact your Business Center manager.
    • UNL's standard process for completion of the Form I-9 is via the DocuSign template and live video document(s) verification. However, employees who do not wish to complete the I-9 via DocuSign and present documents via live video must be granted the option to complete the I-9 and have their document(s) physically examined in-person.
  • Make Form I-9 Instructions and List of Acceptable Documents available to the employee when completing the form and when requesting that the employee present documentation to complete Supplement B, Reverification and Rehire (page 4 of Form I-9). When using the Payroll Services-approved DocuSign forms, both of these are linked within the documents. When completing the forms in-person, the HR professional must print them for the employee.
  • Ensure that the employee completes Section 1.
  • Complete Supplement B, Reverification and Rehire when applicable.
  • Leave a field blank if it does not apply and allow employees to leave fields blank in Section 1, where appropriate.
  • Retain completed forms and a legible copy of all documents presented by the employee. You are not required to retain or store the page(s) containing the Lists of Acceptable Documents or the instructions for Form I-9.
How to Complete an I-9 Form
  • The employee and UNL's HR representative must follow these Instructions for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification and use the Form I-9 Acceptable Documents"> list.
  • The USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, online version, provides the most current guidance for completing Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification Form), including Supplement A and Supplement B, in addition to the information within these instructions.
  • As a standard practice, the HR representative follows the "I-9 via DocuSign and Live Video Document Verification" procedures below, unless the employee contacts the HR representative to indicate they prefer to complete the I-9 and document verification in-person.
I-9 via DocuSign and Live Video Document Verification

  1. Send the employee the I-9 via DocuSign; see Instructions for Using DocuSign Template for Form I-9. The Instructions for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification and list of Form I-9 Acceptable Documents are provided as links on the form, however, you may still want to email them to the employee ahead of time.

    Important

    1. If the employee is a NRA and has applied for a SSN but hasn't received it yet, use the DocuSign Form I-9 template for those with no SSN, titled "UNL Form I-9 (No SSN)." In that template, the SSN field is marked "optional" so it can be left blank. Then follow the instructions in NRAs Without a Social Security Number section of the NRA manual for guidance once the employee receives their SSN and card.
    2. Ask the employee to be mindful in keeping their attachment sizes (total) to 5MB or less.
    3. The name and email address of the authorized UNL Human Resources professional must be the name of the person who will complete both the live video document verification and the I-9 Section 2. Employer Review and Verification and cannot be a shared/department name and/or email address; it must be an individual’s name and email address.
  2. After the employee has completed the required fields and attachments, click the Review Document button in the email received from DocuSign.
  3. Review the completed I-9 Section 1 and the attached copies of the documents. Do not complete Section 2. Employer Review and Verification yet.
    1. If there are any errors and/or the employee did not provide acceptable documents, Void the DocuSign envelope. You will need to send a new DocuSign I-9 for the employee to complete.
  4. If there are no noted errors and the document(s) attached (front and back, if the document is two-sided) are acceptable, schedule a live video interaction with the employee via Zoom, Teams, or another video collaboration tool.
  5. Conduct the live video interaction with the employee to ensure that the documentation provided reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the individual. During the live video interaction, the employee must present the same documents they previously submitted copies of via DocuSign. NOTE: The live video interaction does not need to be recorded or retained.
    1. Do not proceed to step 6 if the documents do not appear to be genuine and related to the individual, the employee is unable to present the same documents that they submitted via DocuSign, and/or they do not appear in-person in the live video interaction.
  6. Return to the DocuSign I-9 (through your DocuSign dashboard or by clicking the Review Document in the email) and complete Section 2 of the document. You must also check the box on the form to indicate that you used an alternative procedure to examine documents. On the I-9, "alternative procedure" is referring to the examination of documents in a live video interaction, rather than in-person.
  7. Once the employer section is completed, both the employee and HR Representative will receive a completed copy of the I-9 via DocuSign.
  8. The completed I-9 must be retained electronically and submitted to Payroll Services.

In-Person I-9 and Document Verification
  1. Ahead of your scheduled in-person meeting with the employee, send them the I-9 instructions and list of acceptable documents.
  2. Print the I-9 and have the employee complete Section 1 in pen (preferably blue or black ink) during your in-person meeting.
  3. If there are any errors, reprint a new I-9 for the employee and have them start over.
  4. Ensure the documentation the employee provides reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the individual, then make copies (front and back, if the document is two-sided) of the document(s).
    • If the employee did not provide acceptable documents, you may not proceed until they do so.
  5. Complete Section 2 of the document in pen (preferably blue or black ink).
    • Do not check the box indicating that an alternative procedure to examine documents if documentation verification was completed in-person.
  6. Scan and save the completed I-9 and copies of the document(s) together as one .pdf.
  7. The completed I-9 must be submitted to Payroll Services.
Instructions for Each Section of I-9
Section 1. Employee Information and Attestation

In Section 1 of the Form I-9 the employee must attest to their employment authorization and present acceptable documents evidencing identity and employment authorization to UNL's HR professional no later than the first day of their employment.

  • The UNL HR professional cannot type/write Section 1 for the employee or make any changes to it. Only the employee (with or without a preparer or translator's assistance) may enter information in Section 1 fields.
    • If the employee uses a Preparer or Translator to help them complete Section 1, the Preparer/Translator must complete Form I-9 Supplement A, which is on page 3 of Form I-9. See detailed instructions for Supplement A below.
  • The employee must provide their current legal name, complete address, and date of birth. If other fields do not apply, they may leave them blank.
    • When completing the name fields, the employee must enter their current legal name and any last names they previously used, including any hyphens or punctuation. If they only have one name, they must enter it in the Last Name field and then enter “Unknown” in the First Name field.
  • UNL uses E-Verify therefore employees must provide their Social Security number (SSN). For Nonresident Alien (NRA) employees who have applied for but not yet received their SSN, see the Completing New Hire Paperwork section of the NRA Paperwork manual.
  • The email address and phone number fields are optional, however when provided, will allow the employee to receive notifications associated with their E-Verify case.
Section 2. Employer Review and Verification

Although the employee completes Section 1, employers are responsible for ensuring it was completed properly, but they cannot make changes to it. If the HR professional finds any errors or missing information, they must have the employee correct the error, and initial and date their correction (if completing the form on paper) or void the electronic I-9 and send them a new Form I-9 (if completing via DocuSign).

The HR professional must check that the employee:

  • Completed Section 1 by the first day of work for pay following the Instructions for Form I-9 guidance.
  • If the employee selects citizen or immigration status 3 (A lawful permanent resident) or 4 (A noncitizen authorized to work until), the employee must complete the additional required fields providing appropriate document numbers that support those status selections.
  • Signed the form and entered the current date (the date they completed Section 1).

Document Verification

The HR professional must complete Section 2 of the Form I-9 by examining physically or via live video document verification the evidence of the employee's identity and employment authorization within three business days after the employee's first day of employment. For example, if an employee begins employment on Monday, you must review the employee's documentation and complete Section 2 on or before the Thursday of that week. However, if the individual will work for less than three business days, Section 2 must be completed no later than the first day of employment.

As evidence, employees may provide one document from List A or a combination of one document from List B and one document from List C from the list of acceptable documents. Examples of many of the documents can be found in the Handbook for Employers(M-274). In certain cases, the employee may present an acceptable receipt for List A, B, or C documentation. For more information on receipts, refer to the List of Acceptable Documentsand the M-274.

Because UNL is an E-Verify participant, photocopies of the following must be retained with an employee’s Form I-9:

  • U.S. passport
  • U.S. passport card
  • Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card
  • Form I-766, Employment Authorization Document

UNL’s HR professional (employer’s authorized representative):

  • Must verify that the document(s) presented by the employee are unexpired and reasonably appear to be genuine and related to the person presenting them.
  • Cannot specify which documentation the employee may present.
  • May use common abbreviations for states, document titles, or issuing authorities. Refer to the Handbook for Employers (M-274) for abbreviation suggestions.
  • Must use the Additional Information field to record any additional information required to complete Section 2, or any updates that are necessary once Section 2 is complete (initial and date each additional notation). Such notations include, but are not limited to:
    • Those required by the Department of Homeland Securty (DHS), such as extensions of employment authorization or a document's expiration date.
    • Replacement document information if a receipt was previously presented.
    • Additional documentation that may be presented by certain nonimmigrant employees.
    • Optional information, such as termination dates, form retention dates, and E-Verify case numbers.
  • Select the box in the Additional Information area if an alternate procedure (i.e., live video interaction) for document examination was used.
  • Complete all applicable fields in the Employer Certification area, sign, and date where indicated.
    • Enter Last Name, First Name, and Title, then UNL’s business information. The person who examines the documents must be the same person who completes and signs Section 2.
    • Ensure that the employee’s "First Day of Employment" matches their hiring date.

List A documentation (shows both identity and employment authorization)

  • Enter the required information from the List A documentation in the first set of document entry fields in the List A column. Some List A documentation consists of a combination of documents that must be presented together to be considered acceptable List A documentation. If the employee presents a combination of documents for List A, use the second and third sets of document entry fields in the List A column. Use the Additional Information space, as necessary, for additional documents. When entering document information in this space, ensure you record all available document information, such as the document title, issuing authority, document number and expiration date.
  • If an employee presents acceptable List A documentation, do not ask the employee to present List B and List C documentation.

List B documentation (shows identity only) and List C documentation (shows employment authorization only)

  • An unsigned social security card is a valid document. A signature on the card is not required for the card to be valid. You may accept an unsigned Social Security card if the card reasonably appears to be genuine and to relate to the person presenting it.
  • UNL participates in E-Verify, therefore, List B documents must contain a photograph (this applies to individuals under the age of 18 and individuals with disabilities).
  • For a Non-Resident Alien (NRA), a restricted social security card is not a valid List C document.
Employees Without a Social Security Number If the employee is a NRA and has applied for a SSN but hasn't received it yet, use the Form I-9 template for those with no SSN. In that template, the SSN field is marked "optional" so it can be left blank. Then see the NRAs Without a Social Security Number section of the NRA manual.
E-Verify

UNL is an E-Verify employer. The E-Verify process must be completed each time a new Form I-9 is completed. E-Verify is not required after the completion of Supplement B. For more information, see the E-Verify Certification section of the New Hire Paperwork manual.

UNL Retention

Employers must retain Form I-9 and make it available for inspection by authorized government officers. UNL adheres to the University of Nebraska Board of Regents' Employment Records retention policy. For detailed information, please review UNL's Records Retention policy and the University of Nebraska Board of Regents' Employment Records policy, which includes the retention schedule for specific employment records.

Supplement A: Preparer and/or Translator Certification for Section 1

If a preparer and/or translator assists an employee in completing Section 1, that person must complete a Certification area on Supplement A, Preparer and/or Translator Certification for Section 1, located on Page 3 of Form I-9. There is no limit to the number of preparers and/or translators an employee may use. Each preparer and/or translator must complete and sign a separate Certification area.

When a preparer and/or translator is used, UNL’s HR professional obtains the individual’s name and email address and emails them the Supplement A DocuSign form to complete and sign electronically. The employee, HR professional, and the preparer/translator will receive a copy of the completed form. Alternatively, the form may be printed and completed by the individual, scanned, and returned to the HR professional.

Supplement A must be submitted to Payroll Services along with the employee’s I-9 so that they are retained together.

If the employee does not use a preparer or translator, employers are not required to provide or retain Supplement A.

Supplement B: Reverification and Rehire

Employers must complete Supplement B when:

  • An employee's employment authorization or documentation of employment authorization has expired ("reverification") –- document verification required

Employers may complete Supplement B when:

  • An employee is rehired within 3 years of the date when they originally completed an I-9 (“rehire”) –- document verification only required if employee’s work authorization from original I-9 has expired
  • An employee has a legal change of name and/or other identity information at any time other than during a reverification or rehire completion (“changes of name and other identity information”) –- documentation verification is optional

The HR professional must complete the form electronically using a Payroll Services-approved DocuSign form, or print and complete it in-person. The document verification, when applicable, may be completed by the HR professional by physically examining and making a copy of the employee-provided document or by examining the document through live video interaction.

Payroll Services requires a copy of the employee's original (or most recent) Form I-9 or Reverification to be included with the Supplement B to ensure it was reviewed and referenced when completing Supplement B. If completing Supplement B via DocuSign the copy must be attached by the HR professional via the DocuSign attachment field within the Supplement B template.

When the DocuSign form is used, it sends the form to the employee first to obtain the acceptable document from List A or List C by way of an attachment. However, the document verification field is marked "optional" to allow for those situations in which document verification is not required. Also, if documentation is required, the employee may choose to either attach a copy of the document (both sides, if two-sided) or present the document in-person for the HR professional to photocopy. NOTE: If the employee chooses to present the document in-person, the HR professional must complete document verification before completing Supplement B.

Supplement B, any accompanying documents (when applicable), and a copy of the employee's original (or most recent) Form I-9 or Reverification, must be submitted to Payroll Services and retained with the employee’s original Form I-9. For reverification, do not create a new E-Verify case.

NOTE: The current version of Supplement B must be used, even if an expired version of Form I-9 was originally completed by the employee.

Reverification

Reverification and completion of I-9 Supplement B is required when an employee’s employment authorization or documentation of employment authorization has expired. The HR professional completes the form after the employee has provided acceptable documentation from either List A or List C showing their continuing authorization to work in the United States. The employee is not required to show the same type of document they presented previously.

Reverification is never required for:

  • U.S. citizens and noncitizen nationals
  • Lawful permanent residents (including conditional residents) who presented a Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) or other employment authorization documentation that is not subject to reverification (such as an unrestricted Social Security card or a U.S. Passports or Passport Cards).
  • List B documentation.
  • Certain noncitizens. See the M-274 for more information about when reverification may not be required.

When reverification is required, the employer must reverify the employee by the earlier of the employment authorization expiration date stated in Section 1 (if any), or the expiration date of the List A or List C employment authorization documentation recorded in Section 2. Employers should complete any subsequent reverifications, if required, by the expiration date of the List A or List C documentation entered during the employee's most recent reverification.

The HR professional must:

  1. Review the employee's original (or most recent) Form I-9 or Reverification to determine if the employee’s employment authorization has expired. NOTE: If the original Form I-9 is not available, a new Form I-9 and E-Verify must be completed.
  2. Provide the employee with the List of Acceptable documents and allow them to choose which acceptable documentation to present for reverification, only indicating that they must provide a document from List A or List C. A link to the list is provided to the employee within the DocuSign form.
  3. Verify that the document presented by the employee is unexpired and reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the person presenting it.
  4. Enter the employee’s full name from the original Form I-9 at the top of the supplement.
    • If the employee’s name has changed, enter the new name in the appropriate New Name fields on Supplement B. Enter only the part of the name that has changed. For example, for an employee who changed only their last name, enter the last name in the New Name - Last Name field and leave the First Name and Middle initial fields blank.
  5. Enter the document title, number, and expiration date in the designated block of the supplement.
  6. Enter your name as the employer's authorized representative, sign and enter the date in the appropriate fields in that block.
  7. Select the box indicating if an alternative procedure for document examination was used (i.e., via live video interaction), when applicable.

Rehires

Reverification and completion of Supplement B of the I-9 is optional when an employee is rehired within three years from the date their Form I-9 was first completed. Alternatively, a new Form I-9 may be completed for rehired employees. A new Form I-9 must be completed for any employee rehired more than three years after their Form I-9 was first completed.

The HR professional must:

  1. Review the employee's original (or most recent) Form I-9 or Reverification to determine if the employee’s employment authorization has expired. NOTE: If the original Form I-9 is not available, a new Form I-9 and E-Verify must be completed.
    • If the employee’s work authorization has not expired, the employee does not need to provide any documents.
    • If the employee’s work authorization has expired, they must provide the employee with the List of Acceptable documents and allow the employee to choose which acceptable documentation to present for employment authorization reverification, only indicating that they must provide a document from List A or List C. Note: A link to the list is provided to the employee within the DocuSign form.
  2. Verify that the document presented by the employee is unexpired and reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the person presenting it.
  3. Enter the document title, number, and expiration date in the appropriate block of the supplement.
  4. Select the box indicating if an alternative procedure (i.e., via live video interaction) for document examination was used, when applicable.
  5. Enter the employee’s full name from the original Form I-9 at the top of the supplement.
    • Name Changes: When applicable, enter only the part of the name that has changed in the New Name fields. For example, for employees who changed only their last name, enter the last name in the Last Name field and leave the First Name and Middle Initial fields blank.
  6. Enter the employee’s rehire date in the Date of Rehire field.
  7. Enter your name as the employer's authorized representative, sign and enter the date in the appropriate fields.

Changes of Name and Other Identity Information

UNL’s requirements when an employee has a legal change of name can be found in the New Hire Paperwork manual and includes completion of a Personnel Data Form (PDF). Completion of Supplement B is not required for name changes at UNL.

Completion of the Supplement B is optional to use when an employee has a legal change of name (at any time other than during a reverification or rehire) and/or other identity information is different from what they used to complete their original Form I-9 (and they can present supporting documentation). If information is substantially different from what they previously provided on Form I-9 and they are unable to provide evidence linking the new information to the identity previously used, a new Form I-9 (and E-Verify) must be completed.

FAQs
Can a student employee's parent present the acceptable documents on behalf of their student in the live video interaction?
Simple answer: No.
Situation: A potential student employee does not have their original social security card (or other I-9 documentation) in their possession, so asks if their parent can join the live video interaction session to present the documentation on their behalf. Is that okay?
Response: Presentation of documentation by a parent or other person on behalf of a potential employee is not acceptable for a number of reasons that can be explained to the potential employee as follows: UNL follows the United States Immigration and Naturalization's (USCIS) Handbook for Employers M-274 guidance for completing Form I-9's. One of the factors that help employers determine that a document “reasonably appears to be genuine and related to the individual” is that the potential employee has possession of the original document. The HR representative, on behalf of the employer, attests by signing the Form I-9 that they have “under penalty of perjury, (1) examined the documentation presented by the above-named employee, (2) the above-listed documentation appears to be genuine and to relate to the employee named, and (3) to the best of my knowledge, the employee is authorized to work in the United States.” Even though UNL may fully believe that the third party/parent is who they say they are, USCIS guidance clearly states that documentation verification must be conducted with the person to whom the documents belong. This process is not meant to inconvenience the employee, however, UNL has a legal obligation to follow USCIS instructions.

Why does a copy of the backside of a two-sided document need to be included with Form I-9?

Simple Answer: It is a USCIS requirement.
Situation: The employee presents an acceptable document that is two-sided.
Response: When an employer chooses to remotely examine an employees’ documents, they must retain clear and legible copies of the front and back (if two-sided) of all Form I-9 documentation the employee presents remotely per the USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274 chapter 4.1.

Can an employee complete the Form I-9 electronically and present their documents in person?

Simple answer: No.
Situation: An employee agrees to completion of the Form I-9 electronically, but prefers to present their acceptable documents in-person. Is that okay?
Response: Currently, UNL's electronic completion of the Form I-9 via DocuSign is linked to live video verification as the method in which the HR will review the acceptable documents presented by the employee. If an employee is not comfortable attaching copies of their documents electronically and/or presenting them via a live video interaction, they must both complete the form and present their original documents in-person.

Why is the checkbox for the alternate document examination procedure not a required field on UNL's DocuSign template for Supplement B?

Simple answer: It isn't applicable in all uses of the Supplement B.
Situation: The checkbox for the alternate document examination procedure is not a required field on the UNL template for Supplement B, therefore, HR professionals may forget to check that box.
Response: The checkbox field is optional because document verification is not applicable in all uses of the Supplement B form. For example, a rehired employee whose work authorization has not expired would not need to provide any documents, thus none would need to be examined using an alternate procedure. In addition, having this field optional accommodates situations in which the HR professional may still want to complete the form electronically, but the employee would prefer to present their document in-person since they now are on-campus and working (but weren’t yet on campus when they completed their I-9 originally). It may be more convenient for the employee to just bring their document to work and have a copy made in-person.

History

August 1, 2023 - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued a revised Form I-9 (OMB No. 1615-0047, Expires July 31, 2026) and provided an alternative procedure to the in-person physical examination of the documentation provided by individuals to support their Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. In accordance, UNL updated their I-9 instructions and procedures.