Completing Section 1, Employee Information and Attestation
When completing Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, you, as the employer, must make the complete instructions to the form and the Lists of Acceptable Documents available to newly hired employees. Your employees must complete and sign Section 1 of Form I-9 no later than their first day of employment.
You may have your employees complete Form I-9:
- On their first day of employment (the actual commencement of employment of an employee for wages or other remuneration, referred to as date of hire in the Department of Homeland Security regulations); or
- Before their first day of employment, if they accepted your job offer
Preparers and translators can help employees complete Section 1.
Employee Responsibilities for Section 1
- Full legal name;
- Employees with two last names (family names) should enter both names. Employees with two first names (given names) should enter both names.
- Employees with only one name should enter it in the Last Name field, then enter “Unknown” in the First Name field.
- Employees should include the hyphen (-) or apostrophe (’) if their names have them.
- Employees with a middle name should enter the middle initial.
- Other legal last names used, including a maiden name, if applicable. Current address, including street name and number city, state and ZIP code. Include the apartment number or letter if applicable;
- Date of birth;
- Citizenship or immigration status, by checking the appropriate box to indicate whether they are a U.S. citizen, a noncitizen national, a lawful permanent resident of the U.S., or a noncitizen authorized to work in the U.S.;
- If applicable, Alien Number/USCIS Number, Form I-94 admission number, or foreign passport number (including country of issuance), and the date employment authorization expires; and
- Signature and the date.
Additionally, employees may provide their:
- Social Security number (Exception: Employees must provide their Social Security number if you participate in E-Verify);
- E-mail address (employees may receive email notifications from USCIS if you participate in E-Verify); and
- Telephone number.
Employees must sign the form even if a preparer or translator helps them. Preparers or translators who help your employee must provide their name and address and must sign and date the certification on the form. If more than one preparer or translator helps the employee complete Section 1 of Form I-9, you may use Form I-9 Supplement, Section 1 Preparer and/or Translator Certification, to document each preparer and/or translator.
If more than one preparer and/or translator helps the employee complete the form using a computer, the preparer should select the number of certification areas needed from the dropdown provided. Any additional certification areas generated will result in an additional page.
Each preparer or translator must complete, sign and date a separate certification area. You must retain completed supplement sheets with the employee’s completed Form I-9.
The date your employee enters next to his or her signature should match the date the preparer/translator signed the form.
If the employee did not use a preparer and/or translator, the employee must check the box marked “I did not use a Preparer or Translator.”
Employer Responsibilities for Section 1
You must review the information your employees provided to ensure:
- They completed all required fields;
- They provided their Social Security numbers if you participate in E-Verify. (If you do not participate in E-Verify, employees are not required to enter their Social Security number.);
- Your employees signed and dated their forms; and
- The preparer or translator completed, signed, and dated the Preparer/Translator section if the employee used a preparer or translator.
You should also:
- Check whether your employees indicated in Section 1 that their employment authorization will expire.
- You may need to reverify your employee’s employment authorization when it expires. You may remind them at least 90 days before the expiration date that they will need to present a List A or List C document to show continued employment authorization for reverification purposes. They must present these documents on or before the date their current employment authorization expires.
- Check whether the expiration date for employment authorization your employee provided in Section 1 matches the expiration date of the List A or List C document they presented for Section 2, Employer Review and Attestation. Use the earlier date for reverification purposes.
- Handbook for Employers M-274, Guidance for Completing Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification Form
- Take a Free Webinar
- Status of Citizens of the Republic of Palau Factsheet (PDF, 166.02 KB)
- Status of Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands Factsheet (PDF, 209.34 KB)
- Employee Info Sheet (PDF)
- About the Optional Employee Email Field
- How to Prevent a TNC
- Who Needs the Form I-9