Employers use Form I-9 to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. 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 (or authorized representatives of the employer) must complete the form.
On the form, an employee must attest to his or her employment authorization. The employee must also present his or her employer with acceptable documents evidencing identity and employment authorization. The employer must examine the employment eligibility and identity documents an employee presents to determine whether the documents reasonably appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee—and then record the document information on the Form I-9.
The list of acceptable documents can be found on the last page of the form. Employers must retain Form I-9 for a designated period and make it available for inspection by authorized government officers.
In Texas, as in all other states, employers are required to follow federal law regarding the use of Form I-9 to verify the identity and employment authorization of every individual they hire for employment in the United States, which includes both citizens and noncitizens. The process mandates that employees provide documentation that proves their identity and eligibility to work, which the employer must review to ensure the documents are authentic and correspond to the individual presenting them. The employer must then record the relevant information from these documents onto Form I-9. The list of documents that are acceptable for this purpose is provided with the form itself. Employers are obligated to keep completed forms on file for a certain period of time and must present them for inspection if requested by authorized officials from agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Labor, or the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER). It's important to note that while the form is federally mandated, there may be additional state-specific regulations regarding employment verification that employers must also adhere to.
