The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced interim Form I-9 procedures to defer the physical presence requirement as an accommodation to employers complying with state shelter-in-place requirements. This provision has since been extended several times.
Although the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced an extension of temporary I-9 compliance flexibilities through October 31, 2022, this policy only applied to employers and workplaces that were operating remotely due to COVID-19 precautions. No exceptions to the in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9 are available for any Stanford new hire at this time.
New employees should follow the processes as outlined on the Verify Eligibility for Employment page for processing the Form I-9.
Current verification options are as follows:
Onsite I-9 Verification
- In Person
HR Representative provides the employee with I-9 on or before first day of work to be completed by an in-person verification. See the detailed process as outlined on the Verify Eligibility for Employment page.
Remote I-9 Verification
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I-9 Anywhere
HR Representative provides the employee a link to schedule an I-9 Anywhere appointment. I-9 Anywhere is a pilot service that will enable new hires and existing employees who need to complete/reverify their I-9 document to choose from a network of commercial verifiers located throughout the U.S. See Verify Eligibility for Employment page for details. -
Authorized Agent
A method for remote I-9 verification in which a university or college partnered with Stanford assists with processing the I-9 for remote employees. See Verify Eligibility for Employment page for details.
- Previous Procedures for Interim Process Deferring Onsite Verification for Employees
- HR Representative sends the I-9 Form to the employee using their Stanford email account, including “SECURE:” in the subject line. This ensures that the employee's reply containing High Risk data will be encrypted by Stanford's Secure Email service.
- Employee completes and signs Section 1 of Form I-9 on or before their first day of work.
- Employee identifies documents that establish their eligibility to work in the U.S. from the List of Acceptable Documents on Form I-9. Once identified, the employee is to make a clear color copy, scan or photo of the documents.
- Employees with a Stanford email should reply to the "SECURE:" email from the HR Representative with the completed Form I-9 and the document evidence to the local HR representative or designee.
Employees without a Stanford email should reply to the "SECURE:" email from the HR Representative using Stanford's Secure Email service. Employee will be asked to create an account and password. The employee should then reply to the email within the Secure Email window and use the "Attach a file" button to send the completed Form I-9 and the document evidence to the local HR representative or designee.
- Upon receipt, and within three days of the employee’s first day of work, the local HR representative is to inspect Section 1 of the form and the provided document evidence, and then complete Section 2 of the form. In the ‘Additional Information' field, enter “COVID-19” to note the reason for the delay in physical inspection of the documents.
- HR Representative then retains Form I-9 in a secure location until the form can be completed in person.
- University guidance on shelter-in-place and physical distancing regulations must be followed to determine the first permissible date to meet with the new hire in person.
- No later than three business days following that date, the local HR Representative and the employee meet to review the employee’s documents in person and complete Form I-9.
- HR Representative adds “Documents physically examined” and the date of the inspection to the ‘Additional Information’ field on the original Form I-9.
- Submit the completed Form I-9 along with the supporting document copies to Payroll via ID Mail, MC 8838, or by dropping in one of the secure drop boxes:
- Tresidder Union: Located on the parking lot level between Tresidder and the Faculty Club
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Redwood City: Located in main lobby at University Hall
