Employers must verify the identity and employment authorization of their employees. The employee, the hiring department, and Payroll all have roles and responsibilities in the I-9 collection process. View AGM 2.2.3: University Payroll for details.
To comply with U.S. law, Stanford must verify eligibility for employment for all new employees within three business days of hire (meaning that if an employee starts on Monday, the employer must complete the I-9 by the end of the day on Thursday). There are remote and onsite options, as described below.
To comply with the U.S. Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), employers are required to obtain and review the following documents within the listed timelines. The consequences for not completing the I-9 correctly, or within the required timelines, can be significant. Non-compliance with IRCA invokes civil and criminal penalties as detailed below:
| Process | Deadline | Employer Penalties |
| Newly-hired employees, regardless of their immigration status, must complete, sign, and submit the employee Section 1 of the Form I-9. | By the end of the employee’s first day of work. | $281 to $2,789 per Form I-9
|
| Original documents establishing the employee’s eligibility to work in the U.S. plus the completed Employer section of Form I-9. | Within three business days of the employee’s first day of work. An employee must be terminated if they cannot or do not present I-9 documents or obtain receipts for replacement documents within the required three-day period. If employment lasts less than three days, then the employer must verify work authorization and complete Section 2 no later than the first day of work. | $575 to $23,048 per employee, per incident for unlawful discrimination. Employers cannot specify which document(s) they will accept from an employee or require different documentation from different groups of employees. |
| For employees with temporary authorization to work in the U.S., updated work authorization documents. | Before the expiration date of the employee's current work authorization. See Reverification or Renewal of Employment (to link below) | $281 to $2,789 per Form I-9
|
| Employees who leave the university need a new I-9 when they return to university employment. The hiring department may facilitate this process by completing a new Form I-9 with the employee. | See Returning Employees (to link below). | $281 to $2,789 per Form I-9
|
| Employment violations | Knowingly employing or continuing to employ an unauthorized worker | $698 to $27,894 per employee, per incident, plus the potential of criminal penalties for employing an unauthorized worker. |
Employee Failing to Present Documents
If an employee does not complete the Form I-9 on the first work day, an employer must pay for hours already worked by the employee to comply with the California Labor Code. Work hours should be entered on the Termination Web Form. If a situation like this occurs in a department, they should alert the I-9 Compliance Specialist by submitting a payroll support request.
Employment will be terminated if an employee cannot or does not present I-9 documents or obtain receipts for replacement documents within the required three-day period.
For more information on extensions and rules covering when an employee is not in possession of documents, see Resource: Examples of Completed I-9 for Stanford.
For additional information on IRCA compliance and enforcement, refer to Fact Sheet: Form I-9 Inspection Overview on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) website.
I-9 Anywhere
This option is a service that enables new hires and existing employees to complete/reverify their I-9 document with a network of commercial verifiers located throughout the U.S. I-9 Anywhere charges a nominal fee per appointment which will be charged to the employee’s department. I-9 Anywhere is primarily intended as a service offering for employees who will be working remotely outside of the Bay Area but can be utilized as needed for local hires. Any no show or appointment cancellation less than 24 hours before the scheduled time will still be subject to the same fee. The current fee is $75.
In order for the employee to schedule an I-9 Anywhere appointment:
- Departmental HR administrators should submit a request via the I-9 Anywhere Request Form.
- Employees need to consult their departmental HR administrators before utilizing the I-9 Anywhere service.
- The link will be emailed to the employee to schedule an I-9 Anywhere appointment. A copy will also be emailed to the HR administrator.
- Once the I-9 form has been completed, an email will be sent to the HR administrator to confirm the form has been received.
- Upon review, Payroll will contact the HR administrator if there are any subsequent questions with the I-9.
Authorized Agent
This option is another method for remote I-9 verification, in which a university or college partnered with Stanford assists with processing the I-9 for remote employees. If the department opts to utilize a remote verifier through CUPA or another channel, the person signing the Form I-9 must be an employee of our partner institution and examination of documents must be completed in person.
In order for the employee to complete the I-9 with an authorized agent in their area:
- An employee can connect with a local university or college and work with the institution’s HR or Payroll department to verify employment eligibility based on I-9 requirements.
- The local department HR representative should provide the Remote Employee I-9 and Remote Agent Instruction Sheet with the first three lines completed.
- The instructions are given to the remote agent to verify employment documents.
- The remote agent and/or employee will fax and mail the completed I-9 form with document copies to the Stanford Payroll department.
It is required that:
- Employee completes Section 1 of the paper Form I-9 on the first day of work.
- Department/HR administrators must verify an employee's employment eligibility within three business days from the employee’s first day of work.
On or before the first day of work:
- Provide employees with Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) and instructions and communicate deadlines.
By the end of the first day of work:
- Complete Section 1 of Form I-9. Refer to How To: Complete Form I-9 for Employment Eligibility Verification for more information.
- Identify documents establishing an employee's eligibility to work in the U.S. to present to their department/HR administrator:
- Review Lists of Acceptable Documents on page 2 of the Form I-9 when viewed online or page 2 when printed.
- Identify one or more documents from List A or identify one document each from List B AND List C that the employee possesses and can show to the employee's department/HR administrator.
- Give the completed Form I-9 to your department/HR administrator. Refer to Resource: Examples of Completed Form I-9 for Stanford for more information.
Within three business days from the employee's first day of work:
Employees
- Present the original document(s) to your department/HR administrator.
The employee's department/HR administrator will return the original document(s) to the employee after copies are made.
Department/HR administrators
- Collect the Form I-9 and original supporting document(s) from the employee.
- Review Section 1 of the Form I-9 for completeness. Refer to How To: Verify Completed Form I-9 and Original Documents for more information.
- Make legible copies of the documents presented and ensure the employee's photo is clear.
- Return the original documents to the employee.
Within three business days from the start of employment:
- Complete Section 2 of Form I-9. Refer to How To: Complete Form I-9 for Employment Eligibility Verification for details.
- If employment lasts less than three days, then the employer must verify work authorization and complete Section 2 no later than the first day of work.
- Refer to Resource: Examples of Completed Form I-9 for Stanford for more information.
- Submit completed paper Form I-9 and copies of the documents to Payroll by either:
- Sending to paper forms to Payroll via inter-campus mail, MC 8838
- Dropping paper forms in an envelope in the secure drop boxes located at:
- Tresidder Union - Located on the parking lot level between Tresidder and the Faculty Club
- Redwood City - Located in the main lobby at University Hall
- Mailing to Payroll: 485 Broadway Street, University Hall, Floor 2, Redwood City, CA 94063-3136, United States
- Do not retain photocopies of I-9 documents.
- Monitor employment eligibility:
- Periodically run the I-9 Visa Status Report to ensure compliance within the department(s) to track non-compliant issues and foresee soon-to-be expired Form I-9s. Refer to How to: Run I-9 Visa Status Report for details.
- Terminate the employee record or notify HR once the employee has left the position.
- Review incoming Form I-9s and attached documentation for accuracy.
- Contact the department/HR administrator if documentation is missing or if the form is incomplete.
- Enter the I-9 received ate, plus expiration date if applicable, into the HCM System.
- Retain Form I-9 and attached copies for recordkeeping.
- Generate I-9 compliance reports and follow up individually on all outstanding issues to ensure compliance.
It is required that:
- Employee completes Section 1 of the Form I-9 on the first day of work.
- Department / HR administrators must verify all employees' employment eligibility, within three business days from the employee’s first day of work.
On or before the first day of work:
- Provide employees with Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) and instructions to complete the self-service form online in Axess Employee Center and communicate deadlines.
By the end of the first day of work:
- Complete Section 1 of Form I-9. Refer to How To: Complete Form I-9 for Employment Eligibility Verification for more information.
- Identify documents establishing the employee’s eligibility to work in the U.S. to present to their department/HR administrator:
- Review Lists of Acceptable Documents on page 2 of the Form I-9 when viewed online.
- Identify one or more documents from List A or identify one document each from List B AND List C that the employee possesses and can show to their department/HR administrator.
- Notify the employee’s department/HR administrator after submitting the electronic Form I-9 online in Axess Employee Center. Refer to Resource: Examples of Completed Form I-9 for Stanford for more information.
Employees
Present original document(s) to the employee's department/HR administrator.
The employee's department/HR administrator will return the original document(s) to them after copies are made.
Department/HR administrators
- When the employee has completed an electronic I-9 Section 1, retrieve it in Axess HR Admin.
- Review Section 1 of the Form I-9 for completeness. Refer to How To: Verify Completed Form I-9 and Original Documents for more information.
- Make legible copies of the documents presented, and ensure the employee’s photo is clear. When administering an electronic I-9, take legible PDF scans of the documents presented and upload to electronic I-9 Section 2 in Axess.
- Return the original documents to the employee.
Within three business days from the start of employment:
- Complete Section 2 of Form I-9. Refer to How To: Complete Form I-9 for Employment Eligibility Verification for details.
- If employment lasts less than three days, then the employer must verify work authorization and complete Section 2 no later than the first day of work.
- Refer to Resource: Examples of Completed Form I-9 for Stanford for more information.
Submit completed Form I-9 and copies of the documents to Section 2 in Axess.
Do not retain photocopies of I-9 documents.
- Monitor employment eligibility:
- Periodically run the I-9 Visa Status report to ensure compliance within the department(s), to track non-compliant issues and foresee soon to be expired Form I-9s. Refer to How to: Run I-9 Visa Status Report for details.
- Periodically run the Electronic I-9 Detail report to track electronic I-9s submitted by employees and returned for correction by Payroll.
- Terminate the employee record, or notify HR once the employee has left the position.
- Review incoming Form I-9s and documentation and attached documentation for accuracy.
- Contact the department/HR administrator if documentation is missing or if the form is incomplete.
- Approve the I-9 in Axess which will automatically populate the I-9 data in the HCM System.
- Retain Form I-9 and attached copies for recordkeeping.
- Review and approve or return electronic Form I-9s in Axess HR Admin.
- Generate I-9 compliance reports and follow up individually on all outstanding issues to ensure compliance.
Continuing Stanford employees with expiring supporting documents must be re-verified by the department/HR administrator once new documents are received and before the existing documents expire.
Permanent residents do not require reverification if employment is continuous. In other words, permanent resident cards are List A documents that should not be reverified. (Cited from the USCIS Handbook for Employers).
Renewal receipts, when the renewal was properly filed prior to the current end date, are acceptable documentation for H-1B, O-1, TN and certain types of Employment Authorization (EAD) cards. For a list of EAD card categories eligible to work while an extension is pending, refer to the USCIS EAD page. Renewal receipts are not acceptable for extensions of EAD cards for an individual moving from one visa type to another.
Employment must be terminated if an employee cannot or does not present updated work authorization documentation by the end date of their current authorization.
For information about visa types, requirements and restrictions for obtaining a visa and gaining employment visit the Bechtel International Center website.
Before current documents expire
- Present new supporting documents to your department/HR administrators to re-verify your employment eligibility.
- Payroll does not require additional documentation in the event of a name change. Please contact your local department manager or human resources administrator to update your name in the HCM System. For correct reporting of wage information to Social Security, your name in the HCM System must match your legal name on file with the Social Security Administration.
Before current documents expire
- Collect original supporting document(s) from the employee.
- Verify original document(s) establishing the employee's eligibility to work in the U.S. Refer to How To: Verify Completed Form I-9 and Original Documents for more information.
- Make legible copies of the documents presented and ensure the employee's photo is clear.
- Return the original documents to the employee.
Before current documents expire
- Complete Section 3 of the Form I-9. Refer to How To: Complete Form I-9 for Employee Eligibility Verification for details.
- Submit completed Form I-9 and document copies to Payroll. Refer to Resource: Examples of Completed Form I-9 for Stanford for more information.
Do not retain photocopies of I-9 documents.
- Monitor employment eligibility
- Periodically run the I-9 Visa Status Report to ensure compliance within the department(s) to track non-compliant issues and foresee soon-to-be-expired issues. Refer to How to: Run I-9 Visa Status Report for more information.
- Terminate the employee record or notify HR once the employee has left the position.
- Review incoming Form I-9, documentation, and attached documentation for accuracy.
- Contact the department/HR administrator if documentation is missing or the form is incomplete.
- Enter the I-9 received date, plus expiration date if applicable, into the HCM System.
- Retain Form I-9 and attached copies for recordkeeping.
- Generate I-9 compliance reports and follow up individually on all outstanding issues to ensure compliance.
Employees who leave the university require a new or updated I-9 when they return to university employment. In limited situations, the employee’s previous Form I-9 is acceptable and no action is required by the employee or student worker. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service sets strict guidelines for when a break in service can be defined as a continuation of the person’s previous employment. Employers can use the previous I-9 only if the break in service (interruption in employment) meets all of the following conditions:
- The employee is an instructional staff or faculty member, student, or seasonal*/temporary/casual employee returning to the same job (same position and/or job code) and the same department, and
- At the time of separation, the employee was expected to resume employment within a reasonable time in the future, and
- The break in employment was less than one year, and
- The employee’s employment authorization documents have not expired.
*Seasonal means that employment is tied to a certain time of year by an event or pattern.
