I-9 documents: Lists A, B and C, and who issues each one

I-9 documents are the original, unexpired papers a new employee shows so the employer can complete Section 2 of Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. USCIS sorts them into three lists (USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents). List A proves both identity and permission to work, so one document is enough. List B proves identity only, and List C proves work authorization only, so they come as a pair.

The employer does not keep the documents. It looks at them, records the title, issuing authority, number and expiration date in Section 2, and hands them back. Copies are optional for most employers, but if you copy for one hire you should copy for all of them (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.1 Retaining Copies of Documents).

The current edition is dated 01/20/25 (USCIS, I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification). USCIS also accepts the 08/01/23 edition whose expiration date, printed at the top of the form, is 05/31/2027; the 08/01/23 printing that expires 07/31/2026 can no longer be used (USCIS, I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification). The edition date sits at the bottom of each page, and the lists of acceptable documents print with the form.

Each document comes from a different issuer. The U.S. Department of State issues passports, passport cards and the consular birth records on List C. USCIS issues the Permanent Resident Card and the Employment Authorization Document. A state DMV issues the driver’s license or state ID, the Social Security Administration issues the Social Security card, and a state, county or city vital records office issues the certified birth certificate.

1. Look at the second page of the Form I-9 you received with your offer: it prints all three lists.
2. Pick one List A document, or one from List B and one from List C, from what you already hold.
3. Check the expiration date and the name on each one; an expired card or a name that differs causes a second visit.
4. If a document was lost or stolen, apply for the replacement and bring the receipt instead; HR must accept it for a limited period (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.4 Acceptable Receipts).
5. Bring the originals on day one or within three business days of your start date; photocopies are not accepted at an in-person review, except a certified copy of a birth certificate (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.0 Completing Section 2).

• A laminated Social Security card, or one marked “NOT VALID FOR EMPLOYMENT”: neither counts as a List C document (USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents).
• A photocopy or a phone photo of a passport brought to an in-person review instead of the original.
• Two List B documents and no List C document, such as a driver’s license plus a school ID.
• A hospital souvenir birth certificate with no official seal instead of the certified copy from vital records.
• An expired List A card shown without the notice that extends it, when the extension appears on a separate Form I-797.

The table summarizes the USCIS lists (USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents). Each row names the document and the agency that hands it out, which is also where the employee goes if one is missing.

• A Puerto Rico birth certificate counts only if it was issued on or after July 1, 2010 (USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents).
• A Social Security card with a restriction is not a List C document, but an E-Verify employer still enters the number in the case (USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents).
• Some List A entries, such as a foreign passport with Form I-94, count as one document even though they are two pieces of paper.

This is the rule HR teams break most often without meaning to. USCIS says plainly that you cannot specify which documentation an employee will present from the lists (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.0 Completing Section 2). Federal law also treats asking for more or different documents than the law requires as an unfair immigration-related employment practice when it is done with intent to discriminate (8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(6), Unfair documentary practices).

In practice, that means your offer packet shows the full lists and asks the hire to bring an acceptable choice. It never says “bring your passport” or “bring your green card”. If someone shows a List B and a List C document, do not ask for a List A document as well (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.0 Completing Section 2).

• Say: “Please bring one document from List A, or one from List B and one from List C.”
• Do not say: “Please bring your green card and Social Security card.”
• Accept a document that reasonably appears genuine and relates to the person, even if you would have preferred another one.

The employee fills in Section 1 no later than the first day of work for pay (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 3.0 Completing Section 1). The employer then has three business days from the start date to examine the documents and finish Section 2 (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.0 Completing Section 2). For a Monday start, USCIS gives Thursday of that week as the last day (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.0 Completing Section 2).

A job that lasts less than three business days is different: Section 2 is due on the first day, and a receipt cannot stand in for a document (8 CFR 274a.2, Verification of identity and employment authorization). You may examine the documents any time after the person accepts the offer, but you may not ask anyone who has not accepted an offer to complete Section 1 (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 3.0 Completing Section 1).

A receipt is proof that the employee applied to replace a document that was lost, stolen or damaged, or one of two specific Form I-94 records. You must accept one in place of the document, unless the job lasts less than three business days (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.4 Acceptable Receipts). A second receipt at the end of the first one is not allowed (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.4 Acceptable Receipts).

Workers under 18 who have no photo ID can use a school record or report card, a clinic, doctor or hospital record, or a day-care or nursery school record as their List B document (USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents). If they cannot show any List B document, a parent or legal guardian can establish identity on the form, though not at an E-Verify employer (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.2 Minors).

Reverification is the update an employer makes in Supplement B when temporary work authorization expires. It is due no later than the date the authorization ends, and the employee again chooses a List A or List C document (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 6.1 Reverifying Employment Authorization). It is never required for U.S. citizens or noncitizen nationals, nor when a U.S. passport, passport card, Permanent Resident Card or List B document expires (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 6.0 Completing Supplement B).

Keep each form for three years after the date of hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later (8 CFR 274a.2, Verification of identity and employment authorization). Store the forms and any copies so you can produce them within three business days of an inspection request (USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 10.0 Retaining Form I-9).

• USCIS, Form I-9 Acceptable Documents: Lists A, B and C, the minors’ List B alternatives, restricted Social Security cards, Puerto Rico birth certificates and acceptable receipts.
• USCIS, I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification: The current edition is dated 01/20/25 (edition date at the bottom of the page). Employers may also use the 08/01/23 edition with an expiration date of 05/31/2027; another 08/01/23 printing was valid only until 07/31/2026. The expiration date is at the top of the page.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 3.0 Completing Section 1: Section 1 is completed by the first day of work for pay; an applicant who has not accepted an offer may not be asked to complete it.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.0 Completing Section 2: Section 2 is completed within three business days of the start date; the employer cannot specify which documents the employee presents.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.4 Acceptable Receipts: Replacement receipts and refugee I-94 receipts are valid 90 days; an I-94 with a temporary I-551 stamp is valid until the stamp expires or one year from admission.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.1 Retaining Copies of Documents: Copies of documents are optional but must be made consistently for all employees.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 4.2 Minors: A parent or guardian may establish a minor’s identity when no List B document is available, except at E-Verify employers.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 6.1 Reverifying Employment Authorization: Reverification is due by the date employment authorization expires and uses a List A or List C document chosen by the employee.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 6.0 Completing Supplement B: Reverification is never required for U.S. citizens or noncitizen nationals, or when U.S. passports, passport cards, Permanent Resident Cards or List B documents expire.
• USCIS Handbook for Employers M-274, 10.0 Retaining Form I-9: Forms I-9 must be produced within three business days of an inspection request.
• 8 CFR 274a.2, Verification of identity and employment authorization: Three-business-day rule, no receipts for jobs under three business days, and retention for three years after hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later.
• 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(6), Unfair documentary practices: Requesting more or different documents than required, with intent to discriminate, is an unfair immigration-related employment practice.