Don’t panic! The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently updated their Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification but only the expiration date was extended — to 05/31/27. Unlike last year’s Form I-9 update, no substantive changes were made to the form.
The USCIS states that employers must use the Form I-9 with an edition date of 08/1/23 (found in the form’s lower left hand corner), which will have an expiration date of either 07/31/26 (the version that came out last year) or 05/31/27 (the version that was just released).
The USCIS encourages employers to update their Form I-9 to the version with the 05/31/27 expiration date as soon as possible, but employers can use either form until its respective expiration date so the new version expiring 05/31/27 must be used no later than July 31, 2026.
In addition to the Form I-9, the Form I-9 Instructions, the Spanish Form I-9 and the Spanish Form I-9 Instructions had their expiration date extended to 05/31/27 without substantive changes. Employers also must update their forms to the new version no later then July 31, 2026.
Besides updating their Forms I-9 for new employees and any reverifications, employers don’t need to update any previous properly completed Forms I-9 on file. As long as employees completed a current Form I-9, listed acceptable identity and work authorization documents, provided unexpired original documents to the employer to view, and signed and dated the form at the time of hire, employers are compliant.
Finally, don’t forget that E-Verify employers can use last year’s optional alternative procedure to inspect Form I-9 documents.
James W. Ward, Employment Law Subject Matter Expert/Legal Writer and Editor
CalChamber members can read more on I-9 Form: Verifying Eligibility, including Completing the Form I-9 and Reverifying Employment Eligibility in the HR Library. Not a member? Learn how to power your business with a CalChamber membership.
