What's covered in this guide?
What is Form I-9?
Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) is a federal document required by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Every employer in the United States must verify the identity and employment authorization of each person they hire. The I-9 form is how that verification is documented.
The form has two main sections:
Section 1 (Employee): The employee provides personal information and attests to their employment eligibility status (U.S. citizen, noncitizen national, lawful permanent resident, or noncitizen authorized to work).
Section 2 (Employer): The employer examines the employee's original identity and work authorization documents and records the document details on the form.
There is also an optional Supplement A (Preparer/Translator) section, used when someone other than the employee helps prepare or translate Section 1.
Legal requirements and deadlines
Federal law requires that:
Section 1 must be completed by the employee no later than their first day of employment (the actual start of work for pay).
Section 2 must be completed by the employer within 3 business days of the employee's first day of employment. For example, if an employee begins work on Monday, Section 2 must be completed by Thursday.
The employer must examine original documents (not photocopies) presented by the employee. Acceptable documents fall into three lists:
List A: Documents that prove both identity and employment authorization (e.g., U.S. passport, permanent resident card)
List B: Documents that prove identity only (e.g., driver's license, state ID)
List C: Documents that prove employment authorization only (e.g., Social Security card, birth certificate)
The employee must present one List A document OR one List B document AND one List C document.
Completed I-9 forms must be retained for 3 years after the date of hire or 1 year after the date employment ends, whichever is later.
Employers may not specify which documents an employee must present. The employee chooses which acceptable documents to show.
For the full list of acceptable documents and detailed instructions, refer to
the instructions.
The I-9 workflow in Workforce
Workforce handles the I-9 process digitally, guiding both the employee and employer through each step. Here's how it works end to end:
Step 1: Request the I-9
An admin or authorized user initiates the I-9 process for a new employee.
1. Navigate to the employee's profile
2. Go to the Tax Documents tab
3. Click the Request button on the I-9 row
This sends the employee a notification (both email and push notification via the mobile app) asking them to complete Section 1.
Note: When a new W-2 employee begins onboarding and their employment has already passed the three-day grace period, Workforce automatically sends an alert to your configured I-9 notification recipients reminding them of their I-9 verification responsibility.
Step 2: Employee completes Section 1
The employee completes Section 1 through the Workforce mobile app (or during their onboarding flow). They will:
Confirm their legal name, address, date of birth, and SSN
Select their employment eligibility status:
U.S. citizen
Noncitizen national of the U.S.
Lawful permanent resident (requires USCIS/A-Number)
Noncitizen authorized to work (requires one of: USCIS/A-Number, I-94 Admission Number, or foreign passport number and country)
Optionally indicate if a preparer or translator assisted them (Supplement A)
Sign the form electronically
Once submitted, the I-9 status moves to Employer Review and all configured notification recipients receive an email with a notice to review the form.
Step 3: Employer reviews and completes Section 2
An authorized user reviews the employee's submission and completes the employer portion:
Navigate to the employee's Tax Documents tab
Click Review on the I-9 row
The review page shows:
Employee Information (read-only) — the data the employee submitted in Section 1, along with their signature and date
Employer Review — where you complete Section 2
Preparer Information (if applicable) — preparer/translator details from Supplement A
Add the documents the employee physically presented:
Select either a List A document, or both a List B and List C document
Enter the document title, issuing authority, document number (if any), and expiration date (if any)
Enter your title (e.g., "HR Manager")
Sign the form electronically
Click submit
Important: You must examine the employee's original documents in person. The employer cannot complete Section 2 until the required documents have been added and your company details are configured in payroll settings.
Step 4: Form generation and completion
After the employer signs, Workforce generates the completed I-9 PDF with both signatures. The status moves through Finalizing to Complete. Once complete, the signed PDF can be downloaded from the employee's Tax Documents tab.
Configuring I-9 notification recipients
By default, I-9 review notifications are sent to the default admin user configured in your payroll settings. You can customize who receives these notifications so the right people are alerted when an employee submits their Section 1.
To configure notification recipients:
Navigate to Payroll > Payroll Settings > Company Setup > General Settings
Find the I-9 Notification Recipients field
Use the multi-select dropdown to choose which users should receive I-9 notifications
Click Save
Note: Only users who have the Edit I-9 permission enabled will appear in the dropdown as eligible recipients. If a user you expect to see is missing, you'll need to update their permissions first — see the next section. There is a "Manage eligible recipients" link next to this field that takes you directly to the permissions settings page.
If no notification recipients are selected, the system falls back to the organization's default admin email recipients.
Who gets notified and when?
Event | Who is notified |
I-9 is requested by employer | Employee (email + push notification) |
Employee submits Section 1 | All configured I-9 notification recipients (or default admin) |
New W-2 employee starts onboarding after their first start date | All configured I-9 notification recipients (reminder of I-9 responsibility) |
Setting up user permissions for I-9
To be eligible as an I-9 notification recipient or to review and sign I-9 forms, a user must have the Edit I-9 permission enabled on their role.
Default permissions by role:
Role | Edit I-9 | Scope |
Organization Admin | Enabled | All employees |
Payroll Officer | Enabled | All employees |
General Manager | Disabled by default | Can be enabled |
Manager | Disabled by default | Managed employees only |
Employee | Not available | N/A |
To enable the Edit I-9 permission for a user:
Navigate to Settings > Permissions
Find the user or role you want to update
Under the User subject permissions, locate Edit I-9
Enable the permission
Save the changes
Once enabled, the user will:
Be able to review and sign I-9 forms for employees they have access to
Appear in the I-9 Notification Recipients dropdown in payroll settings
Be eligible to be selected as a notification recipient
Uploading an existing I-9
If you already have a signed I-9 form on file (for example, from before you started using Workforce, or one that was completed on paper), you can upload it directly.
Navigate to the employee's Tax Documents tab
On the I-9 row, click the dropdown arrow next to the main button
Select the Upload option
Upload the signed PDF
The I-9 status will be set to On File, and the uploaded document will be available for download. Only PDF files are accepted.
Pay validation and compliance checks
Workforce includes a built-in pay validation check that flags employees who are missing a completed I-9. When you run payroll:
The Central Pay Validation Report (found under Reports > Compliance) will show a warning for any W-2 employee without a completed or on-file I-9
You can configure whether this check blocks the pay run, shows as a warning, or is disabled, via the Configure Checks option on the validation report
This helps ensure you don't process payroll for employees who haven't completed their employment eligibility verification.
Impact on onboarding
For new W-2 employees, the I-9 is one of several required onboarding steps in the Workforce mobile app. Until the employee completes all onboarding steps (including the I-9), they will:
See a persistent orange banner in the mobile app indicating onboarding is incomplete
Be unable to tap Complete Onboarding — the button remains disabled until all steps are done
Appear with an "onboarding incomplete" warning on any shifts they are scheduled for
The employee can still access the mobile app, view their schedule, and complete other onboarding steps (such as the W-4) in any order. The I-9 does not block other steps, but it does prevent onboarding from being marked as complete.
Note: The I-9 step only appears during onboarding if the employee's employment start date is within the last 14 days (or has not been set). If an employee is added to Workforce more than two weeks after their start date, the system assumes their I-9 was already completed outside the platform. In that case, the I-9 won't block onboarding — but you should still ensure a completed I-9 is on file by uploading it manually from the Tax Documents tab.
I-9 status reference
Status | Meaning |
Pending | I-9 has been created but not yet requested from the employee |
Requested | Employee has been notified and needs to complete Section 1 |
Employer Review | Employee has submitted Section 1; waiting for employer to complete Section 2 |
Finalizing | Employer has signed; the PDF is being generated |
Complete | Signed PDF is available for download |
On File | A previously completed I-9 was manually uploaded |
Re-requesting an I-9
If an employee needs to redo their I-9 (for example, due to a name change or data entry error), you can re-request it:
Navigate to the employee's Tax Documents tab
Click the dropdown arrow next to the I-9 action button
Select Request
Confirm the action when prompted
This will archive the existing I-9 and start a fresh workflow. The employee will receive a new notification to complete Section 1.
Prerequisites for employees
Before an employee can complete their I-9 in the mobile app, they must have the following information on file:
Full legal name
Home address
Date of birth
Email address
Phone number
Social Security Number (SSN)
If any of these are missing, the I-9 step will appear disabled in the employee's onboarding flow with a message indicating what's needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can contractors complete an I-9?
No. Form I-9 is only required for W-2 employees. Contractors are not included in the I-9 workflow.
Can the employee complete the I-9 on desktop?
Section 1 is completed by the employee through the Workforce mobile app as part of their onboarding flow. Section 2 (employer review) is completed on the web/desktop platform.
What if I need to verify documents remotely?
Federal regulations generally require in-person document examination. However, certain alternative procedures may be available depending on current USCIS guidance. The employer review form includes an "Alternative Procedure" field for documenting any authorized remote verification method used.
How long should I keep completed I-9s?
Retain the form for 3 years after the hire date or 1 year after employment ends, whichever is later. Completed I-9 PDFs remain available for download in Workforce.
What happens if I run payroll without a completed I-9?
The pay validation report will flag the employee. Depending on your configuration, this may appear as a warning or block the timesheet from being exported to payroll.
Does Workforce send my I-9s to E-Verify?
Workforce does not currently integrate with E-Verify, but it is on our product roadmap.