The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 requires all employers to obtain evidence of U.S. citizenship or valid authorization of employment for aliens for all employees. Such evidence must be obtained from the employee within three business days of the date of first hire or by the end of the first day of employment for individuals hired for three days or less.

The University must comply with the law or face penalties. Below are the procedures to be followed when hiring individuals as faculty members, academic professionals, graduate assistants, and nonacademic employees. Please refer to Attachment I for the I-9 form, Attachment II for Summary Procedures Used for Academic Employees, and Attachment II for Summary Procedures Used for Nonacademic Employees.

Non-Citizens

For all U.S. citizens with academic appointments, it will be necessary for each unit responsible for the preparation of the academic or graduate assistant appointment papers to obtain the appropriate documentation from the employee to verify citizenship. The unit and employee must fill out an I-9 form (Attachment I) and examine the original documents allowed by law. For academic employees, the original I-9 form must be submitted with Recommendation for Appointment form or the Change of Status form, whichever is appropriate. That form must be submitted through channels and reach the Academic Personnel Office within three business days of the date of hire or by the end of the first day of employment if the appointment is for three days or less. For prospective and new nonacademic employees, the I-9 will be completed in the Staff Human Resources Office at the time of application.

NOTE: Knowingly falsifying an I-9 is a criminal offense.

Documents to Verify Employability

1. United States passport
2. Certificate of United States Citizenship. (INS Form N-569)
3. Certificate of Naturalization. (INS form N-550)
4. Unexpired foreign passport which:

- Contains an unexpired stamp which reads "Processed for I-551. Temporary Evidence of Lawful Admission for permanent residence. Valid until 0000. Employment authorized;" or

- Has attached thereto a Form I-94 bearing the same name as the passport and contains an employment authorization stamp, so long as the period of endorsement has not yet expired and the proposed employment is not in conflict with any restrictions or limitations identified on the Form I-94.

5. Alien Registration Receipt Card (INS Form I-151) or Resident Alien (INS Form I-551), provided that it contains a photograph of the bearer.
6. Temporary Resident Card. (INS Form I-688)
7. Employment Authorization Card. (INS Form I-688A)

(B) The following documents are acceptable to establish identity only:

1. State-issued driver's license or state-issued identification card containing a photograph. If the driver's license or identification card does not contain a photograph, identifying information should be included, such as name, date of birth, sex, height, color of eyes, and address.
2. School identification card with a photograph.
3. Voter's registration card
4. United States Military card or draft record
5. Identification card issued by federal, state or local government agencies
6. Military dependent's identification card
7. Native American tribal documents
8. United States Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Card
9. Driver's license issued by a Canadian government authority

1. School record or report card
2. Clinic, doctor or hospital record
3. Daycare or nursery school record

(C) The following are acceptable documents to establish employment authorization only:

1. A Social Security number card, other than one which has printed on its face "not valid for employment purposes."
2. An original or certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a state, county, or municipal authority bearing an official seal.
3. Unexpired INS employment authorization.
4. Unexpired re-entry permit. (INS Form I-327)
5. Unexpired Refugee Travel Document. (INS Form I-571)
6. Certification of Birth issued by the Department of State. (Form FS-545)
7. Certification of Birth Abroad issued by the Department of State. (Form DS-1350)
8. United States Citizen Identification Card. (INS Form I-197)
9. Native American tribal document.
10. Identification Card for use of Resident Citizen in the United States. (INS Form I-179)

Any document in Section A above needs only be viewed for the I-9 form. If the employee does not have one of the items in A, then, the employee must present an item from both Section B and from Section C. The originals of the documents must be viewed to complete the I-9 form and it is required that the documentation presented by the employee is physically examined. The unit can not certify employment eligibility by signing the I-9 form unless the original documents are seen. The unit should be reasonably sure that the documents are the originals and that they are not counterfeit.

Any continuing employee hired after November 7, 1986 must present evidence of employment eligibility and an I-9 form must be completed. The University will be responsible for such documentation. Of course, if an employee is terminated or quits and the individual is rehired, then it will be necessary to provide documentation of employment eligibility (I-9). Non-citizens hired prior to November 7, 1986 shall be considered to have grandfather status unless the individual is terminated or is excluded or deported from the United States or parts of the United States under an order of voluntary departure. Because the burden of proof is upon the University to establish whether or not an employee is on grandfather status, units are urged to check with the international offices for an interpretation of an alien's grandfather status or with this office in the case of a U.S. citizen. If an employee hired before November 7, 1986 is on approved leave (without pay, sabbatical, sick, disability, administrative) an I-9 is not required upon return to work. Also, short breaks or temporary breaks in employment do not require that an I-9 be completed.

A new I-9 does not have to be completed if the person is rehired within three years of the initial hire and the information on the original I-9 indicates the person is still authorized to work and the I-9 form is still on file. Non-citizens must still be referred to the appropriate international office. Also, for U.S. citizens, a copy of the I-9 for academic employees should be sent with the appointment papers so that the original I-9 may be located in the Academic Personnel Office.

If an employee changes employee groups, the original I-9 should be sent to the office responsible for the current appointment. If the employee is employed on two payrolls, the office responsible for the largest percentage of the appointment will keep the original I-9 form.

For academic employees it is recommended that employment verification is obtained and the I-9 form completed when candidates are interviewed for a position. This means in any correspondence with a potential employee the unit should indicate the employment eligibility requirements and request submission of those documents and completion of the I-9 form when an individual comes to campus. For graduate students to be employed as graduate assistants, the unit should correspond with them indicating the documents required to verify employment eligibility. A graduate assistant is considered on grandfather status if that individual was employed prior to November 7, 1986. Any graduate student employed after that time must present the appropriate documents and an I-9 form will need to be completed and submitted with the appointment papers. Refer back to the section on employees hired before November 7, 1986 to determine if an I-9 must be completed after a break in employment by graduate assistants, academic professional employees, and graduate assistants should be directed to the Academic Personnel Office (333-6747); and questions regarding student employment should be directed to the Student Employment Office (244-1004). The I-9 form is attached and may be duplicated for departmental use (Attachment I).

Responsibility for documenting employment eligibility for academic employees is being allocated to the units, but the original I-9's will be centrally located in the Appointments Office. This is necessary to comply with a request by the Immigration and Naturalization Service to view the I-9 forms.