A federal form every employer must complete for every new hire to verify identity and employment authorization.
Form I-9 is the federal employment eligibility verification document required for every new employee — regardless of citizenship status. Employers must complete Section 2 (verifying employee documents) within 3 business days of hire and retain I-9s for the longer of 3 years from hire or 1 year from termination.
I-9 errors are among the most heavily-fined federal employment violations — both substantive errors (failing to verify) and technical errors (missing dates, incorrect signatures) carry per-violation penalties that compound quickly. ICE audits target I-9 compliance specifically.
PEOs administer I-9 for the co-employed workforce — typically using electronic I-9 systems integrated with E-Verify. This is a significant compliance offload for businesses that hire frequently.
A federal form every employer must complete for every new hire to verify identity and employment authorization.
Form I-9 is the federal employment eligibility verification document required for every new employee — regardless of citizenship status.
Most PEO buying decisions touch several related concepts at once. Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) typically comes up alongside the other terms in this category. Closely related terms include Worker classification, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
This is one entry from our PEO glossary covering payroll, benefits, workers comp, HR compliance, and PEO mechanics. Browse all terms.
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