On April 2, 2025, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an updated version of the I-9 form. However, it's important to note that employers are not immediately required to switch to this latest version.
The revisions to the I-9 primarily consist of several important wording changes:
These changes are also reflected in the accompanying Form I-9 Instructions and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Privacy Notice. Furthermore, these terminology updates have already been updated in the E-Verify and E-Verify+ systems.
Essentially, nothing. Currently, the use of the new Form I-9 is optional. Employers can continue to use the previous versions of the form, both of which have an edition date of 8/1/23. These older versions remain valid through their respective expiration dates in 2026 and 2027.
Important Note for E-Verify Users: If your organization utilizes E-Verify and you continue to use the 8/1/23 versions of Form I-9, be aware of a slight discrepancy in terminology. If an employee indicates on the Form I-9 that they are "a noncitizen authorized to work," you will need to select "an alien authorized to work" within the E-Verify system to ensure accurate information transfer.