The Trump administration has introduced changes to the Employment Eligibility Verification form used by U.S. employers to hire foreign workers. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has updated Form I-9, which is used to verify both the work authorization and identity of employees. The modification involves replacing the term “noncitizen authorized to work” with “alien authorized to work” in the list of options that employees can select to attest to their immigration status.
This shift in terminology marks a return to using the word “alien,” which had been replaced by “noncitizen” under the Biden administration’s 2023 update to the form. The Biden administration had made this change as part of an effort to remove the term “alien” from federal immigration enforcement language. However, the new updates reintroduce the term “alien” and remove “noncitizen” from the form.
Form I-9 is crucial for confirming the employment eligibility of foreign workers in the U.S. It must be completed by employers for every foreign worker they hire, including both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals. The employee is required to present acceptable documents to verify their identity and employment authorization. Employers are responsible for examining these documents to ensure they are genuine and correctly linked to the employee, recording the document details on the Form I-9.
Employers and foreign workers should be aware of these changes. The updated Form I-9, with an edition date of 01/20/25 and an expiration date of 05/31/2027, is available for download. Previous editions of the form remain valid until their respective expiration dates, including the 08/01/23 edition, which is valid until 05/31/2027. Employers using this form must update their electronic systems with the new expiration date by July 31, 2026.
Key updates to the form include renaming the fourth checkbox in Section 1 to “An alien authorized to work,” revising the descriptions of two List B documents in the Lists of Acceptable Documents, adding appropriate statutory language, and revising the DHS Privacy Notice in the instructions. Starting April 3, 2025, E-Verify and E-Verify+ will reflect these changes, with the “noncitizen authorized to work” selection updated to “alien authorized to work.”
