What Are Employment Verification Documents: Lists A, B, and C

When you start a new job in the United States, your employer must complete Form I-9 to confirm your identity and your legal right to work. To do that, you show either one document from List A, or one document from List B paired with one from List C. Those three lists are what employment verification documents refers to, and you get to choose which acceptable documents to present from them.

List A: One Document That Proves Both Identity and Work Authorization

A List A document does two jobs at once. It proves who you are and that you’re authorized to work. If you show a List A document, your employer cannot ask you for anything from List B or List C.¹

The accepted List A documents are:²

A U.S. passport or passport card.
A Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551), often called a Green Card.
An Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766), issued to people with temporary permission to work, such as certain visa holders and asylum applicants.
A foreign passport with a temporary I-551 stamp or printed notation, used by new permanent residents whose Green Card hasn’t arrived yet.
A foreign passport with Form I-94 or I-94A containing a work endorsement, for certain nonimmigrant workers whose visa category permits employment.
A passport from the Federated States of Micronesia or the Republic of the Marshall Islands with Form I-94 or I-94A, under the Compact of Free Association.

A few of these entries involve two physical items presented together, like a foreign passport paired with an I-94. Even though two pieces of paper sit on the table, they count as a single List A document.

List B: Documents That Prove Identity

If you don’t have a List A document, you’ll bring one document from List B to prove identity and pair it with one from List C. List B documents confirm you are who you say you are. They say nothing on their own about whether you can work.³

All List B documents must be unexpired. The accepted options are:

A state-issued driver’s license or ID card containing a photograph or identifying details like name, date of birth, and address. This is by far the most commonly used List B document.
A government-issued ID card from a federal, state, or local agency, with a photograph or identifying information. This is a separate category from a driver’s license.
A school ID card with a photograph.
A voter registration card.
A U.S. military card or draft record.
A military dependent’s ID card.
A U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Card.
A Native American tribal document.
A Canadian driver’s license.

Employees under 18 who can’t produce any of the documents above may use a school record, a clinic or hospital record, or a day-care or nursery school record instead.³

List C: Documents That Prove Work Authorization

List C documents prove you are legally permitted to work in the United States. They don’t confirm your identity on their own, so a List C document always travels with a List B document.⁴

An unrestricted Social Security card. The card cannot say “NOT VALID FOR EMPLOYMENT” or “VALID FOR WORK ONLY WITH INS/DHS AUTHORIZATION.” If it carries either restriction, it doesn’t qualify.
An original or certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a state, county, or municipal authority and bearing an official seal.
A certification of report of birth issued by the Department of State, including Forms DS-1350, FS-545, and FS-240.
A Native American tribal document.
A U.S. Citizen ID Card (Form I-197).
An Identification Card for Use of Resident Citizen in the United States (Form I-179).
An employment authorization document issued by DHS. This is a catch-all category that includes forms like the I-94 issued to asylees, certificates of citizenship or naturalization, and certain other DHS-issued documents.

The Most Common Combinations

Most U.S. workers use one of a few standard combinations. If you have a U.S. passport, that single document from List A is the simplest option. If you don’t carry a passport, the usual pairing is a state driver’s license from List B with either an unrestricted Social Security card or a certified birth certificate from List C.⁵ Green Card holders typically present the Permanent Resident Card from List A. Workers on employment-based visas usually show either the Employment Authorization Document or a foreign passport paired with a work-endorsed I-94.

You Choose Which Documents To Show

The choice of which acceptable documents to present belongs to you, not your employer. Federal law makes it illegal for an employer to insist on a specific document, or to demand more documents than the form requires, based on your citizenship status or national origin.⁶

In practice, your employer cannot tell you to “bring your passport” if you’d rather show a driver’s license and Social Security card. They also cannot refuse a valid List B and List C pairing because they’d prefer to see a Green Card. And once you present a List A document, they cannot ask for anything from List B or C on top of it.¹ The employer’s job is to look at the documents you choose and decide whether they reasonably appear genuine and relate to you.

Filling Out Your Part of the Form

You complete Section 1 of Form I-9 on or before your first day of work. It asks for your full legal name, any other names you’ve used, your current address, and your date of birth. You also check one of four boxes indicating your status: U.S. citizen, noncitizen national, lawful permanent resident, or noncitizen authorized to work.⁵ You sign Section 1 under penalty of perjury, so selecting the wrong category or providing false information carries serious legal consequences.

The Social Security number field is voluntary unless your employer uses E-Verify. If your employer participates in E-Verify, you must provide the number. Otherwise, you can leave it blank.⁷ If you’ve applied for a Social Security number but haven’t received it yet, leave the field empty and update it once the number arrives.

After you complete Section 1, your employer completes Section 2 within three business days of your first day of work, examining your original documents. Photocopies and digital images don’t satisfy the standard procedure; an employer enrolled in E-Verify in good standing can use a DHS-authorized alternative that allows examination via live video.⁸

If Your Document Is Lost, Stolen, or Damaged

If the document you’d normally present was lost, stolen, or damaged and you’ve applied for a replacement, you can show the receipt for that replacement application. The receipt buys you 90 days from your hire date to produce the actual replacement document, or to substitute a different acceptable document from the same list.⁹

A second receipt to extend the 90-day window is not allowed. If the replacement doesn’t arrive in time, you can present a different acceptable document from the appropriate list instead.

When Work Authorization Has an Expiration Date

Some workers have authorization that expires on a specific date. When that date approaches, your employer must reverify no later than the expiration date, and you’ll need to present a current document from List A or List C showing renewed or extended authorization. Your employer records the new information on Supplement B of the Form I-9.¹⁰

Reverification does not apply to U.S. citizens or noncitizen nationals. Their authorization never expires. It also doesn’t apply to lawful permanent residents who originally presented a Green Card, even though the card itself has an expiration date printed on it. The card expires; the right to work does not.

1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 13.0 Acceptable Documents for Verifying Employment Authorization and Identity
2
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form I-9 Acceptable Documents
3
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 13.2 List B Documents That Establish Identity
4
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 13.3 List C Documents That Establish Employment Authorization
5
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1324b – Unfair Immigration-Related Employment Practices
7
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Instructions for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
8
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Completing Section 2, Employer Review and Attestation
9
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Acceptable Receipts
10
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Reverifying Employment Authorization for Current Employees