Federal: New Version of Form I-9 Released – Don't Panic!

On April 2, 2025, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an updated Form I-9. However, employers can continue using the previous versions of the form.

The new Form I-9 has the following changes:

• The term “noncitizen” was replaced with “alien”
• The term “gender” was replaced with “sex”
• A new edition date of 1/20/25

The Form I-9 Instructions also contain similar terminology updates and a revised Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Privacy Notice. These changes will also be reflected in E-Verify and E-Verify+ beginning April 3, 2025.

Because use of the new Form I-9 is currently optional, employers don’t need to take any action at this time. The previous Form I-9 versions (both of which have an 8/1/23 edition date) are still valid through their respective expiration dates in 2026 and 2027.

Employers that use E-Verify and continue to use the 8/1/23 Form I-9 versions should note that there will be a difference in the language that refers to noncitizens. Specifically, if an employee selects on Form I-9 that they are “a noncitizen authorized to work,” the employer must select “an alien authorized to work” in E-Verify.

For more information, see the USCIS announcement and the updated Form I-9 and Instructions.