Student Worker Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification

Federal law requires all newly hired staff, faculty and student workers working in the United States to complete a Form I-9. The Form I-9 is completed electronically in Workday, Carnegie Mellon’s HR system. As a new student worker, you must complete the Form I-9 within the required timeline and maintain updated employment authorization documents throughout the course of your employment. On this page:

• Timeline for Completing the Form I-9
• Section 1 Instructions
• Section 2 Instructions
• E-Verify
• Reverification (International Student Workers)

Timeline for Completing the Form I-9:

If you fail to complete the Form I-9 within the required timeline, your supervisor will be notified, and you must stop working immediately.

• Day 1: You must complete Section 1, Employee Information and Attestation, on or before your first day of employment.
• Day 4: Section 2, Employer or Authorized Representative Review and Verification, is completed when you present your employment authorization documents in person to Student Worker Services. Section 2 must be completed by the third business day following your first day of employment.

Section 1 Instructions

The Employee Information and Attestation section in Workday will automatically populate with some of your personal information, such as your name, contact information, and Social Security number (SSN). If you are an international student and do not have an SSN yet, leave the field blank. An SSN is not required to complete the Form I-9.

• The name on your Form I-9 should reflect your full legal name.
  • If you have two last names, enter them both in the Last Name (Family Name) field. Examples: Garcia Lopez, Smith-Johnson.
  • If you have only one name, enter it in the Last Name field, and then enter “Unknown” in the First Name (Given Name) field.
  • If you have a middle name, enter your middle initial in the Middle Initial field.
• U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents: The address on your Form I-9 should reflect a permanent (or “home”) address, not where you are temporarily living while enrolled and taking classes.
• International Students: The address on your Form I-9 should reflect where you are living while enrolled and taking classes, not your international home address.

Next, you will be prompted to indicate your citizenship status:

• U.S. Citizens: Select option "1. A citizen of the United States."
• Lawful Permanent Residents: Select option "3. A lawful permanent resident" and enter the USCIS Number from your permanent resident card.
• International Student Workers in F-1 or J-1 Status: Select option "4. A noncitizen (other than Item Numbers 1. and 3. above) authorized to work until (exp.date, if any)"  and enter the date your employment authorization expires. Do not use the expiration date of your visa or select the N/A or D/S options.
  • F-1 student with on-campus employment: Enter the program end date from your I-20.
  • F-1 student with economic necessity or Optional Practical Training (OPT): Enter the program end date of your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) issued by the USCIS.
  • J-1 student: Enter the program end date from your DS-2019.

You will then be required to enter your USCIS-A Number OR Form I-94 Admission Number OR Foreign Passport Number and Country of Issuance.

• Read the acknowledgment statement in the Signature of Employee section carefully, and then select the "I Agree" checkbox.
• If you used a preparer or translator to complete Section 1, indicate so in the Preparer and/or Translator Certification section and complete the required fields.
• Review the information you entered in Section 1 for accuracy and then click the Submit button.

Section 2 Instructions

To complete Section 2, you must present your employment authorization documents in person to Student Worker Services.

Acceptable Documents

You must present original, unexpired employment authorization documents. Copies are not acceptable.

• U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents: You must present either one selection from List A or a combination of one selection from List B and one selection from List C from the List of Acceptable Documents. The most common document provided is a U.S. passport which fulfills both the identity and eligibility requirements.
• International students: Refer to USCIS website for detailed information regarding Combination Documents.
  • F-1 student with on-campus employment: Your on-campus work permission can be demonstrated by showing an unexpired foreign passport, and printed copies of your I-20 and I-94.
  • F-1 student with economic necessity or Optional Practical Training (OPT): Your on-campus work permission can be demonstrated by showing your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) issued by the USCIS.
  • Students in J-1 status: Your on-campus work permission can be demonstrated by showing an unexpired foreign passport, and printed copies of the DS-2019 and I-94.

Completing Section 2

• If you are working in Pittsburgh, we recommend that you schedule a Form I-9 appointment with Student Worker Services, however, walk-ins are welcome. Scheduled appointments take priority, so walk-in appointments may experience a wait.
  
  Location: 4516 Henry Street
  Appointment Hours: Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–noon and 1–4 p.m.
• If you are working in Silicon Valley, email student-workers@sv.cmu.edu to make arrangements to complete Section 2.
• If you are working remotely or from a CMU location other than Pittsburgh or Silicon Valley, contact Student Worker Services for instructions.

E-Verify

If your position is federally funded, you may need to be E-Verified at the time you complete the Form I-9. Your department will provide you with an E-Verify Request Form to present to Student Worker Services if E-Verify is required for your position. Make sure to bring the E-Verify Request Form [pdf] to your Form I-9 appointment. You must have a Social Security number to be E-Verified.

Reverification (International Student Workers)

As an international student worker, you are responsible for presenting extensions to your work authorization to Student Worker Services. You should do so as soon as your extension becomes available — but no more than 60 days before your work authorization expires and no later than the date your work authorization expires.

When your work authorization expires, you can no longer work or receive pay from the university.

To reverify your employment authorization, schedule a Form I-9 appointment with Student Worker Services to present your updated employment authorization documents. Remember to bring original, unexpired documents to your appointment. Copies are not acceptable.