Completing Your I-9
As a new Employee at Northwestern, you must complete both Section 1 and Section 2 of Form I-9. Form I-9 is used to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. Northwestern must comply with Federal Policy which states that all U.S. employers must properly complete Form I-9 for every individual they hire for employment in the United States.
The form consists of two sections:
Section 1: Employee Information and Attestation is completed by the Employee using the I-9 Service Center. Directions for Section 1: new employee Section 1 Directions .
Section 2: Employer Review and Document Verification is completed during a meeting with a Northwestern Human Resources Representative. Below are the options for how an employee can complete Section 2 and the documents required for that meeting.
Timing for Form I-9 Completion:
Section 1 can be completed any time after the job offer is accepted but must done by end of first day of employment. New employees will need to create a user account in the I-9 Service Center to do Section 1.
Section 2 can be completed any time after the job offer is accepted (as long as you are authorized to work in US) but must be done by end of the 3rd business day after the first day of employment (ie. If first day is Monday, Section 2 must be done by end of day Thursday)
Have questions? Visit the FAQ Page.
Required Documents for Section 2
- List of Acceptable Documents for U.S. Citizens and Legal Permanent Residents.
- List of Acceptable Documents for Foreign Nationals (also see Onboarding Checklist for new hires).
- Foreign Nationals, who are new hires, must also submit the FNIS Request Form to fntax@northwestern.edu.
- Employees must have the original documents available during the Section 2 meeting. Scans, photocopies or photos of documents are not accepted
Section 2 Meeting Options:
In-Person Meeting
You can complete Section 2 with an in-person meeting with Human Resources representative. Some departments have a designated staff member who can meet with employees for the Document Verification step for Section 2. Consult with your hiring department directly to see if that is an option. Alternatively, employees can meet with a Human Resources representative at the askHR Office. askHR times and locations listed below.
| Evanston Location & Hours
1800 Sherman Avenue, 1st Floor (Suite 1-100) Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5:00pm CST |
Chicago Location & Hours
710 N. Lake Shore Drive (Abbott Hall, Room 150) Wednesdays, 10:00am-3:30pm CST |
Both office locations are closed during University Holidays (see full list). |
|
Remote Meeting
You can complete Section 2 with a live video call meeting with a Human Resources representative. Some departments have a designated staff member who can meet with employees for the Document Verification step for Section 2. Consult with your hiring department directly to see if that is an option. Scans of acceptable documents must be sent before meeting.
Alternatively, employees can meet with a member of the askHR Team for a remote meeting. Select a tab below to explore other options for completing Section 2.
Visit the FAQ page to address questions.
Remote Appointment with askHR Staff
Employees complete the I-9 Section 2 document verification via a live video call appointment with a Human Resources askHR staff member.
Process for a RemoteAppointment:
- Employee completes Section 1 of Form I-9.
- Employee submits a request for a remote appointment and uploads documents for review and uploads documents for review.
- Employee must upload both front and back of all the documents they will use for verification.
- Human Resources notifies the employee of confirmed remote appointment.
- Employee meets with askHR staff member via a live video call. Employee holds up the original version of verification documents to the camera during the call.
- Employee notifies hiring department once their I-9 has been completed.
IMPORTANT: Do not submit multiple requests for appointments. Employees will receive an email notification once the request has been reviewed/approved. Visit the FAQ Page for topics regarding which documents to use, troubleshooting uploads, scheduling appointments, etc.
Public Notaries (Traditional)
Employees can use a public notary to complete Section 2 or 3 of their Form I-9. A notary is an officer of integrity who serves as an impartial witness in performing official, fraud-deterrent acts related to the signing of important documents.
Process for using a Notary:
- Employee completes Section 1 of Form I-9 and then identifies a notary who can meet in person to serve as the authorized agent to complete the I-9.
- Employee sends the notary’s full name and email address to askHR@northwestern.edu.
- Human Resources will set up the notary in the I-9 Service Center and email instructions to the notary.
- Employee presents original documents to the notary during an agreed-upon time and the notary completes the I-9 form.
- Employee notifies hiring department once their I-9 has been completed.
IMPORTANT: Northwestern guidelines do not allow video conferences when using a notary. Both parties must meet in person and if any fees accrue, they will not be reimbursed by the University.
Consistent with existing University policy, employees residing outside of the United States are not permitted to start working for the University, absent prior approval from central Human Resources. If an employee already resides in and works from a location outside of the United States, the hiring department must contact Human Resources to review the arrangement. If an employee is currently abroad, but they typically reside and work in the United States (and are authorized to do so), they may continue working while abroad on a temporary basis. Departments that are hiring foreign national employees can reach out to the Foreign National Tax Team (fntax@northwestern.edu) for additional questions or concerns.