I-9 Documents: Unexpected DHS Changes Prompt Reverification

Employers may need to reverify certain employees’ Form I-9 documents due to recent changes from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Specifically, DHS revised the temporary protected status (TPS) that it’d previously designated for two foreign countries.

By way of background, a country may be designated for TPS if 1) extraordinary and temporary conditions prevent nationals from safely returning home and 2) the designation isn’t contrary to the national interest of the U.S.

Individuals from such countries may then choose to file:

• Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, and
• Form I-765, Request for Employment Authorization.

This info comes into play for I-9 purposes because List A includes employment authorization documents (EADs) issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and List C includes EADs issued by DHS.

Expiration Dates of I-9 Documents

Recently, DHS announced changes related to Venezuela and Haiti.

Employees from Venezuela

The TPS designation for Venezuela has been on a turbulent ride.

First, early in 2025, the DHS made a decision to lengthen Venezuela’s 2023 TPS designation for 18 months, extending it to October 2, 2026.

Then, in a February 3, 2025, Federal Register notice, the DHS vacated that decision. As a result, the designation was set to end at the beginning of April 2025. But that never happened. That’s because of a ruling that came from a federal district court on March 31, 2025. In that ruling, National TPS Alliance v. Noem, the court postponed the vacatur.

But that’s not all. The court also postponed another recent action taken by the DHS. Specifically, DHS had issued a notice in the Federal Register on February 5, 2025. That notice had terminated the October 3, 2023, designation of Venezuela for TPS.

It’s worth noting that the 2021 designation has remained unchanged.

The bottom line for employers involves how to handle employees’ work authorization documents for Form I-9 purposes.

Initially, based on the two February 2025 Federal Register notices, employers would have had to check whether any TPS Venezuela beneficiaries used an EAD with an A12 or C19 category code and an April 2, 2025, expiration date. If so, employers would have had to reverify those documents.

But now, as the DHS recently explained, employers have more time to reverify the employment eligibility of Venezuelan employees.

Here’s what to do, pending further litigation: If a TPS Venezuela beneficiaries presents an EAD with a category code of A12 or C19 and any of the following expiration dates, you should enter April 2, 2026, on Form I-9 as the new expiration date of the automatically extended EAD. Those expiration dates are:

• September 10, 2025
• April 2, 2025
• March 10, 2024, and
• September 9, 2022.

Don’t forget: You’ll need to reverify these employees before they start work on April 3, 2026, according to the DHS.

Employees from Haiti

Another Federal Register notice, this one from February 24, 2025, made updates involving Haiti.

In 2024, the TPS for Haiti had been extended and redesignated for 18 months, which is the maximum amount of time under the TPS statute. The extension and redesignation would have lasted until February 3, 2026.

But now, the time period has been reduced to 12 months, meaning the end date is August 3, 2025.

What to check: Did any Haitian employees use an EAD with a category code of A12 or C19 and an expiration date of February 3, 2026?

On Form I-9, in Section 2, in the Additional Information field, enter this amended expiration date: August 3, 2025. Then, initial and date the correction.

Also, before these Haitian employees can start work again on August 4, 2025, their documents must be reverified on Form I-9.