Green card is evidence of a noncitizen’s lawful permanent resident status. It can also serve as evidence of employment authorization for I-9 purposes. Lawful permanent residents can reside permanently in the U.S. with the right to work. To comply with the I-9 requirements, employers must be familiar with when reverification is required.
Usually, for I-9 verifications, employers may encounter the following different types of green cards that are issued by the USCIS and that require NO reverification:
Card without expiration: If the green card has no expiration, then it does not have conditions. These cards were issued from 1977 to August 1989, and they are no longer issued at the present time. There is no need for reverification.
10-Year Card: If the green card is valid for 10 years and the card expires, the status does not expire and will continue even though the card has expired. There is no requirement for reverification.
2-Year Card: If the card has a 2-year expiration date, it has conditions. Before it expires, the holder must fill out an I-751 petition to remove conditions. After the I-751 is filed, the holder will be granted an automatic extension while the I-751 is being adjudicated by the CIS. This extension is granted once the receipt notice is received, and only if the I-751 is filed on time. If presented for I-9 when unexpired, the green card does not need to be reverified.
If, at the time of employment, the employee’s 10-year green card has expired, the I-9 requirement may be met by a combination of documents. Recently, the USCIS has revised the receipt notice of the Form I-90 application for replacement of green card. The revised notice will extend the validity of the green card for 12 months from the expiration date of the card. Those employees whose green cards expired may present their expired cards with the I-90 receipt notices as sufficient documents to establish both their identity and employment authorization. Employers must record the green card number, the expiration date as indicated on the receipt notice, and “PRC Ext'' in the Additional Information box of the I-9 form. They should retain a copy of both the expired card and the receipt notice with the I-9 form. If the combination is presented, employers may not reverify the lawful permanent residents for I-9 purposes.
Keep in mind, there are instances in which employers are required to reverify the employee’s work authorization. These special instances are discussed below:
If a 2-year green card has expired, the employee can combine it with an I-797 receipt notice that shows the card’s validity has been extended. The combination of the expired card and the receipt notice is acceptable to be used as evidence that establishes employment authorization; however, at the end of the extension period, it must be reverified. Because the combination can be used as employment authorization evidence, it is necessary to also provide a document that establishes identity.
An option that can be used as both identity and work authorization evidence is if the employee can provide the arrival portion from their I-94/1-94A Arrival Departure Record with an unexpired temporary I-551 stamp along with a photograph of the employee. This can be used as an acceptable receipt for the green card. Once the stamp expires though, the employee must show their green card, or if the stamp does not have an expiration date, one year from the issuance date of the I-94 form.
If the employee presents a foreign passport with a temporary I-551 stamp or a printed notation on a machine -readable immigrant visa (MRIV), reverification is necessary when the stamp/MRIV expires, or one year after the admission date if the MRIV/stamp does not have an expiration date.
Usually, a MRIV will be issued along with this phrase on the visa: “UPON ENDORSEMENT SERVES AS TEMPORARY I-551 EVIDENCING PERMANENT RESIDENCE FOR 1 YEAR.” The one-year period begins on the date of admission. If the immigrant visa does not have this statement, one should treat the MRIV as evidence of permanent residence status for one year starting from the date of admission.
It is possible that a passport is endorsed with “CR-1” and is near but not quite on the immigrant visa. This still counts as a valid endorsement.
To reverify or not to reverify employment authorization seems easy enough. However, there may be serious employment discrimination implications for employers if the reverification is not carried out correctly. It is important to know these nuances and take correct actions on the reverification process. If you have any questions about a specific situation, please do not hesitate to contact our office at 541-484-1811 or bwang@bwanglaw.com.
DISCLAIMER: This Article is for informational purposes only and may not be used in the place of legal advice.