How Long to Keep Form I-9

Every employer must keep a Form I-9 for each person they hire. You do not file the I-9 with the government. You keep it yourself and show it only if you are asked. That makes good record keeping your job. This page explains how long to keep each form, how to find the safe date to destroy it, and how to store your I-9s the right way.

The retention rule

The rule is short, but you have to read it carefully. You must keep each Form I-9 for one of two time spans, whichever ends later.

• 3 years after the hire date, or
• 1 year after employment ends.

You keep the form until the later of those two dates. So for a worker who stays only a short time, the 3 year mark usually wins. For a worker who stays many years, the 1 year after they leave mark usually wins. You always pick the date that is further out in time.

How to find the destroy-by date

Here is a simple way to do the math for any worker.

1. Take the hire date and add 3 years. Write that date down. Call it Date A.
2. Take the date employment ended and add 1 year. Write that date down. Call it Date B. If the person still works for you, you cannot fill in Date B yet, so just keep the form.
3. Compare Date A and Date B. The later of the two is your destroy-by date. You may keep the form until then. After that date, you may destroy it.

A worked example

Say you hire someone on March 1, 2024. They work for you and then leave on June 1, 2024.

In this example Date A is March 1, 2027 and Date B is June 1, 2025. March 1, 2027 is later, so that is your destroy-by date. Even though the worker left after only three months, you must keep the form until March 1, 2027.

Now flip the example. Say you hire someone on March 1, 2024 and they stay for ten years, leaving on March 1, 2034. Date A would be March 1, 2027. Date B would be March 1, 2035. Date B is later, so you keep the form until March 1, 2035. For long term workers, the 1 year after they leave date almost always wins.

Storing your I-9s

You can store I-9s on paper, on a computer, or both. The format is your choice. What matters is that the records are complete and that you can pull them up when needed.

• Paper. Keep paper I-9s in a safe, locked place. Many employers keep all I-9s together, apart from the regular personnel files, so they are easy to find.
• Electronic. You may scan and store I-9s on a computer system. The system must keep the records safe and let you produce a clear, readable copy when asked.
• Both. You may keep some on paper and some on a computer. Just be consistent and organized.

Whichever way you choose, the records must be retrievable. That means you can find and produce them quickly. If you ever face a government inspection, you may have very little time to hand over your I-9s, so a tidy system pays off.

Why retention matters now

Keeping I-9s is not just paperwork. If an inspector asks for your forms, you have to produce them, and you have to produce the right ones. A missing I-9 for a current or recent worker is a problem you cannot fix after the fact. Keeping forms past the destroy-by date is not against the rules, but it is good practice to destroy them once you safely can, so you are not holding records longer than needed.

The smartest move is to check your I-9 records before anyone else does. A regular look through your files helps you catch missing forms and fix small errors the correct way. Learn how to do this on our I-9 self-audit page.

Strong retention habits start with completing Section 2 correctly in the first place. See how the employer part works on our Section 2 employer guide. When in doubt about your records, the official rules live at uscis.gov, and for your specific situation you can consult an immigration attorney.

By the Easy Guides Editorial Team