• If an employer is presented with an unacceptable Social Security card, the employee must provide another document to establish authorization for work.
• The employer must be aware of documents with expiration dates that need to be reverified when necessary.

Unacceptable Social Security cards

Only an unrestricted Social Security (SS) card is acceptable. SS cards that are NOT acceptable List C documents may include any one of the following annotations, as these indicate that the card is restricted:

• NOT VALID FOR EMPLOYMENT,
• VALID FOR WORK ONLY WITH INS AUTHORIZATION, or
• VALID FOR WORK ONLY WITH DHS AUTHORIZATION.

When presented with a card with these annotations, an employer should ask the employee to provide another document to establish employment authorization, since such restricted SS cards are not acceptable documents for Form I-9. If the employee wants to use an SS card as a document, the employee should go to the local Social Security Administration (SSA) office with proof of lawful employment status to be issued an SS card without employment restrictions.

Future expiration dates

Future expiration dates often appear on individuals’ employment authorization documents.

Such documents may include (among others) lawful permanent residents, asylees, and refugees. It’s important to remember that the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) includes expiration dates even on documents that are issued to individuals with permanent employment authorization. As such, the existence of a future expiration date:

• Does not prevent continuous employment authorization,
• Does not mean that subsequent employment authorization will not be granted, and
• Should not be considered in determining whether an individual is qualified for a particular position.

Considering a future employment authorization expiration date in determining whether a noncitizen/foreign national is qualified for a particular job may constitute employment discrimination. However, an employer may need to reverify the employee’s authorization to work when certain List A or List C documents expire. For example, the Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) must be reverified on or before the expiration date. Employers should also check information on the Temporary Protected Status and Deferred Enforced Departure website from the USCIS to see if the EAD has been automatically extended.