What do we do when the name on an employee’s Section 2 document does not match the name entered in Section 1 of the Form I-9?

Ideally, the name on an employee’s document(s) will match the legal name listed in Section 1 of the Form I-9. However, it sometimes happens that either the names on the documents (if one List B and one List C document are presented) don’t match one another, or the names on either or both documents don’t match the name that the employee wrote in Section 1 of the Form I-9.

Where this is the case, remember that there may be slight variations in the names people use on their documentation. For instance, “Michael” might be shortened to “Mike,” or an individual might use a hyphenated last name in one place and a single last name in another. These types of differences aren’t typically problematic on the Form I-9 if the differences don’t cause the employer to question:

1. Whether the documentation is valid/genuine, or
2. Whether the documentation belongs to the person presenting it.