Section 1 is the employee's part of Form I-9. It is usually the shortest part of the form, and it often feels like the easiest. New hires fill in their name, address, and date of birth, check a box, sign, and move on to the rest of their onboarding paperwork. But Section 1 errors are some of the most common problems found when employers review their I-9 files, and the employer is responsible for the form as a whole, including the part the employee completes.
The good news is that most Section 1 mistakes follow a few predictable patterns. This guide covers what Section 1 requires, the errors that show up most often, and how to correct them without creating new problems.
What Section 1 requires
On the current edition of Form I-9, the employee uses Section 1 to provide basic personal information and to attest, under penalty of perjury, to their citizenship or immigration status. The key fields include:
- Legal name, including last name, first name, middle initial, and any other last names used.
- Address, date of birth, and, in some cases, Social Security number. Email address and phone number are optional.
- The attestation, where the employee checks one of four boxes: U.S. citizen, noncitizen national of the United States, lawful permanent resident, or noncitizen authorized to work.
- Supporting status details for certain boxes, such as a USCIS number or A-Number for a lawful permanent resident, or an expiration date and an identifying number for a noncitizen authorized to work.
- The employee's signature and the date.
Timing matters too. The employee must complete Section 1 no later than the first day of employment, and not before they have accepted a job offer.
The most common Section 1 errors
1. Missing signature or date
An unsigned Section 1 means the attestation was never actually made. A missing date makes it hard to show the section was completed on time. Both are easy to miss when a new hire is moving quickly through a stack of forms, and both are among the first things an auditor checks.
2. Completing Section 1 late, or too early
If an employee signs Section 1 after their first day of work, the form shows a timeliness problem. The opposite mistake also happens: some employers send Form I-9 with application materials, before an offer has been made and accepted. Section 1 belongs in the onboarding stage, after the offer is accepted and no later than day one.
3. No attestation box checked, or more than one
The attestation is the heart of Section 1. If no box is checked, the employee hasn't stated their status. If more than one box is checked, the record is contradictory. Either way, the section is incomplete.
4. Missing status details
Employees who check "lawful permanent resident" need to provide a USCIS number or A-Number. Employees who check "noncitizen authorized to work" need to provide an expiration date for their work authorization, if there is one, along with one of the identifying numbers the form asks for. Leaving these blank is a frequent error. Some noncitizens have work authorization that doesn't expire, and in that case the form instructions allow "N/A" in the expiration date field rather than leaving it empty.
5. Name problems
Common name issues include nicknames instead of legal names, transposed first and last names, and blank "other last names used" fields. When an employee has no other last names, entering "N/A" is a cleaner record than leaving the field empty. Name mismatches between Section 1 and the documents in Section 2 should be reviewed carefully, since they can point to a simple typo or to a legal name change that needs to be documented consistently.
6. Social Security number mix-ups
The Social Security number is generally optional in Section 1. The exception is for employers that use E-Verify, where the employee must provide it. Two problems show up here. Employers that don't use E-Verify sometimes require the number anyway, which they shouldn't. And E-Verify employers sometimes don't know what to do when a new hire has applied for a number but hasn't received it yet. In that situation, the employee can leave the field blank for now, and the E-Verify case is created once the number is available.
7. Preparer or translator help that isn't documented
Employees can get help completing Section 1 from a preparer or translator. When that happens, the person who helped must complete Supplement A, the preparer and translator certification. The employee still signs Section 1. A Section 1 that clearly had outside help, with no Supplement A attached, is incomplete.
8. The employer filling it out
HR staff sometimes fill in Section 1 to save time, then hand it to the employee to sign. That shifts the attestation away from the person who is supposed to make it. If a staff member helps an employee fill in Section 1, they are acting as a preparer and should complete Supplement A.
Avoiding discrimination risk in Section 1
Section 1 also carries anti-discrimination considerations. Employers should not ask an employee to show documents to support the status they checked in Section 1. The employee's status attestation and the documents they choose to present in Section 2 are separate steps. Employers also should not steer employees toward a particular attestation box or treat new hires differently because of their citizenship status or national origin. Your reviewers should check Section 1 for completeness, not challenge the employee's answers.
How to correct Section 1 errors
When a Section 1 error is found, the employee should make the correction, not the employer. The standard approach is:
- Draw a single line through the incorrect information.
- Enter the correct information.
- Initial and date the correction.
If someone helps the employee make the correction, that person should complete Supplement A. Never use correction fluid, never erase, and never backdate a correction to the original date. If the employee is no longer employed and can't make the correction, the employer can attach a signed and dated note to the form that explains the error and why it couldn't be corrected.
Preventing Section 1 errors in the first place
Most Section 1 problems come from paper forms, rushed onboarding, and inconsistent review. A few practices make a real difference:
- Send Section 1 at the right time, after the offer is accepted and before day one.
- Review every Section 1 before completing Section 2, checking the signature, date, attestation box, and required status details.
- Train HR staff on what not to do, including requiring a Social Security number when it isn't needed, filling in the section for the employee, or asking for status documents.
- Use an electronic I-9 system that flags missing required fields before the employee can sign.
How Clear I-9 helps
Clear I-9 by TRAK guides each new hire through Section 1 with built-in error checks that catch missing signatures, unchecked attestation boxes, and missing status details before the form is submitted. Electronic signatures let employees complete Section 1 on time from anywhere, and workflows, reporting, and tracking show HR which forms are waiting on the employee. When corrections are needed, the system keeps a clear record of what changed and when, and instant E-Verify connects your cases to the same record if you use E-Verify.
Want to see how Clear I-9 helps prevent Section 1 errors? Request a demo of Clear I-9 and we'll walk you through it.
This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. For guidance on your specific situation, consult qualified employment counsel and the official USCIS resources.