I-9 Retention and Purge Schedule Policy

This policy establishes the organization’s standard schedule for retaining Form I-9 records and the process for securely destroying expired records. The policy is intended to support compliance with USCIS Form I-9 guidance, including the USCIS Handbook for Employers (M-274), and to reduce the risk of retaining records longer than necessary.

This policy applies to all U.S. employees, former employees, and contingent workers for whom the organization maintains Form I-9 records. It applies to paper and electronic I-9 files, supporting documentation retained with the form, purge logs, and any backup or archive copies under HR or records management control.

Applicable jurisdictions: United States. California employees: if I-9 records are stored with broader personnel files, ensure any state privacy and personnel-file access requirements are also followed. All jurisdictions: if a legal hold, government audit, or investigation is active, destruction must be suspended until the hold is lifted.

For purposes of this policy:

• Form I-9 means the Employment Eligibility Verification form required for U.S. employment eligibility verification.
• Retention trigger date means the later of: (1) the employee’s date of hire plus three years, or (2) the employee’s separation date plus one year.
• Purge date means the date on which a Form I-9 becomes eligible for secure destruction after the retention trigger date has passed.
• Supporting documents means copies of identity or work authorization documents retained with the I-9, if the organization chooses to retain copies.
• Documented warning means a written notice issued when a required purge review or destruction step is missed or delayed.
• PIP means a performance improvement plan used only when repeated process failures require corrective action.

1. The organization will retain each Form I-9 for three years after the date of hire or one year after employment ends, whichever is later, in accordance with USCIS guidance.
2. The retention period applies to the Form I-9 and any copies of supporting documents retained by the organization.
3. Expired I-9 records must be securely destroyed according to the approved destruction method and documented in the purge log.
4. Records subject to a legal hold, audit, government inquiry, or litigation hold must not be destroyed until the hold is released in writing.
5. The organization will maintain only the minimum necessary access to I-9 records, limited to authorized HR, compliance, legal, and records management personnel.

1) Retention calculation

• For each employee, calculate the retention trigger date using the later of:
  • Hire date + 3 years, or
  • Termination date + 1 year.
• If the employee is still active, the purge date is based on the hire date plus three years.
• If the employee has separated, the purge date is based on the later of the two dates above.

2) Monthly purge review

• HR or Records Management will run a monthly report of I-9 records reaching or past the purge date.
• The reviewer will confirm whether any legal hold, audit request, or investigation applies.
• Eligible records will be grouped by destruction method and approved for purge.

3) Secure destruction

• Paper records must be cross-cut shredded, pulped, or destroyed by a certified destruction vendor.
• Electronic records must be permanently deleted using approved deletion methods that prevent reasonable reconstruction.
• If records are stored in a document management system, the system owner must verify deletion from active folders and retention archives where permitted.

4) Purge documentation

• The reviewer must record the employee identifier, record type, purge date, destruction method, date destroyed, and approver.
• The purge log must be retained as a compliance record.
• Any missed purge must be escalated to the HR Manager and Compliance Officer within five business days.

5) Exceptions

• If an I-9 is under legal hold, the retention period is suspended until the hold is released.
• If a record is discovered to have been destroyed early, HR must document the incident, assess risk, and notify Legal/Compliance immediately.

• HR Manager / Policy Holder: Owns the policy, approves exceptions, and ensures annual review.
• HR Generalist: Maintains I-9 files, calculates purge dates, and prepares monthly purge lists.
• Compliance Officer: Reviews exception cases, legal holds, and purge logs for good-faith compliance.
• Records Manager: Executes or oversees secure destruction and retains destruction certificates.
• Legal Counsel: Issues and releases legal holds and advises on investigations or audits.

Failure to follow this policy may result in corrective action, up to and including removal of records access, retraining, a documented warning, a PIP for repeated process failures, or other discipline consistent with company policy and applicable law. Intentional destruction of records subject to a legal hold may result in immediate escalation to Legal and senior leadership. This policy does not limit employee rights under the NLRA, FLSA, FMLA, ADA, or EEOC-enforced laws where applicable.

This policy will be reviewed at least annually and updated when USCIS guidance, federal law, retention requirements, or internal recordkeeping systems change. Revisions must be approved by the policy holder, HR leadership, and Legal/Compliance as needed.