The I-9 form is used to verify an individual's identity as well as verify that they can be legally employed in the United States. With Fountain's I-9 stage, the applicant and the employer each fill out the form (in a simplified view) within the Fountain workflow. An official I-9 form is generated and can be sent to the government system to be verified.  

To learn about the Fountain Authorized Representative I-9 process, review the Authorized Representative I-9 (US Only) article. 

What's Covered

• I-9 Form Basics 
• Add I-9 Form Stage
• Complete Employer Portion
• Viewing the I-9 Form
• Applicant Redo
• Adding I-9 Section 3
• Download Data Exports

I-9 Form Basics

The I-9 form functions as employment authorization, meant to be filled out by both the employee and the employer. 

The I-9 Form has three main sections:

• Step 1: The Employee must fill this out on or before their start date. This section will be revealed and completed by the applicant.
• Step 2: The employer fills in section 2. The employer must physically (in-person) confirm the identity documents from the employee. The employer can use the alternative procedure of confirming the documents from the employee over video only if they are utilizing E-Verify. Section 2 must be completed within 3 business days of hire. 
• Step 3: Reserved for rehires or if an employee's identity documents expire.

1099 contractors do not need to fill out this form, only employees do.

Add I-9 Form Stage

1. Add a stage to your Opening's workflow and select I-9 Form under Stage Type. We recommend that the I-9 Form stage is placed after the approval stage, or when the applicant has accepted their offer to your position. By doing this, the applicant will not automatically progress to this stage.
                  
2. Configure the I-9 Form stage settings by checking the box next to the setting to enable.
   
   
   Automatically Move Applicant to Next Stage

   
   If you want the applicant to move to the next stage in the workflow after they complete the I-9 Form, turn on the appropriate toggle under the I-9 Form category. Turning this on will enable the automatic move rule of applicants to the next stage when the applicant completes their portion of the I-9. We recommend that you turn this setting on to keep the applicant moving through your workflow instead of waiting for the employer to complete their half of the I-9. 

   Email Notification Upon Completion

   
   Turn on this toggle if a user wants to be notified via email when both parties complete the I-9. Select the recipient for the email in the box below the toggle.

   Employer Information

   
   You can pre-fill out some of the employer information for Section 2 of what the employer will need to complete after the applicant has finished their portion. This will still be editable when the user/employer signs their portion but is a great way to speed up the process. 

Complete Employer Portion

Once an applicant has completed their portion of the I-9 Form, there are a few ways an employer can complete Section 2 of the I-9 Form.

• From the link in the email notification - by default sent to Opening Owner when applicant completes their portion of the I-9.
• From the Applicant Table, Universal Applicant View, or Applicant Profile within Fountain

When an applicant has completed their portion of the I-9, a new status label called I9: Pending Action will appear on their status on the Applicant Table and Universal Applicant View. 

Click I9 Form: Pending Action and then, Complete Form.

This will take you to a new page to complete Section 2: Employer portion of the I-9 Form. When completing Section 2 as the employer, please keep the following in mind:

• The employee must present the employer a document or combination of documents from List A (which shows both identity and employment authorization) or one document from List B (which shows identity) AND one document from List C. If you as the employer select a document from List A, the field for List C will disappear because it is not required. 
• If you are a customer using E-Verify and have used the alternative method of confirming the documents over video, check the box indicating you used the alternative procedure authorized by DHS. 

• After electronically signing in the box, click confirm in the top right corner before clicking Submit. 

Viewing the I-9 Form

Click on View Form to see the generated official I-9 Form in PDF. We recommend using Adobe PDF Viewer for best results when downloading and printing I-9 Forms. You may encounter issues with certain fields missing or blacked out when using other clients.

Applicant Redo Request

If there was an error on the applicant's portion, you can request for the applicant to redo by clicking on the Applicant Re-do button. Draft the email from scratch or craft from a message template and hit Send Email. To use a message template, choose I-9 Form Redo as the message type. 

The status bar will be updated to I-9: In Progress

Adding I-9 Section 3: Reverification of Employee ID Documentation 

I-9 Section 3 allows recruiters to reverify employee identification documents that have expired or will soon become expired. 

To implement Section 3 recertification, follow the steps below:

1. On the Applicant Table, move the applicant into the I-9 Stage.
2. Complete the I-9 form and select Lawful Permanent Resident or Noncitizen Authorized to Work as employee status.
3. Sign and follow the steps to the Employment Eligibility Verification page.
4. Select an Identity Verification Document option that does not have Form I-551 appended.
   
5. Set the Expiration Date for the document to one week from today.
6. Complete the rest of the form and submit.
7. Navigate back to the Applicant Table and click the I9 Form: Pending Action Status Label. Then click Complete Form. 
8. Sign and submit.
9. Navigate back to the Applicant Table and click the I9 Reverification: _ days left Status Label.
   
10. Click Start Remote Reverification to begin I-9 Section 3. 

Download Data Exports

1. Select Company Settings.
   
2. Scroll down to the Account Info section, and select Exports.
   
3. Choose New Export.
   
   
   
4. Enter the Title, select the source you want to Pull Applicants From, and the Fields to Export.
5. Select Save.
   
   
   
6. Choose the Title you created or edited and select Download.
   
7. Choose CSV File.
   
   
   The Fields you exported will be downloaded.