My employer asked for a specific document for the I-9. Are they allowed to?

No. The employer's job is to check that the documents you choose to present are on the list and appear genuine. Which documents you present is your choice.

What the rule actually is

Form I-9 has three lists. You provide either one document from List A, or one from List B and one from List C. If what you hand over satisfies that, the employer must accept it.

Demanding a specific document, asking for more documents than required, or rejecting valid documents because of how you look or sound is called document abuse, and it is unlawful discrimination.

What else they cannot do

• Ask for documents before making a job offer
• Refuse a document because it has a future expiry date
• Re-verify a permanent resident card when it expires — permanent residence does not expire with the card
• Treat you differently because your work authorisation has an end date

What to do about it

Say, calmly, that you are presenting a valid List B and List C document and that the employer is required to accept them. Written communication is better than a conversation, because it leaves a record.

If it is not resolved, this is enforced federally by a dedicated section of the Department of Justice, and complaints are free to file. There is also a worker hotline. The federal links are on this site's work pages.

Keep a copy of everything you presented and a dated note of what you were asked for. These cases turn on records.