Information for Employers Hiring Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau

Information for Employers Hiring Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic
of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau
Employer Fact Sheet
Information for Employers Hiring
Citizens of the Federated States of
Micronesia, the Republic of the
Marshall Islands, and the Republic of
Palau
The United States has Compacts of Free Association with the
Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall
Islands, and the Republic of Palau, which are collectively referred
to as the Freely Associated States or FAS. The Compacts of Free
Association allow most FAS citizens to live and work in the United
States.
While FAS citizens may have another U.S. immigration status, such as lawful permanent
residence, references in this fact sheet to “FAS citizens” are limited to non-immigrants
under the Compacts of Free Association.
FAS citizens mark the fourth box for “Alien authorized to work” (or “A noncitizen authorized to
work” in some versions of the Form I-9) in Section 1 of the Form I-9. Because their permission to
live and work in the United States does not expire, they write, “N/A” (“not applicable”) for the
expiration date in Section 1.
As with all workers, FAS citizens can choose which acceptable documents to present
from the Form I-9 Lists of Acceptable Documents to demonstrate their identity and
permission to work in the United States.
Under the Form I-9 instructions, all workers, including FAS citizens, can choose to present any
valid List A document (such as an Employment Authorization Document), or a combination of
any valid List B document together with any valid List C document (such as a government-
issued identification card with an unrestricted Social Security card) from the Form I-9 Lists of
Acceptable Documents.
Immigrant and Employee Rights Section
justice.gov/ier

FAS citizens receive Social Security cards with no employment restrictions. They are also
eligible, but not required, to apply for an Employment Authorization Document. Employment
Authorization Documents are subject to Form I-9 reverification. Alternatively, citizens of the
Republic of the Marshall Islands or Federated States of Micronesia (but not citizens of Palau)
sometimes choose to present an RMI or FSM passport and a Form I-94/94a, which is a List A
document combination for Form I-9 purposes.
For reverification, all workers, including FAS citizens, may present any valid List A document
(such as an unexpired passport with a Form I-94/94A in the case of Republic of the Marshall
Islands or Federated States of Micronesia citizens) or valid List C document (such as a Social
Security card without restrictions).
Please note, some FAS citizens may have Employment Authorization Documents that
appear expired but qualify for an automatic extension and are still valid. If a FAS citizen’s
Employment Authorization Document (EAD) has expired but he or she has applied to renew the
EAD, the worker may be able to keep working with the existing EAD. For a period of time after
the expired date listed on the EAD, the FAS citizen can present the EAD with an I-797C receipt
notice showing that the government received the EAD renewal application. Visit I-9 Central for
more information on Employment Authorization Document automatic extensions.
Under the law that the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) of the Department of
Justice’s Civil Rights Division enforces, employers can’t demand more or different
documents than necessary, request specific documents, or reject reasonably genuine-
looking documents because of a worker’s citizenship, immigration status, or national
origin, when verifying a worker’s permission to work in the United States. This type of
discrimination generally occurs during the Form I-9 and E-Verify processes. For more
information about how to avoid discrimination under this law, please contact IER.
Updated April 2025
Information for Employers Hiring Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic
of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau
Contact
Civil Rights Division Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER)
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Call the Employer Hotline at
For people with hearing disabilities 1-800-237-2515
Calls can be anonymous.
Free language services are available.
• 	To learn more, visit 	justice.gov/ier
1-800-255-8155