E-Verify

What It Means

E-Verify is an internet-based employment verification system operated jointly by USCIS's Verification Division and the Social Security Administration. It compares information from an employee's Form I-9 against data in SSA records (for Social Security Number verification) and DHS records (for noncitizen work authorization). The program originated as the Basic Pilot Program authorized by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 and was renamed E-Verify in 2007. E-Verify is voluntary for most private employers under federal law but is mandatory for federal contractors with the FAR E-Verify clause (48 CFR 22.1802), for employers in states that have enacted mandates (including Arizona, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and Florida for employers with 25 or more employees under 2023 SB 1718), and for STEM OPT F-1 student employers. Participating employers must create a case within 3 business days of the employee's start date, and the system returns either Employment Authorized or a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC). TNCs trigger a notification process under which the employee has 10 federal working days to contact SSA or DHS to resolve the discrepancy; failure to contest results in a Final Nonconfirmation and termination. E-Verify enrollment has grown past 1 million participating employer sites covering over 50% of new U.S. hires. The system has known error rates in the low single digits historically, with disproportionate false-TNC rates for naturalized citizens and noncitizens with name changes or certain immigration document updates, a concern noted in multiple GAO and independent evaluations.

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