Under the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act, employers are required to hire individuals that are legally able to work in the United States. One way employers can verify the identity and eligibility to work for all new employees is by using E-Verify. E-Verify is a free online system administered by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Verification Division, and the Social Security Administration (SSA). The system compares information from an employee’s Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to records maintained by DHS and SSA to confirm employment eligibility.

E-Verify is a voluntary program for most employers, but mandatory for some. Federal contractors or subcontractors that contain the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) E-Verify clause and employers in certain states with legislation mandating the use of E-Verify for some or all employers are required to use E-Verify to confirm an employee’s identity and eligibility to work in the United States. See the table below for state requirements.

How does it work?
Participating employers in E-Verify must use information from the employee’s Form I-9 to create a case in E-Verify no later than the third business day after the employee starts work. If an employee provides a Form I-551 Permanent Resident Card, a Form I-766 Employment Authorization Document, or a U.S. Passport or Passport Card, employers will be prompted to compare the employee’s photo ID with a photo displayed in E-Verify. This process helps ensure that the document provided is valid. After information is entered into E-Verify, a case result is provided.

What are the responsibilities of an employer?
An employer that participates in E-Verify must:

• notify employees that they participate in E-Verify by displaying the ‘Notice of Participation’ and the ‘Right to Work’ posters in both English and Spanish;
• allow employees to start and continue working during the E-Verify verification process, even if applicant receives a DHS or SSA Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC);
• provide employees with a ‘U.S. Department of Homeland Security Notice to Employee of Tentative Nonconfirmation’ or ‘Social Security Administration Notice to Employee of Tentative Nonconfirmation’ if employee receives a TNC. The notice will include information on how to contest a TNC;
• give employees the opportunity to contest a TNC;
• provide employees with a Referral Date Confirmation if they decide to contest a TNC. The Referral Date Confirmation provides the date by which the employee must visit SSA or contact the DHS; and
• allow employees eight federal government workdays to visit a SSA field office or contact DHS to contest a TNC.

E-Verify conducts monitoring and compliance activities to ensure E-Verify if properly used. Employers misusing E-Verify may be excluded from the program.

What posters must be displayed?
Employers are required to post the English and Spanish versions of the ‘Notice of E-Verify Participation’ and the ‘Right to Work’ posters in a prominent location that can be clearly viewed by prospective and current employees. Employers may choose to display the posters in other languages but are not required to. Employers may also provide a copy of these posters with employment applications.

Can E-Verify posters be downloaded or linked electronically to employer websites?
E-Verify posters can be downloaded, printed and displayed by enrolled employers only. Electronically linking official (non-sample) E-Verify posters to external websites is not allowed.