Federal immigration compliance has always required employers to maintain accurate Form I-9 records, but recent changes issued by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) significantly raise the stakes for even seemingly minor paperwork mistakes. In this article, we explore how ICE’s updated guidance reclassifies certain longstanding clerical errors as substantive violations, increasing the risk of immediate fines for employers during an I-9 audit.
Employers in the U.S. are required to complete and retain Form I-9s to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired to work. ICE has authority to audit an employer’s I-9 files at any time after issuing a Notice of Inspection, and employers typically have only three business days to produce requested records. Historically, I-9 violations have been divided into two categories: substantive violations and technical or procedural violations.
