What Happens During an ICE Worksite Inspection?

What is ICE looking for when they audit your I-9 forms?

When you receive a Notice of Inspection, what should you expect?   Most likely ICE will request your company produce the following within 3 days of receipt of a Notice of Inspection:worksite inspection

  • A spreadsheet listing alphabetically all current and terminated employees with hire and termination dates in electronic form including the names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth of each employee.
  • Copies of quarterly wage and hour reports and/or payroll data for all employees—current and terminated—covering the period of inspection, as well as quarterly tax statements.
  • Business information, including the EIN, taxpayer identification number, owner’s Social Security number, owner’s contact information, articles of incorporation (if applicable) and copies of business licenses.
  • Original Forms I-9s for current and past employees going back 3 years.
  • Copies of Social Security no-match letters your company has received.
  • A copy of any I-9 compliance plan or policy.
  • The name, title and job description of those who are responsible to complete, store and maintain I-9s.
  • The date the business was established, form of the business, where it is incorporated and its revenue.
  • The department or job titles of employees.
  • Quarterly unemployment insurance reports with the state or quarterly returns for Federal Income Contributions Act taxes.

My experience has been that many I-9 forms are incomplete or riddled with errors because there is no one person within company who “owns” this process.  Since non-compliance with this law can result in major fines, penalties, sanctions and in some cases imprisonment, great care should be taken while completing the  Form I-9.

Here’s my advice - Adopt, appoint and train one person within your company to manage the I-9 process.  Draft a Form I-9 compliance policy that incorporates best practices that make sense for your company.  Conduct annual I-9 audits in cooperation with an expert to identify problems and fix them before ICE comes knocking.

You may have a lot of work to do but it could save your business from large fines and penalties.

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