E-Verify Facts and Stats - Archive

E-Verify Facts and Stats Archive contains useful program information to enhance your knowledge and awareness of the E-Verify Program.
 

E-Verify's original name was the Basic Pilot Program
That program was initially authorized in 1996. In 2007 the name was changed to E-Verify.

How E-Verify works
The process starts when an employer submits information from an employee’s Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification) through E-Verify. E-Verify compares that information to electronic records maintained by the Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security to confirm if the employee is authorized to work in the United States. That process typically takes just a few seconds. Current statistics show that 97 percent of employees run through E-Verify are found to be work eligible.

No charge to employers to use E-Verify
There is no charge to an employer to enroll in or use E-Verify.

Enrolling in E-Verify is easy
A company or organization only needs to provide some basic information, agree to follow the rules of the program, and have any employees who will use E-Verify take a tutorial and pass a test.

Employers must notify employees that they participate in E-Verify
Employers need to display an E-Verify poster and a Right to Work poster at hiring sites in such a way that they are clearly visible to potential employees. These posters indicate that the employer participates in E-Verify and describes employees’ rights under the program. The posters, available at the E-Verify Web site, must be displayed in both English and Spanish.

Form I-9 and E-Verify
Completion of Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, is required by law for all employers, while participation in E-Verify is voluntary for most employers. However, E-Verify works with, and exists to strengthen, the Form I-9 process by offering employers the ability to compare information that employees provide on the Form I-9 to Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security records.

After an offer of employment is accepted, the Form I-9 requires employers to collect specific information from the new employee. This is the case for all new hires.

If an employee receives a “tentative nonconfirmation” result, the employer must give that employee an opportunity to resolve the mismatch. Not until E-Verify gives a “final nonconfirmation” or “DHS no show” result may an employer terminate or take adverse action against an employee based on E-Verify

Corporate Administrators
A Corporate Administrator performs management oversight functions when a company has multiple locations with E-Verify users. The corporate administrator function allows a company to link individual company locations with a single corporate account. Corporate Administrators manage affiliated accounts and users registered to those accounts, but they cannot do verifications or access individual E-Verify cases.

Once enrolled in E-Verify, employers can use the system themselves or hire a “Designated Agent” to use it on their behalf
For companies that want the benefit of E-Verify but prefer not to use the system themselves, designated agents, usually as part of a commercial business, can provide that service. To use E-Verify, designated agents, like employers, must first enroll their company online. However, employers remain responsible for the proper use of the system by their designated agents.

E-Verify is voluntary for most employers, but mandatory for some in certain states: 

• Arizona and Mississippi require all employers to use E-Verify.
• South Carolina encourages the use of E-Verify by all employers.
• Seven states require public contractors to use E-Verify:
  Colorado, Georgia, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Utah.
• Several states require their state agencies to participate in E-Verify:
  Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Utah.

A presidential executive order and subsequent Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rule now require federal contractors to use E-Verify
As of September 8, 2009, employers with federal contracts or subcontracts that contain the FAR E-Verify clause are required to use E-Verify to determine the employment eligibility of:

• Employees performing direct, substantial work under those federal contracts
• New hires organization wide—regardless of whether they are working on a federal contract 

The E-Verify Federal Acquisition Rule (FAR) applies to federal contracts awarded on or after September 8, 2009, that include the FAR E-Verify clause. 
However, existing indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contracts awarded before that date may be modified on a bilateral basis to include the FAR E-Verify clause if:

•  The remaining period of performance extends at least six months after the E-Verify federal contractor rule effective date

• The amount of work or number of orders expected under the remaining performance period is substantial

Certain federal contractors are only required to verify employees assigned to a covered federal contract.
These include:

• State and local governments
• Institutions of higher education
• Governments of federally recognized Native American tribes
• Sureties performing under a takeover agreement entered into with a federal agency pursuant to a performance bond

Determining which employees perform substantive work on a federal contract according to the E-Verify Federal Acquisition Rule
An employee is considered assigned to a federal contract when the employee is performing substantial work on a federal contract.  When an employee is only performing support work, such as overhead type functions, the employee is not considered to be working on a federal contract.

Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Stats Update
As of September 8, 2009, employers with federal contracts or subcontracts that contain the FAR E-Verify clause are required to use E-Verify.

The use of E-Verify is growing rapidly
More than 1400 new employers enroll every week.

A Social Security number is needed to run an E-Verify query
Interestingly, there are more than 50 different versions of the Social Security card, all of which are valid. Until 1976, original cards and replacement cards were different from each other.

Using E-Verify is very simple. The information collection fields call only for:

• Name (last, first, middle initial, maiden)
• Document Numbers (e.g. A-number, visa number, I-94 number) 
• Social Security Number 
• Date of birth
• Date of hire 
• Attested citizenship status

Case Verification Number
When a case is run through E-Verify, the system creates a unique case verification number. Employers are required either to record the case verification number on the employee’s Form I-9 or to print the case detail page that contains the verification number and attach it to the employee’s Form I-9. 

Photo Matching

E-Verify’s Photo Matching is the first step in incorporating biometric data into E-Verify. Photo Matching allows the employer to confirm the photo on an employee’s document with the photo in Department of Homeland Security records. It is used only when an employee presents a Permanent Resident Card or Employment Authorization Document.

How E-Verify protects employee information
E-Verify requires that employers protect employees’ privacy and safeguard their personal information by:

• Only allowing authorized users to use E-Verify
• Securing passwords used to access E-Verify
• Protecting and storing information in a safe, secure location that only authorized individuals can access

Employees are always given the chance to correct data mismatches in E-Verify
In some cases, information from Form I-9 does not match Social Security Administration (SSA) or Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records.  In that situation, the employee receives a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC). A TNC does not mean that a person is not authorized to work in the United States, but does mean that person should contact either SSA or DHS to provide the necessary information to be confirmed as work authorized. 

E-Verify Anti-Discrimination Guidance

Employers must not use E-Verify in a discriminatory manner. Employment verification cases must not be based upon national origin, citizenship status, race, or any other characteristic prohibited by law.

Employees’ rights in the E-Verify Program

Persons hired by employers participating in E-Verify have the right to work without fear of discrimination and to remain in employment while resolving tentative nonconfirmation results. Employees may report discrimination concerns to the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices at 800-255-7688 (TDD: 800-237-2515).

E-Verify Demonstration Video
To view a short demonstration of a case in which a U.S. citizen presents an unexpired U.S. passport when completing the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, please click the "Video: How to Create a Case" link in the right-hand column on this page.

E-Verify Trademark Usage

Both the term “E-Verify” and its logo are registered trademarks of the Department of Homeland Security. Their use, without permission, is unauthorized and in violation of trademark law. Someone can request permission to use the trademark or logo, or report violations, by sending an e-mail to uscis.verlogo@dhs.gov.

Learn more about E-Verify
Employers or employees who want more information about E-Verify can:

• Visit: www dhs.gov/E-Verify
• Email:  E-Verify@dhs.gov (normal response time is two business days)
• Call E-Verify Customer Support:  1-888-464-4218 (Mon–Fri, 8 am–5 pm local time)