An "SSA Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)" results when the information entered in E-Verify does not initially match Social Security Administration (SSA) records. An "SSA TNC"does not mean that the employee is not authorized to work in the United States.
An "SSA TNC" case result may occur because the employee's:
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Citizenship or immigration status was not updated with SSA
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Name change was not reported to SSA
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Name, Social Security number or date of birth is incorrect in SSA records
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SSA record contains another type of mismatch
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Information was not entered correctly by the employer
Both the employer and employee have responsibilities when E-Verify returns an "SSA TNC" result:
1. Employer notifies the employee of the "SSA TNC."
When E-Verify displays an "SSA TNC" case result, the employer must first notify the employee of the "SSA TNC." To notify the employee, the employer must print the Notice to Employee of Tentative Nonconfirmation, aslo called a TNC notice. The TNC notice is a critical document that explains
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What is an "SSA TNC."
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Why did the employee receive an "SSA TNC."
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What are the employee's options after having received an "SSA TNC."
The TNC notice also provides instructions to the employer for notifying an employee of an "SSA TNC." Specifically, the employer must
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Print the TNC notice and review it privately with the employee.
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Read the notice to the employee if the employee cannot read.
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Provide the employee with the English version and a foreign language version of the TNC notice if the employee does not fully understand English.
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Sign the employer section on the first page of the TNC notice.
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Instruct the employee to complete and sign the employee section on page two of the TNC notice.
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Provide the employee a copy of the signed TNC notice and keep the original with the employer's records.
2. Employee decides whether to contest the "SSA TNC."
Employees also have certain rights and responsibilities after having received an "SSA TNC." After receiving an "SSA TNC," the employee must decide whether to contest it and indicate so on the TNC notice.
If the employee contests the "SSA TNC," the employer must take the next step in E-Verify and refer the employee to SSA.
If the employee does not contest the "SSA TNC," the TNC result is then considered an "SSA Final Nonconfirmation," and the employer may terminate the employee based on E-Verify. In this case, the employer must close the case in E-Verify and indicate whether the employee was terminated.
3. Employer refers the employee's case to SSA.
An employee who chooses to contest an "SSA TNC" must visit an SSA field office in person. When the employer refers the case to SSA, E-Verify will generate a “Referral to the Social Security Administration” also called SSA referral letter which the employer must print and give to the employee. The SSA referral letter instructs the employee to visit SSA to resolve the mismatch. It is important that the employee shows a copy of the SSA referral letter to the representative when they visit an SSA field office.
The employee must be allowed to continue working while he or she resolves the mismatch. In addition, an employer may not take any adverse actions, such as delaying training or reducing work hours, against an employee while his or her case status is an "Employee referred to SSA."
4. Employee visits SSA to resolve the mismatch.
Once the employer refers the case in E-Verify, the employee then has eight federal government work days to visit an SSA field office and resolve the mismatch. When visiting SSA, the employee should bring the SSA referral letter along with any required documents. The SSA referral letter explains what documents are required to resolve the different types of possible mismatches.
If the employee does not visit SSA, E-Verify will automatically change the employee's case status to "SSA Final Nonconfirmation" after 10 federal government work days have passed since the case was referred. Only after an employee receives an "SSA Final Nonconfirmation" may the employer terminate the employee based on E-Verify.
5. SSA updates the employee's case in E-Verify.
If the employee is successful in resolving the mismatch, SSA will update its records and the employee's case in E-Verify. It may take up to two federal government work days after a mismatch is resolved for the employer to see the updated case status in E Verify.
E-Verify features a case status alert that will notify the employer of an update in an employee's case when the employer logs in to E-Verify.
In most cases, SSA will update the employee's case with a final case result, which can be either "Employment Authorized" or "SSA Final Nonconfirmation." Occasionally, SSA may require the employer, employee or the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to take additional action before a final case result can be issued. In these cases, SSA will update the employee's case to reflect one of the following results:
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"Case in Continuance": In rare cases, SSA may need more than 10 federal government work days to verify an employee's employment eligibility. This can happen when an employee has lost and has applied for a replacement document, such as a birth certificate. An employee must first visit SSA and attempt to resolve the TNC for SSA to put a case in continuance. While a case is in continuance, the employer must allow the employee to continue working until a final case status is displayed in E-Verify. Employers should check E-Verify regularly for a status update.
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"DHS Verification in Process": The employee may have resolved the discrepancy with SSA, but E-Verify cannot instantly confirm employment authorization because it needs to manually review the records in government databases. For those cases requiring manual review, E-Verify will first return a "DHS Verification in Process" response and will then usually provide a verification result within 24 to 48 hours. No action is required by the employer or employee during this time. Employers should check E-Verify regularly for a status update.
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"Review and Update Employee Data": In some cases, SSA will prompt an employer to review and correct the employee information that was entered into E-Verify and update the case. This occurs when an employee who has received an "SSA TNC" visits SSA and SSA determines there are no errors in the employee's record. This discrepancy may result from either of the following situations:
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An employer typing error in E-Verify.
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The newly hired employee provided incorrect information on the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification form.
The above three case statuses are considered temporary and an employer may not take any adverse actions against an employee whose case reflects any of these statuses. Under the law, the employee must be allowed to continue working until a final case status is displayed in E-Verify.
6. Employer closes employee's case in E-Verify.
Once the employee has received a final case status, such as "Employment Authorized" or "SSA Final Nonconfirmation," the employer must close the case in E-Verify. If the employee received an "SSA Final Nonconfirmation," the employer must also indicate whether the employee was terminated.
For more information, including specific instructions for following TNC procedures in E-Verify, please consult the E-Verify User Manual.
