A
Acceptable Documents for Verifying Identity and Employment Authorization
Documents that evidence employment authorization and identity under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) are listed in the instructions to the Employment Eligibility Verification form (Form I-9) and in the Handbook for Employers (M-274) found at www.uscis.gov. Employees have the right to choose which document or combination of documents to present. Please note that any List B document presented to an employer participating in E-Verify must contain a photograph, although accommodation may be made for individuals unable to do so for religious reasons.
Admission Number or I-94 Number
The I-94 number is an 11-digit number that is found on the Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94 or Form I-94A).
Alien (Noncitizen)
An alien is any person who is not a citizen or national of the United States.
Alien Authorized to Work
A noncitizen who is allowed to work because of his or her immigration status or a noncitizen who is granted work authorization by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Alien Registration Number (“A” Number) or Alien Number
A unique seven-, eight- or nine-digit number assigned to a noncitizen at the time his or her A-file is created. The 9-digit U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services number listed on the front of Permanent Resident Cards (Form I-551) issued after May 10, 2010, is the same as the Alien Registration Number. The A-number can also be found on the back of these Permanent Resident Cards.
Anti-Discrimination Notice
The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, Civil Rights Division, US Department of Justice, publishes the Anti-discrimination Notice, providing information to employees concerning discrimination in the workplace. The E-Verify Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) requires participating employers to display both the English and Spanish versions of the notice in a prominent place that is clearly visible to current and prospective employees. This notice is available in the ”Essential Resources” section of E-Verify. For questions about discrimination during the employment eligibility verification process, employers may contact OSC at 1-800-255-8155 or 1-800-237-2515 (TTY) or visit http://www.justice.gov/crt/osc.
Arrival/Departure Record (Form I-94 or I-94A)
A document issued to noncitizens when admitted into the United States. Some of these forms are stamped to indicate work-authorized status. Form I-94 or I-94A contains an 11-digit admission number that may be used as part of the initial E-Verify case if the noncitizen employee does not have an Alien Registration Number.
B
C
Case in Continuance
This response is given if the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) needs more than 10 federal government workdays to resolve a case. The employee continues to work until a final case status is provided in E-Verify from SSA or DHS.
Case Verification Number
A unique number assigned to each E-Verify case that is created when an employer submits an initial verification. Employers participating in E-Verify are required to record the case verification number on the employee’s Form I-9 or to print the screen containing the case verification number and attach it to the employee’s Form I-9.
Client
An individual or company that hires an E-Verify employer agent to create cases on their behalf.
Corporate Administrator
Corporate administrator access is used only for managing multiple employer accounts and doesn’t allow corporate administrator users to create and manage E-Verify cases. New corporate administrators must attend a free, regularly scheduled Web-based training session before their accounts can be activated.
D
DHS No Show
A response received when the employee did not contact the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to resolve his or her case and 10 federal government workdays have passed since the date of referral. The ‘DHS No Show’ result is considered a final nonconfirmation.
DHS Verification in Process
A case result of “DHS Verification in Process” means that the employee’s information did not match U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records. The case is automatically referred to DHS for further verification. DHS responds to most of these cases within 24 hours, but has up to three federal government workdays to respond. Employers should check the system periodically for response.
Document Type
Type of document presented by a newly hired employee to verify identity and employment eligibility.
E
Employment Authorized
This is a case result received in E-Verify when the information entered for an employee matches Social Security Administration (SSA) or U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records. This result indicates employment eligibility has been verified.
Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766)
A document issued to noncitizens that are authorized to work in the United States. The most recent version of the Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) has been issued since January 1997
Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification
The form employers are required to complete with an employee when they hire an employee to perform labor or services in return for wages or other remuneration. This requirement applies to all employees hired after November 6, 1986.
E-Verify
E-Verify is an Internet-based program in which the employment eligibility of newly hired employees and existing employees assigned to a covered federal contract will be verified after Form I-9 has been completed. This involves separate verification checks (if necessary) of records maintained by the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
E-Verify Employer Agent
An individual or company that performs E-Verify cases on behalf of employers, formerly referred to as a designated agent.
E-Verify Participation Notice
The E-Verify Participation Notice informs current and perspective employees that a company is participating in the E-Verify Program. The memorandum of understanding (MOU) requires participating employers to display both the English and Spanish versions of the notice in a prominent place that is clearly visible to current and prospective employees.
F
Final Nonconfirmation
If an employee’s employment eligibility cannot be verified, an employer will receive a Final Nonconfirmation case result in E-Verify. An employer receiving an “SSA or DHS Final Nonconfirmation” response may terminate the employment of the employee and will not be civilly or criminally liable under any law for the termination, as long as the action was taken in good faith reliance on the information provided through E-Verify as noted in Article II, Section C – Responsibilities of the Employer (#6) in the memorandum of understanding (MOU).
G
General User
This user type creates cases, views reports and can update his or her user profile.
H
Handbook for Employers: Instructions for Completing Form I-9 (M-274)
Provides detailed instructions on how to complete and retain Form I-9.
Hire Date
The hire date is the date the employee began (or will begin) work for pay. Enter the Section 2 ‘Certification’ date from the employee’s Form I-9 as the hire date in E-Verify. If you rehired an employee and completed Section 3 of Form I-9, enter the ‘Date of Rehire’ from Section 3 of the employee’s Form I-9 as the hire date in E-Verify.
I
Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA)
Public Law 104-208 enacted on September 30, 1996 required the Immigration and Naturalization Service to conduct three types of employment authorization verification pilot programs. The ‘basic pilot program’ was one of the three programs and is the only program still in existence. The ‘basic pilot program’ exists today as E-Verify.
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (INA)
Public Law 82-414 enacted on June 27, 1952 which, along with other immigration laws, treaties and conventions of the United States, relates to the immigration, temporary admission, naturalization and removal of noncitizens.
Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA)
Public Law 99-603 enacted on November 6, 1986 sought to eliminate employment opportunity as a key incentive for illegal migration to the United States. IRCA mandates that all U.S. employers verify the employment eligibility and identify of all new hires through completion of the Form I-9. It provides remedies to employees and sanctions against employers who knowingly hire undocumented workers or discriminate against employees based on citizenship or immigration status or based on national origin.
Initial Case Result
The results displayed in E-Verify once an employee’s information has been submitted as part of a verification case. Initial case results include ‘Employment Authorized,’ ‘Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)’ and ‘DHS Verification in Process.’
Interim Case Status
Certain initial E-Verify results that require additional action before E-Verify can provide a final case result. Interim case results include ‘SSA or DHS Tentative Nonconfirmation,’ ‘Review and Update Employee Data,’ ‘DHS Verification in Process,’ ‘SSA or DHS Case in Continuance.’
J
K
L
Lawful Permanent Resident
A noncitizen who has been lawfully granted the privilege of residing and working permanently in the United States.
M
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
A legal document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between/among parties. It constitutes a legally binding contract when properly executed (i.e., signed) by all the parties. Employers who participate in E-Verify must sign the E-Verify MOU between the employer, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Social Security Administration (SSA).
N
Noncitizen National of the United States
Persons born in American Samoa; certain former citizens of the former Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands who relinquished their U.S. citizenship acquired under section 301 of Public Law 94-241 (establishing the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) by executing a declaration before an appropriate court that they intended to be noncitizen nationals rather than U.S. citizens; and certain children of noncitizen nationals born abroad. Generally, noncitizen nationals are American Samoans.
Notice to Employee of Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)
This is a computer generated notice given to an employee after a tentative nonconfirmation (TNC) interim case result has been received from the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). If an employee contests the TNC, he or she must contact the appropriate agency within eight federal government work days to initiate resolution of his or her E-Verify case.
O
Office of Special Counsel (OSC)
Created by Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC), within the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, enforces the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 USC 1324b, which prohibits discrimination in hiring and discharging based upon citizenship or immigration status and national origin, and discrimination during the employment eligibility verification process, which includes Form I-9 and E-Verify.
P
Passport (Foreign)
Any travel document issued by a competent authority showing the bearer’s origin, identity and nationality, if any, which is valid for the entry of the bearer into a foreign country.
Passport (United States)
Document issued by the U.S. Department of State to U.S. citizens and noncitizen nationals.
Password
A unique identifier that allows registered E-Verify users access to E-Verify.
Permanent Resident or Lawful Permanent Resident
A noncitizen who has been lawfully granted the privilege of residing and working permanently in the United States.
Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551)
Issued by the former Immigration and Naturalization Service after December 1997 and now issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, this card is the current version given to permanent residents. The document is valid for 10 years. In the current version of the Permanent Resident Alien Card (Form I-551), the name of the document was changed from Resident Alien Card to Permanent Resident Card.
Photo Matching
During the verification case, employers match the photos on certain documents provided by employees when completing Form I-9 with the photo that appears in E-Verify. Photo matching is triggered only when an employee has provided a U.S. Passport, Passport Card, Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) or an Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766) as his or her Form I-9 document.
Photo Match
The photo on the employee’s document matches the photo supplied by E-Verify. The photo transmitted by E-Verify should be the same (identical) photo that appears on an employee’s U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued document. Employers should be able to determine whether the photos match.
Photo Mismatch
The photo on the employee’s document does not match the photo supplied by E-Verify. The photo transmitted by E-Verify should be the same (identical) photo that appears on an employee’s U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued document. If the employer determines that it does not match, a “DHS Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)” case result is issued and the employee is given the opportunity to contest.
Point of Contact
An individual in your company who can be contacted about E-Verify issues. This person may or may not be one of the two user types.
Prescreening
The prohibitive practice of creating a case in E-Verify before a job offer has been accepted and Form I-9 is complete.
Program Administrator
This user type creates user accounts at his or her site. This user can view reports, create cases, update account information and unlock user accounts.
Q
R
Referral Letter
An employee who has chosen to contest an “SSA or DHS Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)” case result is provided with the appropriate agency referral letter instructing the employee to contact or visit the appropriate agency within eight federal government workdays from the date of referral to initiate the resolution of the employee’s E-Verify case.
Request Name Review
In some cases E-Verify returns a case result of ‘Employment Authorized,’ but the name shown as authorized does not match exactly the name you entered into E-Verify from the employee’s Form I-9. This can happen because of name variations in U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records.
If the names do not match, the case must be sent to DHS for review. Taking this step ensures that the record associated with the ‘Employment Authorized’ case result belongs to the employee whose information was entered into E-Verify.
Review and Update Employee Data
In some instances, a case status of ‘Review and Update Employee Data’ may occur. This means that the Social Security Administration (SSA) found a discrepancy in the information it received in the E-Verify referral. This may occur because of typographical errors and/or incorrect information on Form I-9. The Form I-9 will need to be reviewed with the employee, the information corrected as applicable and then the case may be resubmitted.
S
Social Security Administration (SSA)
The federal government agency that administers a national program of contributory social insurance. SSA and DHS jointly manage the E-Verify program.
Social Security Administration (SSA) Referral
After an employee is advised of an ‘SSA Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)’ and has signed the ‘Notice to Employee of Tentative Nonconfirmation’ also called a TNC notice, the employee is referred to SSA to resolve the TNC.
Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) Program
SAVE is a program that enables federal, state and local benefit-issuing agencies to obtain immigration status information to determine applicants' eligibility for many public benefits.
T
Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC)
The employee information was compared to government records and could not be verified. This does not mean that the employee is not authorized to work, or that the information provided was incorrect. The employee must contact or visit either the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to resolve the discrepancy and continue employment.
U
USCIS Number
A nine-digit number listed on the front of Permanent Resident Cards (Form I-551) issued after May 10, 2010 that is the same as the Alien number. The A-number can also be found on the back of these Permanent Resident Cards (Form I-551).
User ID
The user ID is an assigned ID with letters and numbers that identifies the user of a computer system or network. All users who create cases in E-Verify must have their own user IDs. The user ID must be eight characters and may be letters, numbers or a combination of both. A user ID is not case-sensitive.
V
Verification Division
The Verification Division administers the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) verification programs involving customer access to the Verification Information System (VIS) database. The Verification Division, within US Citizenship and Immigration Services, administers the E-Verify program, which enables employers to quickly and easily verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees. In addition, the Verification Division administers the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program.
W
X
Y
Z
