E-Verify tentative nonconfirmation: what to do, step by step

An E-Verify tentative nonconfirmation, or TNC, means the information on an employee's Form I-9 did not immediately match Social Security Administration or Department of Homeland Security records. It is common and is not, by itself, evidence the person is unauthorized to work; most mismatches trace back to a name change, a typo, or an out-of-date government record. What matters is that the employer follows E-Verify's exact process and timeline from here, since both the timing and the "no adverse action" rule carry real compliance risk if skipped.

The process, in order

Step 1: notify the employee correctly

As soon as possible, and no later than 10 federal government working days after the mismatch, the employer must:

• Notify the employee that a mismatch occurred.
• Provide the employee a printed or electronic copy of the Further Action Notice, which names the agency (SSA, DHS, or both) associated with the mismatch.
• Review the notice with the employee in private, not in front of coworkers.
• Ask the employee to review their own information for accuracy, since a mismatch is frequently caused by a data-entry error on the employer's or employee's side rather than an actual authorization problem.
• Record and act on the employee's decision whether to contest.

"Federal government working days" excludes weekends and federal holidays; do not count using ordinary calendar days or your own company's holiday schedule.

Step 2: the no-adverse-action rule

While a TNC is pending, the employer may not terminate, suspend, delay training, withhold or lower pay, or take any other adverse action against the employee because of the mismatch. The employee continues in the same role under the same terms as if the mismatch had not occurred. Two things employers get wrong here:

• Asking the employee for updates during the contest period. Employers should not request status updates, additional documents, or proof of the visit to SSA or DHS beyond what the case resolution itself provides; the pressure of repeated requests can itself look like adverse treatment.
• Reassigning duties "to be safe." Moving someone off client-facing work, delaying a raise that was otherwise due, or holding back a scheduled promotion because a TNC is open are all adverse actions, even if framed as caution rather than punishment.

Step 3: if the employee contests

An employee who chooses to contest gets a Referral Date Confirmation specifying which agency to contact, SSA or DHS, and the deadline: 8 federal government working days from the referral date. The employer's role during this window is to keep the employee working normally and to close or update the case once E-Verify reflects a result, not to chase the agency on the employee's behalf or make its own determination about the outcome in the meantime.

Step 4: the three ways a case ends

A Final Nonconfirmation is a permission to terminate without E-Verify-related liability, not a requirement to terminate immediately without regard to your own policies or to other employment laws that still apply to how a termination is carried out.

A script for the private conversation

Most TNCs trace back to something ordinary rather than anything about work authorization: a recent legal name change not yet updated with SSA, a typo in the name, date of birth, or Social Security number entered on Form I-9 or into E-Verify, a maiden name still on file at one agency, or a delay in DHS records catching up to a recent immigration status update. None of these require the employer to investigate or resolve; that is exactly what the SSA or DHS visit during the contest period is for. The employer's job is procedural: notify correctly, document the timeline, take no adverse action, and let the case run its course through the agency the Further Action Notice names.

"E-Verify returned a mismatch on your employment eligibility information.
This is common and does not mean you are not authorized to work -- it often
comes from a name change, a typo, or a government record that has not been
updated.

Here is your Further Action Notice. It explains which agency is involved and
what your options are. You have [date] to decide whether you want to contest
this and resolve it with [SSA/DHS].

Nothing changes about your job while this is pending. Your pay, your
schedule, and your role stay the same. We are not asking you to prove
anything to us directly -- if you choose to contest, you will work with
[SSA/DHS] and the case will update automatically.

Do you have any questions about the notice, or about your own information
that might explain the mismatch?"

Recordkeeping and E-Verify's relationship to Form I-9

E-Verify runs off the information on Form I-9 but is a separate system with its own case record, separate from the paper or electronic I-9 file itself. See I-9 timing in hiring for how E-Verify's own timing requirement (typically the third business day after the employee starts work) fits around Form I-9's own deadline, and E-Verify requirements by state for which employers are required to use E-Verify at all, since federal law does not mandate it universally. A closed E-Verify case does not replace a properly completed and retained Form I-9; keep both.

Keep a simple internal log for every TNC too, separate from the E-Verify case itself: the date of the mismatch result, the date the employee was notified and given the Further Action Notice, the employee's decision on whether to contest, the referral date and deadline if they did, and the final result. This is what shows, if it is ever questioned, that the employer met its own 10-day notification duty and took no adverse action in the meantime. E-Verify retains its own case history, but a log your team can produce immediately, without pulling a case report, saves time if the question comes up in an unrelated audit or dispute.

A quick-reference checklist

• Notify the employee and provide the Further Action Notice within 10 federal government working days of a mismatch, counted in working days, not calendar days.
• Hold the conversation privately, and let the employee review their own information for an obvious error first.
• Take no adverse action of any kind while the case is pending, and train anyone who might touch the employee's schedule, pay, or duties on what counts as adverse action.
• Do not request updates from the employee about their contest; let the case resolve through the agency.
• Close each case in E-Verify with the correct closure reason as soon as it resolves, rather than leaving it open.
• Only terminate on a Final Nonconfirmation, and apply your normal termination process and documentation from that point.

Common mistakes