E-Verify
E-Verify is a free, web-based employment eligibility verification system administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), enabling enrolled employers to confirm whether newly hired employees are authorized to work in the United States by cross-referencing data from the Form I-9 against federal databases maintained by DHS and the Social Security Administration (SSA).[1] The program delivers results in seconds for most cases, processing information on identity documents and work authorization to help ensure a legal workforce while remaining voluntary at the federal level except for federal contractors and in states with mandates.[2] Originating as the Basic Pilot Program in 1996 under the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA), E-Verify has expanded from its initial testing in five states to nationwide availability, with over 1 million employers enrolled and millions of verifications conducted quarterly as of 2025.[3][4] Currently, 23 states require its use for at least some private or public employers, often targeting larger firms or those receiving state contracts, which has led to varied adoption rates and enforcement mechanisms across the country.[5] Empirical studies indicate that E-Verify mandates effectively reduce unauthorized employment by deterring ineligible workers and lowering their labor market participation, particularly among less-educated immigrants from Mexico and Central America, though the system's reliance on self-reported data exposes it to exploitation via identity theft, where unauthorized individuals use mismatched or stolen Social Security numbers that may initially pass verification.[6][7] Despite these limitations, false non-confirmation rates for authorized workers remain low at approximately 0.15%, minimizing widespread disruptions but still prompting concerns over potential discrimination against legal workers with database mismatches or during system outages.[8][9] In 2024, USCIS introduced E-Verify+ as an enhanced version integrating digital Form I-9 submission to streamline processes and reduce errors further.[10]History
Origins as Basic Pilot Program
The Basic Pilot Program, the precursor to E-Verify, was established under Division C of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), signed into law by President Bill Clinton on September 30, 1996.[11] IIRIRA mandated the creation of three pilot programs to test enhancements to the employment eligibility verification process under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, with the Basic Pilot focusing on electronic confirmation of work authorization by cross-checking employee data against records from the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS).[3][12] Unlike the other pilots, which involved telephone verification or paper-based systems, the Basic Pilot emphasized internet-based access to federal databases for real-time checks, aiming to reduce paperwork while maintaining employer compliance with anti-discrimination laws.[2] Implementation began in November 1997, initially available on a voluntary basis to employers in five states: California, Florida, Illinois, New York, and Texas.[3][12] The INS, in partnership with the SSA, managed the program's rollout, limiting participation to large employers initially to assess system reliability and accuracy rates, which early tests showed exceeding 90% for SSA matches but with higher discrepancies for INS data due to database limitations.[3] Participation remained optional and geographically restricted, with no federal mandate for adoption, reflecting congressional intent to evaluate feasibility before broader expansion.[2] By design, the pilot was temporary, scheduled for sunset after four years unless extended, to allow for empirical review of its effectiveness in curbing unauthorized employment without imposing undue burdens on businesses.[13]Expansion to Nationwide E-Verify
Efforts to expand E-Verify to a nationwide mandate have persisted since the program's inception as the voluntary Basic Pilot in 1996, driven primarily by concerns over unauthorized employment and immigration enforcement.[3] Proponents, including members of Congress and enforcement advocates, argue that mandatory use would deter illegal immigration by ensuring employers verify all new hires' eligibility, with proposals often tied to broader immigration reform packages.[12] However, these initiatives have repeatedly stalled due to opposition from business groups citing implementation costs, potential disruptions to hiring, and system error rates affecting U.S. citizens.[14] The first significant federal push for nationwide E-Verify came in 2006 as part of the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act (S. 2611), which proposed phasing in mandatory participation for all employers but failed to pass amid partisan disputes.[12] Subsequent attempts included the 2007 STRIVE Act (H.R. 1645), which aimed to mandate E-Verify for larger employers initially, expanding over time, but it did not advance beyond committee.[15] In 2013, the House passed the Legal Workforce Act (H.R. 1772), a bipartisan measure to require E-Verify for all hires and prohibit states from issuing driver's licenses to unauthorized workers, yet it lacked Senate support and expired.[16] During the Trump administration, executive actions in 2017 and 2019 encouraged voluntary adoption and targeted federal contractors, but stopped short of a full mandate due to legal and congressional hurdles.[17] Recent proposals include the Mandatory E-Verify Act of 2024 (S. 4529), introduced to permanently establish and require E-Verify use by all employers, and the Accountability Through Electronic Verification Act (S. 1151) in 2025, focusing on employer accountability for verification failures.[18] [19] As of October 2025, no federal law mandates nationwide E-Verify, leaving it voluntary except for federal contractors and certain state requirements, with ongoing state-level expansions in over a dozen jurisdictions signaling incremental pressure for uniformity.[20] [21] Critics, including immigrant advocacy groups, highlight E-Verify's error rates—estimated at 0.7% to 1.1% for tentative nonconfirmations, disproportionately affecting naturalized citizens and those with name discrepancies—and argue that mandates could exacerbate labor shortages without addressing root causes like visa backlogs.[22] [14] Proponents counter with evidence from mandatory states like Arizona, where post-2007 implementation correlated with reduced unauthorized workforce shares from 8% to about 5% by 2010, per Census data analyses, suggesting causal efficacy in curbing job magnet effects despite implementation challenges.[12] Federal cost estimates for full rollout, as analyzed in 2016, projected $100-200 million annually for USCIS operations, offset potentially by reduced unauthorized employment costs exceeding $10 billion yearly in lost taxes and services.[17] Despite these debates, legislative inertia persists, with 2025 bills facing uncertain prospects amid divided Congress and economic recovery priorities.[20]
Modernization Efforts and Technological Upgrades
In April 2018, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) launched a comprehensive modernization of the E-Verify system, transitioning to a new database architecture that enhanced data integrity, compliance monitoring, and overall system performance.[23] This upgrade addressed longstanding limitations in the original infrastructure by improving user interface responsiveness, reducing processing errors through automated validation checks, and accelerating case resolution times, with initial reports indicating faster query handling against Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security databases.[24] Subsequent enhancements in June 2018 further refined the modernized platform, incorporating user feedback to streamline case creation workflows and minimize manual data entry discrepancies, which had previously contributed to tentative nonconfirmations in up to 1-2% of cases due to input errors.[25] By November 2018, additional features like expanded photo-matching capabilities were integrated for select employers, allowing biometric verification against DHS records to combat identity fraud, though full rollout was phased to ensure system stability.[26] Technological upgrades continued into the 2020s, with 2024 introducing E-Verify+ as a pilot program designed for hybrid work environments, enabling digital Form I-9 submissions, remote document verification via secure portals, and enhanced fraud detection algorithms that flag inconsistencies in real-time using machine learning-based pattern recognition.[27] These changes aimed to reduce paperwork burdens—estimated at millions of manual I-9 forms annually—while improving accuracy to below 0.5% false positives in eligibility checks, as validated in pilot testing across participating employers.[28] In 2025, updates to citizenship status selections and knowledge tests aligned the system with revised statutory definitions, further bolstering compliance amid evolving immigration policies.[29]Operations
Verification Process and User Requirements
The E-Verify verification process commences after an employer has completed Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, for a newly hired employee. Employers enrolled in the system must create a case within three business days of the employee's hire date by entering specific information from Section 1 of Form I-9 into the E-Verify online portal, including the employee's name, date of birth, Social Security number (if provided), citizenship status, and document details from Section 2.[30][31] The system then electronically compares this data against records maintained by the Social Security Administration (SSA) for Social Security number validation and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for immigration status confirmation.[32][33] Upon submission, E-Verify generates one of several possible results: employment authorized, indicating a match and eligibility confirmation; tentative nonconfirmation (TNC), signaling a mismatch requiring employee resolution; case in continuance, for situations like insufficient DHS records; or final nonconfirmation after unresolved TNC, leading to ineligibility determination.[30] For TNCs, employers must notify the employee in writing on the same day of receipt, provide information on contesting the result, and allow three federal government working days for the employee to resolve discrepancies with SSA or DHS, without terminating or discriminating against the employee during this period.[30] Additional features include photo matching for DHS-issued documents, where employers compare the employee's photo tool image against the physical document to detect potential fraud.[30] E-Verify participation requires mandatory enrollment for designated federal contractors or employers in states with mandates, but is voluntary otherwise, with users agreeing to electronic terms outlining responsibilities such as prohibiting pre-employment screening, ensuring timely verifications, and maintaining recordkeeping for at least three years post-hire or one year post-termination, whichever is longer.[34][31] Enrollment involves submitting company details including legal name, Employer Identification Number (EIN), physical and mailing addresses, hiring site locations, employee count, and North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code, followed by designation of a corporate signatory and program administrator.[35][36] Designated users, such as program administrators and general users, must complete mandatory online tutorial and tutorial evaluation before accessing the system to create or manage cases.[37] Employers are prohibited from using E-Verify to verify existing employees unless required by law, and must handle all cases impartially regardless of perceived citizenship status.[31] Technical prerequisites for users include compatible web browsers (e.g., recent versions of Chrome, Firefox, or Edge), internet access, and adherence to data security protocols, as the system operates solely online without offline capabilities.[34] E-Verify employer agents, who verify on behalf of multiple clients, must enroll separately and maintain distinct responsibilities for each client while following the same process and rules.[38] Noncompliance with these requirements can result in program suspension or termination by DHS.[39]Data Sources and Accuracy Mechanisms
E-Verify primarily draws data from two federal databases: the Social Security Administration (SSA) database, which verifies Social Security numbers (SSNs), names, and dates of birth; and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) records, including those maintained by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which confirm immigration status and work authorization for non-citizens.[30][32] When an employer submits Form I-9 data via E-Verify, the system first queries SSA records to match the employee's SSN, name, and birth date against SSA's Numident file; a mismatch triggers a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC), prompting the employee to resolve the issue with SSA.[40] For citizenship or immigration status, the query accesses DHS databases to validate documents like Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) or visas against issuance records.[33] Accuracy mechanisms include automated cross-referencing with real-time federal records, which typically yields results in 3-5 seconds, and secondary tools like the DHS photo matching tool introduced in 2010 to visually compare employee photos against DHS-held images for certain non-citizen cases, reducing reliance on document numbers alone.[41] TNCs allow employees to contest mismatches by visiting SSA or DHS field offices or using self-resolution options like myE-Verify's Self Check portal, where individuals can pre-verify their records to preempt employer queries.[42] System-wide, USCIS has implemented data quality filters, such as flagging common name variations (e.g., due to cultural naming conventions or clerical errors in SSA records), and ongoing database synchronization between SSA and DHS to minimize discrepancies from outdated or inconsistent entries.[43] Despite these features, accuracy has historically been challenged by data entry errors, identity mismatches from name inconsistencies (e.g., hyphenated or foreign names not standardized in SSA files), and vulnerabilities to fraud like SSN misuse, with a 2012 USCIS evaluation identifying persistent false negatives where unauthorized workers were erroneously confirmed.[43] Error rates have declined significantly, from approximately 1.9% in 2006 to under 0.2% by 2019, driven by algorithmic refinements and expanded photo verification, though a 2021 DHS Office of Inspector General audit highlighted ongoing issues in manual photo reviews and EAD validation, leading to incorrect final nonconfirmations in some cases.[44][45] A 2010 GAO report noted that while E-Verify's confirmation accuracy for authorized workers reached 99.3%, it still authorized about 54% of unauthorized cases tested in pilots, underscoring limitations in detecting sophisticated identity theft without biometric enhancements.[46] Recent modernizations, including 2024 updates to query interfaces and error-handling prompts, aim to further reduce user-induced inaccuracies, but federal assessments indicate that full reliability requires addressing upstream data quality in source agencies.[47]System Availability and Technical Challenges
E-Verify is designed for continuous online access, enabling employers to submit verification cases at any time without geographic restrictions, provided they have internet connectivity and proper enrollment. However, the system has experienced periodic unavailability, most notably during the federal government shutdown from October 1 to October 9, 2025, when operations ceased due to lapsed appropriations and statutory authority, preventing case creation, management of tentative nonconfirmations, and other functions. Upon resumption on October 9, 2025, USCIS reported some lingering system issues, including processing delays, though core functionality was restored.[48] Technical challenges have included partial outages affecting case creation, such as those reported on October 20, 2025, which resulted in system timeouts and extended processing times for users.[49] Similar disruptions occurred earlier in March 2025, involving technical failures in verifying cases with specific documents like Form I-551 or I-766, impacting submissions from March 23 to 26.[50] These incidents highlight vulnerabilities tied to system infrastructure, high-volume usage, and dependencies on external databases like Social Security Administration records, which can amplify delays during peak periods or integration failures.[41] No public metrics on overall uptime or reliability benchmarks are routinely disclosed by USCIS, though outage periods do not count against employer compliance timelines for case submissions.[51] Employers have reported challenges with real-time access during these events, necessitating manual workarounds like documenting downtime reasons in the system upon restoration, as E-Verify requires cases within three business days of hire but excuses delays attributable to unavailability.[52] Funding dependencies exacerbate risks, as seen in the 2025 shutdown, where even partial appropriations failed to sustain full operations initially.[53] Modernization efforts aim to address scalability, but persistent issues underscore the system's susceptibility to governmental and technical interruptions rather than inherent design flaws alone.[27]Legal Mandates
Federal Requirements for Employers
Participation in E-Verify is voluntary for most private employers under federal law, with no nationwide mandate requiring its use for verifying employment eligibility.[1] Mandatory participation applies to all executive branch federal agencies, which must enroll and use the system to confirm the work authorization of every newly hired employee.[1] Federal contractors and their covered subcontractors face compulsory requirements when awarded contracts containing the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clause at 52.222-54, Employment Eligibility Verification, implemented pursuant to Executive Order 12989 (as amended by Executive Order 13465 in 2008).[54] [55] This clause obligates contractors to employ E-Verify for all individuals assigned to perform work under the contract, encompassing both new hires and existing employees directly performing substantial duties or indirectly performing duties with access to federal government information or resources.[56] [54] Enrolled federal contractors must initiate E-Verify cases no later than the third federal working day after completing the employee's Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, and adhere to all program rules outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), including prohibitions on pre-employment screening or selective verification that could imply discrimination.[56] For existing employees assigned to covered contracts, verification must occur promptly following contract award, with enrollment in E-Verify required within 30 calendar days if not previously enrolled.[56] Exemptions apply to certain employees, such as those holding active U.S. government security clearances (confidential, secret, or top secret) obtained after a federal background investigation for a covered position, or individuals hired before November 6, 2009, who have been continuously employed and verified via other means.[56] [57] Failure to comply with these federal mandates can trigger contract-specific remedies, such as termination, withholding of payments, or corrective action plans, and may lead to broader consequences including suspension, debarment from future federal contracting, or referral to the Department of Homeland Security for further enforcement.[54] [57] Federal agencies oversee compliance through contract audits and reporting, though a 2023 Government Accountability Office report noted gaps in systematic monitoring of contractor adherence.[58]State-Level Adoption and Enforcement Variations
As of 2025, E-Verify remains voluntary at the federal level for most private employers, but 23 states mandate its use for specific categories of employers, ranging from all private sector entities to public contractors only.[5] Nine states require E-Verify for all employers, including private ones: Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah.[59] Eleven states limit mandates to most public employers or contractors, such as Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.[60] The remaining states either encourage voluntary participation or impose no requirements, leading to uneven national coverage.[61] Enforcement mechanisms vary significantly by state, with penalties designed to deter non-compliance but differing in severity and application. In states with broad mandates like Alabama, non-compliant employers face business license suspension for up to 60 days on first offense, escalating to permanent revocation for repeat violations.[62] Georgia imposes civil fines up to $1,000 per violation for failing to verify, plus potential misdemeanor charges.[63] Arizona enforces through random audits and requires attestation of compliance, with penalties including fines up to $10,000 and criminal sanctions for knowing hires of unauthorized workers.[60] Some states enhance enforcement through public disclosure or contract restrictions. For instance, Florida mandates E-Verify for state contractors and publicizes lists of non-compliant employers, barring them from future bids.[64] Tennessee applies similar restrictions, prohibiting non-compliant firms from state contracts while imposing daily fines up to $500 for failure to provide compliance evidence within 45 days of a request.[65] In contrast, states with limited mandates, like those requiring only public sector use, often rely on self-certification with lighter penalties, such as administrative fees in Idaho or Indiana, reflecting less aggressive oversight of private employment.[66] These variations result in disparate compliance rates, with comprehensive mandates correlating to higher adoption but also increased administrative burdens on employers.[20]| Category | States | Key Enforcement Features |
|---|---|---|
| All Employers | Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah | License suspensions, fines up to $10,000, audits, criminal penalties[67] |
| Public/Contractors Only | Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia | Contract bans, public lists, fines $500–$1,000, self-attestation[60] |
| Voluntary/No Mandate | Remaining 27 states | No state penalties; federal guidelines apply minimally[5] |
Effectiveness and Empirical Impact
Reduction in Unauthorized Employment
Mandatory implementation of E-Verify has demonstrated reductions in unauthorized employment, particularly in states with universal requirements for all employers. In Arizona, the 2007 Legal Arizona Workers Act mandated E-Verify use starting in 2008, leading to an estimated 11 percentage point drop in employment rates among likely unauthorized men by 2009, according to analysis of Current Population Survey data by economists Sarah Bohn and Magnus Lofstrom. This effect was concentrated among less-skilled workers, with the unauthorized immigrant population declining by approximately 14% overall, or about 58,000 individuals, between 2007 and 2009, partly due to reduced job opportunities shifting some into informal self-employment. Similar patterns emerged in other mandatory states. A 2012 study in the American Economic Review examined E-Verify mandates in Arizona, Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina, finding that universal mandates curtailed the employment probability of likely unauthorized immigrants by 4-8 percentage points for men and 1-2 points for women, based on regression discontinuity designs using American Community Survey data from 2000-2011. The Dallas Federal Reserve's analysis corroborated this, showing E-Verify mandates reduced average hourly earnings for likely unauthorized Mexican male immigrants while increasing labor force attachment in some sectors, indicating displacement rather than full deterrence but overall net reduction in formal unauthorized hiring.[68] Department of Homeland Security evaluations affirm the program's role in curbing unauthorized work when participation is compulsory, noting in a 2010 assessment that E-Verify identifies mismatches for about 0.7-1% of queries, prompting nonconfirmation for unauthorized cases and thereby diminishing incentives for illegal labor market entry. However, voluntary federal participation limits broader impact, with mandatory state laws showing stronger causal links to employment declines via workplace enforcement, as evidenced by a 2016 IZA Journal study linking E-Verify adoption to fewer less-educated Mexican and Central American immigrants in the prime-age workforce. These findings, drawn from peer-reviewed econometric models, underscore that enforcement intensity drives reductions, though evasion via identity fraud persists in roughly 50% of detected unauthorized cases per DHS data.[69][6]Broader Economic and Demographic Effects
Implementation of E-Verify mandates has been associated with reduced employment rates among likely unauthorized immigrants, with studies estimating declines of 3 to 5 percentage points in employment probabilities in states adopting universal requirements.[68] [70] This effect is particularly pronounced for less-educated male immigrants from Mexico and Central America, where mandates correlate with an 8 percent drop in hourly earnings.[71] Such reductions stem from heightened barriers to formal employment, prompting shifts toward informal work or out-migration, though evidence indicates mixed impacts on overall labor force participation rates.[72] For native-born workers, particularly low-skilled non-Hispanic men, E-Verify adoption links to modest employment gains, approximately 2 percentage points higher in mandating states, potentially due to diminished competition from unauthorized labor in entry-level sectors.[73] Wage effects remain inconsistent across studies; while some observe no broad elevation for natives, sector-specific analyses suggest upward pressure on low-wage jobs by curbing unauthorized supply, as evidenced in construction and service industries post-mandate.[74] However, agriculture faces exacerbated labor shortages, with mandates correlating to persistent unfilled positions and higher reliance on seasonal exemptions, underscoring uneven sectoral disruptions.[75] [76] Demographically, E-Verify laws deter unauthorized inflows, reducing the prime-age immigrant population from high-sending regions by targeting employment access, with effects intensifying one year post-implementation in states like Arizona and Georgia.[6] [77] This leads to slower growth in unauthorized resident shares, estimated at 1-2 percent annual declines in affected areas, altering local workforce compositions toward higher proportions of authorized workers.[74] Broader causal chains include reduced family migration chains, as primary earners face verification hurdles, though long-term demographic shifts depend on enforcement stringency and complementary border policies.[73] Empirical evaluations, including those from the Department of Homeland Security, confirm these patterns dilute unauthorized labor pools without proportionally increasing overall unemployment among citizens.[69]Benefits
Enhancements to Workforce Integrity
E-Verify enhances workforce integrity by enabling employers to electronically confirm the employment eligibility of new hires against federal records, thereby reducing the incidence of unauthorized workers in the labor force and promoting a legally compliant employment environment.[78] The system cross-checks employee-provided information with data from the Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security, flagging discrepancies that require resolution, which discourages the hiring of individuals lacking proper authorization. This verification process supports the foundational principle that employment opportunities should be reserved for those legally entitled to work, minimizing distortions in labor markets caused by ineligible participation.[44] Empirical evidence from states implementing mandatory E-Verify demonstrates substantial reductions in unauthorized employment. A 2016 study analyzing U.S. Census data from 1990 to 2011 found that universal E-Verify mandates decrease the population of likely unauthorized immigrants—defined as less-educated, prime-age non-citizens from Mexico and Central America—by approximately 40% among recent arrivals (1-5 years in the U.S.) and over 50% among new arrivals (within the last year).[6] In Arizona, following the 2007 Legal Arizona Workers Act that mandated E-Verify effective January 1, 2008, the unauthorized immigrant workforce declined sharply, with an exodus of foreign-born workers in low-skill sectors, as evidenced by American Community Survey data showing reduced presence of such individuals post-mandate.[7] These effects are attributed to diminished job access, which lowers the economic pull of unauthorized migration and encourages diversion to non-mandating states or repatriation.[6] By curbing unauthorized employment, E-Verify bolsters integrity for legal workers, including citizens and authorized immigrants, by alleviating downward pressure on wages and job availability in competitive sectors. Research indicates that E-Verify mandates reduce hourly earnings among likely unauthorized Mexican male immigrants by about 8%, signaling constrained labor market participation rather than outright exclusion in all cases, yet overall contributing to a more orderly allocation of employment opportunities.[71] This aligns with the system's statutory purpose under the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to deter unlawful work, fostering a workforce where eligibility is verifiable and fraud in identity documents is less viable due to database cross-referencing. Nationwide adoption could amplify these integrity gains, as partial implementation allows spillover effects to adjacent states without mandates.[6]Deterrence of Illegal Immigration and Fraud Prevention
E-Verify contributes to deterring illegal immigration by confirming employment eligibility and denying work authorization to unauthorized individuals, thereby reducing the economic incentives for unlawful entry and settlement. Empirical analyses indicate that mandatory E-Verify laws decrease the population of likely unauthorized immigrants, particularly recent arrivals from Mexico and Central America. For instance, states with universal E-Verify mandates experience nearly a 40% reduction in less-educated, prime-age non-U.S. citizen immigrants who arrived 1-5 years prior, and over a 50% drop in new arrivals within the last year.[6] In Arizona following its 2007 mandate, surveys of potential migrants at the Mexico border showed a decline in planned entries, with some unauthorized immigrants opting to leave the United States rather than relocate domestically.[6] Nationwide, E-Verify denied employment authorization to 849,914 unauthorized aliens between 2021 and 2024, including 241,983 in fiscal year 2024 alone, limiting job opportunities that sustain illegal presence.[79] The system's effectiveness in fraud prevention stems from cross-checking employee data against Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration records, which identifies mismatches indicative of counterfeit documents or stolen identities. E-Verify detects 98% of employment-related identity theft cases, enabling employers to avoid hiring individuals using fraudulent credentials.[80] Since 2007, photo-matching functionality has compared images from DHS documents like Employment Authorization Documents against USCIS databases, further thwarting evasion attempts via borrowed or fabricated identities.[79] A 2013 enhancement allows locking of Social Security numbers flagged for fraudulent use, reducing repeat attempts.[79] These mechanisms address the prevalence of identity theft among unauthorized workers, where up to 70% may rely on such tactics to secure jobs, thereby preserving the integrity of the employment verification process.[79]Criticisms and Limitations
Error Rates and False Positives
E-Verify's overall accuracy rate exceeds 99 percent for confirming work-authorized individuals, with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) data indicating that erroneous tentative non-confirmations (TNCs)—which represent false positives for eligible workers—affect approximately 0.13 percent of all queries in fiscal year 2022, totaling around 54,000 cases out of 42.5 million submissions.[81] These errors primarily stem from discrepancies in Social Security Administration (SSA) or Department of Homeland Security (DHS) databases, such as clerical mismatches in names, birth dates, or Social Security numbers, rather than flaws in the E-Verify system itself.[82] For U.S. citizens, who comprise the majority of verifications (about 92 percent in recent years), SSA-related issues account for most false positives, often resolvable through simple corrections like updating records for name changes post-marriage.[44] False positive rates have declined over time due to system improvements and database enhancements; for instance, a 2017 analysis found 0.15 percent of searches (52,280 cases) resulted in erroneous TNCs, representing 13.6 percent of all TNCs issued that year, but subsequent USCIS updates reduced this further.[83] In the most recent 12-month period available as of 2025, over 98 percent of queries received immediate confirmations of eligibility, with the remainder involving TNCs that workers resolve by contacting SSA or DHS within eight federal workdays.[84] Authorized non-citizens experience even lower error rates, often below 0.1 percent, as their immigration records are more precisely cross-checked against DHS systems.[80] While some advocacy groups, such as the American Immigration Council, have cited older evaluations showing initial inaccuracy rates up to 4.1 percent in preliminary responses (from pre-2010 data), these figures overstate persistent errors, as over 90 percent of TNCs ultimately confirm eligibility upon resolution, and modern audits validate the program's robustness.[85] Independent assessments, including those by the Bipartisan Policy Center, attribute remaining false positives to upstream data quality issues in federal records rather than E-Verify's matching algorithms, recommending continued investment in SSA data accuracy to minimize disruptions for legitimate workers.[82] Employers report that these errors rarely lead to wrongful terminations when proper procedures are followed, though they can impose short-term administrative burdens.[86]Privacy Concerns and Potential for Discrimination
E-Verify requires employers to submit personally identifiable information (PII) from employees, including names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and immigration status details, to federal databases for verification against records from the Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security.[87] This centralized collection of data raises privacy risks, as unauthorized access or breaches could lead to identity theft or misuse, despite implemented technical, operational, and physical security controls such as encryption, access restrictions, and regular audits.[88] [89] The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) maintains a Privacy Impact Assessment acknowledging these vulnerabilities, emphasizing accountability through user tracking but noting that failure to safeguard data can cause harm to individuals.[87] [90] No large-scale data breaches have been publicly reported as of 2025, but critics argue the system's scale amplifies inherent risks in government-held PII repositories.[91] Federal regulations prohibit employers from using E-Verify to discriminate based on citizenship status, national origin, or other protected characteristics, with the Department of Justice's Immigrant and Employee Rights Section actively investigating misuse, such as selective verification of non-citizens or pre-screening applicants.[92] [93] Potential for disparate impact arises from tentative nonconfirmation rates, which empirical evaluations indicate can be higher for foreign-born workers due to name mismatches, data entry errors, or discrepancies in records, though overall accuracy exceeds 99% for authorized workers.[43] [94] Studies in states with mandates, such as Arizona, show no significant increase in perceived employment discrimination among naturalized Hispanic citizens and even reduced perceptions among naturalized Mexicans, suggesting the system may alleviate biases by standardizing checks rather than exacerbating them.[95] However, isolated cases of wrongful terminations from false positives have prompted calls for better employee referral processes to resolve mismatches without undue burden.[96]- Key Protections Against Misuse: Employers must notify workers of tentative nonconfirmations and allow time for resolution; violations can result in fines up to $2,500 per instance under anti-discrimination laws.[92]
- Empirical Counterpoints: Program evaluations find E-Verify enables employers to hire legal immigrants more confidently, potentially reducing informal discrimination against accent or appearance-based suspicions.[80]