Employers, watch out: ICE is coming.
That's the message in a report from the Society for Human Resource Management, which says that Immigration and Customs Enforcement is putting employers on notice that from this point on, the agency will increase Form I-9 audits, conduct more worksite raids and promote involvement in the government's voluntary compliance program.
Raids are already up, with 77 businesses in San Francisco, Sacramento and San Jose the targets last week. In January, almost 100 7-Eleven stores were hit, and numerous immigration experts have been warning employers to expect more worksite enforcement actions under the Trump administration.
Recommended For You
In 2017, ICE audited 1,360 organizations, resulting in 71 indictments and 55 convictions of business owners and managers. According to Maria del Carmen Ramos, a partner in the Tampa, Florida, office of law firm Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, the civil penalties for knowingly hiring unauthorized immigrants can range from $539 to $21,563. In the report, Ramos is quoted saying, "Repeat offenders and companies hiring a larger number of undocumented employees receive fines on the higher end of the range."
Then there are the penalties for Form I-9 paperwork violations—ranging from $216 to $2,156 per worker. "The easiest way for employers to avoid potential fines is to make sure they are complying with their I-9 obligations—before they get audited," Ramos says in the report, adding, "Employers should also consider conducting a self-audit to minimize the potential for fines."
Ramos suggests employers take several steps for an I-9 self-audit, including reviewing current policies and procedures for compliance; comparing I-9 forms with payroll records to ensure there is a completed form for each employee; making sure hard-copy I-9 forms are kept in a separate file from employees' personnel files, or maintained electronically in compliance with the law; and correcting and/or replacing the form.
"If the employer needs to correct the I-9 form, the new information should be inserted, signed and dated as of the time of the insertion," Ramos cautions in the report, and adds, "If the omission or mistake was in Section 1 of the I-9 form, the employee should also sign and date the correction. Above all, the form should not be backdated."
ICE is also pushing its ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers (IMAGE) voluntary compliance program. This allows organizations to be certified by the agency for complying with the law. ICE and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services provide education and training to employers on proper hiring procedures, fraudulent document detection and use of the E-Verify employment eligibility verification system, and employers also learn about the importance of avoiding discrimination based on immigration status or national origin during the hiring process.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
