What Employers Should Do About I-9/E-Verify Delays During Shutdown

(UNITED STATES) Employers across the country are racing to catch up on hiring compliance after the October 2025 federal shutdown stalled access to E‑Verify, the government system used to confirm work authorization. Immigration compliance officers and human resources teams said Monday they are prioritizing two tasks at once: completing hiring paperwork on schedule and backfilling E‑Verify cases for workers who started during the outage.

The Department of Homeland Security’s guidance remains clear: the employment eligibility process anchored by Form I-9 did not pause. Section 1 still had to be completed by the employee’s first day of work, and Section 2 still had to be reviewed within three business days, despite E‑Verify being offline.

What employers did during the outage

For companies that rely on digital platforms, the outage meant falling back on paper processes. Employers who use E‑Verify‑connected electronic I‑9 software reported printing forms and storing copies for later entry.

According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, firms that hired during the outage are expected to:

1. Create E‑Verify cases for those new employees as soon as the system is restored.
2. Use the original hire date shown on the I‑9 — not the date of submission.

The government has set a firm backlog deadline: employers must submit all delayed cases by Tuesday, October 14, 2025. That cut-off applies even if hiring paused mid‑shutdown and restarted after systems returned.

How to indicate a late case and why it matters

When the E‑Verify portal prompts for a reason the case was created late, officials said employers should select the option indicating the delay occurred because the system was unavailable during the shutdown.

• This designation matters for audit trails, especially for companies with larger seasonal hiring waves in early October.
• A timestamped explanation, paired with documented efforts to access E‑Verify during the outage, helps show good‑faith compliance if auditors ask why case creation happened outside the usual three‑day window.
• In practical terms, it protects employers who followed I‑9 rules but were blocked by system downtime.

Form I‑9 timing and electronic system fallback

The anchoring rules for Form I-9 did not change:

• Section 1: Must be completed by the first day of paid work.
• Section 2: Must be reviewed within three business days of the start date.
• E‑Verify case: When available, must be created within the backlog window using the original hire date.

Companies that used E‑Verify+ or other electronic I‑9 systems that were unavailable were instructed to complete a paper I‑9 and retain it for later upload. The government also stressed accuracy in data entry when E‑Verify returns: the case must reflect the I‑9’s original hire date.

Recordkeeping and documentation (what to save)

Recordkeeping now carries extra weight. Employers are advised to preserve detailed notes about every hiring step taken during the outage, including:

• Hire dates and the dates I‑9s were completed
• Notices sent to employees about delays
• Logs showing attempts to access E‑Verify while it was down
• Screenshots of error messages and any email chains

These files should be kept with standard I‑9 records, subject to usual retention rules tied to employment end dates. For small businesses without dedicated compliance staff, even simple email chains and screenshots can help demonstrate good faith.

Important: Preserve precise, timestamped documentation showing the I‑9 was completed on time and that E‑Verify was unavailable.

Handling Tentative Nonconfirmations (TNCs)

Workers who received Tentative Nonconfirmations (TNCs) during or just before the outage face a different timeline.

• Days when E‑Verify was unavailable do not count against the worker’s time to contact the Social Security Administration or DHS to start fixing a mismatch.
• Employers should revise the “call by” date and remind employees they won’t be penalized for delays caused by the shutdown.
• Federal rules bar adverse action against workers based on a TNC (a temporary mismatch, not a final decision): no suspension, reduction in hours, or termination tied to a TNC while the case remains unresolved.

Employers are advised to document each step taken and avoid guessing at status while cases sit in limbo. Clear communication scripts — for example, “your case will be created by the October 14, 2025 deadline; your time to respond starts after that” — can reduce fear and confusion, especially in high‑turnover industries.

Remote document examination and federal contractors

Some employers continued using remote document examination, a DHS‑authorized process for specific employers in good standing with E‑Verify. That option was not suspended by the shutdown, but:

• Permission applies only to employers already approved to use remote review; others must continue in‑person review.
• Federal contractors subject to the E‑Verify federal contractor rule should consult their contracting officer about deadline extensions or contract‑specific steps. Contracting officers can grant flexibility tied to the outage, but base I‑9 timing requirements still apply.

Common compliance mistakes and legal risk

In interviews, in‑house counsel and immigration lawyers said the biggest mistake after outages is backdating or changing hire dates on I‑9s to make later E‑Verify submissions appear timely.

• That practice creates larger legal exposure than a late case with proper documentation.
• Counsel recommend clean files that show:
  • The I‑9 was done on time
  • The E‑Verify case was delayed for a documented reason
  • The employer selected the system shutdown option when prompted

VisaVerge.com notes that during past outages, federal audits favored employers who kept consistent records and avoided shortcuts.

The operational rush and cross‑checking

The backlog deadline has created a rush, especially for retailers and logistics firms that hired at the start of October for pre‑holiday staffing. Payroll and HR teams are coordinating to:

• Identify every person who started during the outage
• Create E‑Verify cases before October 14, 2025
• Cross‑check start dates against I‑9 files
• Send reminders to field managers to avoid missed entries

Missing the deadline could trigger notices of noncompliance and increase the risk of fines in a later audit.

Broader implications and the need for clearer policy

The situation highlights dependence on federal systems that can go dark when funding lapses. During the October 2025 shutdown, E‑Verify was one of several services that stopped even as employers were required to onboard workers on schedule.

Business groups argue that mandatory I‑9 steps continuing while E‑Verify pauses creates confusion unless the government sets clear backlog rules. The instruction to select the shutdown reason and the grace period through mid‑October provided a workable path this time, but advocates say a permanent policy for future lapses would help both companies and workers.

Guidance for employees

For employees, the key messages are:

• A TNC is not a final result and should not cost someone their job while it’s being fixed.
• Employers must give the standardized TNC notice, update the response date to account for the outage, and let the employee contact the agency to resolve the mismatch.
• If the system was down when the TNC first appeared, the clock restarts once E‑Verify is available and the employee receives the revised notice.
• Workers should bring updated documents as instructed, but should not be pressured to provide documents outside the normal I‑9 list or face threats tied to the temporary status.

Official resources

Companies seeking to align with government rules are pointing staff to official resources to avoid rumors or misinformation. The federal government’s I‑9 guidance and form are available on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website.

• Employers can review instructions and download the current version at Form I-9, which includes explanations for Section 1 and Section 2 timing and acceptable documents.

Compliance teams are standardizing internal memos so every manager knows the October 14, 2025 cutoff and the need to select the shutdown delay reason.

Preparing for audits: tying each late case to the shutdown

As the backlog window closes, the focus will shift from catching up to cleaning up. Employers are preparing file notes that:

• Tie each late E‑Verify case to the shutdown
• Save copies of error screens
• Log the exact date and time each case was submitted

If an agency auditor later asks why a case was late, the narrative should be clear: the I‑9 was completed on time; E‑Verify was unavailable; the case was created within the allowed grace period; and the correct delay reason was selected. Precise documents supporting that narrative reduce risk.

Final checklist for employers

To stay compliant after the outage, follow this straightforward formula:

1. Finish Form I-9 steps on time (Section 1 by day one; Section 2 within three business days).
2. Create E‑Verify cases for October hires by Tuesday, October 14, 2025.
3. Document everything tied to the shutdown (logs, screenshots, notices).
4. Give workers with TNCs the extra time they are owed and update response dates.
5. Keep remote procedures only if you are authorized to use them.

Companies that follow these steps should be able to move into the holiday hiring push without carrying compliance gaps from the outage, even as many hope the next funding fight doesn’t put E‑Verify back in the dark.