Act Now, Don’t Panic Later. Dress Warmly for ICE.

Seyfarth Synopsis: The message for 2025 is clear: compliance is not optional, and preparation is essential. Review your policies, automate, and innovate where possible, train your staff, develop job aids, and strengthen your compliance program. And remember—while there’s no need to panic, ICE won’t send you a calendar reminder before their visit.

Key Focus Areas in 2025

1. Notice of Inspection:
   • Notices of Inspection (NOIs) will likely remain a cornerstone of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) strategy, requiring employers to submit Forms I-9 within three business days. Along with the NOI, ICE will generally issue an administrative subpoena, requesting business documentation, including, but not limited to, a copy of payroll, a list of current employees, Articles of Incorporation, a business license,  information on SSA no matches, and staffing company and independent contractor information. Additional employment verification materials will likely be requested from Employers who use electronic I-9 systems to ensure their system meets the regulatory requirements.
   • ICE’s centralized Employer Compliance Inspection Center, initially conceived in 2018, is still poised to handle audits with the aid of advanced document analysis tools. It is also possible that Special Agents will be reintegrated into the NOI process, which was largely delegated to auditors. We can expect more visits to worksites, interviews with employees, and undercover investigations.
   • Increased use of ‘Blackies Warrants’,  a type of civil search warrant allowing immigration agents to enforce laws and search for individuals in private premises to enforce immigration laws, and specifically to look for people.
   • Increased visits to worksites to detain individuals.
   • Renewed cooperation between Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that had decreased during the Biden administration.
2. Worksite Enforcement Actions:
   • These disruptive operations require planning but will resume in time, targeting industries that rely heavily on unskilled and semi-skilled labor forces, including agriculture, food processing, manufacturing, hospitality, staffing, and construction. Based on the resources involved and necessary planning we do not expect a large number of these actions but enough to disrupt.
3. Electronic I-9 Systems Under Scrutiny:
   • Compliance of electronic I-9 systems with DHS regulations will come under sharper focus, with ICE examining system flaws such as improper electronic signatures and non-compliant audit trails.
4. Heightened Risks for Federal Contractors:
   • Federal contractors may face aggressive enforcement, with debarment as a penalty for knowingly employing unauthorized workers.
5. Increased focus on Staffing Agencies:
   • ICE has always been interested in end clients and staffing agencies, but we expect more focus on joint employer liability and review of identity issues associated with the industry.
6. Unknowns:
   • Further actions could arise depending on how the administration handles DACA, TPS, and the CHNV parole program. To prepare, employers should monitor these programs carefully as litigation will surely ensue.

Proactive Steps to Prepare

Generally, employers should collaborate with counsel to develop processes and procedures in the event of a government visit. Staff on the ground should be provided with information from “Know Your Rights” guidance,  and how to manage government visits.  Clear and actionable guidance should be developed, and additional training should be provided if necessary. Seyfarth’s 2017 blog Quick Guidance: What To Do In The Event of a Visit By The DHS-ICE Agents should be dusted off and reviewed. Companies should then craft a policy based on the particular needs of their organization. For businesses that sponsor foreign nationals, there should be guard rails around site visits. Read our latest blog on H-1B compliance and site visits here.

1. Conduct I-9 Audits and Remediation.

• Engage experienced immigration compliance counsel to perform internal audits and rectify errors promptly.
• Consider initial inventory audits to identify missing I-9s, paper vs. electronic records (if applicable), and missing reverifications. In some scenarios, companies might find that their original paper I-9s were scanned improperly and thus do not meet the necessary electronic I-9 regulations.
• Address lingering gaps from the COVID-19 era, such as incomplete remote-work documentation and misuse of the original virtual process.

2. Review and Strengthen Policies

• Draft baseline policies as well as I-9 workflows for complex document completions (auto extension, receipts, TPS, H-1B, and other nonimmigrant extensions).
• Develop robust employment verification policies that integrate state and federal contract E-Verify requirements and address items checked during a USCIS Compliance Desk review.
• Establish protocols for addressing SSA number mismatches, E-Verify TNCs, reverifications, and unauthorized employment concerns.
• Develop escalation SOPs for fraudulent documents or unknown document concerns.

3. Enhance Training

• Train employees on their rights and responsibilities during an ICE raid, such as keeping employees safe, avoiding unauthorized document destruction, memorializing the action, and answering questions without counsel present.
• While subject matter training is not always possible, nor does it always solve issues, baseline training is expected for those who participate in the E-Verify process.
• Identify common errors and conduct targeted training on complex or confusing I-9 completion and E-Verify processes.
• Set realistic goals for training based on the audience.
• Utilize job aids and illustrations.
• Review the complimentary government resources.
• Reinforce the importance of avoiding discrimination while adhering to federal and state laws.
• Add a fraudulent document module to training offerings.

4. Plan for the Unthinkable: Worksite Enforcement Actions

• Certain employers should prepare for sudden site visits that may involve arrests, detentions, and seizures of computers and records.
• All employers should have a plan that describes how to manage a visit from the government and folks on the ground—managers and HR staff—should be briefed on how to handle different scenarios, from routine I-9 inspections to unexpected site visits, i.e., HSI serving a Notice of Inspection for Forms I-9 is quite different than an early morning action with criminal search warrants and a convoy of agencies arriving.
  • The plan should include designating a legal and compliance team to manage ICE interactions.
• This plan should be separate from policies on government visits from other enforcement agencies including DOL, OSHA, USCIS-FDNS, etc.

5. Evaluate Electronic I-9 Systems.

• This may come as a surprise, but not all systems are compliant, even some name-brand offerings.
  • Further, even if the offering is compliant, without the right oversight, companies can “configure themselves out of compliance.”
• Ensure that electronic systems meet DHS regulatory requirements.
  • This includes security, electronic signatures, indexing, and audit trails.
• Validate the transfer and retention of records from legacy systems. Yes, you can change systems but you cannot merely print out your I-9s from one electronic system and call it a day.
• Before digitizing paper I-9s into an electronic system, ensure all regulatory requirements are met.
• Consult with competent counsel to understand your obligations. ICE will look only to the company for violations, not the vendor.

6. Monitor Third-Party Labor and Service Providers

• Where applicable, dust off your agreements with staffing companies, PEOs, vendors, etc.
  • Review the language and ensure reasonable reps and warranties are in place.
• Vet vendors and contractors for compliance standards, as HSI investigations into third parties can impact client businesses.
• Staffing companies themselves should consider and adopt best practices in light of the era ahead of us.

Looking Ahead: Why Act Now?

The renewed emphasis on immigration enforcement under the second Trump administration leaves no room for complacency. Employers must act decisively to safeguard their operations against potential audits, fines, and disruptions. The message is clear: prioritize compliance now to minimize risks later. With smart preparation, businesses can not only weather the enforcement storm but position themselves for success in a changing regulatory environment.