Alejandro Pérez is a member of Pierson Ferdinand and President of the ACLU Council of Arizona.
By 2025, United States Immigration and Customs Audits showed their teeth and entrepreneurs, in particular those who are built, health care, logistics and agriculture, are not ready for the speed and intensity of the application of the workplace. With only 72 hours of notice and real financial, operational and reputational consequences, the time to act is not when the ICE arrives. Preventive action – such as working together with a lawyer for internal audits, is essential.
As an employment lawyer and job researcher, I worked with businessmen in the industries to prepare for this exact scenario. The patterns are clear: even companies with strong intentions and dedicated human resources teams are usually in the legal and logistical rigor that these audits require.
The I-9 form The application has returned and escorted
Since the beginning of 2025, the federal agencies have increased the non -announced inspections and the directed audits, especially in industries with great forces of immigrant work. Entrepreneurs based on manual forms, obsolete forms or decentralized practices of human resources are especially vulnerable.
The fines can be steep, ranging from $ 272 to $ 2,861 per formal process violations and up to $ 28,619 per unauthorized worker if the Government finds evidence of conscious use people without proper documentation. But beyond the amount of dollars, the interruption of your business operations and the confidence of employees can be much more detrimental and much more difficult to recover.
Common errors that create risk
Most breakdown of fulfillment start with a false sense of safety. Entrepreneurs are protected because they have filled out I-9 forms. But small errors such as missing signatures, expired documents and incorrect version accumulate rapidly. In an audit, there is no margin for “close enough”.
Some companies try to solve these problems in a hurry once an audit warning comes. This approach can shoot. The repair made inappropriately or without legal supervision can be considered as an admission of liability or, worse, coverage.
Another problem: Do not verify documents related to the temporary protected state, work authorizations or probation programs. These programs have undergone significant policy changes by 2025, and entrepreneurs can allow the documentation to fall to both the employee and the company at risk.
How to build a legally defense -defended gel response plan
A strong I-9 compliance program must be proactive, not reactive. This means to build the infrastructure before your company receives the dreaded audit notice.
Start with an internal audit performed ideally under a lawyer-client privilege. Identify and correct noun errors, but do it with legal supervision to protect unwanted responsibility.
Then develop a formal ice response protocol. Appoint a point of contact, train staff oriented to the way of verifying guarantees and ensuring that leadership understand the extent and limits of the ICE authority. If the federal agents appear on the door, your response in the first ten minutes can shape the entire trajectory of the investigation.
It is also essential to communicate with your labor force in a way that is clear, culturally competent and, when appropriate, bilingual. Fear can be rapidly spread, especially among Latin, Arabic and other immigrants, even those with valid work authorization. Entrepreneurs who spend the time explaining the rights and processes in front of them will generate confidence, reduce interruption and strengthen culture.
This is more than a paperwork problem
Often, I-9 compliance is treated as a cash checking exercise. But what is really at stake is deeper: the dignity of workers, the legal security of the business and the integrity of the employer-employee relationship.
When the application of the workplace climbs, the cascading consequences, hitting morals and retention, and often undoing years of investment in diversity, equity and inclusion or strategies for participation of employees. These audits are not only a legal risk, they are a leadership test.
Act now, no later
If your organization has not reviewed your I-9 procedures during the last year or has not updated policies to reflect recent TPS changes and documentation, you are behind.
A well -directed compliance program will not completely eliminate the risk of execution. But it can drastically reduce responsibility, minimize interruption and signal to your workforce that you are committed to both law and well -being.
Don’t expect ice to appear. Fulfillment is no longer optional and in the current environment, ignorance is no longer a defense. It’s time to lead.
