Department of Homeland Security's No-Match Program Shifts Burden to Nation's Employers

800,000 Employers Expected to Receive Notices for SSN & I-9
Discrepancies
AUSTIN, Texas--(Business Wire)--
Today's announcement by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
calls for the nation's employers to police for undocumented workers
and moves employers to the forefront of the debate on illegal
immigration. Under the new regulations, DHS will use the Social
Security Administration's (SSA) No-Match Letter program to drive
employers to resolve social security number (SSN) and W-2
discrepancies or face criminal and civil proceedings.

"It's estimated that 800,000 employers could receive notices;
representing a fundamental shift in how businesses are forced to
handle the issue of illegal workers. The No-Match program is an
enormous step in increased workplace raids looking for undocumented
workers," said Charles Foster, founder, Tindall & Foster, P.C. "In
late February, the Department of Justice announced significantly
higher civil fines for immigration violations."

The No-Match program was started by the SSA in 1979 as a way to
check earnings records by comparing employees against the SSNs they
filed. Since 1994, employers have received No-Match Letters when a
SSN and W-2 discrepancy was found, including typographical errors,
unreported name changes, inaccurate or incomplete employer records or
misuse of a SSN. At that point, the employer was obligated to inform
the employee of the discrepancy and it was the worker's responsibility
to clear the issue.

Under the new regulations, when employers receive No-Match
Letters, they are on notice that the employee in question may not be
authorized to work in the U.S. and required to resolve the
discrepancy. In the case of a clerical error, the employer must work
with the SSA to fix the error. If the discrepancy cannot be resolved,
employers face criminal and civil proceedings if the employee
continues to work on behalf of the employer.

In August of 2007, DHS announced the use of the SSA's No-Match
Letter program as a way to screen for illegal workers. In October,
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued a
procedural injunction for not offering a public comment period for the
program. The following month, the court stayed proceedings in order to
allow DHS to correct and reissue the regulation. Today's announcement
includes a 30-day period for public comment.

Additional Resources

Currently, employers can use the E-Verify database to check the
legal status of workers. Government officials estimate that seven
percent of E-Verify queries are found to be "non-confirmed."

Approximately 12 million illegal immigrants are living in the U.S.
and 400,000 to 700,000 enter each year. Three-quarters are believed to
be working with false SSNs.

February 22 - The Department of Justice announced higher civil
fines against employers for immigration violations. Effective March
27, the maximum penalty for first-time violations increases to $3,200
from $2,200 and the maximum penalty for multiple violations increases
to $16,000 from $11,000.

About Tindall & Foster

A national leader in family law and emigration, immigration and
related international law solutions since 1973, Tindall & Foster has
built a reputation on experience, sound judgment and confidence.
Headquartered in Houston, with a branch in Austin, the firm is
committed to providing high-quality legal services to individuals and
businesses in a professional and ethical manner.

Proactively meeting the challenges of U.S. immigration law and
policy, Tindall & Foster is considered one of the nation's foremost
emigration- and immigration-related litigation and strategy firms.
Tindall & Foster works with leading regional and Fortune 1,000
companies to minimize the likelihood and impact of immigration raids.
More information can be found at www.TindallFoster.com.

anthonyBarnum Public Relations
Mike Barone, 713-203-2483
Mike@anthonyBarnum.com

Copyright Business Wire 2008