No Match Letters: What do I do?

One of the questions we have recently been getting in the immigration section at Guest & Gray is “What is a No Match Letter?” Let’s take a look at what you should do in that situation, and what your rights are.

Here at Guest and Gray, we have heard many reports of employers getting no match letters and this is not surprising. No match letters are sent out by the Social Security Administration. The administration sends the letter to the employer of which the said employee works for. Usually consists of the following: “Dear employer, It has been reported that you have 10 employee names and Social Security numbers (SSN) on the wage and tax settlements (Forms W-2) for tax year 2018 that do not match our records.”

These are letters that used to be sent out by the Social Security Administration, before 2012, mostly during the Bush Administration. These letters, were used to inform employers that they could face criminal penalties, if they did not remedy the discrepancies between the Social Security numbers provided for their employees, in the Social Security databases and whose those numbers belonged to.

In 2012, the administration stopped sending the letters because they were continually getting sued. Now the letters have started again, during the Trump Administration. It has been reported that over 500,000 letters have been sent out since Trump took office. The only difference between the current letters and the ones in 2012, is the present letters do not threaten criminal penalties agains the employer. The letter now invites the employer to log on to an online portal, to view the claimed “no matches,” the letter has provided.

As an employer, you have several options when receiving a no match letter and our experienced immigration and business attorneys at Guest and Gray can walk you through these options.

It is important that, you understand you have choices, but also obligations to your employees. Many questions you make ask are, What should I tell my employees? What should I do if my employees are working illegally? Is there a chance that the government has made a mistake? What should the employers do to avoid wrongful termination?

All of these are valid and appropriate questions to ask, and the attorneys at Guest and Gray would be more than happy to assist you in all this and related matters.

It is important to keep in mind that you can never make assumptions based solely on the Social Security Administration letter. Employers have to provide employees with an opportunity to respond and give them a chance to rectify any incorrect or correct information. We, here at Guest and Gray with our experienced immigration and business attorneys can walk you through the appropriate way to handle the situation. What to ask and how Human Resources should handle the situation. How Human Resources, should approach the employee regarding the letter and what exact questions to ask.

Another question you might ask, What should I do if employees don’t have legal work authorization? If they don’t have legal work authorization and you are aware, than it is possible that you could face criminal , instead of civil charges in the case of I-9 Audit. Because of this possibility, It is important to notify an attorney as soon as possible if you learn that this is the case. If this becomes an issue, we recommend that you contact us immediately at Guest and Gray so we can assist you with this matter and make sure you are protected.

If, you are interested in seeing if the valued members of your staff are eligible for any visas or status adjustments we offer on-site consultations at a reduced fee for 3 or more employees. Please contact us today, so we can assist in helping make sure you and your employees are taken care of.