E-Verify Further Action Notice: what it says, how to deliver it, and what to keep

The Further Action Notice is the document E-Verify generates when a case returns a Tentative Nonconfirmation (mismatch). As of November 2026, the employer must download it, review it with the employee in private, have the employee mark whether they will take action and sign and date it, give the employee a copy, and keep the signed original with the employee's Form I-9, all within 10 federal government working days after E-Verify issued the mismatch. The notice names the agency involved (DHS, SSA or both) and tells the employee exactly how to resolve the mismatch.

This page is about the notice itself: what is printed on it, which version you will get, how to deliver it to someone who is not in the office, and what goes in the file afterward. The mismatch timeline and the no-adverse-action rule are covered in E-Verify tentative nonconfirmation, and the other results in E-Verify case results explained.

What is printed on the Further Action Notice?

E-Verify publishes sample versions of the notice, including the DHS notice and the SSA notice. Each follows the same layout:

Federal government working days are Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays, as Section 3.3.2 of the manual puts it. Count them that way, not by your own company calendar.

Which version of the notice will you get?

E-Verify identifies the agency or agencies associated with the mismatch in the notice it generates, according to its employer page on mismatches. The version decides what the employee does next:

• DHS notice. The employee who takes action calls DHS, or first uploads documents through a myE-Verify account, within eight federal government working days after you refer the case. A photo mismatch from photo matching is a DHS mismatch, and E-Verify may prompt you to upload a copy of the employee's photo document when you refer it.
• SSA notice. The employee visits an SSA field office, or an SSA Card Center if they live near one, and brings the notice and original documents. One exception: if the reason reads "SSA was unable to confirm U.S. citizenship," a naturalized citizen with a naturalization certificate number or A-Number can resolve it by calling DHS, according to E-Verify's FAQ.
• Dual notice. The dual version covers a mismatch with both agencies. The employee still has only eight federal government working days after referral to call DHS and visit SSA.

Each version downloads in English by default, and in Spanish from the drop-down next to the download button. Translated versions in other languages are in View Essential Resources inside your account (Section 3.3.1).

How do you deliver the notice, step by step?

1. Download and print the notice from the case. You must download it before you can refer the case (Section 3.3.2).
2. Meet the employee in private and go through it. If the employee cannot read, Section 3.3.1 says you must read the notice to them.
3. Ask the employee to check the information at the top. If you entered something incorrectly, select the statement that the information was not correct and close the case; it closes for incorrect data, and you create a new case with the right details.
4. Let the employee decide. The MOU (Article III.A.2 and III.B.2) says only the employee may determine whether to contest. They mark a box on the English version, then sign and date it.
5. Give the employee a copy of the signed English notice, plus a translated version if they have limited English proficiency.
6. File the signed original with the employee's Form I-9.
7. Record the decision in E-Verify and click Continue. If the employee will take action, download the Referral Date Confirmation, give the original to the employee and attach a copy to the Form I-9. If not, the case receives a Final Nonconfirmation and you close it.

If the employee gives you no decision by the end of the 10th federal government working day, Section 3.3.2 tells you to record that the employee will not take action, then close the case under "Other," typing "Administrative / Employee Unavailable" or "Employee chose not to make a decision." The next steps are in how to close an E-Verify case and E-Verify Final Nonconfirmation.

How is the notice different from the Referral Date Confirmation?

After a referral, Sections 3.3.2 and 3.3.3 say DHS or SSA has 10 federal government working days to update the case, so check it periodically. After E-Verify was unavailable in early October 2025, its October 9, 2025 notice on resuming operations told employers to give referred employees a revised date, preferably by reprinting the Referral Date Confirmation with the Print Confirmation button in the case. The same button reprints a lost copy.

Can you send the notice to a remote employee?

Yes. Section 3.3.1 says you may provide the notice in person, by fax, email, or overnight or next-day delivery service, as long as you take proper precautions to protect the employee's information. A workable routine for remote staff:

• Arrange a private video or phone call first, so the employee hears the explanation rather than finding the notice in an inbox.
• Send the notice through an encrypted or access-controlled channel, not a shared mailbox or a team chat.
• Ask the employee to return the signed and dated page the same way, and set a reminder well before the 10th working day.
• Send the Referral Date Confirmation the same way once you refer the case.

The rest of the remote process, from documents to posters, is in E-Verify for remote employees.

If the employee gave an email address on Form I-9, you must enter it in E-Verify, and E-Verify may email the employee about the case (Section 2.2). Section 3.3.1 still requires you to notify the employee and hand over the notice yourself. E-Verify+, the newer combined Form I-9 and E-Verify service, is different: e-verify.gov's E-Verify+ page says it delivers Further Action Notices directly to employees through their E-Verify+ account, and its FAQ says the system notifies the employee of a mismatch directly.

What goes in the Form I-9 file?

• The original Further Action Notice, signed and dated by the employee.
• A copy of the Referral Date Confirmation, if the case was referred.
• The E-Verify case number recorded on the Form I-9, or the printed case details page attached to it.

Section 7.4 of the manual says E-Verify case information and documentation must be kept for the same length of time as the employee's Form I-9. See I-9 retention rules for that formula.

What if the information on the notice is wrong?

• Spotted before you refer the case: close it as incorrect data and create a new case with the correct information, as e-verify.gov's mismatch page directs.
• Spotted after the Referral Date Confirmation was issued: E-Verify's FAQ says the employee must call DHS at 888-897-7781.
• SSA asks for a correction: the case may show "Review and Update Employee Data." Review Form I-9 with the employee and update the case, which Section 3.3.4 says you may do only once.

What may you not do with the notice?

• Do not choose for the employee or pressure them toward "I will not take action."
• Do not ask for proof from SSA. The MOU (Article III.A.6) bars asking the employee for a printout from SSA's records, and E-Verify's FAQ says SSA updates the case automatically.
• Do not ask the employee to run Self Check to prove they can work; Section 1.1 of the manual says employers may not ask for that. See E-Verify Self Check.
• Do not discuss the notice in front of others or share it beyond the people who handle E-Verify. The MOU (Article II.A.15) limits E-Verify information to employees authorized to carry out the employer's duties.
• Do not act on it. No termination, suspension, reduced hours, delayed training or withheld pay while the case is pending (MOU Article II.A.13 and Section 3.3 of the manual).

Who handles the notice when an agent or staffing agency runs E-Verify?

When an employer agent creates the cases, the Supplemental Guide for E-Verify Employer Agents, Section 3.1.1 splits the work: the agent prints the notice and sends it to the client; the client reviews it privately with the employee, keeps the signed original with the Form I-9 and sends the agent a signed copy; the agent refers the case and passes the Referral Date Confirmation back. Agree in writing how fast each handoff happens, because the 10-day clock does not stop between companies. See E-Verify employer agents. For temps on a staffing agency's payroll, the agency is the employer and delivers the notice itself; see E-Verify for staffing agencies.

A checklist for the meeting

• Notice downloaded in English, plus Spanish or another translation if needed.
• Private room or call booked within a few days of the mismatch date.
• Employee checked the information at the top; errors handled by closing and re-creating the case.
• Employee marked their own decision and signed and dated the English version.
• Copy given to the employee; signed original filed with the Form I-9.
• Decision entered in E-Verify before the 10th federal government working day.
• Referral Date Confirmation given to the employee and a copy filed, if referred.
• Case checked until it updates; no change to the employee's job in the meantime.