ASAP
Penalties for DHS Immigration-Related Violations Rise Again in 2025
As required under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 2015, the Department of Homeland Security Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), through the Federal Register, announced increases for penalties under the Immigration Reform & Control Act (IRCA), effective January 2, 2025. The higher penalties are for those cases where the penalties are assessed on February 13, 2024, and thereafter. These increases were about 1%, which is similar to the 2024 increases due to inflation.
Below are the offenses with the old and new penalties:
Type of IRCA Violation | Old Fine | New Fine |
Substantive Form I-9 violations – minimum | $281 | $288 |
Substantive Form I-9 violations – maximum | $2,789 | $2,861 |
Knowingly employing undocumented – 1st order | $698 to $5,579 | $716–$5,724 |
Knowingly employing undocumented – 2nd order | $5,579 to $13,946 | $5,724–$14,308 |
Knowingly employing undocumented – subsequent | $8,369 to $27,894 | $8,586–$28,619 |
Document Fraud (USC 1324c(a)((1)-(4)) – 1st order | $575 to $4,610 | $590–$4,730 |
Document Fraud (USC 1324c(a)((1)-(4)) –subsequent order | $4,610 to $11,524 | $4,730–$11,823 |
Document Fraud (USC 1324c(a)((5)-(6)) – 1st order | $487 to $3,887 | $500–$3,988 |
Document Fraud (USC 1324c(a)((5)-(6)) – subsequent order | $3,887 to $9,718 | $3,988-$9,970 |
Prohibition of indemnity bonds | $2,789 | $2,861 |
With an expected surge in ICE I-9 audits and ICE raids, employers should pay careful attention to their I-9 forms and conduct an internal I-9 audit to remediate, as much as possible, any I-9 errors. Such an internal I-9 audit could save an employer substantial money if audited by ICE. Employers are advised to contact their immigration or employment counsel with questions about the above.
