Social Security No-Match Letters Are Back!
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has just resumed issuance of Employer Correction Request Notices, commonly referred to as “Social Security NoMatch Letters.” These letters are not as benign as they seem.
The NoMatch Letters are being sent to businesses throughout the country that are identified as having a name and Social Security Number (SSN) combination submitted on wage and tax statement (Form W2) that do not match SSA records. Insurance industry executives may recall receiving these notices until the Obama administration suspended these communications.
Employers receiving NoMatch Letters in 2019 must take proper steps in addressing the request. Most importantly, employers should not assume that a NoMatch Letter is proof of an unauthorized or undocumented worker; likewise, an employer cannot use the letter alone as a basis to take any form of adverse action against an employee as that could violate state or federal law and subject an employer to legal consequences.
Upon receipt of a NoMatch Letter, an insurance industry human resource official and others responsible for personal decisions should take the following initial steps:
CHECK the reported nomatch information against its personnel records.
If the reported discrepancy cannot be resolved, INFORM the employee of the letter and ask the employee to confirm his or her name/SSN.
If the discrepancy still exists, ADVISE the employee, in writing, to contact the SSA to correct and/or update his or her SSA records and give the employee a reasonable period of time (between 3090 days) to resolve it.
SUBMIT corrections to the SSA.
If the employee does not respond or act to resolve the issue, CONTACT employment law counsel to discuss next steps and document a continued proactive response. Under the current rule, the SSA does not share that information with either the Department of Homeland Security or Immigration and Customer Enforcement.
An employer’s failure to address a NoMatch Letter and/or failure to followup with an employee and their progress towards resolving the nomatch could lead to a finding by ICE of constructive knowledge of employing unauthorized workers.
Additionally, it is worth noting during an ICE Form I9 Audit, the Notice of Inspection usually requests employer records concerning receipt of NoMatch Letters and evidence as to how the company responded to the letter(s).
The reintroduction of NoMatch Letters is a reminder for employers across the country in all industries, even white collar employers, of the need to ensure accurate records for wagereporting and Form I9. These seemingly innocuous letters, can, however, open up a wide variety of work like compliance issues with no straightforward solutions. Receipt of the Letter does not require employees to reverify or produce any specific documentation, or immediate resolutions with the SSA.
