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A TNC, or Tentative Nonconfirmation, means the information entered in E-Verify didn't match what the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has on file. E-Verify now calls it a mismatch. It does not mean the employee can't work for you, and until the case reaches a final result, nothing about their job should change.
Most of the TNC questions that reach our support team don't start with the employee. They start with a forwarded reminder email about mismatch cases requiring action, or Final Nonconfirmation cases that are still open, and a one-line note from HR asking what they're supposed to do. The answer is almost always the same three things: have the private conversation, refer the case if the employee wants to fix it, and close every case when it ends.
SSA mismatches are the common ones, and the cause is usually boring. A married or divorced name that never got reported to Social Security. Two digits of the SSN transposed at entry. First and last names typed into the wrong boxes, or the wrong citizenship status picked in E-Verify. When the name is the problem, our I-9 name change guide covers what to update on the form once the employee fixes it with SSA.
DHS mismatches tend to trace back to immigration numbers: the 13-character document number from the back of a green card entered where the A-Number belongs (it's the USCIS# on the front), an I-94 or passport number keyed wrong, a record DHS hasn't updated after a status change, or a photo that didn't match. A dual mismatch means both agencies flagged the case. Long names cause a different problem. E-Verify won't accept a name field over 25 characters even though the Form I-9 has no limit, and our guide to I-9 name fields and E-Verify covers how to handle that without touching the form.
If you're new to E-Verify, this is the part worth memorizing. The tutorial's knowledge check asks about these results a lot, and Needs More Time, Mismatch, and Case in Continuance are the three people act on too early.
| Case result | What it means | What the employer does |
|---|---|---|
| Employment Authorized | The information matched SSA and/or DHS records. | Nothing further. E-Verify closes these cases automatically. Record the case number on the Form I-9 or file the case details with it. |
| E-Verify Needs More Time | DHS couldn't verify the data right away and referred the case for more checking on its own. | Nothing yet. DHS answers most within 24 hours; some take up to three federal government working days. |
| Tentative Nonconfirmation (Mismatch) | The information didn't match SSA and/or DHS records. | Tell the employee in private and complete the referral within 10 federal government working days (steps below). |
| Case in Continuance (SSA or DHS) | The employee visited SSA or called DHS, and the agency needs more than 10 federal government working days. | Keep waiting. Contact E-Verify if it's still in continuance after 60 federal government working days. |
| Close Case and Resubmit | The expiration date entered for a U.S. passport, passport card, or driver's license was wrong, so the case can't continue. | Close it and create a new case with the correct date. |
| Final Nonconfirmation (SSA or DHS) | E-Verify couldn't confirm work authorization after the employee visited SSA or called DHS. | Close the case. You may terminate with no civil or criminal liability under the E-Verify MOU, but you don't have to. |
| DHS No Show | The employee didn't contact DHS within eight federal government working days after referral. | It counts as a Final Nonconfirmation. Close the case. |
The deadlines below come from the E-Verify User Manual and the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) every participating employer signs. "Working days" means federal government working days, Monday through Friday minus federal holidays.
E-Verify generates it with the mismatch result. It comes in English and Spanish, with other translations available in E-Verify if the employee needs one. Keep the printed copy safe. Replacing a lost notice after the fact is a headache nobody needs.
Sit down with the employee away from coworkers, go through the notice, and ask them to confirm the information at the top is right. If they can't read it, read it to them. They decide whether they want to take action, then sign and date the English version. Give them a copy and attach the signed original to their Form I-9. You can also deliver the notice by fax, email, or overnight delivery if you protect their information. Either way, the notification and referral need to happen within 10 working days of the mismatch.
If the employee wants to fix it, refer the case in E-Verify and hand them the Referral Date Confirmation. From there they have eight working days to start. An SSA mismatch means an in-person visit to a Social Security field office with the Further Action Notice and their original documents; a phone call doesn't count. A DHS mismatch means a phone call to DHS. A dual mismatch means both. An SSA citizenship mismatch can go either way. If the mismatch came from a state DMV record and DHS can't sort it out, the employee may need to contact the agency that issued the license.
If the employee decides not to take action, you can close the case and terminate employment without civil or criminal liability under Article II, Section A, paragraph 13 of the MOU. If they don't give you a decision by the 10th working day, close the case.
SSA or DHS has 10 working days to update the case. Check E-Verify every few days. If the result turns to Case in Continuance, keep waiting. The employee keeps working normally the entire time.
A Final Nonconfirmation or DHS No Show ends the case. Close it in E-Verify, then decide whether the employee stays. You're allowed to terminate at that point, and you're allowed to keep them. What you can't do is leave the case sitting open. Every case in E-Verify has to be closed, and open Final Nonconfirmations are exactly the kind of loose end that turns into one of those reminder emails.
Our compliance team has walked employers through TNC cases for 28 years. Whether it's your first mismatch or a stack of cases in continuance, schedule a free compliance call and we'll go through the next step with you.
This is where the real exposure is. From the moment a mismatch comes back until the case ends, you can't fire, suspend, cut hours, withhold pay, delay training, or pull someone off assignments because of it. The same goes for Needs More Time and Case in Continuance.
"The most common mistake I see is employers panicking and pulling someone off the schedule the day they get a mismatch," says Patricia Duarte, Director of Compliance at i9 Intelligence. "That's exactly what you cannot do. The employee has every right to keep working while the mismatch is being resolved, and if you treat them differently because of it, you're the one facing penalties."
The document rules still apply too. Asking for different or extra documents, rejecting documents that reasonably appear genuine, or treating someone differently because of their accent, name, or citizenship status can become a discrimination charge with the DOJ Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (employer hotline 1-800-255-8155, employee hotline 1-800-255-7688).
Photo matching only happens when the employee presents a U.S. passport, U.S. passport card, Permanent Resident Card, or Employment Authorization Document. E-Verify shows you a photo and you compare it to the document in hand. It should be the same picture, same clothes and same pose. If it isn't, choose the no-match option, upload a photo of the document when E-Verify asks, and the case becomes a DHS mismatch that follows the steps above. Never steer an employee toward one of those four documents to make photo matching happen. The employee chooses what to present.
Government systems break too. On May 19, 2025, E-Verify posted an alert about SSA mismatch cases referred between April 9 and May 5, 2025. A technical problem gave some of them a Final Nonconfirmation even after the employee had gone to an SSA office. E-Verify told employers to create a new case for anyone affected and not to terminate anyone based on that result. If a result doesn't make sense, check the What's New page on e-verify.gov or call the E-Verify Contact Center at 888-464-4218 before you act on it.
Employers face penalties from multiple agencies for E-Verify and I-9 violations:
Anti-discrimination violations (DOJ/IER):
E-Verify MOU violations:
I-9 verification violations:
Pattern or practice violations can trigger criminal penalties including fines and imprisonment.
For federal contractors and subcontractors, E-Verify violations can result in debarment — losing the ability to bid on or hold government contracts.
Tentative Nonconfirmation. The information entered didn't match SSA or DHS records, and the employee gets a chance to fix it before anything is final. E-Verify's screens now call it a mismatch.
No. It means the data didn't line up. An unreported name change or a typo is far more likely than a work authorization problem.
DHS is still checking and sent the case for more review on its own. You and the employee don't need to do anything, and most of these come back within a day.
Not because of the TNC. Termination only becomes an option after a Final Nonconfirmation, a DHS No Show, or the employee telling you they won't take action. Until then, their job stays exactly as it was.
On the normal path, the outer limit is about 18 working days after referral: eight for the employee to reach SSA or DHS, then 10 for the agency to respond. A complicated record can sit in Case in Continuance longer, and if it passes 60 working days, call E-Verify.
It was a May 2025 alert about SSA mismatch cases referred April 9 through May 5, 2025, some of which wrongly got a Final Nonconfirmation after the employee had visited SSA. The fix was to create a new case and take no adverse action on the bad result.
Our compliance team has 28 years of experience handling E-Verify issues for employers across every industry. Whether you're dealing with your first TNC or managing E-Verify across hundreds of locations, we can help.