ICE audits surged roughly tenfold in 2025, and 2026 guidance reclassified many once-correctable errors as immediately fineable. This estimator turns a small self-audit sample into a workforce-wide exposure projection.
Penalty figures use the published ranges from the January 2025 inflation adjustment ($288 to $2,861 per form for paperwork violations), which remain the current amounts; DHS adjusts these annually, so verify the current Federal Register figures before relying on any estimate. This tool is not legal advice and does not predict what ICE would actually assess.
Deficiency rate equals deficient forms divided by sampled forms. Applied to your full workforce, that projects total deficient I-9s, each carrying a per-form civil penalty currently ranging from $288 to $2,861 for paperwork violations. ICE itself calculates a violation percentage this way, then adjusts across five statutory factors including business size, good faith, and history.
The low scenario prices every projected deficiency at the minimum; the high scenario at the maximum. Real assessments land in between based on the five-factor analysis, and good faith, demonstrated through documented self-audits, training, and prompt correction, is the factor most within your control.
In March 2026 ICE reclassified more than ten error categories that were previously correctable technical failures as substantive violations fineable on first notice, eliminating the 10-day cure window for them. Errors that were survivable in past audits are now billable, which is exactly why the proactive self-audit this tool assumes is worth doing.
Missing forms, incomplete or unsigned sections, late Section 1 or Section 2 completion, wrong form editions, and, under the 2026 guidance, many field-level omissions that used to be curable. If you are unsure how to classify what you found, count it deficient for planning purposes.
Yes, and you should, using proper correction procedures: line through, correct, initial, and date. Never backdate. A documented good-faith correction program is both the fix and the strongest mitigation evidence if an inspection comes later.
Failure to prepare or present a form is among the most serious paperwork violations and cannot be retroactively cured by backdating. Complete a form now with current dates and attach a memo explaining the correction.
No. Knowing-hire and continuing-to-employ violations carry separate, much larger per-worker penalties ($716 to $5,724 for a first offense, escalating to $28,619 for repeat offenses) plus potential criminal exposure. Any concern in that category goes to immigration counsel, not a calculator.
Book a no-cost 30-minute consult. Bring your result, and leave with a straight read on the risk and a practical next step.