Monday, September 28, 2026
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Massachusetts
Key Takeaways
Impacted Employers: All employers with employees in Massachusetts
Effective Date: August 5, 2026
Summary: Massachusetts has enacted legislation that requires employers to notify each employee in writing within 48 hours of receiving a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Notice of Inspection (NOI) for Form I‑9 employment eligibility verification forms or other employment records. The state has released guidance and a sample notice that employers may use.
Next Steps:
Among other steps listed below, Massachusetts employers should review the guidance, sample notice, and their processes to respond to government inspections and consult legal counsel.
The Details
Except as required by federal law, within 48 hours of receiving a notice of inspection (NOI) by ICE for I-9 employment eligibility verification forms or other employment records, an employer must provide written notice to each employee of any such request. The requirement applies to all employers with employees in Massachusetts.
To assist employers in complying with the new requirement, the state has released guidance and a sample notice that employers may use or modify to notify employees of an upcoming ICE I‑9 inspection.
The guidance states that employees must receive individual written notice within 48 hours of the employer's receipt of the NOI, regardless of how the NOI was delivered (for example, by email, mail, fax, or another method).
The state also indicates that employers should provide the notice in the employee's primary language and says it will make the sample notice available in some of the most common languages spoken in Massachusetts.
Next Steps
Massachusetts employers should:
- Review the guidance and sample notice and consult legal counsel to determine what, if any, edits should be made to the template.
- Monitor the state’s website for sample notices in additional languages.
- Establish a process to immediately route ICE correspondence to HR and legal counsel.
- Train managers how to respond to government inspection notices.
- Maintain documentation showing when the ICE notice was received and when employees were notified.