To report a company hiring illegal immigrants, file a tip with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, either through the online tip form at ice.gov or by calling 1-866-347-2423. The line runs 24 hours a day.1U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE Tip Line If the company is also underpaying workers or paying them off the books, you can add a parallel report to the Department of Labor or the IRS. Every federal channel lets you stay anonymous.
Federal law makes it illegal for an employer to hire, or continue employing, anyone who lacks work authorization in the United States.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1324a – Unlawful Employment of Aliens Your tip is what starts an investigation, so the more specific it is, the more likely it moves.
Where to File the Report
ICE: The Primary Channel
The ICE online tip form is the main route. When it asks for a violation category, choose “Employment/Exploitation of Unlawful Workers” so the tip is routed to the right investigative unit.3U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE Tip Form Use the narrative field to lay out what you have seen. When you submit, the system gives you a reference number. Save it. That number is the only record connecting you to the tip and the only way to follow up later. ICE automatically sends the report to the field office covering the area where the business operates.
If your situation is easier to explain in conversation, call the ICE Tip Line at 1-866-347-2423. A phone tip goes into the same tracking system and carries the same investigative weight as an online one.1U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE Tip Line
Department of Labor for Wage Violations
If the company is paying below minimum wage, skipping overtime, or keeping fake payroll records, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division is the right agency alongside ICE. WHD enforces federal wage and hour laws for every worker in the country regardless of immigration status.4U.S. Department of Labor. Worker Rights Call 1-866-487-9243 or walk into a regional office. Investigators pull payroll records and interview workers privately. Where they find unpaid wages, WHD pursues back pay and can seek additional damages.
IRS for Off-the-Books Payroll
Cash-only pay and unreported wages are tax fraud on top of the immigration violation. Report it using Form 3949-A, Information Referral.5Internal Revenue Service. Report Tax Fraud, a Scam or Law Violation The form asks for the business name, address, EIN if you have one, the type of violation, and a written description. Mail it to the IRS at PO Box 3801, Ogden, UT 84409.6Internal Revenue Service. Form 3949-A Information Referral You do not have to give your name.
If your information leads to a large collection of unpaid taxes, you may qualify for a whistleblower award by separately filing Form 211. That path requires your identity and a signature under penalty of perjury; anonymous tips are not eligible.5Internal Revenue Service. Report Tax Fraud, a Scam or Law Violation
What to Gather Before You File
A vague tip goes nowhere. Before you contact any agency, collect what you can:
- The company’s exact legal name and the physical address of the worksite. State business filings usually carry the legal name.
- Names of owners, managers, or supervisors who handle hiring or oversee the workers in question.
- An estimate of how many workers you believe are unauthorized, and the shifts they work.
- How the company pays: cash, separate off-the-books payroll, no tax withholding.
- Any indication that workers are using fraudulent Social Security numbers, forged IDs, or someone else’s documents. Social Security cards are among the documents most often altered for employment.7E-Verify. Fraudulent Documents Awareness
- Dates and times you observed the activity, and how long you think it has been happening.
- The name and contact details of any staffing agency or labor broker involved.
The last item matters more than it seems. When hiring runs through a broker, that detail helps investigators map the full scope and separate deliberate exploitation from paperwork errors.
Staying Anonymous and Avoiding Retaliation
You can file anonymously on every federal channel. The tradeoff is real: if the agency has no way to reach you, it cannot come back for clarification, which can slow or stall a case. A confidential report gives the agency your identity but obligates it to keep your name out of public view and away from the employer. The Privacy Act of 1974 generally bars federal agencies from sharing your personal information without your written consent, with narrow exceptions such as a court order.8U.S. Department of Justice. Overview of the Privacy Act 2020 Edition – Conditions of Disclosure to Third Parties
If you work for the company you are reporting, federal law shields you from retaliation. The Fair Labor Standards Act prohibits an employer from firing, demoting, or otherwise punishing any worker who files a wage complaint or cooperates with a Labor Department investigation. It covers all employees regardless of immigration status, and complaints made orally count. Remedies include reinstatement, back pay, and additional damages.9U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet 77A Prohibiting Retaliation Under the Fair Labor Standards Act
The Immigration and Nationality Act separately bars employers from intimidating, threatening, or retaliating against anyone who files a charge or takes part in an investigation into immigration-related employment discrimination.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1324b – Unfair Immigration-Related Employment Practices If you are retaliated against, you can file a charge with the Department of Justice’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section by calling the Worker Hotline at 1-800-255-7688.11U.S. Department of Justice. Immigrant and Employee Rights Section Retaliation can look like termination, but it can also mean cut hours, demotion, intimidation, or an employer trying to report a worker to immigration authorities.
What the Employer Faces
Every employer must verify each new hire’s identity and work eligibility on Form I-9 within three business days of the start date.12U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Completing Section 2 Employer Review and Attestation A company that skips that duty, or knowingly hires unauthorized workers, faces civil fines and possible criminal charges.
Civil penalties are set per unauthorized worker and climb with repeat violations. As of the January 2025 inflation adjustment, they run from $716 to $5,724 for a first offense, $5,724 to $14,308 for a second, and $8,586 to $28,619 for a third or later offense.13Federal Register. Civil Monetary Penalty Adjustments for Inflation Separate fines apply for I-9 paperwork failures.
When investigators find a pattern of knowingly hiring unauthorized workers, the case can turn criminal. The penalty is a fine of up to $3,000 per unauthorized worker and up to six months of imprisonment.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1324a – Unlawful Employment of Aliens
A Report Has to Be Based on What You Know
A good-faith report carries no legal risk, even if the investigation clears the company. Knowingly submitting false information to a federal agency is a different matter: under federal law, a materially false statement to the government can bring up to five years in prison, and that rule applies to online forms, phone tips, and in-person interviews alike.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1001 – Statements or Entries Generally Report what you have seen or have credible reason to believe. Do not report someone based on their appearance, accent, or national origin.