§ 274a.10 - Penalties.

§ 274a.10 Penalties.

(a) Criminal penalties. Any person or entity which engages in a pattern or practice of violations of subsection (a)(1)(A) or (a)(2) of the Act shall be fined not more than $3,000 for each unauthorized alien, imprisoned for not more than six months for the entire pattern or practice, or both, notwithstanding the provisions of any other Federal law relating to fine levels.

(b) Civil penalties. A person or entity may face civil penalties for a violation of section 274A of the Act. Civil penalties may be imposed by the Service or an administrative law judge for violations under section 274A of the Act. In determining the level of the penalties that will be imposed, a finding of more than one violation in the course of a single proceeding or determination will be counted as a single offense. However, a single offense will include penalties for each unauthorized alien who is determined to have been knowingly hired or recruited or referred for a fee.

(1) A respondent found by the Service or an administrative law judge to have knowingly hired, or to have knowingly recruited or referred for a fee, an unauthorized alien for employment in the United States or to have knowingly continued to employ an unauthorized alien in the United States, shall be subject to the following order:

(i) To cease and desist from such behavior;

(ii) To pay a civil fine according to the following schedule:

(A) First offense—not less than $275 and not more than $2,200 for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the offense occurred before March 27, 2008; not less than $375 and not exceeding $3,200, for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the offense occurred occurring on or after March 27, 2008, and on or before November 2, 2015; and not less than $676 $698 and not more than $5,404 579 for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the offense occurred occurring after November 2, 2015;

(B) Second offense—not less than $2,200 and not more than $5,500 for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the second offense occurred before March 27, 2008; not less than $3,200 and not more than $6,500, for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the second offense occurred on or after March 27, 2008, and on or before November 2, 2015; and not less than $5,404 579 and not more than $13,508 946 for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the second offense occurred after November 2, 2015; or

(C) More than two offenses—not less than $3,300 and not more than $11,000 for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the third or subsequent offense occurred before March 27, 2008; not less than $4,300 and not exceeding $16,000, for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the third or subsequent offense occurred on or after March 27, 2008, and on or before November 2, 2015; and not less than $8,106 369 and not more than $27,018 894 for each unauthorized alien with respect to whom the third or subsequent offense occurred after November 2, 2015; and

(iii) To comply with the requirements of section 274a.2(b) of this part, and to take such other remedial action as is appropriate.

(2) A respondent determined by the Service (if a respondent fails to request a hearing) or by an administrative law judge, to have failed to comply with the employment verification requirements as set forth in § 274a.2(b), shall be subject to a civil penalty in an amount of not less than $100 and not more than $1,000 for each individual with respect to whom such violation occurred before September 29, 1999; not less than $110 and not more than $1,100 for each individual with respect to whom such violation occurred on or after September 29, 1999, and on or before November 2, 2015; and not less than $272 $281 and not more than $2,701 789 for each individual with respect to whom such violation occurred after November 2, 2015. In determining the amount of the penalty, consideration shall be given to:

(i) The size of the business of the employer being charged;

(ii) The good faith of the employer;

(iii) The seriousness of the violation;

(iv) Whether or not the individual was an unauthorized alien; and

(v) The history of previous violations of the employer.

(3) Where an order is issued with respect to a respondent composed of distinct, physically separate subdivisions which do their own hiring, or their own recruiting or referring for a fee for employment (without reference to the practices of, and under the control of, or common control with another subdivision) the subdivision shall be considered a separate person or entity.

(c) Enjoining pattern or practice violations. If the Attorney General has reasonable cause to believe that a person or entity is engaged in a pattern or practice of employment, recruitment or referral in violation of section 274A(a)(1)(A) or (2) of the Act, the Attorney General may bring civil action in the appropriate United States District Court requesting relief, including a permanent or temporary injunction, restraining order, or other order against the person or entity, as the Attorney General deems necessary.

[52 FR 16221, May 1, 1987, as amended at 55 FR 25935, June 25, 1990; 56 FR 41786, Aug. 23, 1991; 64 FR 47101, Aug. 30, 1999; 73 FR 10136, Feb. 26, 2008; 81 FR 43002, July 1, 2016; 82 FR 8580, Jan. 27, 2017; 83 FR 13835, Apr. 2, 2018; 84 FR 13509, Apr. 5, 2019; 85 FR 36479, June 17, 2020; 86 FR 57540, Oct. 18, 2021; 87 FR 1326, Jan. 11, 2022; 88 FR 2183, Jan. 13, 2023; 89 FR 53859, June 28, 2024]