dismissed EB-3 Case: Solar Energy

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
In Re: 12964847 
Appeal of Nebraska Service Center Decision 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Other Worker 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date: DEC. 21, 2020 
The Petitioner is a solar company that seeks to employ the Beneficiary as an electrician/foreman. It 
requests classification of the Beneficiary as a skilled worker under the third preference employment­
based immigrant visa category. Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b)(3)(A)(i), 
8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(3)(A)(i). This immigrant visa category allows a U.S. employer to sponsor a 
foreign national for lawful permanent resident status to work in a position that requires at least two 
years of education, training, or experience. 
Petitions for skilled workers must be accompanied by a valid labor certification approval from the 
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to establish that there are not sufficient U.S. workers who are able, 
willing, qualified, and available for the offered position. Section 212(a)(5) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 
§ 1182(a)(5). A labor certification expires if, within 180 days of its approval, it is not filed in support 
of a petition. 20 C.F.R. § 656.30(b)(l). 
In this case, the Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the pet1t1on because it was 
accompanied by an expired labor certification.1 The Director's decision correctly states that the denial 
may not be appealed to the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO). The AAO's appellate jurisdiction 
is based on a delegation of authority from the Secretary of Homeland Security. See Delegation 
Number 0150.l(U) (effective March 1, 2003). The delegation states that U.S. Citizenship and 
Immigration Services (USCIS) has the "[a]uthority to exercise appellate jurisdiction over the matters 
described in 8 C.F.R. § 103.l(f)(3)(iii) (as in effect on February 28, 2003)" (citation corrected). Under 
8 C.F.R. § 103.l(f)(3)(iii)(B) (as in effect on February 28, 2003), we lack appellate jurisdiction "when 
the denial of the petition is based upon lack of a certification by the Secretary of Labor." 
We do not have jurisdiction over this appeal because the petition was denied based on the lack of a 
valid labor certification. Therefore, we must reject the appeal. 
ORDER: The appeal is rejected. 
1 The Director concluded that the Petitioner did not properly file the immigrant visa petition until September 10, 2019. 
This is after the August 5, 2019 expiration date of the labor certification. Rejected petitions do not retain a filing date. 
8 C.F.R. § 103.2(a)(7)(ii) .