Previously-Approved Labor Certifications Expire Jan 12, 2008
Posted Nov 02, 2007 | updated Jan 09, 2008
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Reminder Regarding Certain I-140 Petitions
I-140s (Immigrant Petition for an Alien Worker) based on labor certifications approved before July 16, 2007, must be received by the USCIS by Friday, January 11, 2008. If no I-140 is filed in such cases, the approved labor certification will expire on Saturday, January 12, 2008.  Posted Jan 09, 2008
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Editor's Note  The 180th day, as explained below, is Jan 12, 2008. These I-140 petitions, for which the employer is using a previously-approved labor certification for the same employee mentioned on the Labor Certification, will only be accepted as long as the I-140 petition is filed (and received) at the USCIS on or before Friday, Jan 11, 2008. This was confirmed in a USCIS announcement on Jan 8, 2008.  
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Labor certification approvals now have an expiration date, as regular MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers are aware. This date is 180 days from the approval of the labor certification. This means that an I-140 Employer Petition must be filed prior to the expiration of the labor certification (LC) in order for it to remain valid. This is the result of a regulation issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) that became effective July 16, 2007, which was reported in our May 16, 2007 article, LC Substitution Elimination Reg Effective July 16, 2007. As stated in that article, a labor certification approved before the regulation went into effect will expire 180 days after July 16th (the implementation date of the regulation), unless an I-140 petition has been filed in the case.
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We at the Murthy Law Firm are issuing this reminder, since January 12, 2008 is the 180th day after the regulation became effective. Pre-July 16, 2007 labor certifications, none of which bears an expiration date, will expire unless filed with the USCIS in support of an I-140 petition on or before January 12, 2008.
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LC Remains Valid if the I-140 Petition is Filed before the 180 Days
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The regulation requires that an I-140 related to a labor certification be filed before the expiration of the labor certification. There is no need for the I-140 petition to be approved before the expiration date. Filing alone preserves the case. Additionally, in the event that the I-140 petition is denied, it is possible to appeal and/or re-file the I-140 petition, even after the labor certification expiration date. All that is needed is an initial I-140 petition filing prior to the expiration date.
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On a related matter, since labor substitutions became void after July 16, 2007, a previously-approved labor certification for another individual could not be used after July 16, 2007 to substitute a different person. If, however, an individual was substituted into a pending labor certification and that now-approved labor certification bears the name of the substituted party, the approved labor certification can be used until January 12, 2008 at the latest.
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H1B Extensions

The expiration of pre-July 16, 2007 labor certifications on January 12, 2008 will impact H1B extension eligibility for some. Once a labor certification has expired, it is unlikely that an H1B extension beyond the six-year limitation will be granted, based on that labor certification. Thus, persons relying upon older labor certification approvals that have not and will not move forward to the I-140 stage should make alternative plans regarding their H1B extensions.
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Conclusion
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Since many are anxious to move forward with their "green card" cases, there should be few who miss this deadline. There are always cases, however, that become delayed due to either inaction on someone's part or difficulty in obtaining the required evidence. For both the employers that may have older-approved labor certifications and for the beneficiaries of these cases, it is necessary to be mindful of the expiration dates and to move forward while it is still possible.