We now have Quarter 4 H1B visa FY 2023 data and Quarter 4 PERM visa FY 2023 data and Quarter 4 H2A visa FY 2023 data.
Employer Search tool is moved to it's own page: "H1B Visa Data Search Tool"

California Foreign Labor Visa Stats (All Years)

Total Visas % of all Visas Average Wage Visa Type
1,236,055 87.25% $104,510 H-1B
144,051 10.17% $144,477 PERM
30,331 2.14% $109,456 E-3 Australian
6,165 0.44% $31,590 H-2A

As of May 2023, California has seen a total of 1,416,602 visa workers across all visa types. The most common visa class in California is the H-1B visa with 1,236,055 H-1B visas on record over all years accounting for 87.25% of California's total visas. The second most prevalent visa is the PERM visa with 144,051 PERM visas on record over all years accounting for 10.17% of California's total visas.

Top Occupations in California (All Years)

Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Database Architects 618 $108,881 85.60%
Art Directors 615 $106,547 87.86%
Regulatory Affairs Specialists 603 $88,580 87.01%
Editors 596 $51,581 87.39%
Natural Sciences Managers 589 $137,855 86.36%
Microbiologists 581 $65,145 86.20%
Purchasing Managers 558 $110,987 84.55%
Biostatisticians 554 $102,605 85.49%
Mathematical Science Teachers, Postsecondary 551 $65,998 87.32%
Human Factors Engineers and Ergonomists 550 $115,883 87.58%
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
California Employees Over Time
California has been in the H1B Visa program since 2011 where 50,870 employees were hired. California peaked in 2018 with 106,682 employees, and has since been on a decline with the most recent number of employees being 18,356 in 2025.

Top Countries with Workers in California From PERM Program (All Years)

Country # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
India 45,730 $175,901 47.43%
China 16,844 $109,259 50.79%
South Korea 4,340 $147,936 41.14%
Canada 3,905 $143,888 46.41%
Philippines 1,927 $470,682 35.63%
Taiwan 1,908 $260,805 44.94%
Mexico 1,361 $87,276 34.68%
United Kingdom 967 $111,850 44.71%
Japan 844 $231,744 40.04%
France 821 $108,315 46.73%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Sandisk Corporation 710 $102,875 91.97%
Databricks Inc 709 $146,081 91.84%
Infoshare Systems Inc 702 $77,872 91.17%
Bank Of The West 695 $104,631 91.21%
Wells Fargo Bank Na 692 $127,499 91.05%
Farmers Group Inc 692 $103,806 91.17%
Hewlett Packard Company 685 $92,132 90.37%
Okta Inc 680 $136,650 90.07%
Omnivision Technologies Inc 674 $104,419 89.27%
Veritas Technologies Llc 674 $121,482 89.51%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
American River Companies 7 $37,181 100.00%
Boavista Farms 7 $34,477 100.00%
Sierra Del Tigre Farms 7 $34,656 100.00%
Giusti Farms Llc 7 $33,824 100.00%
Fire Grazers Inc 7 $34,528 100.00%
John E Lasgoity 7 $35,404 100.00%
Duncan Family Farms Llc 7 $31,863 100.00%
Ventura Brush Goats Llc 7 $32,762 100.00%
Salinas Farm Labor Contractor Inc 7 $33,571 100.00%
Vineyard Ops Inc 7 $36,673 100.00%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Gigamon Inc 60 $125,737 32.97%
Genentech Usa Inc 60 $125,003 33.15%
Anydata Corporation 59 $74,628 32.78%
8x8 Inc 59 $131,570 32.78%
Covetit Inc 59 $114,573 33.15%
Fungible Inc 59 $149,082 33.33%
Pensando Systems Inc 59 $157,925 33.33%
West Contra Costa Unified School District 58 $55,048 32.95%
Masimo Corporation 58 $104,138 32.95%
Sephora Usa Inc 58 $121,116 33.14%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Capacitor Resistor Coil Transformer And Other Inductor Manufacturing 47 $85,002 81.03%
Sign Manufacturing 47 $71,237 82.46%
Private Mail Centers 47 $89,907 82.46%
Petroleum Refineries 46 $108,732 80.70%
Blood And Organ Banks 46 $76,072 80.70%
Lessors Of Miniwarehouses And Self Storage Units 46 $103,176 80.70%
Public Finance Activities 46 $75,980 82.14%
Food Product Machinery Manufacturing 45 $84,350 80.36%
Outpatient Care Centers 45 $103,380 81.82%
Photofinishing Laboratories Except One Hour 45 $118,265 81.82%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %

California Wage Comparison to Other States (All Years)

The chart below compares The average wage in California to that of the other top 9 states with the highest overall average H1-B wage. The average wage in California over all years is $104,510. California has the highest average wage of H1-B workers for all states, with the second highest average wage being WA with an average wage of $103,635.

State Avg Wage