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
1,132,362 86.89% $100,819 H-1B
137,987 10.59% $145,140 PERM
27,949 2.14% $107,091 E-3 Australian
4,960 0.38% $29,309 H-2A

As of May 2023, California has seen a total of 1,303,258 visa workers across all visa types. The most common visa class in California is the H-1B visa with 1,132,362 H-1B visas on record over all years accounting for 86.89% of California's total visas. The second most prevalent visa is the PERM visa with 137,987 PERM visas on record over all years accounting for 10.59% of California's total visas.

Top Occupations in California (All Years)

Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Producers and Directors 327 $71,720 80.94%
Education Administrators, Postsecondary 322 $82,983 80.50%
Risk Management Specialists 320 $89,376 80.60%
Biological Science Teachers, Postsecondary 320 $70,300 82.47%
Teachers and Instructors, All Other 319 $46,608 82.86%
Supply Chain Managers 315 $128,181 85.37%
Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers 314 $73,519 90.49%
Designers, All Other 294 $48,076 86.22%
Photonics Engineers 293 $123,216 89.33%
Clinical Data Managers 284 $102,961 86.85%
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 2022 with 107,868 employees, and has since been on a decline with the most recent number of employees being 90,720 in 2023.

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

Country # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Italy 311 $102,109 42.54%
Thailand 306 $58,313 44.54%
Spain 293 $105,403 50.26%
Singapore 278 $109,854 49.91%
Nepal 256 $84,532 47.50%
Malaysia 233 $97,820 43.47%
Ireland 226 $98,932 44.14%
Indonesia 204 $82,045 41.38%
Bangladesh 202 $90,833 44.69%
Hong Kong 192 $89,149 44.04%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Emc Corporation 1,389 $105,891 90.25%
Cadence Design Systems Inc 1,376 $130,117 90.41%
Gilead Sciences Inc 1,368 $113,461 90.30%
Lyft Inc 1,364 $133,764 90.27%
Adobe Systems Incorporated 1,348 $114,849 89.81%
Igate Technologies Inc 1,304 $70,682 86.93%
Satyam Computer Services Ltd 1,296 $76,079 86.69%
The Leland Stanford Jr University 1,287 $66,304 86.55%
Pinterest Inc 1,287 $128,678 87.08%
Rivian Automotive Llc 1,268 $122,196 89.55%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Pfs Llc 148 $24,008 41.81%
Veritas Technologies Llc 145 $119,791 42.52%
Informatica Corporation 144 $101,335 42.73%
Erp Erp Corp 143 $110,575 44.27%
Robinhood Markets Inc 135 $130,219 42.45%
Fireeye Inc 129 $122,847 40.95%
Hortonworks Inc 129 $117,054 41.08%
First Republic Bank 129 $137,753 41.61%
Affirm Inc 126 $117,343 41.04%
Prospance Inc 124 $116,259 40.66%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Custom Computer Programming Services 312,578 $92,566 91.22%
Computer Systems Design Services 109,823 $112,222 89.12%
Electronic Computer Manufacturing 31,967 $136,456 89.17%
Computer Systems Design And Related Services 31,940 $105,105 95.47%
Other Computer Related Services 28,918 $96,928 86.88%
Colleges Universities And Professional Schools 25,329 $70,893 80.65%
Computing Infrastructure Providers Data Processing Web Hosting And Related Services 22,511 $132,927 92.36%
Engineering Services 19,340 $88,113 87.03%
Semiconductor And Other Electronic Component Manufacturing 19,317 $113,740 89.21%
Semiconductor And Related Device Manufacturing 18,978 $114,532 89.43%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Farm Labor Contractors And Crew Leaders 1,255 $29,995 100.00%
Sheep Farming 973 $28,127 100.00%
Support Activities For Crop Production 556 $35,714 100.00%
Apiculture 306 $31,428 100.00%
Other Vegetable Except Potato And Melon Farming 234 $31,607 100.00%
Strawberry Farming 185 $28,901 100.00%
Noncitrus Fruit And Tree Nut Farming 174 $33,516 100.00%
Vegetable And Melon Farming 147 $34,652 100.00%
Grape Vineyards 106 $30,027 100.00%
Fruit And Tree Nut Farming 97 $34,426 100.00%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Computer Systems Design Services 29,897 $120,796 73.89%
Semiconductor And Related Device Manufacturing 6,758 $112,365 22.60%
Other Computer Related Services 6,599 $114,410 36.13%
Financial Transactions Processing Reserve And Clearinghouse Activities 3,953 $119,753 37.81%
Colleges Universities And Professional Schools 3,799 $68,611 47.45%
Nursing Care Facilities Skilled Nursing Facilities 2,085 $82,066 30.85%
Full Service Restaurants 1,217 $37,937 18.44%
Religious Organizations 1,098 $124,462 16.73%
Architectural Services 992 $65,424 18.88%
Radio Broadcasting Stations 874 $101,751 19.22%

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 $100,819. 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 $99,834.

State Avg Wage