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 %
Treasurers and Controllers 145 $129,948 82.39%
Quality Control Systems Managers 144 $120,664 84.21%
Political Science Teachers, Postsecondary 142 $63,844 83.53%
Chiropractors 141 $55,020 85.98%
Rehabilitation Counselors 139 $31,884 85.28%
Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products 139 $45,127 86.34%
Compliance Managers 136 $154,025 87.74%
English Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary 134 $62,261 87.01%
Administrative Services Managers 134 $66,265 87.58%
Hospitalists 132 $174,595 87.42%
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 %
Guinea 1 $103,459 50.00%
Malta 1 $47,278 50.00%
Cote D'ivoire 1 $123,885 50.00%
United Arab Emirates 1 $35,776 50.00%
Gambia 1 $65,998 50.00%
Niger 1 $104,291 50.00%
Micronesia 1 $86,320 50.00%
Laos 1 $27,768 100.00%
Oman 1 $93,267 100.00%
Palestinian Territories 1 $108,805 100.00%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Blackrock Institutional Trust Company Na 542 $103,185 87.99%
Successfactors Inc 541 $117,573 87.82%
Interface Rehab Inc 538 $83,917 87.62%
Qualys Inc 536 $113,241 88.01%
Alcatel Lucent Usa Inc 534 $106,856 87.83%
Move Inc 531 $122,766 88.06%
Hgst Inc 529 $110,258 87.87%
Lendingclub Corporation 528 $120,566 87.71%
Dew Software Inc 526 $84,435 88.11%
Varian Medical Systems Inc 519 $114,614 86.93%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Corneliu Prelipceanu 6 $33,086 100.00%
Ea Anderson Dba Ea Anderson Son 6 $35,092 100.00%
Gilbert Vannoy 6 $34,892 100.00%
Arrowsmith Sons Apiaries Inc 6 $32,614 100.00%
Frederick L Richter Son Inc 6 $36,088 100.00%
E M Ag Service Inc Dba Iou Sheep Co 6 $33,245 100.00%
Francis Chris Cornett 6 $38,028 100.00%
Hanski Family Farms Llc 6 $43,024 100.00%
California Berry Cultivars Llc 6 $38,764 100.00%
John Hays 6 $22,225 100.00%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Udemy Inc 45 $127,741 32.37%
Litmus 7 Systems Consulting Inc 45 $123,823 32.37%
Upwork Inc 45 $119,511 32.61%
Westways Staffing Services Inc 45 $31,006 32.85%
Alibaba Group Us Inc 45 $133,543 32.85%
Neutron Holdings Inc Dba Lime 45 $131,971 33.09%
Redback Networks Inc 44 $90,577 32.35%
Palm Inc 44 $112,070 32.35%
Finisar Corporation 44 $116,515 32.59%
Swa Group 44 $60,008 32.59%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Custom Computer Programming Services 328,913 $94,835 91.21%
Computer Systems Design Services 121,832 $116,724 89.70%
Electronic Computer Manufacturing 37,523 $142,016 95.44%
Computer Systems Design And Related Services 34,399 $108,216 89.27%
Other Computer Related Services 30,473 $99,261 87.04%
Colleges Universities And Professional Schools 28,127 $71,811 80.45%
Computing Infrastructure Providers Data Processing Web Hosting And Related Services 26,488 $136,777 92.89%
Semiconductor And Other Electronic Component Manufacturing 21,436 $116,803 90.15%
Semiconductor And Related Device Manufacturing 20,987 $117,887 88.28%
Engineering Services 20,720 $89,583 88.39%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Farm Labor Contractors And Crew Leaders 1,804 $33,453 100.00%
Sheep Farming 1,164 $29,844 100.00%
Support Activities For Crop Production 557 $35,723 100.00%
Apiculture 463 $34,353 100.00%
Other Vegetable Except Potato And Melon Farming 322 $34,093 100.00%
Strawberry Farming 238 $31,453 100.00%
Noncitrus Fruit And Tree Nut Farming 188 $34,068 100.00%
Vegetable And Melon Farming 174 $35,597 100.00%
Grape Vineyards 158 $34,478 100.00%
Fruit And Tree Nut Farming 115 $35,908 100.00%

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