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 %
Sociologists 131 $66,772 86.75%
Education Administrators, Preschool and Childcare Center/Program 131 $42,791 87.33%
Special Education Teachers, Secondary School 129 $55,897 87.16%
Agricultural Engineers 125 $71,563 85.62%
Psychologists, All Other 123 $60,156 84.83%
Area, Ethnic, and Cultural Studies Teachers, Postsecondary 121 $63,630 84.62%
Clergy 118 $44,392 83.10%
Cartographers and Photogrammetrists 118 $67,965 84.89%
Clinical, Counseling, and School Psychologists 116 $67,074 84.67%
Lodging Managers 115 $56,581 86.47%
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Pharmacists 22 $11,047,985 20.00%
Loan Officers 22 $54,272 20.00%
Driver/Sales Workers 22 $25,438 20.00%
First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers 21 $46,474 19.44%
Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health 21 $78,926 19.81%
Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, Postsecondary 21 $65,681 19.81%
Personal Financial Advisors 20 $83,706 19.05%
Education Teachers, Postsecondary 20 $61,333 19.23%
Sheet Metal Workers 20 $31,221 19.23%
Industrial Engineering Technicians 20 $55,348 19.61%
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 %
Denmark 49 $118,372 47.57%
Kazakhstan 49 $97,849 48.04%
Austria 48 $109,088 48.00%
Czech Republic 46 $95,827 46.94%
Guatemala 42 $59,878 42.86%
Zimbabwe 41 $73,220 42.71%
Ethiopia 39 $102,255 43.82%
Kenya 37 $91,925 43.02%
Ghana 36 $87,852 44.44%
Ecuador 34 $92,896 43.04%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Tekvalley Corporationinc 216 $77,464 88.16%
Mobileiron Inc 215 $119,675 87.76%
Ciena Corporation 215 $121,371 87.76%
Whatsapp Inc 215 $135,348 87.76%
Flexon Technologies Inc 215 $81,100 88.11%
Embtel Inc 214 $67,512 88.07%
Ampere Computing Llc 214 $145,084 88.07%
Regents Of The University Of California At Riversi 213 $45,620 88.02%
Verizon Data Services Llc 213 $117,683 88.02%
Smallboardcom 213 $69,235 88.75%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Moon Valley Nursery Llc Riverside Growest 1 $38,792 100.00%
First Last Winery 1 $36,421 100.00%
Omega Lamb Llc Joseph Broadbent 1 $19,204 100.00%
Foothill Packing Inc Yu 39 1 $41,080 100.00%
Sunland Landscape 1 $38,792 100.00%
Isa Contracting Services Inc Panziera 2024 1 $41,080 100.00%
Alamo Mocho Ranch Inc 1 $17,971 100.00%
Sierra Orchards Llp 1 $46,244 100.00%
Joe Heidrick Enterprises 1 $33,280 100.00%
Dhillon Ag Services Llc 1 $30,722 100.00%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Trulia Inc 17 $124,541 34.00%
Neelinfo Inc 17 $119,374 34.00%
3di Inc 17 $96,715 34.00%
Micron Semiconductor Products Inc 17 $122,707 34.00%
Ares Operations Llc 17 $126,788 34.00%
Media Creation Technologies Inc 17 $55,989 34.00%
Dignity Health 17 $74,055 34.00%
Upthere 17 $118,780 34.69%
Stockton Unified School District 17 $39,498 34.69%
Home Care Options San Francisco Inc 17 $22,818 34.69%

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