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 %
Food Service Managers 44 $49,233 81.48%
Nanosystems Engineers 44 $97,684 81.48%
Recreation Workers 43 $23,749 81.13%
Compensation and Benefits Managers 43 $141,652 81.13%
Fundraisers 42 $57,828 80.77%
Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, All Other 41 $47,874 78.85%
Remote Sensing Scientists and Technologists 41 $77,203 80.39%
Petroleum Engineers 41 $120,356 83.67%
Mechanical Engineering Technicians 40 $55,715 81.63%
Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other 40 $68,839 85.11%
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 %
India 42,735 $178,228 48.91%
China 15,777 $108,656 53.06%
South Korea 4,032 $154,868 40.97%
Canada 3,684 $145,079 47.74%
Taiwan 1,769 $272,719 36.38%
Philippines 1,733 $517,903 45.04%
Mexico 1,231 $85,995 37.92%
United Kingdom 913 $111,050 45.38%
Japan 796 $241,546 40.24%
France 786 $107,939 47.61%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Hgst Inc 529 $110,258 88.17%
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc 529 $107,971 88.17%
Lendingclub Corporation 528 $120,566 88.89%
Safeway Inc 527 $143,008 89.17%
Dew Software Inc 522 $84,019 88.32%
Niagara Bottling Llc 521 $81,240 88.31%
Stubhub Inc 520 $125,109 88.44%
Interface Rehab Inc 518 $82,929 88.10%
Mckinsey Company Inc United States 517 $96,067 87.93%
Twitch Interactive Inc 516 $118,042 89.27%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Dys Technologies Inc 44 $136,620 31.65%
Niantic Inc 44 $119,372 31.65%
Finisar Corporation 44 $116,515 31.88%
Palm Inc 44 $112,070 31.88%
Redback Networks Inc 44 $90,577 32.35%
Sambanova Systems Inc 44 $121,127 32.59%
Integral Development Corp 44 $131,393 32.59%
Fanatics Retail Group Fulfillment Inc Dba Fanatics 43 $110,088 32.09%
Litmus 7 Systems Consulting Inc 43 $122,230 32.33%
Westways Staffing Services Inc 43 $30,960 32.58%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Other Accounting Services 1,094 $73,533 80.15%
Communications Equipment Manufacturing 1,062 $127,600 83.95%
Testing Laboratories And Services 1,049 $73,009 85.77%
Freight Transportation Arrangement 1,040 $60,742 86.52%
Other Communications Equipment Manufacturing 991 $98,959 87.16%
Human Resources Consulting Services 989 $92,946 87.14%
Other Financial Investment Activities 956 $98,547 84.45%
All Other Outpatient Care Centers 954 $137,838 86.73%
Audio And Video Equipment Manufacturing 946 $90,859 87.35%
Industrial Design Services 946 $75,778 87.51%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Soybean Farming 1 $38,792 100.00%
Merchant Wholesalers Nondurable Goods 1 $30,722 100.00%
Saw Blade And Handtool Manufacturing 1 $36,421 100.00%
Rice Farming 1 $38,792 100.00%
Citrus Except Orange Groves 1 $38,792 100.00%
All Other Animal Production 1 $23,469 100.00%

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 $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