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 %
Special Education Teachers, Preschool	50	$57,318	81.97%
Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other	47	$69,715	77.05%
Document Management Specialists	46	$54,807	77.97%
Models	46	$42,873	77.97%
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants	45	$41,310	80.36%
Food Service Managers	45	$49,791	81.82%
Recreation Workers	43	$23,749	78.18%
Petroleum Engineers	42	$117,100	77.78%
Remote Sensing Scientists and Technologists	42	$86,426	77.78%
Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, All Other	41	$47,874	75.93%

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Child, Family, and School Social Workers	10	$49,032	13.70%
Credit Counselors	10	$37,810	13.70%
Cooks, Short Order	9	$27,137	12.33%
Slaughterers and Meat Packers	9	$20,821	12.33%
Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers	9	$43,237	12.33%
Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School	9	$74,214	12.68%
Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	9	$27,213	12.68%
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop	9	$16,663	12.68%
Vocational Education Teachers, Postsecondary	9	$69,994	12.68%
Buyers and Purchasing Agents, Farm Products	9	$54,054	12.86%

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 %
Anthropic Pbc Dba Anthropic Inc	30	$170,748	88.24%
Forza Silicon Corporation	29	$102,949	85.29%
Wissen It Inc	29	$91,129	85.29%
Wavsys Llc	29	$81,151	85.29%
Mindspeed Technologies Inc	29	$98,098	85.29%
Tuv Sud America Inc	29	$78,719	85.29%
Atara Biotherapeutics Inc	29	$104,996	85.29%
Stark America Inc	29	$71,867	85.29%
Sony Mobile Communications Usa Inc	29	$98,752	85.29%
9edge Inc	29	$91,988	85.29%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Tops Digital Solutions Inc	2	$71,698	33.33%
Incase Designs Corp	2	$64,605	33.33%
Aydeekay Llc	2	$85,249	33.33%
United Rentals Inc	2	$52,094	33.33%
Guggenheim Partners Asset Management Inc	2	$107,401	33.33%
All Seasons Framing Corp	2	$37,887	33.33%
Piace Fashion Inc	2	$62,722	33.33%
Dhk Solutionsinc	2	$35,339	33.33%
Ratcliff Architects	2	$65,395	33.33%
Opnet Technologies Inc	2	$105,394	33.33%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Office Machinery And Equipment Rental And Leasing	14	$89,315	87.50%
Surface Active Agent Manufacturing	14	$47,665	87.50%
Floriculture Production	14	$57,566	87.50%
Spice And Extract Manufacturing	14	$60,648	87.50%
Farm Product Raw Material Merchant Wholesalers	14	$50,557	87.50%
Emergency And Other Relief Services	14	$60,819	87.50%
Record Production And Distribution	14	$104,397	87.50%
Iron And Steel Pipe And Tube Manufacturing From Purchased Steel	14	$73,828	87.50%
Community Housing Services	14	$74,186	87.50%
Electroplating Plating Polishing Anodizing And Coloring	14	$75,507	87.50%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Motion Picture Theaters Except Drive Ins	5	$73,316	83.33%
Strawberry Farming	5	$107,931	83.33%
Major Household Appliance Manufacturing	5	$100,239	83.33%
Support Activities For Forestry	5	$50,465	83.33%
Paint And Wallpaper Retailers	5	$59,971	83.33%
All Other Chemical Product And Preparation Manufacturing	5	$61,934	83.33%
Truck Trailer Manufacturing	5	$71,386	83.33%
Waste Collection	5	$79,252	83.33%
Rubber Product Manufacturing For Mechanical Use	5	$100,888	83.33%
Office Furniture Except Wood Manufacturing	5	$89,190	83.33%

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.