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 %
Business Teachers, Postsecondary 1,126 $78,446 89.15%
Interior Designers 1,049 $51,487 84.12%
Food Scientists and Technologists 1,019 $64,608 85.06%
Medical and Health Services Managers 1,007 $92,171 85.63%
Environmental Engineers 958 $80,561 84.63%
Materials Scientists 942 $84,796 84.71%
Foreign Language and Literature Teachers, Postsecondary 938 $59,367 85.35%
Compliance Officers 911 $72,906 85.78%
Technical Writers 883 $77,470 83.30%
Landscape Architects 880 $61,913 86.02%
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Compliance Officers 120 $76,377 43.48%
Art Directors 120 $117,909 44.28%
Food Service Managers 118 $54,478 44.53%
Food Scientists and Technologists 117 $60,024 44.49%
Interior Designers 117 $51,245 44.49%
Credit Analysts 112 $77,256 43.24%
Personal Care Aides 112 $25,574 43.41%
Web Developers 111 $86,264 43.53%
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products 109 $44,662 43.25%
Budget Analysts 109 $69,548 43.78%
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 %
Sutter Medical Group 30 $192,353 88.24%
Alphatec Spine Inc 30 $94,599 88.24%
The Jackson Laboratory 30 $83,887 88.24%
Thought Byte Inc 30 $89,977 88.24%
Evry Usa Corporation 30 $79,524 88.24%
Vcarve Inc 30 $78,177 88.24%
Sanquest Inc 30 $89,375 88.24%
Petaio Inc 30 $123,323 88.24%
Lilee Technology Inc 30 $80,909 88.24%
Sauce Labs Inc 30 $112,370 88.24%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Ametek Programmable Power 2 $105,279 33.33%
Inmage Systems Inc 2 $92,290 33.33%
Bm Associates Inc 2 $83,314 33.33%
Yasim Inc 2 $53,269 33.33%
Clearwire Legacy Llc 2 $75,920 33.33%
Severn Trent Water Purification Inc 2 $72,072 33.33%
Cdsca Inc 2 $59,873 33.33%
Youth Hope Inc 2 $79,654 33.33%
G Tech Technology 2 $62,441 33.33%
Kal America Inc 2 $31,876 33.33%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Custom Roll Forming 3 $74,374 75.00%
Passenger Car Leasing 3 $59,280 75.00%
Coal And Other Mineral And Ore Merchant Wholesalers 3 $51,873 75.00%
Knit Fabric Mills 3 $57,817 75.00%
Fertilizer Mixing Only Manufacturing 3 $114,656 75.00%
Skiing Facilities 3 $78,776 75.00%
Plate Work Manufacturing 3 $65,534 75.00%
Airport Operations 3 $80,683 75.00%
Fastener Button Needle And Pin Manufacturing 3 $56,902 100.00%
Paper Bag And Coated And Treated Paper Manufacturing 3 $79,761 100.00%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %

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