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 %
Software Developers, Applications	194,395	$113,169	89.39%
Computer Systems Analysts	104,820	$82,449	91.36%
Software Developers, Systems Software	58,461	$123,631	89.70%
Computer Programmers	52,531	$69,328	89.59%
Computer Occupations, All Other	51,542	$83,906	91.49%
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer	35,308	$115,630	90.24%
Accountants and Auditors	20,885	$66,832	91.51%
Computer and Information Systems Managers	16,526	$166,691	91.14%
Management Analysts	16,324	$88,735	91.36%
Electrical Engineers	14,812	$115,370	88.12%

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse	1,722	$31,984	677.95%
Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals	1,264	$28,731	499.60%
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop	714	$32,564	291.43%
Agricultural Equipment Operators	115	$33,388	47.52%
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	34	$38,233	15.81%
Farm Equipment Mechanics and Service Technicians	25	$37,078	12.69%
Agricultural Workers, All Other	12	$30,352	6.94%
First-Line Supervisors of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers	11	$37,981	7.14%
Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	7	$32,112	7.53%
Food Preparation Workers	5	$33,159	7.69%

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Software Developers, Applications	26,501	$160,578	100.57%
Software Developers, Systems Software	15,558	$135,395	61.50%
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer	9,042	$110,904	216.89%
Computer Systems Analysts	6,736	$171,673	247.47%
Computer Occupations, All Other	3,487	$113,110	196.12%
Computer and Information Systems Managers	2,245	$163,817	154.30%
Accountants and Auditors	2,162	$125,666	152.15%
Statisticians	1,989	$82,692	150.34%
Marketing Managers	1,281	$141,556	106.48%
Sales Engineers	1,278	$117,607	114.52%

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 %
Italy	311	$102,109	42.54%
Thailand	306	$58,313	44.54%
Spain	293	$105,403	50.26%
Singapore	278	$109,854	49.91%
Nepal	256	$84,532	47.50%
Malaysia	233	$97,820	43.47%
Ireland	226	$98,932	44.14%
Indonesia	204	$82,045	41.38%
Bangladesh	202	$90,833	44.69%
Hong Kong	192	$89,149	44.04%

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 %
Telephone Apparatus Manufacturing	1,586	$113,494	87.96%
Offices Of Dentists	1,458	$110,233	89.45%
Direct Property And Casualty Insurance Carriers	1,408	$101,580	90.78%
All Other Financial Investment Activities	1,364	$111,570	90.99%
Offices Of Other Holding Companies	1,326	$130,746	89.47%
Pharmaceutical Preparation Manufacturing	1,303	$103,481	88.58%
Computer Facilities Management Services	1,294	$103,418	89.30%
Research And Development In The Physical Engineering And Life Sciences Except Nanotechnology And Biotechnology	1,271	$104,727	88.76%
Insurance Agencies And Brokerages	1,200	$88,389	85.90%
Marketing Research And Public Opinion Polling	1,194	$88,662	86.71%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Floriculture Production	2	$29,796	100.00%
Other Commercial And Industrial Machinery And Equipment Rental And Leasing	2	$30,722	100.00%
Food Crops Grown Under Cover	2	$37,606	100.00%
Spectator Sports	2	$36,421	100.00%
Oilseed Except Soybean Farming	2	$26,058	100.00%
Fruit And Vegetable Retailers	2	$33,571	100.00%
Transportation Equipment And Supplies Except Motor Vehicle Merchant Wholesalers	2	$35,360	100.00%
Machinery Manufacturing	2	$32,053	100.00%
Commercial And Industrial Machinery And Equipment Except Automotive And Electronic Repair And Maintenance	1	$36,421	50.00%
Potato Farming	1	$30,722	50.00%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Payroll Services	108	$1,537,010	22.50%
Aerospace Product And Parts Manufacturing	106	$159,117	22.18%
All Other Miscellaneous Manufacturing	103	$71,696	22.44%
Offices Of Chiropractors	102	$46,242	22.47%
Other Food Manufacturing	99	$48,514	22.20%
Home Furnishing Merchant Wholesalers	98	$65,544	22.02%
Perishable Prepared Food Manufacturing	97	$77,008	22.05%
All Other Miscellaneous Ambulatory Health Care Services	95	$112,719	22.04%
Research And Development In The Social Sciences And Humanities	92	$85,039	21.75%
Plastics Bottle Manufacturing	92	$32,325	22.66%

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.