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 %
Software Developers, Applications	193,998	$113,139	89.21%
Computer Systems Analysts	104,772	$82,444	91.31%
Software Developers, Systems Software	58,151	$123,588	89.22%
Computer Programmers	52,515	$69,323	89.56%
Computer Occupations, All Other	51,521	$83,900	91.45%
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer	39,912	$119,022	90.94%
Accountants and Auditors	23,125	$69,041	91.77%
Computer and Information Systems Managers	19,359	$173,059	91.40%
Management Analysts	17,285	$90,027	91.40%
Electrical Engineers	16,250	$117,766	88.31%

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse	2,366	$34,286	753.50%
Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals	1,587	$30,893	510.29%
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop	714	$32,564	253.19%
Agricultural Equipment Operators	179	$35,796	68.58%
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers	53	$44,467	20.54%
Farm Equipment Mechanics and Service Technicians	43	$45,492	17.20%
First-Line Supervisors of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers	21	$48,882	9.29%
Agricultural Workers, All Other	13	$31,001	6.31%
Food Preparation Workers	8	$35,844	7.08%
Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	8	$33,545	8.99%

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Software Developers, Applications	26,507	$160,581	96.90%
Software Developers, Systems Software	15,563	$135,396	61.52%
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer	9,259	$111,482	219.88%
Computer Systems Analysts	6,744	$171,595	237.30%
Computer Occupations, All Other	3,491	$113,090	186.78%
Computer and Information Systems Managers	2,352	$165,802	148.96%
Accountants and Auditors	2,305	$123,676	162.21%
Statisticians	2,015	$82,718	149.70%
Sales Engineers	1,325	$118,264	104.83%
Marketing Managers	1,310	$141,709	107.73%

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 %
Norway	34	$104,293	44.16%
Syria	34	$71,129	49.28%
Burma (myanmar)	31	$99,295	47.69%
Saudi Arabia	28	$99,049	43.75%
Panama	26	$9,318,560	40.63%
Honduras	25	$73,989	39.68%
Morocco	24	$89,089	42.11%
Slovakia	19	$103,675	37.25%
Uruguay	18	$115,432	38.30%
Estonia	18	$100,030	39.13%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Prokarma Inc	281	$108,458	86.46%
Standav Corp	281	$97,543	86.73%
Cgi Technologies And Solutions Inc	280	$87,205	86.42%
Technosoft Corporation	279	$85,144	86.65%
San Jose Unified School District	278	$62,391	86.88%
Patni Americas Inc	278	$69,478	86.88%
Mercedes Benz Research Development North America Inc	277	$128,277	86.83%
Akshaya Inc	277	$115,955	87.11%
Align Technology Inc	277	$131,281	87.38%
West Coast Consulting Llc	276	$81,345	87.34%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
River Vista Farms	2	$28,184	100.00%
T V Livestockterry Adams Jr	2	$17,070	100.00%
J A Phillips Ranch	2	$9,000	100.00%
Big Bagga Walnuts Llc	2	$57,595	100.00%
Integrity Ag Solutions Llc	2	$39,936	100.00%
Cuyama Valley Farms Llc	2	$39,936	100.00%
Cubiburu Livestock Incjohn Florence Cubiburu	2	$17,070	100.00%
Sage Mountain Apiaries Inc	2	$40,165	100.00%
Tirado Vineyards	2	$26,780	100.00%
Stephen Wesselink Farms Inc	2	$33,384	100.00%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Enterprise Qa Labs Inc	23	$96,060	34.85%
Bmr Infotek Inc	23	$111,328	35.38%
Total Care Services Group Inc	23	$26,285	35.38%
Byton North America Corporation	23	$123,640	35.38%
Arlo Technologies Inc	23	$125,634	35.38%
Pandora Media Llc	23	$125,758	35.38%
Juul Labs Inc	23	$122,996	35.38%
Ge Digital Holdings Llc	23	$151,086	35.38%
Astera Labs Inc	23	$144,779	35.38%
Canoo Technologies Inc Fka Canoo Inc	23	$117,493	35.38%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Community Food Services	16	$85,699	88.89%
Mattress Manufacturing	16	$94,468	88.89%
Books Printing	16	$100,398	88.89%
Architectural And Structural Metals Manufacturing	16	$63,523	88.89%
Agriculture Construction And Mining Machinery Manufacturing	16	$89,710	88.89%
Fruit And Tree Nut Combination Farming	16	$56,377	88.89%
All Other Automotive Repair And Maintenance	15	$83,694	83.33%
Other Metal Container Manufacturing	15	$77,351	83.33%
Metal Tank Heavy Gauge Manufacturing	15	$77,476	83.33%
Service Establishment Equipment And Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	15	$45,831	83.33%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Photographic Services	6	$62,615	85.71%
Nursery And Floriculture Production	6	$50,007	85.71%
Specialized Freight Trucking	6	$58,129	85.71%
Iron And Steel Forging	6	$44,712	85.71%
Other Warehousing And Storage	6	$67,274	85.71%
Power Boiler And Heat Exchanger Manufacturing	6	$94,928	85.71%
Plumbing Fixture Fitting And Trim Manufacturing	6	$54,759	85.71%
Traveler Accommodation	6	$68,782	85.71%
Seafood Product Preparation And Packaging	6	$109,665	85.71%
Manufactured Home Mobile Home Manufacturing	5	$73,045	71.43%

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.