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, All Other	75	$58,663	84.27%
Loan Officers	74	$51,081	84.09%
Agents and Business Managers of Artists, Performers, and Athletes	73	$64,062	83.91%
Animal Scientists	73	$59,867	83.91%
Social Workers, All Other	70	$50,209	83.33%
Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, Postsecondary	70	$61,045	84.34%
Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary	69	$72,325	83.13%
Geographers	66	$60,314	80.49%
Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents	66	$82,816	81.48%
Solar Energy Systems Engineers	66	$94,793	82.50%

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Occupation	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Financial Examiners	14	$93,029	16.09%
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers	14	$34,839	16.28%
Insurance Underwriters	14	$85,029	16.28%
Manicurists and Pedicurists	13	$23,525	15.29%
Agricultural Engineers	13	$74,947	15.29%
Mechatronics Engineers	13	$121,254	15.29%
Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators	13	$73,643	15.29%
Rehabilitation Counselors	13	$32,142	15.29%
Marriage and Family Therapists	13	$39,648	15.48%
Fabric and Apparel Patternmakers	13	$48,750	15.48%

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 %
Sidley Austin Us Llp	27	$144,210	87.10%
User Testing Inc	27	$121,478	87.10%
Dynata Llc	27	$107,350	87.10%
Open Philanthropy Project	27	$93,791	87.10%
Bayone Solutions	27	$105,728	87.10%
Gridx Inc	27	$81,913	87.10%
Hart Howerton Ltd	27	$71,360	87.10%
Choi Kim Park Llp	27	$52,563	87.10%
Buro Happold Consulting Engineers Inc	27	$74,839	87.10%
Childrens Hospital Of Orange County	27	$88,200	87.10%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Clarifi Inc	2	$56,285	33.33%
Wang Chou Accountancy Corp	2	$74,579	33.33%
Technip Usa	2	$121,326	33.33%
Super Bell Jewelry Co Inc	2	$87,495	33.33%
Ivey Engineering	2	$102,471	33.33%
Platinum Group Of Companies Inc	2	$107,952	33.33%
Ace Industries Inc	2	$73,965	33.33%
Teamf1 Inc	2	$123,937	33.33%
Yusen Logistics Americas Inc	2	$65,255	33.33%
Naito Corp	2	$105,654	33.33%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Custom Computer Programming Services	328,913	$94,835	91.21%
Computer Systems Design Services	121,832	$116,724	89.70%
Electronic Computer Manufacturing	37,523	$142,016	95.44%
Computer Systems Design And Related Services	34,399	$108,216	89.27%
Other Computer Related Services	30,473	$99,261	87.04%
Colleges Universities And Professional Schools	28,127	$71,811	80.45%
Computing Infrastructure Providers Data Processing Web Hosting And Related Services	26,488	$136,777	92.89%
Semiconductor And Other Electronic Component Manufacturing	21,436	$116,803	90.15%
Semiconductor And Related Device Manufacturing	20,987	$117,887	88.28%
Engineering Services	20,720	$89,583	88.39%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Farm Labor Contractors And Crew Leaders	1,804	$33,453	100.00%
Sheep Farming	1,164	$29,844	100.00%
Support Activities For Crop Production	557	$35,723	100.00%
Apiculture	463	$34,353	100.00%
Other Vegetable Except Potato And Melon Farming	322	$34,093	100.00%
Strawberry Farming	238	$31,453	100.00%
Noncitrus Fruit And Tree Nut Farming	188	$34,068	100.00%
Vegetable And Melon Farming	174	$35,597	100.00%
Grape Vineyards	158	$34,478	100.00%
Fruit And Tree Nut Farming	115	$35,908	100.00%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Custom Computer Programming Services	42,277	$126,369	100.00%
Computer Systems Design Services	31,732	$121,451	100.00%
Electronic Computer Manufacturing	20,167	$122,175	100.00%
Semiconductor And Other Electronic Component Manufacturing	11,113	$108,986	100.00%
Computer Systems Design And Related Services	8,432	$233,746	100.00%
Semiconductor And Related Device Manufacturing	7,014	$113,231	100.00%
Other Computer Related Services	6,933	$115,320	100.00%
Radio And Television Broadcasting And Wireless Communications Equipment Manufacturing	6,653	$99,660	100.00%
Computing Infrastructure Providers Data Processing Web Hosting And Related Services	6,193	$125,793	100.00%
Engineering Services	4,766	$119,176	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 $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.