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 %
Right Click Systems Llc	28	$73,691	87.50%
Varnar Inc	28	$94,662	87.50%
Sony Music Holdings Inc	28	$89,444	87.50%
Mci Communications Services Llc	28	$153,897	87.50%
Nominum Inc	28	$114,981	87.50%
Kiranam Technologies Inc	28	$85,232	87.50%
Hughes Network Systems Llc	28	$83,809	87.50%
Anjus Llc	28	$88,991	87.50%
M9 Consulting Inc	28	$100,243	87.50%
Therapy Mantra Inc	28	$78,484	87.50%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Int Technologies Llc	2	$78,364	33.33%
Otis Spunkmeyer	2	$80,423	33.33%
Js Auto Tech Inc	2	$68,422	33.33%
Mellanox Technologies Inc	2	$98,634	33.33%
Ljb Group Llc Dba For Speed Oil Change Center	2	$74,495	33.33%
Saion Corp	2	$71,094	33.33%
Edgile Inc	2	$127,774	33.33%
Heschong Mahone Group Inc	2	$64,407	33.33%
Sabocor Co Llp	2	$67,902	33.33%
German American International School	2	$86,039	33.33%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Heating Equipment Except Warm Air Furnaces Manufacturing	56	$87,235	87.50%
Wood Kitchen Cabinet And Countertop Manufacturing	56	$65,232	87.50%
Plastics Materials And Basic Forms And Shapes Merchant Wholesalers	55	$60,056	87.30%
Motor Vehicle Seating And Interior Trim Manufacturing	55	$91,017	87.30%
Photographic Equipment And Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	55	$71,178	88.71%
Ventilation Heating Air Conditioning And Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing	54	$73,334	87.10%
Fabricated Structural Metal Manufacturing	54	$73,002	88.52%
Flight Training	54	$58,359	88.52%
Construction And Mining Except Oil Well Machinery And Equipment Merchant Wholesalers	53	$85,215	86.89%
Professional And Commercial Equipment And Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	53	$63,695	88.33%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Chemical And Allied Products Merchant Wholesalers	21	$59,876	87.50%
Service Establishment Equipment And Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	21	$76,458	87.50%
Tree Nut Farming	21	$63,524	87.50%
Other Support Activities For Road Transportation	21	$52,393	87.50%
Travel Arrangement And Reservation Services	21	$58,591	91.30%
Glass Product Manufacturing Made Of Purchased Glass	21	$115,205	91.30%
Household And Institutional Furniture And Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturing	21	$50,363	91.30%
Drycleaning And Laundry Services	21	$38,336	91.30%
Support Activities For Oil And Gas Operations	21	$99,884	91.30%
Cotton Farming	21	$2,008,589	91.30%

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.