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 %
Albania	14	$39,878	43.75%
Slovenia	14	$111,527	45.16%
Cyprus	13	$92,349	43.33%
Azerbaijan	13	$92,112	43.33%
Latvia	13	$98,920	44.83%
Trinidad And Tobago	13	$110,441	46.43%
Macau	13	$75,324	52.00%
Serbia And Montenegro	12	$91,713	48.00%
Rwanda	12	$102,038	50.00%
Kyrgyzstan	12	$108,810	50.00%

Top Hiring Companies in California (All Years)

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Cyberthink Inc	299	$84,964	88.46%
Credit Karma Llc	299	$170,591	88.72%
California State University Fullerton	297	$57,385	88.13%
Live Nation Worldwide Inc	295	$105,071	87.54%
Newegg Inc	295	$61,622	87.54%
Popular Tech	294	$78,275	87.76%
Reliable Software Resources Inc	294	$67,756	88.02%
Computer Sciences Corporation	294	$75,373	88.02%
Quest Diagnostics Incorporated	292	$62,005	87.43%
Bdo Usa Llp	292	$75,596	87.69%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Profresco Inc	2	$32,053	100.00%
Alder Springs Vineyard	2	$25,438	100.00%
Rr Christo Construction Llc	2	$32,053	100.00%
El Ranchito Berry Llc	2	$38,750	100.00%
Agempleo Lp	2	$23,988	100.00%
Lc Farm Service Inc	2	$39,936	100.00%
Bidart Livestock Inc	2	$30,722	100.00%
Perez Bros Farms Inc	2	$23,433	100.00%
C And L Farms Llc	2	$37,606	100.00%
Mcdonald Apiary	2	$23,400	100.00%

Company	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Nitya Software Solutions Inc	24	$140,837	34.78%
A1 Rehab Recruitment Services Inc	24	$69,389	35.29%
Spansion Llc	23	$105,415	33.82%
Shoppingcom California Inc	23	$98,329	33.82%
Actiontec Electronics Inc	23	$96,847	33.82%
Walt Disney Pictures	23	$96,708	34.33%
Exelixis Inc	23	$133,097	34.33%
Icu Medical Inc	23	$113,098	34.33%
New Star Realty Inc	23	$61,044	34.33%
Soundhound Inc	23	$112,502	34.33%

Top Industries in California (All Years)

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Public Relations Agencies	277	$64,883	85.23%
Motion Picture And Video Distribution	276	$99,775	85.71%
Other Activities Related To Credit Intermediation	276	$110,795	85.98%
Exam Preparation And Tutoring	273	$65,418	85.31%
Vocational Rehabilitation Services	272	$69,453	86.62%
Commercial And Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing	271	$133,427	86.31%
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing	270	$121,317	87.38%
Diet And Weight Reducing Centers	268	$113,456	86.73%
All Other Business Support Services	267	$103,807	88.12%
Electric Power Generation Transmission And Distribution	264	$94,585	87.71%

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %

Industry	# of Jobs	Avg Wage	Approval %
Plastics Product Manufacturing	90	$65,103	97.83%
Restaurants And Other Eating Places	90	$46,981	98.90%
Cut And Sew Apparel Manufacturing	89	$57,238	98.89%
All Other Insurance Related Activities	89	$108,465	98.89%
Tax Preparation Services	89	$64,293	98.89%
Sporting And Athletic Goods Manufacturing	88	$893,635	97.78%
Exam Preparation And Tutoring	88	$66,432	97.78%
General Automotive Repair	86	$56,083	96.63%
Electric Power Generation Transmission And Distribution	85	$97,102	95.51%
Recyclable Material Merchant Wholesalers	84	$61,904	94.38%

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.