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"

South Dakota Foreign Labor Visa Stats (All Years)

Total Visas % of all Visas Average Wage Visa Type
3,930 49.46% $71,841 H-1B
3,166 39.84% $31,156 H-2A
815 10.26% $51,076 PERM
35 0.44% $50,361 E-3 Australian

As of May 2023, South Dakota has seen a total of 7,946 visa workers across all visa types. The most common visa class in South Dakota is the H-1B visa with 3,930 H-1B visas on record over all years accounting for 49.46% of South Dakota's total visas. The second most prevalent visa is the H-2A visa with 3,166 H-2A visas on record over all years accounting for 39.84% of South Dakota's total visas.

Top Occupations in South Dakota (All Years)

Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Validation Engineers 1 $46,738 100.00%
Nanosystems Engineers 1 $63,565 100.00%
Interpreters and Translators 1 $33,197 100.00%
Manufacturing Engineers 1 $80,122 100.00%
Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technicians 1 $43,618 100.00%
Aerospace Engineers 1 $96,699 100.00%
Engineering Technicians, Except Drafters, All Other 1 $37,731 100.00%
Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School 1 $39,017 100.00%
Animal Trainers 1 $18,304 100.00%
Occupational Health and Safety Specialists 1 $49,296 100.00%
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Occupation # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
South Dakota Employees Over Time
South Dakota has been in the H1B Visa program since 2011 where 259 employees were hired. South Dakota peaked in 2024 with 462 employees, and has since been on a decline with the most recent number of employees being 74 in 2025.

Top Countries with Workers in South Dakota From PERM Program (All Years)

Country # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Syria 2 $126,661 66.67%
Nicaragua 2 $46,020 66.67%
Portugal 1 $39,603 33.33%
Cameroon 1 $56,500 50.00%
Kenya 1 $133,016 50.00%
Antigua And Barbuda 1 $208,000 50.00%
Switzerland 1 $26,146 50.00%
Israel 1 $42,328 50.00%
Afghanistan 1 $51,418 50.00%
Belgium 1 $68,349 50.00%

Top Hiring Companies in South Dakota (All Years)

Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Fishback Financial Corporation 1 $55,723 100.00%
Hashi Solutions Llc 1 $55,994 100.00%
Keyseries Llc 1 $56,098 100.00%
Black Hills Community Bank Na 1 $56,576 100.00%
Itrace Foundation Inc 1 $56,597 100.00%
Tms Inc 1 $56,638 100.00%
Rst Solutions Inc 1 $56,784 100.00%
Gemini Consulting Services Llc 1 $56,805 100.00%
Cgi Technologies And Solutions Inc 1 $56,846 100.00%
Mckerin Software Inc 1 $56,888 100.00%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
G R Farms 2 $32,718 100.00%
Biggins Cattle Company Llc 2 $36,046 100.00%
Ekstrum Farms 2 $28,694 100.00%
Jody Alan Weiss 2 $36,046 100.00%
Ruthie Vilhauer 2 $37,076 100.00%
Schley Farms Inc 2 $37,076 100.00%
Frank Pravecek 2 $37,076 100.00%
Steve Breding 2 $21,382 100.00%
Ryan Hermann 2 $35,152 100.00%
Stiegelmeier Farms Inc 2 $37,076 100.00%
Company # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %

Top Industries in South Dakota (All Years)

Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Custom Computer Programming Services 910 $58,724 95.09%
General Medical And Surgical Hospitals 742 $130,098 83.84%
Colleges Universities And Professional Schools 708 $51,354 86.76%
Elementary And Secondary Schools 402 $41,969 94.37%
Computer Systems Design Services 187 $65,732 91.22%
Engineering Services 57 $63,166 90.48%
Management Scientific And Technical Consulting Services 53 $63,575 88.33%
Dairy Cattle And Milk Production 43 $47,355 76.79%
Temporary Help Services 43 $62,379 89.58%
Credit Card Issuing 39 $66,455 86.67%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Oilseed And Grain Combination Farming 514 $32,923 100.00%
Other Crop Farming 417 $32,793 100.00%
Farm Labor Contractors And Crew Leaders 308 $33,153 100.00%
Crop Harvesting Primarily By Machine 268 $32,123 100.00%
Support Activities For Crop Production 133 $35,386 100.00%
Cattle Ranching And Farming 124 $33,113 100.00%
Apiculture 122 $32,079 100.00%
Cattle Feedlots 121 $33,806 100.00%
Oilseed And Grain Farming 116 $34,983 100.00%
Other Grain Farming 84 $33,759 100.00%
Industry # of Jobs Avg Wage Approval %
Poultry Processing 435 $20,283 100.00%
General Medical And Surgical Hospitals 263 $133,370 100.00%
Dairy Cattle And Milk Production 110 $44,914 69.18%
Animal Except Poultry Slaughtering 110 $29,619 100.00%
Custom Computer Programming Services 41 $62,959 37.27%
Cheese Manufacturing 38 $40,284 56.72%
Offices Of Physicians Except Mental Health Specialists 22 $156,519 53.66%
Limited Service Restaurants 15 $23,709 39.47%
Credit Card Issuing 11 $65,386 32.35%
Oil And Gas Pipeline And Related Structures Construction 11 $26,146 50.00%

South Dakota Wage Comparison to Other States (All Years)

The chart below compares The average wage in South Dakota to that of the top 9 states with the highest overall average H1-B wage. The average wage in South Dakota over all years is $71,841. The state with the highest average wage of H1-B workers for all states is CA with an average wage of $104,510.

State Avg Wage