This report covers Labor Condition Applications for H-1B workers in the first three quarters of fiscal year 2026, using the latest Department of Labor disclosure file. An LCA is a step before a visa petition, so these figures show what employers applied for. They are not a count of visas issued or people hired.
Status at a glance
| Measure | FY2024 | FY2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Applications, Oct 1 to Jun 23 | 395,817 | 392,775 | -0.8% |
| Applications, Dec 1 to Jun 23 | 339,102 | 350,722 | +3.4% |
| Employers filing, Oct to Jun | 47,197 | 49,421 | +4.7% |
| Median certified wage, Oct to Jun | $111,696 | $126,818 | +13.5% |
| Middle half of wages, Oct to Jun | $86,611-$147,368 | $96,554-$165,000 |
What changed
Filings look almost flat overall, and the first two months explain why the two rows differ. October 2025 shows 1,144 applications against 30,633 in October 2023, because the Labor Department's filing system was offline for most of that month during the government shutdown. November then ran well above its FY2024 level, at 40,909 against 26,082, which suggests some filings moved rather than disappeared. Starting the count in December removes both effects.
The median, the 25th percentile and the 75th percentile each rose 11% to 14%. We would not read that as a raise for any one worker, since the mix of employers and jobs filing changes too, and wage rules affect what employers must attest to.
We can't measure the $100,000 fee on some new H-1B petitions from these records, because an LCA does not show where a worker is when the employer files.
Where the filings are
| State | Certified filings | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| California | 75,412 | $167,000 |
| Texas | 56,731 | $114,754 |
| New York | 32,723 | $142,500 |
| Washington | 26,533 | $162,200 |
| New Jersey | 16,930 | $126,818 |
| Illinois | 16,121 | $108,077 |
California is about one filing in five. Texas files three-quarters as many, at a median about $52,000 lower.
Top occupations
| Occupation | Certified filings | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Software Developers | 116,893 | $145,000 |
| Data Scientists | 18,084 | $129,709 |
| IT Project Managers | 13,117 | $139,100 |
| Computer Systems Engineers/Architects | 12,706 | $107,640 |
| Software QA Analysts and Testers | 12,542 | $108,680 |
Software developers are 30% of certified filings. The eight largest filers show a wide gap between product companies and IT services firms:
| Employer | Certified filings | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Services | 13,610 | $159,038 |
| 7,152 | $193,000 | |
| Cognizant | 5,550 | $111,030 |
| Ernst & Young | 5,072 | $154,875 |
| Meta Platforms | 5,028 | $213,512 |
| Microsoft | 4,984 | $177,032 |
| Apple | 4,807 | $173,769 |
| Infosys | 4,462 | $92,581 |
What to watch next
We expect the Q4 file around the end of the year. It will complete FY2026 and show whether filings held up after the April peak.
How to read this report
We compare with FY2024 because our FY2025 data is incomplete. Except where a row says otherwise, FY2026 figures cover H-1B applications received from October 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. The count comparisons stop at June 23 because the file only holds cases decided by June 30, which leaves the last week nearly empty: 187 filings against 11,281 in the same days of FY2024. Certified filings include those later withdrawn, and wages use filings between $20,000 and $1,000,000. More on how this data works.