Few topics ignite as much fury in American political discourse as the H-1B visa. Tech executives call it essential. Critics call it job theft. Cable news panels erupt over it. Presidential candidates build platforms around it. Yet for all the heat this program generates, almost no one discusses the single most important number: 0.44%. That’s the share of American jobs held by H-1B workers. Not 10%. Not 5%. Less than half of one percent. Out of 164.1 million employed Americans, roughly 730,000 hold an H-1B visa. The math doesn’t lie, and it tells a story dramatically different from the one dominating headlines.
The United States labor market stands as the world’s largest and most complex economic engine. Yet contemporary discourse surrounding employment often conflates distinct categories of workers citizens, permanent residents, and temporary nonimmigrants into monolithic groups, obscuring the statistical realities that govern the nation’s economic output.
As of late 2025, the American workforce has evolved into a highly stratified ecosystem where legal status, nativity, and visa classifications play pivotal roles in determining labor supply elasticity, sectoral specialization, and wage dynamics. This analysis, drawing on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), reconstructs that ecosystem from the ground up.
The central finding is one of statistical bifurcation. While the H-1B program occupies a dominant position in policy debates and specific high-wage industries most notably technology and specialized engineering it constitutes a numerically marginal fraction of the total U.S. workforce, representing less than 0.5% of all employed persons. In stark contrast, the broader foreign-born workforce has expanded to encompass nearly one-fifth of the entire labor supply, a demographic shift driven primarily by naturalized citizens and permanent residents rather than temporary visa holders.
Understanding this distinction between the “stock” of integrated immigrant workers and the “flow” of temporary high-skilled labor is essential for an accurate comprehension of the U.S. economic landscape in 2025.
Defining the Playing Field: What Counts as “Total Jobs”?
To accurately calculate the prevalence of any specific visa category, one must first establish a definitive denominator. The U.S. government utilizes two primary metrics to gauge the size of the workforce, both derived from monthly surveys conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics: the household survey (Current Population Survey) and the establishment survey (Current Employment Statistics).
As of November 2025, the Civilian Labor Force defined as all individuals aged 16 and over who are either employed or actively seeking employment stood at approximately 171.6 million individuals. Within this pool, the Employed Civilian Population was recorded at 164.1 million (specifically 164,066,000). This metric counts people, not jobs, and includes agricultural workers, the self-employed, and private household workers, making it the most appropriate denominator for comparing demographic populations like visa holders.
Simultaneously, the Total Nonfarm Payroll Employment a measure of jobs rather than employed persons stood at approximately 159.55 million in November 2025. This figure serves as the benchmark for corporate and industrial job creation but excludes the agricultural sector, where certain visa categories (H-2A) are concentrated.
For the purposes of this comparative analysis, the Employed Civilian Population of 164.1 million serves as the primary baseline, ensuring that all visa classes are statistically captured.
The Demographic Divide: Native-Born vs. Foreign-Born
The primary cleavage in federal labor data is not between “visa holders” and “citizens,” but rather between the “Native-Born” and the “Foreign-Born.” This distinction is critical because it aggregates naturalized citizens (who have full legal parity with native-born citizens) with non-citizens (including Green Card holders and temporary visa workers).
In November 2025, the foreign-born share of the U.S. labor force held steady at approximately 18.8%, with 30.8 million employed foreign-born workers compared to 133.3 million employed native-born workers. This implies that nearly one in five workers in the United States was born abroad.
However, the composition of this group is highly heterogeneous. Annual data indicates that roughly 52.1% of the foreign-born labor force consists of naturalized U.S. citizens. This finding is paramount: the majority of the “immigrant workforce” possesses the same employment rights, security, and mobility as the native-born population.
The remaining ~47.9% of the foreign-born workforce comprises the “non-citizen” cohort a complex mix of Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs), unauthorized immigrants, and temporary nonimmigrant workers (H-1B, L-1, etc.). It is within this minority segment of the foreign-born population that the H-1B and other visa programs operate.
The H-1B Reality: Mapping a High-Skilled Cohort
The H-1B visa program, established to allow U.S. employers to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations, represents the most scrutinized intersection of immigration policy and labor market economics. To determine the percentage of U.S. jobs held by H-1B workers, we must move beyond the annual “cap” numbers (85,000) and estimate the total “stock” of active H-1B workers currently resident and employed in the United States.
The Challenge of Counting
than on high-skilled, regulated temporary workers.
A persistent challenge in quantifying the H-1B workforce is the lack of a real-time federal registry that tracks the exact number of active visa holders at any given moment. USCIS reports on “petitions approved” (flow), but these figures include renewals, amendments, and transfers, which can lead to double-counting if aggregated simply. Furthermore, H-1B workers may leave the U.S. before their visa expires, or transition to Permanent Resident status (Green Card), removing them from the H-1B population while keeping them in the workforce.
To derive a high-confidence estimate for 2024-2025, we rely on triangulation of data from authoritative sources:
- FWD.us and Think Tank Estimates: Recent estimates place the total H-1B resident population at approximately 730,000 principal workers. Other organizations like the Economic Policy Institute have estimated this stock at approximately 600,000 in prior years.
- DHS Office of Homeland Security Statistics (OHSS) Resident Estimates: For Fiscal Year 2024, DHS estimated the total resident population of “Temporary Workers” (aggregating H-1B, L-1, TN, O-1, and others) at 1.7 million.
- Approval Volumes: In FY 2024, USCIS approved approximately 400,000 H-1B petitions, a significant portion (roughly 65%) of which were for continuing employment (extensions/renewals) rather than new workers.
The Actual Numbers
Using the Employed Civilian Population of 164.1 million as the denominator and the derived H-1B count of 730,000 as the numerator, we can calculate the specific workforce share with high precision:
H-1B Job Share = (730,000 ÷ 164,100,000) × 100 ≈ 0.44%
H-1B visa holders hold approximately 0.44% less than one-half of one percent of all jobs in the United States.
This statistical reality that over 99.5% of U.S. jobs are held by individuals other than H-1B workers stands in stark contrast to the visa’s oversized footprint in public discourse. However, this aggregate figure masks extreme concentrations in specific sectors. In the “Computer Systems Design and Related Services” industry, H-1B workers may comprise a double-digit percentage of the workforce, creating a localized reliance that defines the operational structure of major technology firms.
Profile of the H-1B Worker
16 million naturalized citizens vs 730,000 H-1B workers
The U.S. immigration system functions primarily as a mechanism for permanent integration rather than temporary guest work.
The H-1B workforce is not a random cross-section of the global labor supply; it is a highly curated demographic:
- Educational Attainment: The share of H-1B workers holding a master’s degree or higher rose to 57% by 2021.
- National Origin: The workforce is heavily skewed by country of birth. India is the top country of birth for H-1B workers, with Indian nationals accounting for 47% of the total temporary worker category in 2024.
- Employer Concentration: Amazon has consistently been the employer with the most H-1B approvals since 2020.
Beyond H-1B: The “Silent” Skilled Workforce
While H-1B captures the headlines, a significant portion of the 1.7 million temporary resident workers utilize other visa classifications. These “silent” visas often facilitate similar high-skilled labor but operate under different regulatory mechanisms.
The L-1 Intracompany Transferee
The L-1 visa allows multinational corporations to transfer executives, managers (L-1A), and employees with specialized knowledge (L-1B) from foreign offices to U.S. operations.
- Population Estimate: While precise stock numbers are elusive, annual admissions data and the DHS resident estimate suggest an active L-1 population of approximately 200,000 to 250,000 workers. In FY 2024, roughly 77,000 L-1 visas were issued.
- Labor Market Role: These workers are not “new hires” in the traditional sense but rather internal corporate relocations, heavily concentrated in management and proprietary technology roles.
The TN Professional (USMCA/NAFTA)
The TN visa is available exclusively to citizens of Canada and Mexico working in pre-designated professional occupations (engineers, accountants, scientists, etc.).
- Population Estimate: Recent analyses estimate the TN workforce has grown significantly, likely exceeding 100,000 active workers. DHS data indicates a sharp rise in Mexican TN professionals specifically.
- Labor Market Role: TN workers serve as a flexible, cap-exempt supplement to the high-skilled workforce. Because TN status can be renewed indefinitely in 3-year increments, many TN holders effectively function as permanent employees.
The O-1 “Extraordinary Ability” Visa
Reserved for individuals with sustained national or international acclaim, the O-1 is utilized by top-tier scientists, artists, and business leaders.
- Population Estimate: This is a niche category, likely numbering between 50,000 and 80,000 active workers.
- Labor Market Role: This cohort represents the “ultra-high-skilled” segment, often encompassing founders and lead researchers.
Comparative Profile of High-Skilled Nonimmigrant Visas (2025 Estimates)
| Visa Class | Est. Active Population | % of U.S. Jobs (164.1M) | Key Constraint | Primary Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| H-1B | ~730,000 | 0.44% | Annual Cap (85k)* | Specialty Occupations (Tech/Eng) |
| L-1 | ~225,000 | 0.14% | Internal Transfer Only | Multinational Manager/Specialist |
| TN | ~100,000 | 0.06% | Citizens of CAN/MEX | North American Professionals |
| O-1 | ~65,000 | 0.04% | High Evidentiary Bar | Extraordinary Ability/Achievement |
| Total High-Skilled | ~1.12 Million | ~0.68% |
Note: The annual cap applies to new petitions; stock includes accumulated renewals.
The Essential and Seasonal Workforce: H-2A and H-2B
To provide a complete picture of the “visa workforce,” one cannot ignore the low-skilled and seasonal categories, which operate in distinct economic spheres from the H-1B.
H-2A Agricultural Workers
The H-2A program allows for the temporary admission of agricultural workers. Unlike most other visas, the H-2A has no statutory numerical cap, and its usage has exploded.
- Population Estimate: In 2024, more than 380,000 H-2A positions were authorized.
- Labor Market Role: These workers are statistically invisible in “Nonfarm Payroll Employment” but are a critical component of the “Employed Civilian Population.” They represent the backbone of the U.S. fruit, vegetable, and horticultural sectors.
H-2B Non-Agricultural Seasonal Workers
Used for landscaping, hospitality, and seafood processing, the H-2B is capped at 66,000 annually, though Congress frequently authorizes “supplemental caps.”
- Population Estimate: In 2024, the total number of employed H-2B workers reached nearly 170,000 due to supplemental visa releases.
- Labor Market Role: These workers fill acute seasonal shortages in specific industries, such as landscaping and resort hospitality.
The “Essential” visa workforce (H-2A + H-2B) numbers approximately 550,000 workers, or roughly 0.34% of the U.S. workforce. While numerically smaller than the high-skilled cohort, their concentration makes them structurally indispensable to specific local economies.
The Citizen and Permanent Resident Core: The 98%
Having mapped the approximately 1.7 million “Temporary Workers,” we must contrast them with the foundational blocks of the U.S. labor market: Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents.
The Native-Born Citizen Workforce
The vast majority of U.S. jobs are held by native-born citizens.
- Population: 133.3 million native-born individuals were employed in November 2025.
- Workforce Share: Native-born citizens account for roughly 81.2% of total employment.
The Naturalized Citizen Workforce
Often overlooked in “immigrant” statistics is the fact that the majority of foreign-born workers are, in fact, U.S. citizens.
- Population: Of the 30.8 million employed foreign-born workers, approximately 52.1% are naturalized citizens equating to approximately 16.0 million workers.
- Workforce Share: Naturalized citizens hold roughly 9.8% of all U.S. jobs.
- Economic Implication: These workers possess full labor market mobility and are not tied to specific employers or visa terms.
Lawful Permanent Residents (The “Green Card” Workforce)
The “Non-Citizen” foreign-born workforce includes both temporary visa holders and LPRs.
- Population Estimate: Deducting temporary workers (~1.7M) and unauthorized workers (~8M) from the non-citizen labor force suggests roughly 5.1 million employed LPRs.
- Workforce Share: LPRs hold approximately 3.1% of U.S. jobs.
The Unauthorized Workforce
While accurate enumeration is difficult, the unauthorized immigrant population is a significant component of the “non-citizen” labor force.
- Population Estimate: Estimates for the total unauthorized population reached roughly 13.7 to 14 million in 2023. Labor force participation among this group is high Pew Research estimated unauthorized immigrants made up 4.8% of the workforce in 2022.
- Workforce Share: Assuming the 4.8% share holds or slightly declined due to 2025 trends, this group holds roughly 7.9 million jobs.
- Comparison: The unauthorized workforce is more than 10 times larger than the H-1B workforce. This disparity highlights a labor market reality: the U.S. relies far more heavily on unregulated foreign labor than it does on high-skilled, regulated temporary labor.
The H-4 Dependent Phenomenon: A Hidden Workforce
A critical and often under-analyzed component of the H-1B ecosystem is the H-4 visa (spouses and children). Since 2015, certain H-4 spouses have been eligible for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs).
- Population Impact: Estimates suggest nearly 100,000 H-4 EAD holders have utilized this program.
- Labor Market Characteristics: H-4 EAD holders are highly educated, with many possessing STEM degrees. Their entry into the workforce acts as a “multiplier” for the H-1B program, adding another ~0.06% to the high-skilled labor supply.
The Complete Picture: U.S. Workforce Distribution by Legal Status
Bringing together all derived estimates, we can now present a unified breakdown of the U.S. labor market by legal status for the 2024-2025 period.
Comprehensive U.S. Workforce Distribution (November 2025 Estimates)
| Workforce Category | Estimated Count | % of Total Employment (164.1M) |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Citizens | ~149.3 Million | 91.0% |
| Native-Born | 133.3 Million | 81.2% |
| Naturalized | ~16.0 Million | 9.8% |
| Non-Citizens | ~14.8 Million | 9.0% |
| Unauthorized Immigrants | ~8.0 Million | 4.9% |
| Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR) | ~5.1 Million | 3.1% |
| Temporary Visa Workers (Total) | ~1.7 Million | 1.0% |
| H-1B Visa Holders | ~730,000 | 0.44% |
| H-2A/H-2B Workers | ~550,000 | 0.34% |
| L-1 / TN / O-1 / Other | ~420,000 | 0.26% |
Key Takeaways
The Dominance of Citizenship: Over 90% of the U.S. workforce holds citizenship. The narrative of a labor market dominated by foreign entities is statistically unsupported at the aggregate level.
The Marginality of H-1B: At 0.44% of the workforce, the H-1B population is a “niche” labor supply. It is numerically smaller than the population of many individual U.S. cities.
The “Unauthorized” vs. “Visa” Gap: For every one H-1B worker in the U.S., there are approximately eleven unauthorized workers.
The Integration Success: The fact that naturalized citizens (~16 million) outnumber H-1B workers (730,000) by a factor of nearly 22 to 1 indicates that the U.S. immigration system functions primarily as a mechanism for permanent integration rather than temporary guest work.
Conclusion
The data for the 2024-2025 period presents a clear, empirically grounded picture of the U.S. labor market. The total jobs in the United States, represented by an employed civilian population of 164.1 million, are overwhelmingly filled by U.S. citizens (native and naturalized).
The H-1B visa holder represents a statistically minute fraction approximately 0.44% of this total workforce. Even when aggregated with all other temporary nonimmigrant workers (L-1, TN, H-2A, etc.), the total “guest worker” population accounts for barely 1.0% of U.S. jobs.
For policymakers and industry leaders, these numbers suggest that while H-1B reform is critical for the specific health of the technology sector, it is a peripheral issue regarding the aggregate quantity of U.S. jobs. The broader dynamics of workforce demographics specifically the aging native-born population and the increasing reliance on naturalized and permanent resident labor constitute the primary narrative of the American labor market in the mid-21st century.
This analysis synthesizes data from federal agencies and nonpartisan research organizations. All workforce percentages use the Employed Civilian Population (164.1 million) as the denominator unless otherwise noted.
H-1B “stock” estimates derive from FWD.us methodology triangulating DHS admission records, USCIS approval data, and departure tracking. The 730,000 figure represents principal workers only (excludes H-4 dependents). Percentages calculated against the BLS Employed Civilian Population provide the most inclusive denominator, capturing agricultural and self-employed workers not counted in nonfarm payroll.
