Of these, 16,059 were approved (97.8%), while 369 were denied (2.2%).
The H-1B visa program allows U.S. employers to temporarily hire foreign workers in specialty occupations requiring specialized knowledge and at least a bachelor’s degree or equivalent. It is designed to address skill gaps in the U.S. workforce while ensuring wage standards to protect both U.S. and H-1B workers. Employers must certify that they will pay H-1B workers wages equal to or greater than those of similarly qualified U.S. employees or the prevailing local wage.
For comparison, the average approval rate for H-1B petitions across the United States in 2024 stood at 98%, slightly higher than the 97.3% recorded in 2023.
The Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services industry led the H-1B filings in Massachusetts during 2024, with 6,451 petitions (39.3% of all submissions), and an approval rate of 97.6%. Meanwhile, the Finance and Insurance industry was the second largest contributor, filing 2,928 petitions (17.8% of the total), with an approval rate of 98.8%.
The Massachusetts employers with the most petitions during 2024 included Fidelity Investments, which filed 1,795 petitions with an approval rate of 98.7%, Randstad Digital, LLC with 544 petitions and an approval rate of 95%, and Virtusa Corporation, which filed 534 petitions with an approval rate of 97.9%.
Compared to 2023, the number of H-1B petitions filed in Massachusetts during 2024 increased by 2.9%.
The United States admits around 1 million legal immigrants annually, most of whom receive permanent residence (green cards) through family sponsorship or employment-based visas. In 2023, about 1.2 million immigrants were granted green cards, a return to pre-pandemic levels. Temporary visa programs, such as the H-1B for highly skilled workers and H-2A for seasonal agricultural workers, also play a critical role in filling workforce needs.
Public opinion on immigration varies, with 46% of Americans favoring maintaining current legal immigration levels, according to a 2024 Pew Research Center survey. Additionally, 42% believe that highly skilled workers, such as scientists, doctors, and programmers, should be prioritized for legal immigration, compared to 25% who prioritize workers filling labor shortages and 19% who emphasize family sponsorship. Despite this, family sponsorship remains the most common path to permanent residency, accounting for 63% of green cards issued in 2023.
The data in this article comes from the H-1B Employer Data Hub provided by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). While USCIS strives for accuracy, manual data entry and errors on paper forms submitted by applicants or petitioners may result in discrepancies in employer names, tax IDs, locations, or other details.
| Rank | Industry | Total Petitions | % of All Submissions | % Approved | % Denied |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 6,451 | 39.3% | 97.6% | 2.4% |
| 2 | Finance and Insurance | 2,928 | 17.8% | 98.8% | 1.2% |
| 3 | Health Care and Social Assistance | 1,738 | 10.6% | 95.9% | 4.1% |
| 4 | Manufacturing | 1,585 | 9.6% | 99.1% | 0.9% |
| 5 | Educational Services | 1,199 | 7.3% | 98.5% | 1.5% |
| 6 | Information | 1,071 | 6.5% | 97.3% | 2.7% |
| 7 | Retail Trade | 420 | 2.6% | 97.9% | 2.1% |
| 8 | Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 229 | 1.4% | 97.4% | 2.6% |
| 9 | Public Administration | 98 | 0.6% | 98% | 2% |
| 10 | Utilities | 91 | 0.6% | 96.7% | 3.3% |
| 11 | Other Services (except Public Administration) | 88 | 0.5% | 94.3% | 5.7% |
| 12 | Construction | 86 | 0.5% | 96.5% | 3.5% |
| 13 | Wholesale Trade | 70 | 0.4% | 98.6% | 1.4% |
| 14 | Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation | 45 | 0.3% | 97.8% | 2.2% |
| 14 | Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | 45 | 0.3% | 93.3% | 6.7% |
| 16 | Transportation and Warehousing | 32 | 0.2% | 90.6% | 9.4% |
| 17 | Accommodation and Food Services | 27 | 0.2% | 85.2% | 14.8% |
| 18 | Management of Companies and Enterprises | 22 | 0.1% | 100% | 0% |
| 19 | Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction | 4 | 0% | 100% | 0% |
| 20 | Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting | 3 | 0% | 100% | 0% |
| Company Name | Industries | Total Petitions | % Approved | % Denied |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fidelity Investments | Finance and Insurance, Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | 1,795 | 98.7% | 1.3% |
| Randstad Digital, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 544 | 95% | 5% |
| Virtusa Corporation | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 534 | 97.9% | 2.1% |
| The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 391 | 99% | 1% |
| The Mathworks, Inc. | Information | 299 | 98.7% | 1.3% |
| State Street Bank and Trust Company | Finance and Insurance | 273 | 99.6% | 0.4% |
| Harvard University | Educational Services | 212 | 98.6% | 1.4% |
| General Hospital, Corp. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 207 | 99.5% | 0.5% |
| Wayfair, LLC | Manufacturing, Retail Trade | 204 | 97.1% | 2.9% |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technol | Educational Services | 171 | 100% | 0% |
| Childrens Hospital Corporation | Health Care and Social Assistance | 156 | 98.1% | 1.9% |
| Brigham and Women S Hospital | Health Care and Social Assistance | 148 | 99.3% | 0.7% |
| Umass Chan Medical School | Educational Services, Public Administration | 148 | 97.3% | 2.7% |
| Akamai Technologies, Inc. | Information, Other Services (except Public Administration) | 143 | 99.3% | 0.7% |
| Analog Devices, Inc. | Manufacturing | 140 | 100% | 0% |
| Avco Consulting, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 130 | 93.8% | 6.2% |
| Dana-Farber Cancer Institute | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services, Finance and Insurance | 128 | 99.2% | 0.8% |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 125 | 99.2% | 0.8% |
| Bain and Company, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 120 | 98.3% | 1.7% |
| Trustees of Boston University | Educational Services | 117 | 98.3% | 1.7% |
| Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 113 | 98.2% | 1.8% |
| Collaborate Solutions, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 112 | 93.8% | 6.3% |
| Takeda Development Center Americas, Inc. | Manufacturing | 109 | 98.2% | 1.8% |
| Staples, Inc. | Retail Trade | 105 | 100% | 0% |
| Hubspot, Inc. | Information | 100 | 99% | 1% |
| Eclinicalworks, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 95 | 100% | 0% |
| Modernatx, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 95 | 97.9% | 2.1% |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 91 | 98.9% | 1.1% |
| Schneider Electric USA, Inc. | Manufacturing | 90 | 98.9% | 1.1% |
| Northeastern University | Educational Services | 87 | 100% | 0% |
| Sapient Corporation | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 83 | 97.6% | 2.4% |
| Boston Scientific Corporation | Manufacturing | 83 | 100% | 0% |
| Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company | Finance and Insurance | 81 | 100% | 0% |
| Athenahealth, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 81 | 100% | 0% |
| Analysis Group, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 80 | 98.8% | 1.3% |
| Bahwan Cybertek, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 77 | 100% | 0% |
| Beacon Hill Staffing Group, LLC | Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 76 | 98.7% | 1.3% |
| Ventois, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 72 | 97.2% | 2.8% |
| Mass General Brigham Incorporated | Health Care and Social Assistance | 66 | 100% | 0% |
| Dassault Systemes Americas, Corp. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 65 | 98.5% | 1.5% |
| Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. | Manufacturing | 65 | 100% | 0% |
| New England Center for Children, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance, Public Administration | 64 | 96.9% | 3.1% |
| Biogen, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 64 | 100% | 0% |
| Tufts University | Educational Services | 59 | 100% | 0% |
| Solution It, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 57 | 96.5% | 3.5% |
| Eliassen Group, LLC | Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services, Educational Services | 57 | 100% | 0% |
| Motional Ad, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 57 | 96.5% | 3.5% |
| The Stepping Stones Group, LLC | Health Care and Social Assistance | 57 | 96.5% | 3.5% |
| Boston College | Educational Services | 54 | 94.4% | 5.6% |
| APPS Associates, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 52 | 96.2% | 3.8% |
| Quantiphi, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 51 | 94.1% | 5.9% |
| Broad Institute | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 51 | 100% | 0% |
| Cytel, Inc. | Information, Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 50 | 96% | 4% |
| Massachusetts General Hospital/Mgpo | Health Care and Social Assistance | 47 | 100% | 0% |
| BJS Wholesale Club, Inc. | Retail Trade, Management of Companies and Enterprises | 47 | 100% | 0% |
| Symbotic, LLC | Manufacturing | 47 | 97.9% | 2.1% |
| Intersystems Corporation | Information, Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 46 | 100% | 0% |
| FMR, LLC | Finance and Insurance | 46 | 100% | 0% |
| Wellington Management Company, LLP | Finance and Insurance | 45 | 100% | 0% |
| Boston Medical Center Corporation | Health Care and Social Assistance | 45 | 100% | 0% |
| John Hancock Life Insurance Company USA | Finance and Insurance | 43 | 97.7% | 2.3% |
| The Devereux Foundation | Finance and Insurance, Health Care and Social Assistance | 42 | 19% | 81% |
| Liberty Mutual Technology Group, Inc. | Finance and Insurance | 42 | 97.6% | 2.4% |
| Liberty Mutual Group, Inc. | Finance and Insurance | 41 | 95.1% | 4.9% |
| Cornerstone Research, Inc. | Retail Trade, Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 41 | 97.6% | 2.4% |
| PTC, Inc. | Information | 39 | 100% | 0% |
| BCT Consulting, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 39 | 100% | 0% |
| Gandara Mental Health Center, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 39 | 97.4% | 2.6% |
| Foundation Medicine, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 38 | 100% | 0% |
| Homesite Group, Inc. | Finance and Insurance | 37 | 100% | 0% |
| Philips North America, LLC | Manufacturing | 37 | 97.3% | 2.7% |
| CRA International, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 36 | 100% | 0% |
| Klaviyo, Inc. | Information | 35 | 97.1% | 2.9% |
| Wayside Youth and Family Support Network, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 35 | 88.6% | 11.4% |
| Parexel International, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 34 | 94.1% | 5.9% |
| National Medical Care a Fresenius Medical Care Na Company, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 34 | 91.2% | 8.8% |
| Netscout Systems, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 34 | 100% | 0% |
| Insulet Corporation | Manufacturing | 34 | 100% | 0% |
| Circle Internet Financial, LLC | Information, Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 33 | 100% | 0% |
| Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Inc. | Health Care and Social Assistance | 31 | 96.8% | 3.2% |
| Bose Corporation | Manufacturing | 31 | 96.8% | 3.2% |
| Ginkgo Bioworks, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 30 | 100% | 0% |
| Source Consulting, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 30 | 96.7% | 3.3% |
| Santander Bank, N A | Finance and Insurance | 30 | 100% | 0% |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Manufacturing | 30 | 100% | 0% |
| EMD Millipore Corporation | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 30 | 100% | 0% |
| Charles River Laboratories, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 30 | 100% | 0% |
| Intellia Therapeutics | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 29 | 96.6% | 3.4% |
| National Grid USA Service Company, Inc. | Utilities | 29 | 100% | 0% |
| DK Crown Holdings, Inc. | Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation | 29 | 100% | 0% |
| Teradyne, Inc. | Manufacturing | 28 | 100% | 0% |
| Brigham and Women S Physician Organization | Health Care and Social Assistance | 28 | 100% | 0% |
| Healthedge Software, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 27 | 100% | 0% |
| Trinity Partners, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 27 | 100% | 0% |
| Alnylam US, Inc. | Manufacturing | 26 | 100% | 0% |
| Cloud Bridge Solutions, Inc. | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 26 | 100% | 0% |
| Entegris, Inc. | Manufacturing | 26 | 100% | 0% |
| Dotcom Team, LLC | Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 26 | 96.2% | 3.8% |
| Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership | Finance and Insurance | 26 | 96.2% | 3.8% |
| Air Worldwide | Finance and Insurance | 26 | 96.2% | 3.8% |