Country overview
Philippines
Deep English-speaking BPO talent pool across Metro Manila, Cebu and Davao. Minimum wages are set regionally by Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards.
Southeast Asia
How minimum wage works here
Daily rates set per region. Monthly equivalent in the calculator uses the NWPC convention of 313 paid days per year (6-day week) ÷ 12 unless you enter your own salary.
Cities
Employer contributions
SSS (Social Security System)
Employer 10% / employee 5% of Monthly Salary Credit (MSC ₱5,000–₱35,000)
15% total rate continues in 2026. Separate small Employees' Compensation (EC) contribution not modeled.
Source: SSS – Pay Contributions (effective Jan 2025)Last checked Oct 2026PhilHealth
5% of monthly basic salary, split 2.5% / 2.5% (floor ₱10,000, ceiling ₱100,000)
Source: Philippine Information Agency – PhilHealth 2026 rateLast checked Oct 2026Pag-IBIG (HDMF)
Employer 2% of Monthly Fund Salary capped at ₱10,000 (max ₱200/month)
Copy of the official HDMF circular hosted by Grant Thornton Philippines.
Source: Pag-IBIG Fund HDMF Circular No. 460 (Feb 2024 MFS increase)Last checked Oct 2026
13th-month pay
Mandatory: at least 1/12 of total basic salary earned in the calendar year, paid by 24 December
Internet
Ookla Speedtest Global Index
Country median (Aug 2026): fixed 114.34 Mbps down / 104.81 up; mobile 66.33 Mbps down / 8.49 up
Country-level median, not city-specific.
Public holidays 2026
10 regular holidays + 8 special non-working days declared for 2026; Eid'l Fitr and Eid'l Adha are proclaimed separately
Regular holidays
- 1 Jan – New Year's Day
- 2 Apr – Maundy Thursday
- 3 Apr – Good Friday
- 9 Apr – Araw ng Kagitingan
- 1 May – Labor Day
- 12 Jun – Independence Day
- 31 Aug – National Heroes Day
- 30 Nov – Bonifacio Day
- 25 Dec – Christmas Day
- 30 Dec – Rizal Day
Special non-working days
- 17 Feb – Chinese New Year
- 4 Apr – Black Saturday
- 21 Aug – Ninoy Aquino Day
- 1 Nov – All Saints' Day
- 2 Nov – All Souls' Day
- 8 Dec – Feast of the Immaculate Conception
- 24 Dec – Christmas Eve
- 31 Dec – Last day of the year
Power
Awaiting firsthand field notes and an official grid-reliability source.
Entity setup basics
Register a domestic corporation with the SEC. Foreign-owned domestic-market enterprises generally need US$200,000 minimum paid-in capital, reducible to US$100,000 (advanced technology, endorsed startup, or majority-Filipino workforce of at least 15). Export enterprises (60%+ of output exported) can be 100% foreign-owned without that minimum, subject to the Foreign Investment Negative List.
Typical steps
- SEC registration
- BIR (tax) registration
- Local business permit (LGU / city hall)
- SSS, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG employer registration
Timeline and cost
Realistic timeline and cost to come from field notes.
EOR / payroll coverage
| Provider | EOR status | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Deel | Listed | Provider page |
| Remote | Listed | Provider page |
| Multiplier | Listed | Provider page |
Based on each provider's public country page. Confirm coverage, pricing and entity model directly before signing. No affiliate links.
Last checked Oct 2026Field notes from Gregory Dunham: Philippines
Updated Oct 2026
How I set up
Over the years I worked with most of the common structures in the Philippines: a branch office of a foreign company, a regional headquarters for a multinational that started as an RHQ and later became an ROHQ, and two local corporations.
One of those local corporations operated out of a PEZA-registered facility for a period through a local partner. I also had dealings with the BOI (Board of Investments).
The costs on top of salary
The 13th month pay is a big surprise for outsiders. Build it into your budget from day one.
Rice and meal allowances, plus differential pay rates for nights, weekends and holidays, were very burdensome and complicated to administer.
There are lots of paid holidays, special holidays and non-working holidays, and each type has its own pay rules.
Expect regular requests for salary advances. Every company needs a systematic approach to managing them.
Power and backup
Power is reliable in Metro Manila and Cebu. Davao and other provincial cities have occasional outages.
Most large office buildings have backup power, but in-office UPS or other backup equipment is often still required. Many businesses have moved to laptops that plug into monitors, so the setup is portable.
We typically kept at least one redundant ISP as backup.
Talent, English and attrition
English is superior in Manila, but not by a wide margin. Davao and Cebu have plenty of solid English speakers.
There are plenty of people for most job categories, and you'll always get a lot of applicants for any posting. Certain highly specialized roles are harder to fill, but that keeps improving as the years go by.
Davao and other provincial locations see little attrition. Metro Manila sees a bit more. In general, Filipinos tend to stay in their positions if they are happy and fairly compensated.
What I'd tell a US company
Don't expect US-style work culture, productivity or communication styles. Most Filipinos are hard workers who are easily trained, compliant, polite and pleasant to work with. But lower your expectations to match their experience, the culture and local pay levels.
Independent, outside-the-box thinking isn't as valued culturally. Respect for authority structures is highly valued and adhered to. Honest feedback from employees has to be drawn out. Don't assume you're getting it.
What I paid (historical)
- Telehealth company, Metro Manila, 2020. Physicians (medical consultants): PHP 420/hour, about 6.3x the Metro Manila minimum wage at the time (PHP 537/day) and still about 4.4x today's (PHP 755/day). Medical staff: PHP 120–150/hour, about 1.8–2.2x the 2020 minimum; monthly gross mostly PHP 15,000–42,000 (median about PHP 29,500). Non-medical staff: PHP 126–155/hour, about 1.9–2.3x the 2020 minimum; monthly gross PHP 25,000–35,000. We also paid holiday add-ons, a night differential and a monthly lead allowance.
- Telehealth team, 2021–22. Hourly, part-time: physicians PHP 210–300/hour (about 3.1–4.5x the Metro Manila minimum at the time) and nurses PHP 125–135/hour (about 1.9–2.0x).
- Local corporation, Metro Manila, 2017. Seven staff on basic salaries of PHP 16,000–42,000/month (median about PHP 22,000). That was about 1.3x–3.3x the Metro Manila minimum wage at the time (PHP 491/day), and the median was about 1.7x. Everyone also got a flat PHP 3,000/month in tax-free de minimis allowances. The 13th month was accrued at 1/12 of basic and paid in December. For scale, PHP 16,000 would now be below today's minimum of about PHP 19,600/month.
These were competitive rates from a foreign employer, often above average local wages. Treat them as what it takes to hire and keep good people, not the market floor. Figures come from my own payrolls in the years shown. Minimum-wage multiples use the Metro Manila (NCR) non-agriculture daily rate for that year, converted at 8 hours/day or 26 days/month. Pay has moved since, so use the multiples to scale these figures to today. Pay by role for each city stays 'Coming soon' until I have current figures.