Employer of record in Philippines: cost and rules (2026)

Employing someone in Philippines costs the employer about 18.3% on top of gross salary in statutory contributions, plus an EOR fee of $199 to $699 per month at providers that publish prices ("from" prices). Example: a gross salary of PHP 50,000 per month costs PHP 59,147 per month (about $927) before any EOR fee.

Rates checked: 2026-11-13. On top of gross pay the employer pays social security (SSS) with a small employee-compensation fee, health insurance (PhilHealth) and the Pag-IBIG housing fund, each limited by a salary ceiling. A mandatory 13th-month pay equal to one twelfth of basic pay is added as an accrual.

Estimates only, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Statutory rates, limits and provider prices change; check the linked sources and ask a qualified adviser before you hire.

Employer contributions in Philippines

Employer contribution	Rate	Base and limits	Source
SSS social security (employer share)	10%	gross pay; minimum base PHP 5,000/month; capped at PHP 35,000/month The total rate is 15% of the Monthly Salary Credit (MSC) from 2025: employer 10%, employee 5%. The MSC runs from PHP 5,000 to PHP 35,000, so the base is gross limited to that range. MSC above PHP 20,000 goes to the member's Pension Booster account but is paid at the same split. The real MSC moves in PHP 500 steps; the calculator uses exact gross, a difference of under PHP 25 a month. The SSS page shows the 2025 schedule; no change for 2026 was found.	SSS - Pay Contributions (official)
SSS Employees' Compensation (EC), MSC 15,000 and above	PHP 30.00	Fixed PHP 30.00 per month Only if gross pay is at or above PHP 14,750 Paid by the employer only. SSS states PHP 30 for an MSC of 15,000 and above. The calculator applies it from gross 14,750, where the 15,000 bracket starts.	SSS - Pay Contributions (official)
SSS Employees' Compensation (EC), MSC 14,500 and below	PHP 10.00	Fixed PHP 10.00 per month Only if gross pay is below PHP 14,750 Paid by the employer only. SSS states PHP 10 for an MSC of 14,500 and below.	SSS - Pay Contributions (official)
PhilHealth health insurance (employer half)	2.5%	gross pay; minimum base PHP 10,000/month; capped at PHP 100,000/month The premium is 5% of monthly basic salary, split equally, so the employer pays 2.5%. Salary below PHP 10,000 is treated as 10,000 (premium PHP 500, employer PHP 250); above PHP 100,000 it is capped (premium PHP 5,000, employer PHP 2,500). The base is basic salary only (not overtime, allowances, 13th month or bonuses); the calculator treats gross as basic. These limits come from PhilHealth Advisory 2025-0002; no 2026 advisory changing them was found.	PhilHealth Advisory No. 2025-0002 (official); 5% rate also in Advisory 2026-0042
Pag-IBIG (HDMF) housing fund (employer share)	2%	gross pay; capped at PHP 10,000/month The employer pays 2% of monthly fund salary, capped at the Maximum Fund Salary of PHP 10,000 (since February 2024), so at most PHP 200. The employee pays the same.	Pag-IBIG Fund Circular No. 460 (official)
13th-month pay (mandatory)	8.3333% (accrual)	gross pay Not less than 1/12 of total basic salary earned in the calendar year, paid by 24 December (it may be split). It excludes overtime, allowances and bonuses; the calculator treats gross as basic. It covers rank-and-file staff; managers are generally outside the rule but often get it by contract.	DOLE Bureau of Working Conditions - FAQs on 13th Month Pay; also DOLE/NWPC 2023 Handbook on Workers' Statutory Monetary Benefits

Minimum wage: PHP 19,693 per month. The Metro Manila (NCR) non-agricultural daily minimum is PHP 755 under Wage Order NCR-28, effective 26 September 2026 (it was PHP 695). The monthly figure is 755 x 313 / 12, the DOLE factor for daily-paid staff who are not paid on rest days. Small retail and service firms (15 or fewer workers) and small manufacturers (fewer than 10) have a lower daily rate of PHP 718. Other regions pay less. The further PHP 25 step of Wage Order NCR-27 is held up in court and is not counted. The daily rate comes from several news reports citing the DOLE announcement; the wage order text itself was not reachable. Source: GMA News and Lockton (NCR-28, PHP 755, from 26 Sept 2026), confirmed by SunStar, Tribune and Philstar; monthly factor from the DOLE/NWPC Handbook on Workers' Statutory Monetary Benefits secondary

Worked example: PHP 50,000 gross per month

Item	Base (PHP)	Per month (PHP)
SSS social security (employer share)	35,000	3,500
SSS Employees' Compensation (EC), MSC 15,000 and above	fixed	30
PhilHealth health insurance (employer half)	50,000	1,250
Pag-IBIG (HDMF) housing fund (employer share)	10,000	200
13th-month pay (mandatory)	50,000	4,167
Gross salary		50,000
Total employer cost (mandatory items)		59,147

Contractor, EOR or own entity in Philippines

Option	Per month	Per month (USD)	Per year	Notes
Contractor	PHP 51,212 to 53,126	$803 to $833	PHP 614,543 to 637,506	No employer contributions. Misclassification risk. Includes contractor-platform fee range.
Employer of record	PHP 71,840 to 103,733	$1,126 to $1,626	PHP 862,081 to 1,244,798	Salary + statutory costs + EOR fee range.
Own legal entity	PHP 59,147	$927	PHP 709,760	Salary + statutory costs. Setup, accounting and legal costs are not estimated.

Contractor

Engaging an individual as an independent contractor is common, but Philippine labour law looks at actual control over the work. A person who works under the company's direction and schedule can be ruled a regular employee, bringing 13th-month pay, service incentive leave, social contributions and security-of-tenure claims. A genuine contractor pays their own SSS, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG. This is general guidance and has no single official source. Source: nwpc.dole.gov.ph

Own entity

A foreign-owned company serving the domestic market needs at least US$200,000 paid-in capital (US$100,000 for startups endorsed under RA 11137 or advanced-technology firms). Below that, foreign ownership is limited to 40% under the amended Foreign Investments Act (RA 11647). Corporations register with the SEC. Setup time and costs are not covered here. Source: forvismazars.com

Leave, notice, probation and termination

Annual leave: 5 days (The statutory minimum is Service Incentive Leave: 5 paid days after 1 year of service, convertible to cash if unused. There is no other statutory vacation leave; employers often give more by contract. The 10 regular holidays fixed for 2026 are paid. The 8 special non-working days are no work, no pay unless the employer chooses otherwise. Eid'l Fitr and Eid'l Adha are proclaimed separately and may add regular holidays.). Public holidays: 10. Source: DOLE/NWPC Handbook on Workers' Statutory Monetary Benefits (leave); 2026 holiday list from Proclamation No. 1006 s. 2025 as reported by PTV News and assistance.ph (lawphil and the Official Gazette were not reachable)

Notice

For dismissal for an authorized cause (redundancy, retrenchment, closure, labour-saving devices), the employer must give written notice to the employee and to the DOLE regional office at least one month before the termination date. Dismissal for just cause follows a separate two-notice procedure. Source: nwpc.dole.gov.ph

Probation

Probation may not exceed six months from the start date, and the employee must be told the standards for becoming regular when hired, or they are treated as regular. Staying on after probation means regular status. This comes from a law-firm article, not an official text. Source: ndvlaw.com

Termination

Dismissal for an authorized cause requires separation pay. For retrenchment, closure not due to losses and similar cases it is at least one month's pay or half a month per year of service, whichever is higher. For labour-saving devices and redundancy it is one month's pay per year of service. A part-year of 6 months or more counts as a full year. Unlawful dismissal can lead to reinstatement and back pay. Source: nwpc.dole.gov.ph

What the calculator simplifies

SSS uses MSC steps of PHP 500; the calculator applies 10% to exact gross limited to 5,000-35,000 (error under PHP 25 a month).
PhilHealth and the 13th month apply to basic salary; the calculator treats gross as basic, so overtime and allowances are ignored.
Service incentive leave and paid regular holidays are not added as cash cost (already inside salary). Unused leave cash-out is not included.
Employee-side deductions (SSS 5%, PhilHealth 2.5%, Pag-IBIG 2%, withholding tax) are not included. Maternity and paternity benefits advanced by the employer and reimbursed by SSS are not included.
The minimum wage shown is for Metro Manila only; other regions are lower. The monthly figure uses the factor 313.

EOR provider prices

Provider	EOR price (USD)	Contractor price (USD)	Billing and deposit	Source and checked
Skuad	from $199 Starting price	from $19 Contractor management from $19; agent of record from $99	Not published Not published	price page 2026-11-13
RemotePeople	from $499 EOR Global from $499; a cheaper 'Select' plan from $199 has conditions on country and salary	from $29 Contractor management $29 (the page says per payout in one place and per contractor per month in another)	Not published Not published	price page 2026-11-13
Deel	from $599 Starting price	from $49 Contractor plan from $49; contractor of record from $325	Not published Not published	price page 2026-11-13
G-P (Globalization Partners)	from $599 Starting price	from $39 From $39 per contractor, charged only in months with a paid invoice	Not published Not published	price page 2026-11-13
Remote	from $599 Starting price on annual contracts	from $29 Contractor management $29; Plus (with misclassification protection) $99; contractor of record $325	Annual contracts for EOR No setup fee; a refundable reserve may be required in some cases	price page 2026-11-13
Oyster	from $699 List price; annual billing discount exists (amount not published)	from $29 Global contractors $29 per contractor per month, 30-day free trial	Monthly or annual No setup fee; refundable deposit for EOR employees (amount not published)	price page 2026-11-13
Rippling	Price on request (custom quote)	Price on request	Not published Not published	price page 2026-11-13
Multiplier	not verified Not verified: the pricing page could not be read on the check date; third-party sites quote different figures	Not verified	Not verified Not verified	price page unverified 2026-11-13
Papaya Global	not verified Not verified: the pricing page could not be read on the check date; third-party sites quote different figures	Not verified	Not verified Not verified	price page unverified 2026-11-13

Prices are "from" (starting) prices as shown on each provider's own page, usually per employee per month. What you pay can be higher and depends on country, headcount and contract length. "Not verified" means we could not read the provider's price page on the check date; we show no number rather than a guess. Sorted by price, lowest first; providers without a verified price come last.

Affiliate disclosure: some links to providers may be affiliate links. If you sign up through one, we may be paid at no extra cost to you. Tables are sorted by price, not by what a provider pays us. Read the disclosure.

Calculator for Philippines

FAQ

How much does it cost to employ someone in Philippines?

On top of gross salary, statutory employer costs add about 18.3% at a gross salary of PHP 50,000 per month. That is a total of PHP 59,147 per month before any EOR fee.

How much does an employer of record cost in Philippines?

Providers with a published price list EOR plans from $199 to $699 per month ("from" prices, checked 2026-11-13). This is on top of salary and the statutory employer costs above. Source

How much paid leave do employees get in Philippines?

Annual leave is 5 days (The statutory minimum is Service Incentive Leave: 5 paid days after 1 year of service, convertible to cash if unused. There is no other statutory vacation leave; employers often give more by contract. The 10 regular holidays fixed for 2026 are paid. The 8 special non-working days are no work, no pay unless the employer chooses otherwise. Eid'l Fitr and Eid'l Adha are proclaimed separately and may add regular holidays.), plus 10 public holidays. Source

What is the notice period in Philippines?

Is there a probation period in Philippines?

What are the rules on ending employment in Philippines?

Sources

Rates checked: 2026-11-13.