How to Register Your Employees in the Philippines with BIR, SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG Fund

Every registered company in the Philippines is legally required to report new hires to four government agencies: the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the Social Security System (SSS), the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), and the Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG Fund). This isn’t paperwork for its own sake — it’s what activates an employee’s legal right to tax withholding, retirement and sickness protection, health insurance, and housing savings under the Labor Code of the Philippines.

Skipping or delaying this step exposes your company to real financial risk. Late registration and late remittances carry monthly interest, surcharges, and — in some cases — criminal liability for company officers. This guide walks through what’s required in 2026, including the current contribution rates, deadlines, and the online systems that have replaced most of the old paper-based processes.

A note on accuracy: Contribution rates and salary brackets are adjusted periodically by law or agency circular. The figures below reflect the rates in effect for 2026. Always cross-check against the official agency portal before finalizing payroll — links are provided at the end of this guide.

Quick Reference: 2026 At a Glance

The Six Mandatory Benefits — and Their Legal Basis

Every rank-and-file employee of a private company in the Philippines is automatically entitled to:

1. SSS Contributions — social insurance against disability, sickness, old age, and death (RA 11199)
2. PhilHealth Contributions — subsidized hospitalization and medical care (RA 11223)
3. Pag-IBIG Fund Contributions — provident savings and access to housing loans (RA 9679)
4. 13th Month Pay — equivalent to one-twelfth of annual basic salary, mandatory under Presidential Decree No. 851
5. Service Incentive Leave — at least 5 days of paid leave per year for employees with at least one year of service, under Article 95 of the Labor Code
6. Meal and Rest Periods — at least 60 minutes for meals and adequate rest periods during the workday, under Articles 83–85 of the Labor Code

The first three are funded through monthly contributions shared between employer and employee and remitted directly to each agency. Missing a remittance deadline doesn’t just cost your company money in penalties — it can also suspend the employee’s eligibility for benefits precisely when they need them (e.g., a maternity or hospitalization claim).

Before You Register a Single Employee: Register Your Business First

This is the step most first-time employers miss. You cannot report a new hire to any of these agencies until your company itself is registered as an employer with each one. If you haven’t done this yet:

• BIR: Secure your Certificate of Registration (BIR Form 2303) and your Authority to Print/Register as a withholding agent for compensation income.
• SSS: File Form R-1 (Employer Registration) to obtain an Employer (ER) Number, then enroll a My.SSS Employer account online.
• PhilHealth: Submit the ER1 (Employer Data Record) to the PhilHealth branch where your business is registered.
• Pag-IBIG: Register your business through Virtual Pag-IBIG or your servicing branch to get an Employer ID Number.

Once your ER/employer numbers exist, every subsequent new hire is reported under that existing registration — you don’t repeat this step per employee.

Step-by-Step: Registering a New Employee

1. Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)

The BIR is the Philippines’ taxing authority. It requires anyone earning compensation income — Filipino or foreign, employed locally — to have a Tax Identification Number (TIN) and to have the correct tax withheld from every payroll.

For new employees without a TIN: Have the employee complete BIR Form 1902 (Application for Registration for Individuals Earning Purely Compensation Income). This can now be filed two ways:

• Online, through the BIR’s Online Registration and Update System (ORUS) at orus.bir.gov.ph, which typically issues the TIN electronically the same day; or
• In person, at the Revenue District Office (RDO) that covers your company’s registered address.

For new employees with an existing TIN:

• If their previous TIN is registered with the same RDO as your company: file BIR Form 2305 (Certificate of Update of Exemption and of Employer’s and Employee’s Information) to update their records.
• If their previous TIN is registered with a different RDO: file BIR Form 1905 (Registration Information Update) to transfer their registration to the RDO covering your company.

Remind employees that having more than one TIN is illegal under the National Internal Revenue Code and carries penalties — the fix is always to update an existing TIN, never apply for a new one.

Ongoing employer obligations:

• Withhold income tax every payroll using the graduated TRAIN Law table (unchanged since January 2023, and still in effect for 2026):

• File BIR Form 1601-C monthly to remit withheld taxes.
• Issue BIR Form 2316 (Certificate of Compensation Payment/Tax Withheld) to every employee by January 31 of the following year.
• Note that 13th month pay and other bonuses are tax-exempt up to ₱90,000/year; amounts beyond that are taxable.

2. Social Security System (SSS)

Under the Social Security Act of 2018 (RA 11199), all private-sector employees — regular, probationary, project-based, and household workers (kasambahay) alike — must be covered by SSS. (Public-sector employees are covered instead by the GSIS.)

For new employees without an SSS number: Have them register with SSS, either online or at a branch, to obtain a permanent SS number, then provide that number to you.

For new employees with an existing SSS number: They simply submit their number to your HR/payroll team.

Employer’s next step — Employment Report: File SSS Form R-1A listing the new hire’s SS number and employment details. This must be submitted within 30 days of the employee’s start date, either at the SSS branch where your company is registered or through your company’s My.SSS Employer online account.

2026 contribution rate:

• Total contribution: 15% of the employee’s Monthly Salary Credit (MSC)
• Split: 10% employer, 5% employee
• MSC range: ₱5,000 minimum to ₱35,000 maximum (OFW minimum ₱8,000; kasambahay minimum ₱1,000)
• Employees’ Compensation (EC) contribution, paid solely by the employer: ₱10/month if MSC is below ₱15,000, or ₱30/month if MSC is ₱15,000 and above
• Contributions on the MSC portion above ₱20,000 are credited to the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF), a supplementary retirement account layered on top of the regular pension

Example: An employee with a ₱20,000 MSC contributes ₱1,000 (5%); the employer contributes ₱2,000 (10%) plus ₱30 EC — a total monthly remittance of ₱3,030.

Remittance deadline: on or before the last day of the month following the applicable payroll month.

3. Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth)

Under the Universal Health Care Act (RA 11223), all employees — public and private — must be enrolled in the National Health Insurance Program administered by PhilHealth.

For new employees: Every new hire completes and signs a PhilHealth Member Registration Form (PMRF), regardless of whether they were already a PhilHealth member. Existing members simply provide their PhilHealth Identification Number (PIN).

Employer’s next step: Submit the completed PMRF(s) together with PhilHealth Form ER2 (Report of Employee-Members) to the PhilHealth office where your business is registered, within 30 days of the employee’s date of hire.

2026 contribution rate:

• Total premium: 5% of monthly basic salary — this is the final scheduled rate under RA 11223, with no further increase planned
• Split: 2.5% employer, 2.5% employee
• Income floor: ₱10,000 (minimum monthly premium ₱500)
• Income ceiling: ₱100,000 (maximum monthly premium ₱5,000)

Example: An employee earning ₱30,000/month pays ₱750; the employer matches with ₱750 — a ₱1,500 total monthly premium.

Remittance: through the Electronic Premium Remittance System (EPRS), generally due in the second half of the month following the applicable payroll month (the exact day depends on your employer number).

Late payment penalty: interest of roughly 3% per month for employers on unremitted amounts.

4. Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG Fund)

Pag-IBIG’s current governing law is RA 9679 (the HDMF Law of 2009). It’s a provident savings fund that gives members access to low-interest housing loans, multi-purpose loans, and calamity loans, with mandatory coverage tied to employees who are already covered by SSS or GSIS.

For new employees: Employees without a Pag-IBIG Membership ID (MID) Number register online through Virtual Pag-IBIG, or submit a Member’s Data Form (MDF) at a branch, to get one.

Employer’s next step: Report the new hire in your next contribution filing by listing them (marked “NH” for Newly Hired, or “N” with the hire date) on the Membership Savings Remittance Form (MSRF), submitted manually or through the Electronic Submission of Remittance System (eSRS) on the Pag-IBIG website (available to employers with 30 or fewer employees; larger employers use the standard electronic file upload).

2026 contribution rate:

• Standard split: 2% employer, 2% employee
• Reduced employee rate: 1% for employees earning ₱1,500 or below per month (employer still contributes 2%)
• Maximum Fund Salary (MFS) cap: ₱10,000, per HDMF Circular No. 460 (effective February 2024) — so the maximum contribution is ₱200 employer + ₱200 employee = ₱400/month, regardless of how much more the employee actually earns

Remittance deadline: generally on or before the 10th day of the month following the applicable payroll month (some employer schedules extend to the 15th).

Late payment penalty: roughly 1/10 of 1% per day of delay.

Don’t Forget: Reporting Separated Employees

Registration obligations don’t end at onboarding. When an employee resigns, is terminated, or retires, employers must also report the separation — generally within 30 days — so contributions stop accruing and the employee’s records reflect their correct status:

• SSS: report the separation (historically via Form R-1A/AL2, now largely through the My.SSS employer portal)
• PhilHealth: update the employee’s status through your ER reporting
• Pag-IBIG: mark the separation on your next MSRF or through eSRS

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Beyond financial penalties, persistent non-remittance of amounts already deducted from an employee’s payslip can expose responsible company officers to criminal liability — Philippine courts have upheld convictions in such cases (e.g., under Pag-IBIG’s RA 9679).

Common Mistakes Employers Make

• Registering the employee before registering the business. You need your own ER/Employer numbers with each agency first.
• Using outdated contribution tables. SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG rates have all changed within the last two years — a payroll system running last year’s brackets will misstate every deduction.
• Missing the 30-day window. SSS and PhilHealth both expect new-hire reports within 30 days of the start date; Pag-IBIG expects it by the next contribution cycle.
• Forgetting probationary, project-based, or part-time staff. Coverage is based on the existence of an employer-employee relationship, not regularization status.
• Skipping BIR Form 2316 at year-end. Employees need this to file (or be excused from filing) their own annual income tax return.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to register an employee who is still on probation? Yes. Coverage is triggered by the employer-employee relationship, not by regularization.

What if an employee already has an SSS number, TIN, PhilHealth PIN, and Pag-IBIG MID from a previous job? You don’t create new numbers — you update their records to reflect your company as the current employer (BIR Form 2305/1905, SSS R-1A, PhilHealth ER2, and the Pag-IBIG MSRF, respectively).

Can I do all of this online now? Mostly, yes. BIR registration runs through ORUS, SSS through My.SSS, Pag-IBIG through Virtual Pag-IBIG/eSRS, and PhilHealth through EPRS for remittances (PMRF submission for brand-new members still typically requires visiting or coordinating with a PhilHealth branch).

What happens if my company simply doesn’t remit what was deducted from payroll? The employee’s benefit eligibility can be suspended, the company accrues escalating interest and surcharges, and — in serious or repeated cases — officers can face criminal charges.

Official Sources to Verify Current Rates

• BIR: bir.gov.ph and orus.bir.gov.ph
• SSS: sss.gov.ph
• PhilHealth: philhealth.gov.ph
• Pag-IBIG Fund: pagibigfund.gov.ph

This guide is for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal, tax, or accounting advice. Verify current rates, forms, and deadlines with each agency before filing.