Personal remittances from Overseas Filipinos (OFs) grew by 2.9 percent to US$3.24 billion in January 2025 from the US$3.15 billion registered in January 2024. The increase was observed in remittances from both land-based and sea-based workers.
Of the personal remittances from OFs, cash remittances coursed through banks reached US$2.92 billion in January 2025, higher by 2.9 percent than the US$2.84 billion posted in January 2024.
The growth in cash remittances from the Saudi Arabia, United States (U.S.), Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) mainly contributed to the increase in remittances in January 2025. In terms of country sources, the U.S. accounted for the largest share of overall cash remittances in January 2025, followed by Singapore and Saudi Arabia.[1]
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[1] There are some limitations on the remittance data by source. A common practice of remittance centers in various cities abroad is to course remittances through correspondent banks, most of which are located in the U.S. Also, remittances coursed through money couriers cannot be disaggregated by actual country source and are lodged under the country where the main offices are located, which, in many cases, is in the U.S. Therefore, the U.S. would appear to be the main source of OF remittances because banks attribute the origin of funds to the most immediate source. The countries are listed in order of their share of cash remittances, i.e., from highest to lowest.
