"We only have one Filipino employee, we don't need an EOR."

I hear this constantly. Let's look at the numbers.

One Filipino hire still triggers:

•   SSS registration (mandatory from employee #1)

•   PhilHealth enrollment (mandatory from employee #1)

•   Pag-IBIG registration (mandatory from employee #1)

•   BIR withholding tax compliance (TRAIN Law, from employee #1)

•   13th month pay — no minimum headcount required

  
  

There is no "small enough to skip" threshold in Philippine labor law. One employee = full statutory obligation. EOR isn't a large-company convenience — it's risk transfer for foreign employers who don't have local registration to run payroll compliantly in the first place.

Now the second misconception I see just as often — regularization.

Article 296 of the Labor Code (formerly Art. 281) is short, but most onboarding docs get it wrong:

 Probationary period: max 6 months from the start date

  To validly extend probation OR fail an employee at the 6-month mark, employers must have communicated reasonable standards for regularization at the time of engagement — in writing, ideally in the offer/contract

  No documented standards at hiring = the employee is deemed a regular employee by operation of law, from day one, regardless of what the contract says

  After 6 months without valid just-cause termination, the employee automatically becomes regular — this happens even if no one "confirms" it

Most disputes I review don't hinge on performance. They hinge on missing paperwork at the hiring stage.

If your onboarding docs don't spell out regularization standards in writing, you're carrying legal exposure you probably don't know about — whether you're running payroll for 1 person or 100.

CTA: Pull up your onboarding docs this week. Check if regularization standards are actually written down. If you're not sure, or you're hiring your first Filipino employee as a foreign company — email us: careers@alephtalent.com

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