Personal Remittances Reach a Record High of US$3.7 Billion in December 2024

Personal remittances from Overseas Filipinos (OFs) grew by 3.0 percent to an all-time high of US$3.73 billion in December 2024 from the US$3.62 billion registered in December 2023.

The increase was observed in remittances from both land-based and sea-based workers.

Correspondingly, cumulative remittances also reached a record high of US$38.34 billion in 2024, higher by 3.0 percent than the US$37.21 billion recorded in 2023.

The full-year 2024 remittances represented 8.3 percent and 7.4 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Gross National Income (GNI), respectively.

Of the personal remittances from OFs, cash remittances coursed through banks reached US$3.38 billion in December 2024, higher by 3.0 percent than the US$3.28 billion posted in December 2023.

On a year-to-date basis, cash remittances rose by 3.0 percent to US$34.49 billion in 2024 from the US$33.49 billion registered in 2023.

The growth in cash remittances from the United States (U.S.), Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) mainly contributed to the increase in remittances in 2024. In terms of country sources, the U.S. accounted for the largest share of overall cash remittances 2024, 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.