To send money to the Philippines with MAJORITY, open the app, select the Philippines, choose mobile wallet, enter your recipient's GCash or PayMaya details, and confirm.
Quick answer
The Philippines is a supported destination served by mobile wallet, to GCash or PayMaya. Bank transfer to a Philippine bank account and cash pickup at a counter are not delivery methods here. You set up the transfer in the app, pick the Philippines, choose mobile wallet, select the wallet your recipient uses, enter their details, and confirm. The funds are delivered in Philippine pesos (PHP) at the exchange rate the app shows you before you confirm.
What you need to know
- To send money to the Philippines from the US, you need an active account, a destination delivery method, and the recipient's name and contact details for that method.
- The Philippines destination supports mobile wallet delivery to 2 wallets, GCash and PayMaya. Bank transfer to a Philippine bank account and cash pickup at a counter are not available on this destination.
- The account is opened in the app with a government-issued ID such as a passport, a US driver's license, or a matrícula consular; an SSN is not required to open the account.
- Transfers can be initiated from the app on your phone; members can also start a Philippines transfer by messaging on WhatsApp, which routes into the same destination.
- The funds are delivered in Philippine pesos at the live USD-to-PHP exchange rate the app quotes before you confirm.
- With the membership at $6.99 per month, money transfers to supported countries are fee-free at the member tier, regardless of delivery method, so there is no per-transfer charge stacked on top of the membership.
Before you send: opening an account
Sending money to the Philippines starts with an active account in the US. The account is opened in the app and verified with a government-issued ID. You do not need an SSN to open the account.
Accepted IDs include:
- Passport from your country of origin
- Driver's license issued by a US state
- Matrícula consular issued by your country's consulate in the US
- Other government-issued IDs accepted in the in-app verification process
The app walks you through the steps: provide your name and address, upload a photo of your ID, take a selfie for identity verification, and submit. Once the account is active, you can fund it and send to the Philippines.
How to send money to the Philippines, step by step
These are the sender-side steps, from opening the app to seeing the transfer marked complete.
- Open the app and sign in.
- Tap Send money and select the Philippines as the destination country.
- Enter the amount you want to send in US dollars. The app shows the live USD-to-PHP exchange rate, the PHP amount your recipient will receive, and the estimated delivery time before you confirm.
- Choose mobile wallet as the delivery method, then select your recipient's wallet, GCash or PayMaya.
- Enter the recipient's details.
- The Philippine mobile number the wallet is registered to, exactly as your recipient gave it to you.
- Your recipient's full legal name as it is registered on the wallet.
- Review the summary: exchange rate, PHP amount the recipient will receive, delivery method, recipient details, and any cost.
- Confirm the transfer. Track the status in the app under your wallet or transfers tab; it moves from Pending to Completed when the funds reach the recipient.
Which wallet your recipient should use
The Philippines destination supports 2 mobile wallets. The table below sets out what each one asks of your recipient.
| Wallet | What your recipient needs | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| GCash | An active GCash account registered to a Philippine mobile number in their own full legal name, verified to a level that accepts the amount you are sending | Recipients who already use GCash for daily payments, bills, and savings |
| PayMaya | An active PayMaya account registered to a Philippine mobile number in their own full legal name, verified to a level that accepts the amount you are sending | Recipients whose main wallet is PayMaya, or who hold PayMaya and not GCash |
Bank transfer to a Philippine bank account and cash pickup at a counter are not available on the Philippines destination. If your recipient would rather hold the money in a bank account, the route is to receive it into a wallet and move it across from inside the wallet app.
What information you need from your recipient
The fields are the same on every Philippines transfer, because there is one delivery method. 4 details cover it.
- Which wallet. GCash or PayMaya. Ask rather than assume, since holding both and checking only one is common.
- Full legal name. Exactly as it is registered on the wallet. Include middle name if the wallet holds it, and avoid nicknames.
- Philippine mobile number. The number the wallet is registered to. Philippine mobile numbers run to 11 digits beginning 09, or the same number in international form beginning +63 with the leading 0 dropped.
- Whether the wallet is verified. A fully verified wallet receives and holds more than a basic one, and verification is completed by your recipient inside their own wallet app using a Philippine government-issued ID such as a passport, the PhilSys national ID, a driver's license, a voter's ID, a postal ID, or a UMID.
Confirming these details in writing with your recipient before you start the transfer is the easiest way to avoid typos that can delay or block the delivery.
How much does it cost to send money to the Philippines?
The cost of a Philippines transfer at the member tier has one component: the exchange-rate margin. With the membership at $6.99 per month, money transfers to supported countries are fee-free regardless of delivery method, so there is no per-transfer charge stacked on top of the membership cost.
The exchange rate the app shows you before confirmation is the rate applied to the conversion from USD to PHP. The total PHP amount the recipient receives is the number you see on the confirmation screen.
Tracking and resolving issues
Every Philippines transfer is visible in the transfers tab inside the app. The status moves through Pending, In Progress, and Completed; if a transfer is held for additional verification, the app prompts you in-flow.
Common reasons a Philippines transfer can be delayed or returned:
- A typo in the recipient's full legal name or in the mobile number the wallet is registered to.
- A name mismatch, where the name the wallet holds does not exactly match the recipient name on the transfer.
- A wallet that is inactive, or registered to a different number than the one you were given.
- The recipient's GCash wallet is on a lower verification tier and the send amount exceeds its receive ceiling.
- An unusual transfer amount that triggers additional verification on the US side.
If a transfer is returned, the funds usually settle back to your balance within a few business days. The cleanest fix is to re-confirm the recipient's details and resend.
What to do next
- Open or sign in to the app to get started.
- Confirm with your recipient which wallet they use, GCash or PayMaya, and which one they actually check.
- Collect the recipient's full legal name as the wallet holds it and the Philippine mobile number the wallet is registered to.
- Enter the amount, review the PHP amount your recipient will receive and the estimated delivery time, and confirm.
- Track the status in the app and stay reachable in case the receiving partner asks the recipient for an additional detail.
How MAJORITY can help
MAJORITY is a financial membership for migrants and newcomers in the US, and the Philippines is one of the more than 30 supported money-transfer routes. The destination covers mobile wallet delivery to GCash and PayMaya, with payout in Philippine pesos (PHP). The membership is $6.99 per month and includes money transfers at the member tier in supported countries, with the PHP amount the recipient will receive shown in the app before each transfer is confirmed.
Frequently asked questions
How do I send money to the Philippines from the US?
Open the app, sign in, tap Send money, and select the Philippines as the destination. Choose mobile wallet, select your recipient's wallet (GCash or PayMaya), enter the Philippine mobile number it is registered to and your recipient's full legal name, review the PHP amount and exchange rate, and confirm.
Can I send money to the Philippines via WhatsApp?
Yes, members can initiate a Philippines transfer by messaging on WhatsApp. The WhatsApp flow asks for the same details as the app and routes into the same Philippines destination, with the PHP amount and exchange rate shown before you confirm.
Do I need an SSN to send money to the Philippines?
No, you do not need an SSN to open an account or to send money to the Philippines. Accepted IDs at account opening include a passport, a US driver's license, a matrícula consular, and other government-issued IDs supported in the in-app verification process.
Which wallets can I send to in the Philippines?
GCash and PayMaya. You pick your recipient's wallet in the app at the point of sending, then enter the Philippine mobile number the wallet is registered to and your recipient's full legal name as registered on the wallet. Bank transfer to a Philippine bank account and cash pickup at a counter are not delivery methods on this destination, so there is no account number and no ID type to collect.
What information do I need from my recipient in the Philippines?
Their full legal name exactly as the wallet holds it, the Philippine mobile number the wallet is registered to, and which of the 2 wallets it belongs to. Asking whether the wallet is verified is worth doing as well, because an unverified wallet has a lower receiving ceiling.
How much does it cost to send money to the Philippines?
With the membership at $6.99 per month, money transfers to supported countries are fee-free at the member tier, regardless of delivery method. The exchange rate applied to the USD-to-PHP conversion is shown in the app before you confirm the transfer, so the total PHP amount the recipient will receive is visible up front.
Disclosures
The MAJORITY app facilitates banking services through Axiom Bank, N.A. ("Axiom"), Member FDIC. The funds deposited in the account held at Axiom, Member FDIC, are FDIC-insured on a pass-through basis up to $250,000 per depositor in the event Axiom fails and subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions. Non-deposit products or services such as money transfers and telecom services are not FDIC-insured.
MAJORITY Visa® Debit Card is issued by Axiom Bank, N.A., Member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc.