How much does a Filipino virtual assistant actually cost an Australian business in 2026?

You've probably seen the numbers online. "Hire a Filipino VA for $6/hour!" "Save 80% on staff costs!" "$400/month for a full-time assistant!"

Most of those numbers are wrong for an Australian business. Some are technically true but leave out the things that actually eat your budget once someone starts working. And a few are just the freelancer rate on Upwork, which is nothing like what you'll pay for a reliable, culture-matched hire who's still with you in 12 months.

Here's what a Filipino virtual assistant actually costs in 2026 if you're an Australian business, with real numbers, no hidden margins, and the parts most agencies won't put in writing.

The number you're comparing against (and why it's wrong)

Before we get to the Filipino side, let's look at what a local admin hire actually costs you. Most business owners quote the base salary and stop there. That number is off by 30-40%.

If you hire an Australian admin at $65,000 base, your true annual cost is:

That's an effective monthly cost of $7,714 for a $65,000 hire. It's why so many Australian small businesses either can't afford admin or end up doing it themselves at 11pm.

If you want to see what your own equivalent number is with real inputs, we built a savings calculator that does this math for you and shows you side-by-side against a StaffPilot VA.

What a Filipino VA through StaffPilot actually costs

We charge one all-in monthly fee that includes:

• The VA's salary paid in the Philippines
• Local PH statutory contributions (SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG)
• Our management fee
• Payroll processing via Wise
• Onboarding, culture training, and Australian-workflow training
• Ongoing account management
• Replacement guarantee if the fit doesn't work

There is nothing else added later. No timesheet upcharges, no "training weeks" you pay for, no recruitment fee at the start.

Typical monthly rates in 2026:

You can see the full breakdown of what each of these roles actually does on our industries hub or our services pages.

Side-by-side: the number that actually matters

Let's take the $65,000 Australian admin from above and compare against a StaffPilot general admin VA at $2,000/month.

That's not marketing spin, that's the actual delta on a $65,000 hire versus a $2,000/month VA over 12 months. On a $75,000 hire the saving climbs to $79,000+. On a $90,000 exec assistant hire it's over $95,000.

What we don't charge for (and what other agencies do)

This is where the sector gets slippery. Here's what to watch for when comparing agencies:

• Setup fee. Some charge $500-$3,000 upfront just to start. We don't.
• Per-hour vs fixed monthly. Hourly billing rewards padding and creates awkward conversations about breaks. Fixed monthly means the VA does the job.
• Training weeks charged separately. Some agencies bill you for the first 2-4 weeks while the VA learns your systems. We include that.
• Software license passthrough with markup. Any tool the VA needs to do your work sits with you, at your cost, direct to the vendor. We don't touch it.
• Payment processing surcharges. We pay VAs via Wise, we cover the fees, and it never appears on your invoice.
• Recruitment fee if you want a specific candidate. We don't do this either. The monthly fee covers everything.

If an agency's quote looks lower than ours but doesn't explicitly list all of the above as included, ask them directly. Get it in writing.

The three things that shift the price

Not every role costs the same. Three factors move the number:

Skill specialisation. A general admin VA is cheaper than a bookkeeper who knows Xero payables. That bookkeeper is cheaper than a construction estimator who can quote from Bluebeam drawings. Deep skill = higher pay in the Philippines = higher monthly fee to you.

English fluency required. VAs who do phone work (real estate cold calling, medical reception, sales support) sit at the top of our pay bands because we hire for near-native accent and phone confidence. Backend VAs who work in tickets or email cost less.

Full-time vs part-time. Our default is 40 hours/week aligned to your local timezone. Part-time (20-25 hours) is available at 60-70% of the full-time rate.

When a Filipino VA doesn't make sense

We turn people away sometimes. Here's when it genuinely doesn't work:

• You need someone in the room physically (site visits, in-person meetings, hardware setup)
• You need Australian legal or medical certification (registered nurse, licensed conveyancer, admitted lawyer)
• You have less than 20 hours a week of ongoing work, you're better with a local freelancer at that volume
• Your workflow lives entirely offline (paper files, no digital systems)
• Your business needs someone with an Australian professional body membership that can't be held by an overseas worker

If any of those apply, we'll tell you at the 15-minute discovery call and point you elsewhere. Not worth wasting your money and our time.

Culture fit and time zones (the parts nobody puts on the pricing page)

The reason Filipino VAs work particularly well for Australian businesses (not just cheaper English-speaking labour):

Time zone. Manila is 2-3 hours behind AEST. Your VA is at their desk when you are. No wake-up-to-a-mess-in-your-inbox arrangement.

Culture. Filipinos have strong service-industry English (customer service, hospitality, healthcare), work well in remote teams, and adapt to Australian business norms fast. Our internal culture training covers things like Australian phrasing, tone, holidays, and the general "she'll be right" energy that catches new hires off guard if nobody explains it.

Retention. Filipino remote workers stay in good roles for years. Our current 92% retention rate isn't a metric we bought, it's what happens when the pay is fair, the manager is patient, and the client is respectful.

We wrote more about how we vet and match candidates in how it works.

A real example (with actual numbers)

One of our clients, a NSW electrical contractor, took on a Filipino admin VA in January 2026. Prior state: their office manager was working 55-hour weeks doing rostering, invoice reconciliation, quote follow-ups, and site coordination for 22 electricians.

Their VA now handles:

• All quote follow-up calls (2-3 days after send)
• Xero invoice entry and reconciliation
• Rostering in ServiceM8
• Certificate of Electrical Safety uploads
• Customer email inbox triage

Monthly cost: $2,100. The office manager is back to 40-hour weeks and now covers business development that was completely dropped before. Estimated added revenue: $4,500/month in previously-lost quote work.

Return on the $2,100 monthly fee: ~114% inside the first quarter, not counting the retention benefit of not losing their office manager.

You can see more examples on our industries hub or read our FAQ for the questions we get asked most.

Frequently asked questions

What's the minimum contract?

There isn't one. Month to month, cancel any time with 30 days' notice. If it's not working we swap the VA at no cost, or you walk. Most clients stay 2+ years.

Is there GST on the fee?

No. Because the service is provided by an offshore worker, GST doesn't apply to your monthly fee.

Can we deduct it as a business expense?

Yes. It's a normal operating expense, deductible in full. Ask your accountant to categorise it under contractor or offshore staffing.

How fast can we get someone in seat?

Typical time from first call to fully onboarded VA is 5 business days. We shortlist within 48 hours, you interview, we handle contracts and setup.

Do I manage them directly or does StaffPilot?

You manage the work, we manage the person. Day-to-day tasks come from you. Performance issues, sick leave, pay disputes, HR: that's on us.

What if it doesn't work out?

We replace at no cost within the first 90 days. After that if there's a fit issue we still don't charge for the replacement, we just require 30 days' notice on the current VA to hand things over cleanly.

Are they full-time employees or contractors?

Contractors, engaged directly by us in the Philippines under a proper Independent Contractor Services Agreement. You never touch that side of it.

Do they take Australian public holidays or Filipino ones?

We default to Australian public holidays because that's when your business is closed anyway. Filipino statutory holidays (there are a lot) are typically worked through, though we're happy to accommodate whatever you prefer.

Next steps if you're actually considering this

Three things you can do in the next 10 minutes:

1. Run the numbers on your specific role. Our savings calculator will show you the exact monthly delta for a role you have in mind, based on your current spend or planned hire. Takes 90 seconds.

2. Book a 15-minute call. Not a sales pitch, just a straight conversation about whether it makes sense for your business. If we don't think it does, we'll say so. Book here.

3. See who's already trained and available. Our current talent pool has profiles of VAs actively looking for a role, with their skill level, English proficiency, and pay expectations visible.

Whatever you do, don't take the "$6/hour VA" numbers at face value. The all-in cost of anything worth having is more than the headline rate. What we've laid out above is the honest picture, and even at those all-in numbers, hiring a Filipino VA through StaffPilot still saves you between $60,000 and $95,000 per role per year versus hiring locally.