Central Visayas · Updated 2026-10-20
Your template goes out in English or Filipino. The answer comes back in Bisaya. Plan for both halves.
Cebu reads your template in English and writes back in Bisaya. Approve the first half with Meta, staff the second half with someone who can answer, and the conversation works.
For India-based businesses with distributors, clients, staff or community customers in Cebu City: which languages a template can use when the city answers in Cebuano, how Cebu numbers are written, when to send on Philippine time, and what each message to a +63 number costs in rupees.
See it work
The message you start and the message you answer follow different rules. In Cebu the difference shows up first in the language.
The trap for an Indian team is to assume that the language customers write in is the language Meta will approve. A Cebu distributor who asks "Asa na ang akong order?" (where is my order now?) can be answered in Cebuano, but the dispatch notice that started the thread had to be an approved template in English or Filipino.
Plan the two halves separately. Templates go through the template manager once per language. Replies need people: route Cebu threads in the shared inbox to whoever on your side can read them, and leave a private note when a thread needs a translation.
Compared on
Template
You write first, in English or Filipino
Reply in the window
They wrote first, often in Bisaya
Verdict
Write the template in English or Filipino; put someone who reads Bisaya on the reply desk.
Verdict: Write the template in English or Filipino; put someone who reads Bisaya on the reply desk.
Market brief
From the Embassy of India in Manila, the Cebu Port Authority and the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The Embassy of India in Manila estimates the Indian diaspora in the Philippines at more than 70,000, living mostly around Metro Manila, Davao City and Cebu.[1]
The Embassy says Indian investment in the Philippines has gone mainly into IT and IT-enabled services, with pharmaceuticals among the other sectors.[1]
Indian pharmaceutical products made up 15.96% of the Philippines' pharmaceutical imports in 2023, and the Embassy calls India one of the country's largest pharma suppliers.[1]
Trade between India and the Philippines reached US$3.5 billion in 2023-24, according to the Embassy.[1]
Cebu's ports have their own authority: the Cebu Port Authority, created by Republic Act No. 7621 in 1992 and operating since 1 January 1996, administers all ports in Cebu Province.[2]
The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry counts more than 800 member companies and calls itself the largest local business membership organisation in the Philippines.[3]
Who in India ends up writing to a Cebu number, and the first messages each of them sends.
IT and ITES are where most Indian investment in the Philippines has gone; in Cebu, the IT Park and Business Park districts host regional offices in IT, banking and finance.[1],[4]
India is one of the Philippines' largest pharma suppliers, but Meta's policy bars drug sales on WhatsApp, so orders, batches and prices stay on email or a portal.[1]
The Embassy names Cebu with Metro Manila and Davao City as where the diaspora lives; Indian banks, stores and travel firms write to those families.[1]
Goods for the Visayas move through ports the Cebu Port Authority runs, and the consignee wants to know where the container is.[2]
Cebu City is known as the oldest city in the Philippines: Magellan's expedition landed here in 1521 and Legazpi's in 1565. Most of the city speaks Cebuano day to day, and English is the main formal language of its schools, which is why an English template is rarely the problem in Cebu. The reply is where Bisaya appears.
The Philippines keeps one clock, UTC+8, with no daylight saving, so Cebu is always two and a half hours ahead of India. A Cebu morning at 09:00 is 06:30 in India; a Cebu evening at 18:00 is 15:30. A broadcast scheduled for an Indian mid-morning reaches Cebu around lunch.
Plan around the third Sunday of January. Sinulog, the festival for the Santo Niño centred on the Basilica del Santo Niño, fills the city that weekend; a greeting to opted-in customers is a marketing template, and a delivery promised for that week deserves an honest utility update if it slips.
Meta approves each language version of a template separately. For Cebu, three cover nearly every case.
Cebuano (Bisaya) is not on Meta's template language list, so a template cannot be submitted in it. Customers can still write in Cebuano, and your agents can answer in it inside the 24-hour window.
| Language | Meta code | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| English | en | B2B, IT services and most transactional updates |
| Filipino | fil | The national language, for consumer templates |
| Hindi | hi | For Indian residents of Cebu who prefer it |
Prices in ₹ and PHP
Philippine numbers are billed at the Rest of Asia Pacific line of Meta's rate card: ₹7.41 for marketing, ₹0.9938 for utility, ₹0.9938 for authentication and ₹0.9938 for a service reply, in rupees before GST. Plans start at ₹999 a month.
Snapshot rates · as of 20 Oct 2026, 00:02 UTC
Lite
₹999 / month≈ ₱662.27 PHP
₹833 / month, billed yearly≈ ₱552.22 PHP
Everything a growing business needs to run WhatsApp properly.
Growth
₹2,999 / month≈ ₱1,988.12 PHP
₹2,499 / month, billed yearly≈ ₱1,656.66 PHP
Lite, plus the API, automation and team scale serious senders need.
Enterprise
Custom volume pricing, custom SLA and dedicated infrastructure.
Per message to Cebu City · Rest of Asia Pacific (regional rate)
| Category | ₹ INR | PHP |
|---|---|---|
| Marketing | ₹7.4057 | ₱4.91 |
| Utility | ₹0.9938 | ₱0.659 |
| Authentication | ₹0.9938 | ₱0.659 |
| Service | ₹0.9938 | ₱0.659 |
| Market | Marketing | Utility | Authentication | Service |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | ₱3.60₹5.4352 | ₱1.52₹2.2874 | ₱1.52₹2.2874 | ₱1.52₹2.2874 |
| Bangladesh | ₱4.27₹6.4397 | ₱0.216₹0.3254 | ₱0.216₹0.3254 | ₱0.216₹0.3254 |
| Brazil | ₱3.64₹5.4970 | ₱0.396₹0.5981 | ₱0.396₹0.5981 | ₱0.396₹0.5981 |
| Chile | ₱5.18₹7.8162 | ₱1.17₹1.7585 | ₱1.17₹1.7585 | ₱1.17₹1.7585 |
| Colombia | ₱0.729₹1.0993 | ₱0.0468₹0.0706 | ₱0.0468₹0.0706 | ₱0.0468₹0.0706 |
| Egypt | ₱3.75₹5.6629 | ₱0.210₹0.3167 | ₱0.210₹0.3167 | ₱0.210₹0.3167 |
| France | ₱5.01₹7.5588 | ₱1.75₹2.6393 | ₱1.75₹2.6393 | ₱1.75₹2.6393 |
| Germany | ₱7.96₹12.0088 | ₱3.21₹4.8386 | ₱3.21₹4.8386 | ₱3.21₹4.8386 |
| Hong Kong | ₱4.27₹6.4397 | ₱1.52₹2.2867 | ₱1.52₹2.2867 | ₱1.52₹2.2867 |
| Hungary | ₱5.01₹7.5596 | ₱2.04₹3.0700 | ₱2.04₹3.0700 | ₱2.04₹3.0700 |
| India | ₱0.625₹0.9435 | ₱0.129₹0.1941 | ₱0.0929₹0.1402 | ₱0.0961₹0.1450 |
| Indonesia | ₱2.40₹3.6133 | ₱1.46₹2.1979 | ₱1.46₹2.1979 | ₱1.46₹2.1979 |
| Iraq | ₱1.99₹2.9992 | ₱0.460₹0.6943 | ₱0.460₹0.6943 | ₱0.460₹0.6943 |
| Israel | ₱2.06₹3.1045 | ₱0.309₹0.4662 | ₱0.309₹0.4662 | ₱0.309₹0.4662 |
| Italy | ₱4.63₹6.9847 | ₱1.75₹2.6369 | ₱1.75₹2.6369 | ₱1.75₹2.6369 |
| Kazakhstan | ₱3.52₹5.3098 | ₱1.05₹1.5824 | ₱1.05₹1.5824 | ₱1.05₹1.5824 |
| Kuwait | ₱4.62₹6.9671 | ₱2.56₹3.8671 | ₱2.56₹3.8671 | ₱2.56₹3.8671 |
| Malaysia | ₱5.01₹7.5644 | ₱0.816₹1.2314 | ₱0.816₹1.2314 | ₱0.816₹1.2314 |
| Mexico | ₱2.31₹3.4877 | ₱0.495₹0.7471 | ₱0.495₹0.7471 | ₱0.495₹0.7471 |
| Morocco | ₱2.41₹3.6425 | ₱1.34₹2.0218 | ₱1.34₹2.0218 | ₱1.34₹2.0218 |
| Netherlands | ₱9.31₹14.0494 | ₱2.92₹4.3987 | ₱2.92₹4.3987 | ₱2.92₹4.3987 |
| Nepal | ₱4.27₹6.4397 | ₱0.198₹0.2990 | ₱0.198₹0.2990 | ₱0.198₹0.2990 |
| Nigeria | ₱3.01₹4.5421 | ₱0.391₹0.5898 | ₱0.391₹0.5898 | ₱0.391₹0.5898 |
| Oman | ₱1.99₹2.9992 | ₱1.44₹2.1709 | ₱1.44₹2.1709 | ₱1.44₹2.1709 |
| Pakistan | ₱2.76₹4.1620 | ₱0.875₹1.3200 | ₱0.875₹1.3200 | ₱0.875₹1.3200 |
| Peru | ₱4.10₹6.1843 | ₱1.75₹2.6392 | ₱1.75₹2.6392 | ₱1.75₹2.6392 |
| Poland | ₱2.13₹3.2105 | ₱0.709₹1.0702 | ₱0.709₹1.0702 | ₱0.709₹1.0702 |
| Qatar | ₱1.99₹2.9992 | ₱0.699₹1.0547 | ₱0.699₹1.0547 | ₱0.699₹1.0547 |
| Romania | ₱5.01₹7.5596 | ₱1.69₹2.5436 | ₱1.69₹2.5436 | ₱1.69₹2.5436 |
| Russia | ₱4.67₹7.0520 | ₱2.33₹3.5173 | ₱2.33₹3.5173 | ₱2.33₹3.5173 |
| Saudi Arabia | ₱3.35₹5.0537 | ₱0.623₹0.9401 | ₱0.623₹0.9401 | ₱0.623₹0.9401 |
| Singapore | ₱4.27₹6.4397 | ₱0.933₹1.4072 | ₱0.933₹1.4072 | ₱0.933₹1.4072 |
| South Africa | ₱2.21₹3.3385 | ₱0.555₹0.8369 | ₱0.555₹0.8369 | ₱0.555₹0.8369 |
| Spain | ₱4.12₹6.2161 | ₱1.17₹1.7578 | ₱1.17₹1.7578 | ₱1.17₹1.7578 |
| Sri Lanka | ₱4.27₹6.4397 | ₱0.117₹0.1759 | ₱0.117₹0.1759 | ₱0.117₹0.1759 |
| Turkey | ₱0.636₹0.9587 | ₱0.0525₹0.0792 | ₱0.0525₹0.0792 | ₱0.0525₹0.0792 |
| Ukraine | ₱5.01₹7.5596 | ₱1.73₹2.6138 | ₱1.73₹2.6138 | ₱1.73₹2.6138 |
| United Arab Emirates | ₱3.35₹5.0537 | ₱0.916₹1.3811 | ₱0.916₹1.3811 | ₱0.916₹1.3811 |
| United Kingdom | ₱3.70₹5.5795 | ₱1.28₹1.9346 | ₱1.28₹1.9346 | ₱1.28₹1.9346 |
| North America | ₱1.46₹2.1976 | ₱0.198₹0.2989 | ₱0.198₹0.2989 | ₱0.198₹0.2989 |
| Rest of Africa | ₱1.31₹1.9796 | ₱0.233₹0.3516 | ₱0.233₹0.3516 | ₱0.233₹0.3516 |
| Rest of Asia Pacific | ₱4.91₹7.4057 | ₱0.659₹0.9938 | ₱0.659₹0.9938 | ₱0.659₹0.9938 |
| Rest of Central & Eastern Europe | ₱5.01₹7.5596 | ₱1.23₹1.8595 | ₱1.23₹1.8595 | ₱1.23₹1.8595 |
| Rest of Latin America | ₱4.31₹6.5048 | ₱0.659₹0.9934 | ₱0.659₹0.9934 | ₱0.659₹0.9934 |
| Rest of Middle East | ₱2.29₹3.4490 | ₱0.530₹0.7998 | ₱0.530₹0.7998 | ₱0.530₹0.7998 |
| Rest of Western Europe | ₱3.45₹5.2054 | ₱0.996₹1.5019 | ₱0.996₹1.5019 | ₱0.996₹1.5019 |
| Other | ₱3.52₹5.3098 | ₱0.449₹0.6769 | ₱0.449₹0.6769 | ₱0.449₹0.6769 |
Plan prices are monthly, in rupees, excluding GST; yearly billing is two months free. Messages are charged per delivered message on top of the plan, at the rate for the recipient’s country. Full details: InfiQ pricing. A Cebu family member who still uses an Indian +91 number is billed at India rates instead, ₹0.19 for a utility message. InfiQ invoices in rupees; the converter's peso figures are only for budgeting.
Work out your own monthly cost by message type.
Calculate your exact costOn InfiQ
The parts of InfiQ that matter when the customer is in the Visayas and answers in Bisaya.
Draft, submit and track WhatsApp message templates for Meta's approval, starting from a library of 1,000+ ready templates in 27 categories.
Draft dispatch, invoice and shift templates in English and Filipino, and track each language version through Meta's approval before the first Cebu send.
One WhatsApp number answered by a team: 10 users on Lite and 25 on Growth, agent and manager roles, transfers, private notes, labels and canned replies.
Transfer a Cebuano reply to the colleague who reads it, and leave a private note when a thread needs translating before anyone answers.
Each contact's opt-in source and time are recorded, STOP replies are enforced at platform level (even against later imports), and the audit trail exports.
A Sinulog greeting is marketing: each Cebu contact's opt-in source and time is recorded, and STOP blocks later sends.
A REST API with scoped keys, idempotency keys and per-key rate limits, plus HMAC-SHA256-signed webhooks retried for 24 hours. Included on Growth, an add-on on Lite.
A distributor portal or ERP can trigger the dispatch template the moment a Visayas order ships, through signed webhooks and scoped keys.
Nearby
The nearest city guides on this site, in the Philippines and the countries around it.
Consent under the Data Privacy Act, the National Privacy Commission and the Philippine rate are the same across the country; the Philippines guide covers them.
Question: Our distributor in Cebu City writes to us in Bisaya. Can we get our order templates approved in Cebuano?
Answer: No. Cebuano is not on Meta's list of template languages, so order and dispatch templates go in English (en) or Filipino (fil). Once the distributor writes back, your agents can reply in Cebuano for the next 24 hours; Meta only governs the language of the template that opens the thread.
Question: Can we send our Cebu customers a greeting for Sinulog weekend?
Answer: Yes, to customers who opted in to WhatsApp messages from you. A festival greeting or offer is a marketing template, ₹7.41 per delivered message to a Philippine number. Schedule it on Philippine time for the days before the third Sunday of January, and keep order updates for that week as separate utility templates.
Question: Our engineers in Pune support a client in Cebu IT Park. What time is their 09:00 stand-up in India?
Answer: At 06:30 IST. The Philippines keeps UTC+8 all year with no daylight saving, so the gap with India is a constant two and a half hours. A client message sent at 18:00 Cebu time reaches your desk at 15:30, well inside the Indian working day.
Question: We ship to a Visayas distributor whose stock comes in through the Port of Cebu. Which updates are utility messages?
Answer: Updates about an order the distributor has placed are utility templates: order confirmation, dispatch details, arrival at Cebu, delivery and invoice reminders, each ₹0.9938 to a +63 number. A launch announcement or a price promotion is marketing and needs the distributor's opt-in to promotional messages. Medicines are excluded: Meta's policy does not allow drug sales on WhatsApp.
Question: A shop near Carbon Market gave us a 032 number. Can our WhatsApp templates reach it?
Answer: Probably not: 032 is the Cebu landline code, and a landline only receives WhatsApp if it was registered on WhatsApp. Ask for the shop owner's mobile, store it as +63 followed by the number without its leading 0, and keep the landline for calls.
Question: Our Indian community store in Cebu messages families on both +63 and +91 numbers. Why do the same updates cost different amounts?
Answer: Meta charges by the recipient's country code, not by where your customer lives. An order update to a Cebu +63 number costs ₹0.9938; the same update to a family member's Indian +91 number costs ₹0.19. Both appear on one rupee invoice from InfiQ.
Question: Our company is registered in Cebu, with a parent company in Bengaluru. Which one should hold the InfiQ account?
Answer: InfiQ serves India-based businesses: it bills in rupees with GST and keeps customer data in India, so the Bengaluru company is the natural account holder and can message Cebu numbers at the Philippine rate. If the account must belong to the business based in Cebu City, talk to sales about whether InfiQ fits.
Facts on this page were checked against these sources on the dates shown. Page updated 2026-10-20.
Start a 7-day Lite trial, no card needed, and submit your English and Filipino templates once Meta verification is complete. If your business is based in Cebu City, talk to sales about whether InfiQ fits.
