2/13/2019 Land Ownership by Foreigners / Former Filipino Citizens : Embassy of the Philippines in Singapore

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

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Land Ownership by Foreigners / Former Filipino

Citizens

Foreigners Owning Filipino Land

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Only Filipino citizens and corporations and associations at least 60% of whose capital is owned by Filipinos may
acquire private lands.

Foreigners are allowed to purchase a condominium unit, provided that total foreign ownership of the
condominium corporation does not exceed 40%. They may also inherit real property from their deceased
Filipino spouses or parents.

Children born to a Filipino parent, whether legitimate or illegitimate, may inherit the property o the Filipino
parent, even if the child is not a Filipino citizen.

Filipinos who lost their Filipino citizenship will remain the owners of any property they have acquired before
changing nationalities. On the other hand, a natural-born Filipino citizen who has lost his Philippine citizenship
may be a transferee of private land, subject to the following limitations and conditions:

Land Ownership by Former Filipinos in the Philippines

Natural-born Filipinos who have acquired foreign citizenship are entitled to own or acquire lands in the
Philippines.

Article XII, Section 8, of the Philippine Constitution provides that a natural born citizens of the Philippines who
has lost his or her Philippine citizenship may be a transferee of private lands, subject to limitations provided by
law.

Section 7 of the same Article entitles former Filipinos to own and acquire lands through hereditary succession,
i.e. by virtue of inheritance.

Governing Laws on Land Ownership by Former Filipinos

The laws on land ownership by natural-born Filipinos who have lost their Philippine citizenship are governed by
Batas Pambansa Blg. 185 (BP 185), which was enacted in March 1982, and Republic Act 8179 (RA 8179),
which amended the Foreign Investment Act of 1991.

BP 185 stipulates the guidelines on land ownership by former Filipinos for purposes of establishment of
residence while RA 8179 (Section 10) specifies entitlements and conditions for land acquisition for investment
purposes. The acquisition or transfer of private lands refers to either voluntary or involuntary sale, devise or
donation. Involuntary sales include sales on tax delinquency, foreclosures, and execution of judgment.

The following are the provisions of BP 185 and RA 7042, as amended by RA 8179, pertinent to land ownership
by former Filipinos:

Provision under BP 185 (Applies to Provisions under RA 7042 as amended BY RA

Particulars acquisition of land for purposes of 8179 (Applies to acquisition of land for purposes of
residence) business or commerce)

Maximum of 1000 sq. meters for

Size/Area urban land Maximum of 5000 sq. meters for urban land
Coverage Maximum of one (1) hectare for Maximum of three (3) hectares for rural land
rural land

Land Either of the spouses may avail of Either of the spouses may avail of this privilege
Acquisition this privilege In case both spouses wish to acquire lands for
this purposes, the total area acquired should not

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for Both In case both spouses wish to exceed the maximum

Spouses acquire lands for this purposes, the
total area acquired should not
exceed the maximum

In case he/she already owns urban or In case he /she already owns urban or rural lands for
rural lands for residential purposes, business purposes, he/she may acquire additional
Additional
he/she may acquire additional urban or urban or rural lands which when added to those he/she
Land
rural lands, which when added to those presently owns shall not exceed the authorized
Acquisition
he/she presently owns shall not exceed maximum area.
the authorized maximum area.

A person may acquire not more
than two (2) lots which should be
situated in different municipalities
or cities anywhere in the
Philippines, provided that the total
area of those lots do not exceed
1,000 sq. meters for urban land or
one (1) hectare for rural land for
Limits to use as residence.
Acquisition of An individual who has already
Land acquired urban land shall be
disqualified from acquiring rural
land and vice versa.
A person may acquire not more than two (2)
lots which should be situated in different
municipalities or cities anywhere in the
Philippines, provided that the total area of those
lots do not exceed 5,000 sq. meters for urban
land or three (3) hectares for rural land for use
as residence.
Under Section 4 of Rule XII of the
Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 704
as amended by RA 8179, a transferee who has
already acquired urban land shall be disqualified
from acquiring rural land and vice versa.
However, if the transferee has disposed of his
rural land, he may still acquire rural land and
vice versa, provided that this will be used for
business.
A transferee of residential land acquired under
Batas Pambansa Blg. 185 may still avail of the
privilege granted under this law.

The acquired land should not be used for Section 5 of Rule XII specifically states that “the land
any purpose other than for his/her should be primarily, directly and actually used in the
residence performance or conduct of the owner’s business or
Use of Land
commercial activities in the broad areas of agriculture,
industry and services including the lease of land but
excluding the buying or selling thereof.

Special In addition to the requirements provided
Requirements for in other laws for the registration of
titles to lands, the transferee should
submit to the Register of Deeds of the
province or city where the property is
located a sworn statement showing the
following:
Date and place of birth
Names and addresses of his/her
parents, his/her spouse, and
In addition to the usual registration requirements
pertinent to the conveyance of real estate, the transfer
contemplated shall not be recorded unless the
transferee submits to the Registry of Deeds of the
province or city where the land is situated, the
following:
Certification of business registration issued by
the Bureau of Trade Regulation and Consumer
Protection of the Department of Trade and
Industry;

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children, if any; Sworn statement same as that in BP 185;

The area, location, and mode of
acquisition of his/her landholdings
in the Philippines, if any;
His/her intention to reside
permanently in the Philippines;
Date he/she lost his/her Philippine
citizenship and the country of
which hw/she is presently a
citizen.
Certification from the assessor of the
municipality or province where the property is
situated that the subject land for transfer is in an
urban or rural area;
If an agricultural land is acquired, a certification
from the Department of Agrarian Reform that
the land is a retained area of the transferor and
an affidavit of the transferee attesting that his
total landholdings inclusive of the land to be
acquired does not exceed the 5-hectare limit
fixed by RA 6657 (the Comprehensive Agrarian
Reform Act – CARP).

Requirements for Land Registration or Original Certificate of Title (Judicial Titling)

The application for land registration should be filed in triplicate with the Clerk of the Regional Trial Court of the
province/city where the property is located. The following documents should be attached to the application:

Original plan on tracing cloth duly approved by the Director of Lands or Regional Land Director, or in lieu
thereof, a true copy of the same on a tracing cloth properly attested and certified by said Office or official
authorized to make such certification, together with two (2) print copies thereof;

Technical description, three (3) copies Surveyor’s certificate, three (3) copies Certificate of the assessed value of
the property issued by the provincial treasurer, in quadruplicate.

Requirements for Land Transfer or Transfer Certificate of Title

The following documents are required for the filing of land transfer:

Copies of the Deed of Absolute Sale

Latest real estate tax payments
Latest tax declaration of the property
Certificate from the Bureau of Internal Revenue that the capital gains tax and documentary stamps have
been paid
Transfer tax
Receipt of payment of the transfer and registration fees

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