Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 1464 
Introduced by ​
HON. ATTY. GERVILLE “JINKY BITRICS” R. LUISTRO 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This proposed measure aims to authorize the civil forfeiture of real properties unlawfully 
acquired by foreign nationals, thereby vesting ownership of such assets in the State. 
The Philippine Constitution is clear and categorical in its stance: only Filipinos and 
Filipino-owned entities may own private land, with very limited exceptions. This is enshrined in 
Article XII, Sections 7 and 8 of the 1987 Constitution, which strictly limits the transfer or 
ownership of private lands to those legally qualified under Philippine law. These restrictions 
underscore a long-standing policy—dating back to the 1935 Constitution—of protecting the 
country’s limited land resources and reserving them for the Filipino people. 
Despite this, recent years have seen a surge in foreign nationals, particularly those connected 
with Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), acquiring real estate through fraudulent 
means. These entities, many of which have been implicated in serious crimes such as human 
trafficking and the drug trade, have become conduits for foreign nationals to unlawfully purchase 
land. 
Investigations have exposed a disturbing trend: certain foreign nationals are circumventing 
constitutional restrictions by procuring falsified documents—birth certificates, passports, and 
driver’s licenses—with the assistance of corrupt officials in government agencies such as the 
civil registrar, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Land Transportation Office. These 
forged identities enable them to illegally pose as Filipino citizens and purchase land in violation 
of the law. 
July 7, 2025
3:14 pm


This brazen defiance of constitutional mandates on land ownership—especially by actors from a 
sector that the President has already banned—cannot be allowed to persist. This bill seeks to 
reinforce that directive by ensuring that lands acquired under fraudulent circumstances are 
lawfully recovered by the State. 
Several lawmakers have already called for swift legal action, including forfeiture proceedings, 
against foreign individuals and entities that have exploited legal gaps to amass Philippine 
properties. To prevent the recurrence of such abuses, this measure not only reaffirms existing 
constitutional limitations but also introduces mechanisms for stronger inter-agency coordination, 
enforcement, and disposition of forfeited properties for the benefit of the public. 
In light of these urgent concerns, the passage of this bill is strongly urged. 
HON. ATTY. GERVILLE “JINKY BITRICS” R. LUISTRO 


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
Third Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 1464 
Introduced by  
HON. ATTY. GERVILLE “JINKY BITRICS” R. LUISTRO 
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A CIVIL FORFEITURE IN FAVOR OF THE STATE ANY 
UNLAWFULLY ACQUIRED REAL ESTATE PROPERTIES BY ANY FOREIGN NATIONAL 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Civil Forfeiture Act.” 
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to preserve the ownership of 
land for Filipinos. Save in cases of hereditary succession, no private lands shall be transferred or 
conveyed except to individuals, corporations, or associations qualified to acquire or hold lands of 
the public domain. Toward this end, the State shall adopt measures to monitor the transfer of 
ownership of lands and institute civil forfeiture proceedings if any land is transferred to 
unqualified foreign national.  
SEC. 3. Civil Forfeiture. - Any real estate property transferred or conveyed to 
unqualified foreign national, natural or juridical, in violation of the Constitutional prohibition is 
null and void and vests no rights and creates no obligations. On behalf of the Republic of the 
Philippines, the Solicitor General shall institute the civil forfeiture proceedings and may delegate 
the same to the National Prosecution Service of the Department of Justice.  
SEC 4. Presumption. - Except as otherwise allowed by law, any real estate property 
acquired by any foreign national in the Philippines shall be presumed prima facie to have been 
unlawfully acquired.  
SEC. 5. Filing and venue of the petition. - Any taxpayer may file a complaint before the 
city or provincial prosecutor who shall conduct a preliminary investigation and certify to the 


Solicitor General that there is a reasonable ground to believe that a violation of the prohibition on 
foreign laid ownership was committed and the respondent foreign national is probably guilty 
thereof. Upon proper determination, the Solicitor General shall, file a petition for civil forfeiture 
before the regional trial court of the judicial region where the real estate property is located. 
 
SEC. 6. Contents of the petition for civil forfeiture. - The petition shall contain the 
following information:  
 
(a) The name and address of the respondent foreign national;  
(b) A description with reasonable particularity of the real estate property; and  
(c) Such other information as may enable the court to determine whether or not the 
respondent foreign national has unlawfully acquired real estate property.  
 
SEC. 7. Period for the answer. - The respondent foreign national shall have a period of 
fifteen (15) days to answer the complaint or petition from the receipt thereof from the city or 
provincial or prosecutor or the regional trial court.  
 
SEC. 8. Immunity. - The Solicitor General may grant immunity from criminal 
prosecution to any person who testifies to the unlawful manner by which an unqualified foreign 
national has acquired the real estate property in question in cases where such testimony is 
necessary to prove that the subject real estate property was unlawfully acquired.  
 
SEC. 9. Effect of record of title. - The fact that the real estate property has been recorded 
in the Registry of Property or office of the Register of Deeds in the name of the foreign national 
or of any person in collusion with the former shall • not preclude the institution of civil forfeiture 
proceedings.  
 
SEC. 10. Disposal. - The real estate property successfully acquired through  the civil 
forfeiture proceedings shall be disposed in the following manner:  
 
a. If the real estate property is agricultural land, the land shall be distributed to qualified 
farmers in coordination with the Department of Agrarian Reform; and b. If the real estate 
property is non-agricultural land:  
 
1. The land shall be used for the establishment of schools, hospitals and other 
establishments for socialized services; or  
2. The land may be donated to the local government unit where the land is located 
and shall be used for social services facilities.  
 
The President of the Philippines, however, may order that the non- agricultural land, after 
determining that the establishment of social service facilities, such as schools and hospitals, is no 
longer necessary, be turned-over to the Privatization and Management Office of the Department 
of Finance for its disposal.  


 
SEC. 11. Monitoring and Reporting. - The Land Registration Authority shall monitor 
any transter or conveyance of lands and immediately report to the Solicitor General any 
suspicious transfer or conveyance to any foreign national, taking into account Commonwealth 
Act No. 108, as amended, commonly known as the "Anti-Dummy Law."  
 
SEC. 12. Role of Local Government Units. - The local goverment units (LGUs) shall, 
likewise, monitor any transfer of real estate properties within their i territorial jurisdiction and 
immediately report to the Solicitor General any 2 suspicious transfer to any foreign national. 
Further, the LGUs shall monitor and ensure that the real estate properties in their territorial 
jurisdiction are utilized for the purpose as appearing in the tax declaration  
 
SEC. 13. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days from the 
approval of this Act, the Solicitor General shall, in coordination with the Secretaries of Finance, 
Justice, Agrarian Reform, and the Chairperson of the Anti-Money Laundering Council, 
promulgate the pertinent rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.  
 
SEC. 14. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part of this Act is declared 
unconstitutional, the remaining parts provisions not affected shall remain in full force and effect.  
 
SEC. 15. Repealing Clause. - All laws, ordinances, orders, rules, regulations and other 
issuances or parts thereof which are inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended or 
modified accordingly.  
 
SEC. 16. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.  
 
Approved,