FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This bill seeks to provide residential landowners an efficient, effective and 
affordable method to title their lands, thereby securing the property rights of the owner, 
facilitating transactions in land and enabling the owner to use the title as collateral for 
loans. By having more titled lands, economic activities are stimulated, contributing 
positively to growth and development. 
Despite the perceived benefits of a title, about 46 percent of the 24.2 million land 
parcels in the Philippines remain untitled. Of this, 70 percent or 7.8 million land parcels 
are residential. This is because the current methods of titling residential lands are not 
ideal modes for mass titling of residential lands. For the past four years, only an average 
of 1,200 decrees of registration were issued by Land Registration Authority for 
registration of confirmed titles and an average of 3,200 sales patents have been issued 
by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. On the other hand, an 
average of 100,000 free patents have been issued each year. Free patents, which is the 
administrative legalization of titles without the need to pay to the government the value 
of the land are however only applicable for agricultural lands. 
It is therefore recommended that an enabling law that will grant free patent to 
residential landowners be passed. Batas Pambasa 223 granted free patent to residential 
lands but it has expired in 1987 and was restricted to fifth and sixth class municipalities. 
The most important feature of the proposed measure is to provide a means to 
title residential lands through administrative proceeding by extending the grant of free 
patent to residential lands in all municipalities, given certain conditions. Another salient 
feature is the removal of restriction on encumbrance on the title, allowing the property 
to be transacted immediately upon titling. 
Through this bill, thirty-nine (39) million Filipinos living in 7.8 million untitled 
residential parcels are expected to benefit from the security of tenure and economic 
opportunities that a titled land provides. 
In view of the foregoing, immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought. 
Senator 


FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda 
AN ACT 
TO HASTEN TITLING OF RESIDENTIAL LANDS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN BY 
EXTENDING THE GRANT OF FREE PATENT TO RESIDENTIAL LANDS UNDER 
CERTAIN CONDITIONS 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Repvesentatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. The provision of any law, rules or regulations to the contrary 
notwithstanding, any citizen of the Philippines who is not a registered owner of a 
residential land and who for ten (10) years or prior thereto, either by himself/herself or 
through his/her bona fide predecessor-in-interest, has been actually residing on, and 
continuously possessing and occupying, under a bona fide claim of acquisition of 
ownership, a parcel of residential land of the public domain, which is alienable or 
disposable, and who has paid all the real estate taxes thereon for ten (10) years or prior 
thereto, shall, upon application, be entitled to have a free patent issued to him/her for 
such parcel of land not to exceed three hundred (300) square meters in highly urbanized 
cities, component cities and municipalities; Provided, That the land applied for is not 
needed for public service or public use and has been zoned as residential in the land use 
plan of the local government; Provided, further, that no free patent shall be issued in 
townsite reservations established under Chapter XI of the Public Land Act: Provided, 
finally, that none of the provisions of Presidential Decree No. 705 are violated by the 
issuance of such patent. 
' 
SECTION 2. The application shall be accompanied with a map and technical 
description of the land applied for, along with supporting affidavits of two (2) 
disinterested persons who are residents of the city/ municipality where the land is 
located, attesting to the truth of the facts contained in the application to the effect that 
the applicant thereof has, either by himself or through his predecessor-in-interest, 
1 


actually resided on and continuously possessed and occupied, under a bonafide claim 
of acquisition of ownership, the land applied for at least ten (10) years and has complied 
with 
the 
requirements 
prescribed 
in 
Section 
One 
hereof. 
The pertinent provisions of Chapter XIV, Title VI of Commonwealth Act 141, as 
amended, shall apply to free patent applications filed under the provisions of this Act, 
except that residential free patent issued under this law shall not be subject to any legal 
restrictions on encumbrance, conveyance or alienation. 
The Department of 
Environment and Natural Resources, upon the 
recommendation of the Director of Lands, shall promulgate such rules and regulations 
as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act. 
SECTION 3. All pending applications filed before the effectivity of this Act shall 
be treated as having filed in accordance with the provisions hereof. 
SECTION 4. Repealing Clause - All laws, decrees, executive orders, executive 
issuances or letters of instruction, rules and regulations, or any part thereof inconsistent 
herewith or contrary to the provisions of this Act are hereby deemed repealed, 
amended or modified accordingly. 
SECTION 5. Separability Clause - If any part of provision of this Act shall be 
declared unconstitutional or invalid by any competent court, other parts or provisions 
thereof not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect. 
SECTION 6. EfJectivityClause - This Act shall take'fifteen (15) days after its 
complete publication in two (2) national newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved,