Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

2954

House Bill No.

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVES RALPH WENDEL P. TULFO.
AND JOCELYN P. TULFO

AN ACT REINSTITUTING ABSOLUTE DIVORCE AS AN ALTERNATIVE
MODE FOR THE DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The core targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 is to eliminate all
forms of violence against women and girls, empower women, achieve equality
between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights,
humanitarian action, and peace and security.

One of the most prevalent form of violence against women can be found too
close to home and is called intimate partner violence (IPV)—a form of abuse that
includes physical, sexual, or psychological harm inflicted by a current or former male
partner within the bounds of marriage or cohabitation. According to global estimates
from the World Health Organization, 30% of women worldwide have experienced at
least one form of IPV.? Yet, to this day, the Philippines remains the only country in the
world, besides Vatican City, where divorce is not legally accessible.

In the Philippines, national data reflects a continuing, though gradual, decline
in the percentage of ever-married women aged 15 to 49 who have experienced IPV—
from 29% in 2008 to 24% in 2017, and down to 18% in 2022. Despite this trend,
millions of Filipino women remain vulnerable to abuse inside their homes, often
trapped in cycles of violence with little to no legal recourse to permanently exit such
harmful unions.

* Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment, UNITED NATIONS DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
‘AFFAIRS: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (July 11, 2025), https://sdgs.un.org/topics /gender-equality-
and-womens-empowerment.

2 Cristabel Rose F. Parcon and Antoinette Louise S. Makani, Intintate Partner Violence Experiences of
Filipino Women: Evidence from the Philippines, DEMOGRAPHIC AND HEALTH SURVEYS (July 11, 2025),
https:/ /dhsprogram.com/ pubs/ pdf/WP205/ WP205.pdf.

Md.

4 Violence Against Women, PHILIPPINE COMMISSION ON WOMEN (July 11, 2025),

https:/ / pew.gov.ph/violence-against-women/


Under current Philippine law, a woman married to an abusive husband cannot
legally end their marriage, unless the husband dies or the marriage is declared void
under limited and often difficult-to-prove grounds. This legal void perpetuates
suffering and impedes women from regaining their dignity, freedom, and safety.

This proposed measure seeks to reinstitute absolute divorce as a legal remedy,
while still upholding the State's commitment to protect marriage and family. By
enacting this measure, we acknowledge the right of individuals— particularly women
trapped in abusive and irreparable marriages—to be freed from harm and provide
spouses with the option to avail of divorce under certain circumstances.

In view of the foregoing, the urgent passing of this bill is earnestly sought.

Ry,

RALPH WENDEL P. TULFO ‘0
Reprégentative Representatibe
2ut District of Quezon City ACT-CIS Partylist


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Quezon City, Metro Manila

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 2954

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVES RALPH WENDEL P. TULFO
AND JOCELYN P. TULFO

AN ACT REINSTITUTING ABSOLUTE DIVORCE AS AN ALTERNATIVE
MODE FOR THE DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE

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 “Absolute Divorce
Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - While the State continues to protect and
preserve marriage as a social institution and as the foundation of the family, it shall
also give the opportunity to spouses in irremediably failed marriages to secure an
absolute divorce decree as an alternative mode for the dissolution of an irreparably
broken or dysfunctional marriage under limited grounds and well-defined judicial
procedures; save the children from the pain, stress, and agony consequent to their
parents’ constant marital clashes or irreconcilable differences; and grant the divorced
spouses the right to marry again.

To this end, the State shall adopt a divorce policy in keeping with the
fundamental freedoms guaranteed under the Constitution, the rights guaranteed
under Republic Act No. 9710 (RA 9710), otherwise known as the “The Magna Carta of
Women”, the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the Convention on the
Rights of the Child, and other international human rights instruments of which the
Philippines is a party.

SEC. 3. Guiding Principles. - The following shall be the guiding principles of
this Act:

(a) Absolute divorce shall be judicially decreed after the fact of an
irremediably broken marriage.


(b) The State shall assure that the court proceedings for the grant of absolute

divorce shall be affordable and expeditious.

Concerned spouses shall have the option to file for absolute divorce under

this Act or seek legal separation, annulment of marriage, or nullification of

marriage under the pertinent provisions of Executive Order No. 209,

otherwise known as the “Family Code of the Philippines”.

‘The option of absolute divorce is a pro-woman legislation because, in most

cases, it is the wife who is entitled to a divorce as a liberation from an

abusive relationship and to help her regain dignity and self-esteem.

(e) A sixty-day cooling-off period is instituted after the filing of a petition for
absolute divorce to ensure a final attempt at reconciliation of the concerned
spouses.

(f) A divorce decree shall include provisions for the care, custody, and
support of children, protection of their legitime, termination and
liquidation of the conjugal partnership of gains or the absolute community,
and alimony for the offended spouse.

(g) Even as absolute divorce is reinstituted, the State has the mandate of
strengthening marriage and family life by undertaking, among others,
relevant pre-nuptial and post-matrimonial programs and_ activities
adequately funded by the government.

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SEC. 4. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act:

(a) Abandonment refers to the act of a spouse leaving the conjugal home

without justifiable cause and with a deliberate intention of creating a

perpetual separation. The desertion amounts to an absolute cessation of

marital relations, rights, and duties. The abandonment may also be
physical estrangement or financial desertion;

Absolute divorce refers to the judicial dissolution of a marriage or the

termination of the bond of matrimony where the spouses return to their

status of being single with the right to contract marriage again;

Alcoholism refers to excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages at a level

that interferes with physical or mental health, and social, family, or

occupational responsibilities;

Alimony refers to spousal support adjudged in the divorce decree by the

proper Family Court in favor of the offended spouse against the offending

spouse;

Bigamous marriage refers to a second or subsequent marriage contracted

before the former marriage has been legally dissolved, or before the absent

spouse has been declared presumptively dead by means of a judgment
rendered in the proper proceedings;

(6) Child refers to a common child of the spouses below eighteen (18) years of
age or older but is incapable of taking care of or protecting oneself from
abuse, neglect, cruelty, exploitation, and/or discrimination because of
physical infirmity or mental disability, and shall include an offspring by
legal adoption or one whose custody and care is judicially decreed to be

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given to a guardian. In the proper cases, a child also refers to an offspring

of one of the spouses;

Child custody refers to the parental authority and care of a child as decreed

by a competent court when the parents of the child are divorced;

Child support refers to a method of compensating a parent needing financial

support for raising and sheltering a child or children by the other parent

who has the means to pay for the expenses associated with child support.

The proper Family Court shall determine the amount of support, based on

the financial capacity of the parent giving support and the needs of the

child or children requiring support pursuant to the provisions of the

Family Code of the Philippines;

(i) Chronic gambling refers to an impulse control disorder in which a person
makes a habitual waging in games of chance which compromise, disrupt
or damage family, work and social relations, and vocational pursuits;

() Competent court refers to the proper Family Court established under

Republic Act No. 8369, otherwise known as the “Family Courts Act of

1997”, which shall exercise jurisdiction both over the absolute divorce

proceeding and the persons of the petitioner and respondent spouses;

Court-assisted petitioner refers to a petitioner-spouse who has personal and

real properties collectively not exceeding Two Million Five Hundred

Thousand Pesos (PhP2,500,000.00);

()) Domestic or marital abuse refers to violence or aggressive behavior within
the home, typically involving the violent abuse of a spouse by the other
which may be committed through:

1. Physical violence;

2. Psychological and emotional violence;
3. Sexual violence; or

4, Economic abuse;

(m) Drug addiction refers to habitual dependence on a prohibited drug or drugs;

(n) Irreconcilable differences refers to the substantial incompatibility of the
spouses due to their intransigence or fault by holding on to divergent and
divisive behavior resulting in the total breakdown of their marriage which
could not be repaired despite earnest efforts to reconcile;

(0) Joint petition refers to the legal action filed by both spouses based on the

grounds subject to summary judicial proceedings under Section 11 of this

Act;

Legitime refers to the portion of a parent's estate from which they cannot

disinherit their children, without sufficient legal cause;

(q) Marital infidelity refers to the extramarital sexual relations of a spouse,
which shall include having or bearing a child with a third party;

(x) Offended spouse refers to the spouse who is aggrieved or innocent as found
by the proper Family Court;

(8) Offending spouse refers to the spouse found by the Family Court to have
given the cause or reason for the divorce;

(t) Overseas Filipinos refers to Filipino migrant workers, other Filipino
nationals, and their dependents abroad or as defined under Section 3 of

(s)
(hy

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Republic Act No. 8042, as amended, otherwise known as the “Migrant

Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995”;

Psychological incapacity refers to the condition provided for in Article 36 of

the Family Code of the Philippines which warrants the nullification of a

marriage;

Separation refers to the absolute cessation of marital relations, duties, and

rights, with the intention of perpetually living apart;

(w) Sex reassignment surgery refers to the procedure by which a person's

physical appearance and function of primary sex characteristics are altered

to resemble that of the identified or preferred gender;

Summary judicial proceedings refer to an expeditious manner of resolving a

petition for divorce without regard to technical rules and the petitioner is

given the option to be assisted by a lawyer. The proper Family Court may

allow presentation of evidence ex parte as warranted by circumstances. The

decision shall be immediately final and executory;

(y) Support refers to the amount indispensable for sustenance, shelter,

clothing, medical care, education, and other allied needs, consistent with

the financial capacity and social standing of the family;

Transgender refers to a person whose gender identity or expression differs

from what is typically associated with the sex at birth; and

(aa) Transsexual refers to a person who emotionally and psychologically feels
that one belongs to the opposite sex, and who opts for a transition from
one sex to another through the use of hormones or surgical procedure.

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SEC. 5. Grounds for Absolute Divorce. - The following are the grounds for a

judicial decree of absolute divorce:

(a) The grounds for legal separation under Article 55 of the Family Code of
the Philippines, modified, as follows:

1. Physical violence or grossly abusive conduct directed against the
petitioner, a common child, or a child of the petitioner;

2. Physical violence or moral pressure to compel the petitioner to
change religious or political affiliation;

3. Attempt of respondent to corrupt or induce the petitioner, a
common child, or a child of the petitioner, to engage in prostitution
or connivance in such corruption or inducement;

4, Final judgment sentencing the respondent to imprisonment of more
than six (6) years, even if pardoned;

5. Drug addiction or habitual alcoholism or chronic gambling of the
respondent;

6. Homosexuality of the respondent;

7. Contracting by the respondent of a subsequent bigamous marriage,
whether in the Philippines or abroad;

8. Marital infidelity or perversion or having a child with another
person other than one’s spouse during the marriage, except when


9.

upon the mutual agreement of the spouses, a child is born to them
through in vitro fertilization or a similar procedure or when the wife
bears a child after being a victim of rape;

Attempt by the respondent against the life of the petitioner, a
common child, or a child of the petitioner; or

10. Abandonment of petitioner by a respondent without justifiable

cause for more than one (1) year.

When the spouses are legally separated by judicial decree for more than
two (2) years, either spouse can petition the proper Family Court for an
absolute divorce based on said judicial decree of legal separation;

(b) The grounds for annulment of marriage under Article 45 of the Family
Code of the Philippines, modified as follows:

1

The party in whose behalf it is sought to have the marriage
annulled was eighteen (18) years of age or over, but below twenty-
one (21), and the marriage was solemnized without the consent of
the parents, guardian, or person having substitute parental
authority over the party, in that order, unless after attaining the age
of twenty-one (21), such party freely cohabited with the other and
both lived together as husband and wife;

.. Either party was of unsound mind, unless such party after coming,

to reason, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife;

. The consent of either party was obtained by fraud, unless such

party afterwards, with full knowledge of the facts constituting the
fraud, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife;

. The consent of either party was obtained by force, intimidation, or

undue influence, unless the same having disappeared or ceased,
such party thereafter freely cohabited with the other as husband
and wife;

. Either party was physically incapable of consummating, the

marriage with the other, and such incapacity continues or appears
to be incurable; or

. Either party was afflicted with a sexually transmissible infection

found to be serious or appears to be incurable:

Provided, That the grounds mentioned in Subsection (b), paragraphs 2, 5,
and 6 herein existed either at the time of the marriage or supervenes after
the marriage;

When the spouses have been separated in fact for at least five (5) years at
the time the petition for absolute divorce is filed, and reconciliation is
highly improbable;


(a) Psychological incapacity of either spouse as provided for in Article 36 of
the Family Code of the Philippines, whether or not the incapacity existed
at the time of the marriage or supervenes after the marriage;

(e) When one of the spouses undergoes a sex reassignment surgery or
transitions from one sex to another, the other spouse is entitled to petition
for absolute divorce with the transgender or transsexual as respondent, or
vice versa;

(f) Irreconcilable differences as defined in Section 4(n); and

(g) Other forms of domestic or marital abuse as defined in Section 4(1).

The grant of absolute divorce based on domestic or marital abuse or violation
of Republic Act No. 9262 (RA 9262), otherwise known as the “Anti-Violence against
Women and their Children Act of 2004”, shall be without prejudice to the prosecution
of the offending or errant spouse under the said Act.

SEC. 6. Civil Recognition of a Valid Foreign Divorce. - A valid foreign divorce
secured by either the alien or Filipino spouse has the effect of a divorce under this Act
without going through the judicial process. Said foreign divorce must be
authenticated by the Philippine Consul in or proximate to the foreign country where
it was secured, and subsequently registered with the proper Civil Registry Office in
the Philippines or the Office of the Philippine Consul abroad where the Filipino
spouse is residing,

SEC. 7. Valid Canonical or Church Dissolution, or Declaration of Nullity of
Marriage. - A marriage which is nullified or dissolved by the proper matrimonial
tribunal of the Roman Catholic Church or any other recognized religious sect or
denomination shall be granted civil recognition as if a divorce had been granted in
accordance with the provisions of this Act, without going through the judicial process
when it is authenticated by the proper authorities of the Roman Catholic Church or
any other recognized religious sect or denomination, and registered with the proper
Civil Registry Office in the Philippines.

SEC. 8. Prescription of Action. - A petition for absolute divorce shall be filed
with the proper Family Court by the petitioner or joint petitioners within ten (10) years
from the occurrence or discovery of the cause for divorce or from the effectivity of the
Absolute Divorce Act, whichever comes later.

SEC. 9. Procedure for Obtaining Absolute Divorce. - (a) The established and
recognized procedures for securing legal separation, annulment of marriage, and
nullification of marriage under the Family Code of the Philippines, as far as
practicable and not in conflict with this Act, shall govern the process of obtaining a
judicial decree of absolute divorce from the proper Family Court which shall be
commenced by the filing of a verified petition for absolute divorce by the petitioner-
spouse or joint petitioner-spouses.


46

(b) The factors and grounds which militate against the grant of legal separation,
the annulment of marriage, and nullification of marriage as provided for in the Family
Code of the Philippines shall likewise be assessed, based on competent and credible
proof, against the grant of absolute divorce.

(c) When the application as a court-assisted petitioner is approved, the proper
Family Court shall waive the payment of filing fees and other costs of litigation, and
shall appoint a counsel de officio for the court-assisted petitioner, and assign such
number of social workers, psychologists, and psychiatrists, as may be necessary from
a pool of accredited social workers and practitioners recognized by the Department of
Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), to assist the said petitioner and the court
free of charge, and assist the children of the parties.

(d) All creditors of the conjugal partnership of gains or absolute community, as
well as the personal creditors of the spouses, shall be listed in the petition for absolute
divorce and notified of the filing thereof. The court shall take measures to protect the
creditors and other persons with pecuniary interest.

(6) No decree of absolute divorce shall be based upon a stipulation of facts or a
confession of guilt.

(8) Public prosecutors in provinces, cities, and capital towns are mandated to
conduct investigations to find out whether there is collusion between the spouses in a
petition for absolute divorce or a spouse has coerced the other to file the petition and
shall report their finding to the proper Family Court within sixty (60) days from the
filing of the petition.

SEC. 10. Overseas Filipinos. - Petitioners who are overseas Filipinos shall be
given priority by the proper Family Court with respect to the hearing of their petitions,
and the court shall set the reception of evidence, upon the availability of the
petitioners, for not more than two (2) consecutive days.

SEC. 11. Summary Judicial Proceedings. ~ The following grounds for absolute
divorce may be subject to summary judicial proceedings as defined in Section 4(x):

(a) When the spouses have been separated de facto for at least five (5) years;

(b) When one of the spouses has contracted a bigamous marriage;

(©) When the spouses have been legally separated by judicial decree for at least
two (2) years;

(d) When one of the spouses has been sentenced to imprisonment for at least
six (6) years, even if subsequently pardoned; or

(c) When one of the spouses has undergone a sex reassignment surgery or has
transitioned into another sex.

A petition under this section may be filed individually or jointly by the
concerned spouses.


SEC. 12. Mandatory Sixty-Day Cooling-Off Period. - Except for grounds
under summary judicial proceedings, the proper Family Court shall exercise all efforts
to reunite and reconcile the concerned spouses during the sixty-day cooling-off period
after the filing of the petition. Upon expiration of the cooling-off period without the
parties having reconciled, the court shall immediately commence the trial and is
mandated to decide the petition within one (1) year after the lapse of the sixty-day
cooling-off period.

‘The requirement of a cooling-off period shall not apply in cases which involve
acts of violence against women and their children under RA 9262 or attempt against
the life of the other spouse or a common child or a child of the petitioner. The cooling-
off period is not required for petitions under summary judicial proceedings.

SEC. 13. Waiver of Expert Testimony. - Expert testimony shall be dispensed
with, unless the proper Family Court decides that such testimony is indispensable in
deciding the petition for divorce.

SEC. 14. Effects of Absolute Divorce. - The decree of absolute divorce shall
have the following effects:

(a) The marriage is dissolved and the divorced spouses shall have the right to

contract marriage again;

The custody of the minor children and the visitation rights of the spouse

not granted primary custody shall be decided by the proper Family Court

in accordance with the best interests of the children, subject to the
provisions of Article 213 of the Family Code of the Philippines taking into
primary consideration that no child under seven (7) years of age shall be
separated from the mother, unless the proper court finds compelling
reasons to order otherwise. When the child is over the age of seven (7), the
court may ask the child’s preference with respect to parental custody and
visitation, unless such preference will not be for the best interests of the
child. In no case shall child custody be given to the offending spouse when

the grounds for divorce fall under Section 5(a) (1), (2), (4), (65), (7), (8), (9),

and (10) of this Act; Provided, That in a subsequent divorce of a previously

divorced spouse, the custody of the children may be granted to the spouse
with lesser number of children, subject to the discretion of the Family

Court;

(©) Unless otherwise agreed upon in a marriage settlement executed before the
celebration of the marriage, the conjugal partnership of gains or the
absolute community shall be dissolved and liquidated, and the assets shall
be equally divided between the spouses excluding the paraphernal or
exclusive properties of the spouse, in accordance with the Family Code of
the Philippines. The recognition and delivery of the presumptive legitime
to the common children shall be ordered by the court, taking into
consideration the best interests of the children and the protection of their

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(e)

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legitime from dissipation. The presumptive legitime shall be computed as
of the date of the finality of the decree of absolute divorce. The partition
and distribution of the properties of the spouses and the delivery of the
children’s presumptive legitime shall be recorded in the appropriate civil
registry and registry of deeds, otherwise the same shall not affect third
persons;

During the pendency of the divorce proceedings, the liabilities of the
spouses to creditors for family expenses shall remain solidary;

In addition to the equal share in the assets of the absolute community or
conjugal partnership, the offended spouse who is not gainfully employed
shall be entitled to spousal support or alimony from the offending spouse:
Provided, That the support shall not exceed three (3) years from the finality
of the decree of absolute divorce and shall cease when the offended spouse
secures gainful employment or remarries: Provided, further, That the right
to support shall be subject to the provisions of Article 201 of the Family
Code of the Philippines where the amount of support shall be in proportion
to the resources or means of the obligor and to the necessities of the oblige;
Provided, finally, That the three-year support period may be extended to a
reasonable period of time by the Family Court when the offended spouse
entitled to support is a senior citizen, a person with disability, or has
limited educational attainment;

The proper Family Court shall have the discretion to grant spousal support
or alimony, child support, and child custody, pursuant to the pertinent
provisions of the Family Code of the Philippines, and impose contempt of
court against the defaulting parties. The necessity of alimony and the
amount shall be determined by the court taking into consideration all
relevant factors;

‘The offended spouse may revoke the donations made in favor of the
offending spouse, as well as the designation of the latter as a beneficiary in
any insurance policy, even if such designation be stipulated as irrevocable;
Donations by reason of marriage shall remain valid, except if the done is
the offending spouse under any of the grounds under Section 5(a) of this
Act. The revocation of the donations shall be recorded in the registries of
properties in the places where the properties are located. Alienations, liens,
and encumbrances registered in good faith before the recording of the
complaint for revocation in the registry of property shall be respected. The
revocation of or a change in the designation of the insurance beneficiary
shall take effect upon written notification thereto to the beneficiary. The
action to revoke the donation under this provision must be brought within
five (5) years from the time the decree of the absolute divorce has become
final;

The effect on the divorced spouses with respect to intestate succession,
testamentary disposition, donations, and insurance provisions on
beneficiaries in accordance with the Family Code of the Philippines and
jurisprudence shall be observed;



(i) The legitimate and adopted children of divorced parents shall retain their
legal status and legitimacy. A child conceived or born within three
hundred (300) days after the filing of a petition for absolute divorce shall
be considered legitimate, unless the ground for divorce is the marital
infidelity of the wife; and

(i) After the filing of the petition for divorce, the spouses shall be entitled to
live separately. The court shall appoint a competent third party as
administrator to manage the absolute community or conjugal partnership
property during the pendency of the divorce proceedings in order to
prevent dissipation of the common properties. Prior to the discharge of the
administrator's functions and duties, the administrator shall post a surety
bond approved by the proper Family Court. The administrator shall have
the same powers and duties as those of a guardian under the Rules of
Court.

SEC. 15. Support for Children. - The proper Family Court shall provide for
child support pursuant to the pertinent provisions of the Family Code. The court shall
give the paramount consideration of the best interests of the children in accordance
with Article 194 of the Family Code of the Philippines.

In considering the award of support, the proper Family Court shall consider
relevant circumstances of the case and of the parties. On application of either party,
the proper Family Court may order an increase or decrease in the amount of support
upon showing of a substantial and material change of circumstances.

Incase the offending spouse is an overseas Filipino, a copy of the order to grant
spousal and child support shall be furnished to the Department of Migrant Workers
and the overseas Filipino’s employer for compliance.

SEC. 16. Custody and Support Pendente Lite. - During the pendency of the
petition and in the absence of adequate provisions in a written agreement between the
spouses, the court, upon application of the proper party, shall provide for spousal
support, and the custody and support of their common children. The court shall give
the paramount consideration to the best interests of the children, as well as their choice
of the parent with whom they wish to remain, in accordance with the Family Code of
the Philippines. It shall also provide the appropriate visitation rights of the other
parent.

SEC. 17. Award for Damages. - The proper Family Court may, as warranted
by evidence, award actual, moral, and exemplary damages as provided for under the
Civil Code of the Philippines to the offended spouse against the offending spouse.

SEC. 18. Conversion of Pending Petitions. - Parties who have pending
petitions under Articles 36, 45, and 55 of the Family Code of the Philippines may
convert their petitions to an action for absolute divorce under this Act without paying
filing fees.

2


SEC. 19. Reconciliation During the Pendency of the Divorce Proceedings. - If
the spouses agree to reconcile during the pendency of the divorce proceedings or
before the finality of judgment of divorce, a corresponding joint manifestation under
oath duly signed by them shall be filed with the same court where the petition for
absolute divorce was filed.

Upon hearing of the joint manifestation and the court finds it in order, the
petition for divorce shall be dismissed.

SEC. 20. Reconciliation After the Finality of the Divorce Decree. - Even after
the divorce decree is final, the former spouses may agree to reconcile by filing a joint
manifestation before the proper Family Court which issued the divorce decree. Upon
hearing of the joint manifestation and the court finds it in order, the court shall nullify
the final decree of divorce and the parties shall live together without the need of
contracting a new marriage.

SEC. 21. Guidelines and Parameters for Reconciliation. - The following shall
be the guidelines or parameters for reconciliation:

(a) Any reconciliation during the pendency of the divorce proceedings or after
the finality of the divorce decree shall protect the interests of the concerned
children;

(b) The proper Family Court shall exercise due discretion as warranted by

evidence which must protect the offended spouse or the children from

future or recurrence of violence from the offending spouse whether or not
to grant the joint manifestation of reconciliation in the following:
1. Cases which involve acts of violence against women and their
children under RA No. 9262; and
2. Cases involving an attempt against the life of the offended spouse,
acommon child, or a child of the offended spouse;

When the decree of absolute divorce is nullified upon reconciliation of the

parties, the separation of property or any forfeiture of the share of the

offending spouse already effected shall subsist, unless the spouses agree to
revive their former property regime;

The reconciling spouses shall also submit a plan of reconciliation under

oath which shall include the following:

1. The properties to be contributed anew to the restored regime;

2. The properties to be retained as separate properties of each spouse;

3. The names of all their known creditors, their addresses, and the
amounts owing to each;

4, The joint manifestation and verified plan of reconciliation shall be
furnished to the creditors named therein;

5. After due hearing, the court shall issue an order approving the joint
manifestation and plan of reconciliation which order shall include
the protection of the interest of creditors;

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6. The order shall be registered in the proper registry of deeds; and
7. The recording of the order in the proper registry of deeds shall not
prejudice any creditor not listed or notified.

SEC. 22. Penalties. - A spouse who is a party to a petition for absolute divorce
and who is found by the court to have used threats or coercion to compel the other
spouse in filing the petition, and spouses who are guilty of collusion, shall be
punished with imprisonment of five (5) years and a fine of Three Hundred Thousand
Pesos (PhP300,000.00).

Any offending spouse in default of providing the required spousal support or
alimony and child support under this Act shall be charged with contempt of court and
be imposed a fine of:

{a) Fifty Thousand Pesos (PhP50,000.00) for the first default;

(b) One Hundred Thousand Pesos (PhP100,000.00) for the second default; and

(©) Two Hundred Thousand Pesos (PhP200,000.00) each for the third and the
succeeding defaults.

The offending spouse found guilty of indirect contempt of court shall be
punished with imprisonment thereupon until the obligation for spousal and/or child
support has been paid.

SEC. 23. Options. - The concerned spouse shall have the option to file a petition
for dissolution of marriage, annulment of marriage, or legal separation under Articles
36, 45, and 55, respectively, of the Family Code of the Philippines or a petition or joint
petition for absolute divorce under this Act.

SEC. 24, Appeals. - Within fifteen (15) calendar days from receipt of the decree
of absolute divorce, any of the spouses may file an appeal with the Court of Appeals
under the pertinent provisions of the Rules of Court.

A motion for execution pending appeal may be issued by the Court of Appeals
upon application of the appellee. Moreover, the Court of Appeals may dismiss an
appeal forthwith once it finds the same frivolous.

SEC. 25. Community-Based Pre-Nuptial and Post-Matrimonial Programs and
Activities. - The National Government shall, through the DSWD, implement
community-based pre-nuptial, reconciliatory phase or cooling-off counseling, and
post-matrimonial programs and activities aimed at strengthening the marital and
family life of Filipinos.

These social welfare interventions, which will protect the stability of Filipino
families, shall be instituted by the DSWD in provinces, cities, and clusters of
municipalities in the entire country, while observing the local cultures and customs
that are prevalent in each locality.


SEC. 26. Community-Based Women's Desk. - The frontline desk in every
barangay established under RA 9710 shall be readily available and easily accessible to
provide support and assistance to victims, especially women, of all forms of abuse
and acts of violence identified under the said Act and those provided for under RA
9262.

SEC. 27. Attorney's Fees. - Subject to the plenary authority of the Supreme
Court to regulate the practice of law, in petitions with no court-assisted petitioner, the
attorney's fees, inclusive of acceptance fee, appearance fees, and success fee, shall not
exceed Fifty Thousand Pesos (PhP50,000.00) for the entire proceedings. However, the
petitioner and counsel can mutually agree on a higher rate of attorney’s fees.

SEC. 28. Creation of More Positions of Public Attorneys and Family Courts. -
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is authorized to create the necessary additional
positions for public attorneys under the Public Attorney's Office to advocate for court-
assisted petitioners.

In the discretion of the Supreme Court, more Family Courts may be created to
adjudicate petitions for absolute divorce.

SEC. 29. Congressional Oversight Committee on the Absolute Divorce Act. -
There is hereby created a Congressional Oversight Committee (COC) composed of
five (5) members each from the Senate and the House of Representatives. The
members of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall be appointed by the
Senate President and the Speaker, respectively, with at least one (1) member
representing the Minority.

The COC shall be headed by the respective Chairpersons of the Committee on
Health and Demography of the Senate and the Committee on Population and Family
Relations of the House of Representatives. The Secretariat of the COC shall come from
the existing Secretariat personnel of the Senate and the House of Representatives
committees concerned.

The COC shall monitor and ensure the effective implementation of this Act,
recommend the necessary remedial legislation or administrative measures, and
conduct a review of this Act every five (5) years from its effectivity. The COC shall
perform such other duties and functions as may be necessary to attain the objectives
of this Act.

SEC. 30. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the initial
implementation of this Act shall be sourced from the savings of the DSWD for the
current fiscal year, and the subsequent amounts necessary for the full implementation
of this Act shall be included in the subsequent annual General Appropriation Acts.


SEC. 31. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The DSWD shall, as lead
agency, together with the DOJ, the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), and the
National Youth Commission (NYC), in consultation with at least two (2)
representatives from women’s organizations with proven track record in women and
gender rights advocacy to be identified by the PCW, and two (2) representatives from
children’s organizations with proven track record in child rights advocacy to be
identified by the NYC, promulgate the implementing rules and regulations within
sixty (60) days after the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 32. Separability Clause. - If any part or provision of this Act is held
invalid or unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected thereby shall remain in
force and effect.

SEC. 33. Repealing Clause. - All laws, executive orders, issuances, decrees,
rules, and regulations inconsistent with or contrary to the provisions of this Act are
deemed amended, modified, or repealed accordingly.

SEC. 34, Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,