FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
1 
SENATE 
Introduced by Senator JUAN MIGUEL F. ZUBlRl 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The importance of title to land cannot be overemphasized. The main objects of 
land title registration are to protect property rights, to facilitate transactions in land, and 
to enable land to be used as collateral for a loan. A title provides incentives for 
investment in land and therefore creates an impetus for sustainable economic 
development. In order to hasten title registration and thus spun economic growth, the 
process should be simple, reliable, prompt and affordable. 
One of the modes of acquiring public land is by Free Patent or administrative 
legalization of an imperfect title. Historically, it is intended to legalize and register the 
undocumented private Jand rights of native-born Filipinos who are actual occupants of 
agricultural lands. It is the most expeditious, popular and affordable mode of public land 
disposition because the process is administrative and inexpensive to the applicant since 
it merely recognizes his acquisitive right over the land as actual occupant. 
Batas Pambansa 223 extended the grant of Free Patent to actual occupants of 
residential lands, however, it ceased to be effective since it only allows residential 
application up to December 31, 1987. Considering that around 80% of the remaining 
unregistered land parcels in the country are residential land, the re-enactment and 
improvement of residential free patent will expedite mass titiing of lands and will in turn 
create economic growth. 
The Salient Feature of the Bill 
Extend Free Patent to residential lands classifiedlzoned by the local government 
in its land use plan as residential and is not needed for public service and public 
use and subject to area limits 
Reduction of period of occupation to ten ( I O )  years 
Removal of the restriction on encumbrance on the title 
The proposed bill seeks to enable the land sector to contribute to the sustainable 
development, economic growth and poverty alleviation. The bill’s early enactment will 
boost the Philippine’s role in the global movement to sustainable development while 
providing an improved access to land and services to the majority of the Filipino people, 
especially the poor and marginalized. 


1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9 
10 
I 1  
12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
) 
SENATE 
Introduced by Senator JUAN MIGUEL F. ZUBlRl 
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 Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. The provisions 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 (IO) years or prior thereto, either by himself or through 
his 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 (IO) years or prior thereto, shall, upon 
application, be entitled to have a free patent issued to him for such parcel of land not to 
exceed two hundred (200) square meters in highly urbanized cities; five hundred (500) 
square meters in other cities; and 1,000 square meters in all 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 and 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 applicatioh to the effect that 
the applicant thereof has, either by himself or through his predecessor-in-interest, 
actually resided on and continuously possessed and occupied, under a bona fide claim 


1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
I 
8 
9 
IO 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
I6 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
26 
27 
25 
29 
30 
of acquisition of ownership, the land applied for at least ten ( I O )  years and has complied 
with the requirements prescribed in Section One hereof. 
The pertinent provisions of Chapter XIV, Title VI of Commonwealth Act 
Numbered One hundred forty-one, as amended, shall apply to free patent applications 
filed under the provisions of this, 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 been 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, inconsjsfent 
with or contrary to the provisions of this Act, are hereby deemed repealed, amended or 
modified accordingly. 
SECTION 5. Separability Clause. - If, for any reason or reasons, any part or 
parts 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. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
after its publication in two (2) national newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved, 
2