Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO.__ 6595 _

Introduced by
REPRESENTATIVES PANTALEON D. ALVAREZ, GERALDINE B.
ROMAN, RANEO E. ABU, FREDERICK F. ABUEG, LEN B. ALONTE-
NAGUIAT, SANDRA Y. ERIGUEL, GWENDOLYN F. GARCIA, SHARON
S. GARIN, VICTORIA ISABEL G. NOEL, and ERIC D. SINGSON

AN ACT
RECOGNIZING THE CIVIL PARTNERSHIP OF COUPLES,
PROVIDING FOR THEIR RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS

EXPLANATORY Ni
Section 1, Article III of the 1987 Constitution provides:

“Section 1. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or
property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied
the equal protection of the laws.”

While there has been greater acceptance of minority groups in
recent years, it is notable, however, that the Philippines has not made
sufficient strides in providing some of the most basic civil rights to
couples who are not eligible for marriage under the law. A large part of
this affected population is the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
(LGBT) community. By reason of their sexual orientation and who they
love, they are excluded from entering into legally recognized and
protected unions.

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This exclusion exacerbates the reality that most, if not all, of these
couples confront. For example, they cannot declare their partners as
beneficiaries under social security and insurance plans. Further, they are
unable to inherit through intestate rights in the event of the death of their
partner. These restrict basic liberties that are available to most citizens,
despite these couples taking part in loving, committed and long-term
relationships.

This bill, recognizing the Constitutional right of all Filipinos to
equal protection of the laws and to freely associate with others, hereby
proposes to allow couples to enter into a civil partnership, whether they
are of the opposite or of the same sex. It aims to be a landmark effort to
provide civil rights, benefits, and responsibilities to couples, previously
unable to marry, by giving them due recognition and protection from the
State. Lastly, it protects civil partnership couples by penalizing unlawful
and discriminatory practices committed by persons or institutions against
them on the basis of their civil partnership status.

Ultimately, at the core of a civil partnership are two fully consenting
adults who, like many Filipinos, merely wish to love, care and support
each other as they build a life together during their fleeting time here on
earth. It is about time that the Philippine government grant couples,
whether they are of the opposite or of the same sex, adequate legal
instruments to recognize their partnerships, respecting their dignity and
recognizing their equality before the law.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is highly and earnestly

Ge
PANTALEON D,
/ GERALDINE B. ROMAN

iCK F. ABUEG LEN B. ALONTE-NAGUIAT

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worden Tp Aregeel Cortca——
SANDRA Y. ERIGUEL eae F. GARCIA

4

SHARONS. GARIN VICTORIA ISABEL G. NOEL

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©

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 6595

Introduced by
REPRESENTATIVES PANTALEON D. ALVAREZ, GERALDINE B.
ROMAN, RANEO E, ABU, FREDERICK F. ABUEG, LEN B. ALONTE-
NAGUIAT, SANDRA Y. ERIGUEL, GWENDOLYN F. GARCIA, SHARON
S. GARIN, VICTORIA ISABEL G. NOEL, and ERIC D. SINGSON

AN ACT
RECOGNIZING THE CIVIL PARTNERSHIP OF COUPLES,
PROVIDING FOR THEIR RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS

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
Partnership Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - \t is the policy of the State to value
the dignity of every human person and guarantee full respect for human
rights. Towards this end, the State shall give full support to the welfare
and well-being of couples, of either the opposite or same sex, who are in
a relationship and are denied their rights and obligations on account of
absence of legal provisions that recognize their relationship and amply
provide for their protection.

SEC, 3. Definition of Terms, - As used in this Act:

(a) Civil partnership refers to a legal relationship between two
persons, of either the same or opposite sex, established pursuant to this
Act;

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(b) Civil partnership couple refers to individuals who formally
enter into a civil partnership in accordance with the provisions of this Act;

(c) Civil partnership license refers to a document issued by the local
civil registrar of the city or municipality that allows the contracting
parties, of either the same or opposite sex, and are habitually residing
together, to legally enter into a civil partnership;

(d) Civil partnership certificate refers to a document that certifies
that the persons named on the certificate have established a civil
partnership in compliance with this Act;

(e) Pre-civil partnership agreement refers to an agreement
pertaining to the property regime between prospective partners in a civil
partnership made in contemplation of establishing a civil partnership;
and

(f) Property refers to an interest, present or future, legal or
equitable, vested or contingent, in real or personal property, including
income and earnings.

SEC. 4. Recognition of Civil Partnership. - Any person who
complies with the requirements herein provided, shall be allowed to
register and enter into a civil partnership, and shall be bound by the
obligations and responsibilities and enjoy the protections and benefits
afforded by this Act. The rights of civil partnership couples shall be
recognized and respected.

SEC. 5. Requisites of a Civil Partnership. - No civil partnership
shall be valid unless the following requirements are present:

(a) Legal capacity of the contracting parties. For purposes of this Act,
there is legal capacity if the parties:
1) Are at least eighteen (18) years of age;
2) Are not prohibited to enter into civil partnership by reason of
public policy, based on the grounds enumerated under Articles 37

and 38 of Executive Order No. 209, as amended, otherwise known as
the “Family Code of the Philippines;” and

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3) Are free from any previous bond of marriage or civil
partnership;

(b) Sharing a common domicile for a minimum of two (2)
uninterrupted years at the time when the civil partnership license is
applied for as supported by competent evidence;

(c) The relationship is publicly known;

(d) Consent freely given in the presence of the administering
officer;

( Authority of the administering officer;

() A valid partnership license to contract a civil partnership
issued by and obtained from the local civil registrar of the city or
municipality where either party habitually resides; and

(g) A civil partnership ceremony which takes place with the
personal appearance of the contracting parties before the administering
officer and their personal declaration, as proof of consent freely given,
that they take each other as legal partners in the presence of not less than
two (2) witnesses. No specific religious rite or form shall be required for
purposes of this requirement.

The absence of any of the requisites mentioned in this section shall
render the civil partnership void ab initio. A defect in the requirements
provided under paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) shall be a ground for the
annulment of the civil partnership. However, a defect in paragraphs (e),
(f) and (g) shall be deemed a mere irregularity, which shall not affect the
validity of the civil partnership but the persons responsible for the
commission of the irregularity shall be civilly, criminally and
administratively liable.

SEC. 6. Administering Officers; Religious Freedom. - The persons
lawfully authorized to solemnize marriage under Article 7 of the Family
Code of the Philippines, as amended, shall likewise be authorized to
administer the civil partnership ceremony.

Nothing in this Act shall interfere with or regulate the religious
practice of any religious body. Any priest, rabbi, imam or minister of any
church, sect, or religious body is free to choose whether or not to
administer or officiate a civil partnership ceremony.

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SEC. 7. Civil Partnership License and Certificate, - The
requirements for and prohibitions relative to, as well as the procedures in
the issuance of a valid marriage license and certificate provided for under
Articles 9 to 23 and Articles 27 to 34 of the Family Code of the Philippines,
as amended, shall likewise be applicable in the issuance of a civil
partnership license and certificate.

SEC. 8. Default Property Regime. - In the absence of a pre-civil
partnership agreement or when the regime agreed upon is void, the
regime of total separation of property shall govern. The properties
acquired by civil partnership couples while they live together shall be
presumed, unless proven otherwise, to have been obtained through their
joint efforts, work and industry, and shall be governed by the rules on co-
ownership, unless otherwise provided for in the pre-civil partnership
agreement.

SEC. 9. Pre-Civil Partnership Agreement. - Civil partnership
couples may, within the limits provided for by this Act, fix their property
relations by executing a pre-civil partnership agreement which shall be in
writing, with a statement of assets annexed thereto, signed by both
parties, and contained in a public instrument.

Civil partnership couples may choose between the system of
absolute community of property, conjugal partnership of gains,
separation of property, whether total or partial, or any other regime, as
provided for in the Family Code of the Philippines, as amended. Such
regime shall govern their right to own, dispose of, possess, administer and
enjoy properties, subject to modifications, which are not contrary to law,
morals, good custom, public order, or public policy, given the nature of
their partnership.

Any stipulation or agreement that is inimical to the interest of the
civil partnership relative to sustenance and support for medical
treatment, dwelling, food, clothing and other needs of the couple, or
adversely affects the right of children to receive support, shall
automatically be declared void. Stipulations which are not contrary to
law, morals, good custom, public order, or public policy shall not be
invalidated and shall remain effective.

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A pre-civil partnership agreement becomes effective upon the
establishment of a civil partnership.

SEC. 10. Amendment or Revocation of Pre-Civil Partnership
Agreement. - Upon the establishment of a civil partnership, a pre-civil
partnership agreement may be amended or revoked only by a duly
notarized written agreement, freely and consensually entered into, signed
by the parties and approved by the court. The court's role is to ensure
that the amendment or revocation of the property regime is consensual.

The burden of proof to set aside a pre-civil partnership agreement
shall be upon the party alleging the agreement to be unenforceable. A
pre-civil partnership agreement shall be unenforceable if the party
seeking to set the same aside proves, by clear and convincing evidence,
that:

(a) The party executed the agreement involuntarily; or

(b) The agreement was unconscionable at the time enforcement
was sought; or

(c) | The party, before execution of the agreement, failed to:

(1) Provide full and fair disclosure of the earnings, property
and financial obligations of the other party;

(2) Voluntarily and expressly waive, in writing, any right
to disclosure of the property or financial obligations of the other
party beyond the disclosure provided:

(3) Have, or reasonably have had, an adequate knowledge
of the property or financial obligations of the other party; or

(4) Consult with independent legal counsel and voluntarily
and expressly waive, in writing, the opportunity to consult with
independent legal counsel.

(d) _ In case of disagreement and the parties cannot settle the
issue of unconscionability of a pre-civil partnership agreement, the issue
shall be determined by the court.

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If acivil partnership is declared void, an agreement that is otherwise
a pre-civil partnership agreement shall be enforced only to the extent
necessary to avoid an inequitable result.

SEC. 11. Benefits and Protections of Civil Partnership. - Civil
partnership couples shall be afforded the following benefits, protections
and responsibilities:

(a) All benefits and protections as are granted to spouses in a
marriage under existing laws, administrative orders, court rulings, or
those derived as a matter of public policy, or any other source of civil law;

(b) Laws of marital relations, including donations by reason of
marriage, legal separation, adoption, child custody and support, property
division and maintenance, and spousal support, shall apply to civil
partnership couples;

(c) Rights of civil partnership couples with respect to a child of
whom both become the parents of during the terms of the civil
partnership, shall be the same as those of a married couple with respect
to their child;

(d) All contracts made between persons in contemplation of a
civil partnership shall remain in full force after such civil partnership
takes place;

(e) A certified true copy of the record of the civil partnership from
the local civil registrar having custody of the record shall be presumptive
evidence of the civil partnership for all legal purposes;

(f) Laws relating to interstate succession, survivorship, or other
incidents of the acquisition, ownership or transfer, inter vivos or at death,
of real or personal property, as affecting parties to a marriage, shall
likewise be applicable to civil partnership couples;

(g) Causes of action related to or depended upon spousal status,
including torts or actions under contracts reciting, related to, or
dependent upon spousal status may be availed of by civil partnership
couples;

(h) Civil partnership couples shall automatically have insurable
interest over their respective partners and may avail of benefits relating
to insurance, health and pension benefits provided to married couples;

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(0) Labor standard benefits and privileges accorded to employees
based on marital status shall likewise be accorded to employees who
entered into a civil partnership;

0) Benefits under tax laws relating to marital status shall be
applicable to civil partnership couples; and

(k) Civil partnership couples are covered by laws relating to
immunity from being compelled to testify against the other and bound by
the marital communication privilege.

SEC. 12. Obligations of Civil Partnership Couples. - Civil
partnership couples legally owe each other respect, fidelity, support and
assistance. They are bound to live together and are jointly responsible in
the management of their household; exercise of parental authority, if
applicable; the contribution towards expenses; the maintenance of the
civil partnership residence; and other duties which married couples are
jointly responsible for.

Civil partnership couples shall have the same obligations with
respect to a child of whom both become the parents of during the terms
of the civil partnership, as those of a married couple with respect to their
child as provided for in existing laws.

Infidelity by either of the partners in a civil partnership shall be
punished under this Act. For purposes of this Act, infidelity is committed
by any partner who shall have sexual relations with a man or woman who
is not his or her civil partner. Further, infidelity shall also be committed
by a man or woman who has sexual relations with a person whom the
offender knows to be in a civil partnership, even if the civil partnership
be subsequently declared void.

SEC. 13. Inheritance Rights. - For purposes of inheritance rights, a
partner in a civil partnership shall be considered a compulsory heir of the
other, who shall have the same rights and benefits accorded to a husband
or wife in Republic Act No. 386, otherwise known as the “Civil Code of the
Philippines,” as amended, the Family Code of the Philippines, as amended,
and Republic Act No. 8552, also known as the “Domestic Adoption Act of
1998.” There is a presumption that co-ownership exists, unless otherwise
proven, for properties acquired by the civil partnership couple during the
civil partnership. The surviving partner, upon the death of another, is

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entitled to one-half of the co-owned properties. The other half constitutes
the estate of the decedent for disposition and liquidation.

SEC. 14. Adoption Rights. - Civil partnership couples residing in
the Philippines who have the qualifications and none of the
disqualifications may adopt if the requirements for a valid adoption, as
provided under existing laws, are complied with.

If the adopting civil partnership couple be of the same sex, this fact
alone shall not be considered as proof of bad moral character.

Civil partnership couples shall be allowed to legally adopt only
when there are no married couples willing to adopt the child or if the child
is that of one of the contracting parties in a civil partnership.

The best interest and welfare of the child shall always be the
paramount consideration in deciding matters concerning the adoption of
a child by civil partnership couples.

SEC. 15. Social Security and Insurance Membership. - Civil
partnership couples shall have the same rights and privileges as that
granted to married couples with regard application for social security and
other insurance membership and claiming entitlement to their benefits.
The Social Security System, Government Service Insurance System,
Philippine Health Insurance Corporation and other benefits-related state
agencies shall restructure their benefits system to accommodate parties to
civil partnerships and their corresponding dependents.

SEC. 16. Dissolution of Civil Partnership. - The procedures and
grounds for legal separation, annulment and declaration of nullity of
marriages under the Family Code of the Philippines, as amended, shall be
applicable in civil partnerships. Further, the attempt against the life of the
partner shall also be a ground for dissolution of the civil partnership.

Parties may, through a verified joint petition filed before the
appropriate regional trial court, move for the consensual termination of
their civil partnership. The petition must include a joint plan for
parenthood over common children, if any. The joint plan must provide
for the support and living arrangements of the common children. The
court shall ensure its enforcement and shall review the plan on an annual

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basis or as often as possible, in case the need arises. An action for joint
petition for the termination of a civil partnership shall not be tried before
six (6) months have elapsed since the filing of the petition. If the court
determines that the consent of both parties was freely given and that the
joint plan for parenthood is sufficient to protect the rights and interests of
the common children, the court shall grant the joint petition.

SEC. 17. Protection of Children in Case of Dissolution of Civil
Partnership. - To protect the rights and interests of children in the event
of dissolution of the civil partnership, the court shall consider the
following factors in so far as support for children, if applicable, is
concerned:

(a) Needs of the child;

(b) Standard of living and economic circumstances of each
parent;

(c) All sources of income and assets of each parent;

(a) Earning ability of each parent, including education
background, training, employment skills, work experience, custodial
responsibility for children including the cost of providing child care and

the length of time and cost of each parent to obtain training or experience
for appropriate employment;

(e) Need and capacity of the child for education, including higher
education;

(f) Age and health of the child and each parent;
(g) Income, assets and earning ability of the child;

(h) Responsibility of the parents for the court-ordered support of
others;

(i) Reasonable debts and liabilities of each child and parent; and
(j) | Any other factors the court may deem relevant.

The obligation to give support for a child who has not been
emancipated by the court shall not terminate solely on the basis of the
child's age if the child suffers from a severe mental or physical incapacity
that causes the child to be financially dependent on a parent. The

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obligation to give support for that child shall continue until the court finds
that the child is relieved of the incapacity or is no longer financially
dependent on the parent.

SEC. 18. Support Pendente Lite. - In all actions brought for
dissolution of a civil partnership, legal separation from a partner ina civil
partnership couple or annulment of the civil partnership, the court may
provide for support pendente lite. In so doing, the court shall consider the
following factors, among others:

(a) The actual need and ability of the parties to pay;

(b) The duration of the civil partnership;

()_ The age, physical and emotional health of the parties;

(d) The standard of living established in the civil partnership and

the likelihood that each party can maintain a reasonably comparable
standard of living;

(e) The earning capacities, educational levels, vocational skills
and employability of the parties;

(f) | The length of absence from the job market of the party seeking,
maintenance;

(g) The parental responsibilities for the children;

(h) The time and expense necessary to acquire sufficient
education or training to enable the party seeking maintenance to find
appropriate employment, the availability of the training and
employment, and the opportunity for future acquisitions of capital assets
and income;

(i) | The history of the financial or non-financial contributions to
the civil partnership by each party including contributions to the care and
education of the children and interruption of personal careers or
educational opportunities;

(j) |The equitable distribution of property ordered and any
payouts on equitable distribution, directly or indirectly, out of current
income, to the extent this consideration is reasonable, just and fair;

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(k) The income available to either party through investment of
any assets held by that party; and

() Any other factors which the court may deem relevant.

For purposes of liquidation of earned assets and properties during
the civil partnership, household support and assistance are deemed
equivalent to actual work and industry.

Dissolution of the civil partnership shall not prejudice the right of
children to legitimes under the Family Code of the Philippines, as
amended.

SEC. 19. Unlawful or Discriminatory Employment Practices. - The
following are declared as unlawful or discriminatory employment
practices:

(a) For an employer, to refuse to hire or employ or to bar or to
discharge or require to retire, unless justified by lawful considerations
other than age, from employment such individual because of civil
partnership status, or to discriminate against such individual in
compensation or in terms, conditions or privileges of employment;

(b) For a labor organization, to exclude or to expel from its
membership such individual because of civil partnership status, or to
discriminate in any way against any of its members, against any applicant
for, or individual included in, any apprentice or other training program
or against any employee or any individual employed by an employer;

(c) For any employee or employment agency to print or circulate
or cause to be printed or circulated any statement, advertisement or
publication, or to use any form of application for employment, or to make
an inquiry in connection with prospective employment, which expresses,
directly or indirectly, any limitation, specification or discrimination as to
civil partnership status for employment;

(d) For any owner, lessee, proprietor, manager, superintendent,
agent, or employee of any place of public accommodation, directly or
indirectly, to refuse, withhold from or deny to any person any of the
accommodations, advantages, facilities or privileges thereof, or to
discriminate against any person in the furnishing thereof, or directly or
indirectly to publish, circulate, issue, display, post or mail any written or

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printed communication, notice, or advertisement to the effect that any of
the accommodations, advantages, facilities, or privileges of any such
place will be refused, withheld from, or denied to any person on account
of civil partnership status; and

(ce) For any person, including any owner, lessee, sublessee,
assignee or managing agent of, or other person having the right of
ownership or possession of or the right to sell, rent, lease, assign, or
sublease any real property or part or portion thereof, or any agent or
employee of any of these to refuse to sell, rent, lease, assign, or sublease
or otherwise to deny to or withhold from any person or group of persons
any real property or part or portion thereof because of civil partnership
status,

SEC. 20. Penalty Provisions. - (a) Any person who knowingly or
willfully refuses to issue civil partnership licenses or certificates despite
being authorized to do so; denies rights and benefits entitled to civil
partnership couples; or commits unlawful, discriminatory employment
practices, as provided for in this Act, shall be penalized by a fine of not
less than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000,00) but not more than
Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) or imprisonment of not less
than one (1) year but more than six (6) years, or both, at the discretion of
the court.

If the offender is a corporation or association, the officer responsible
for the acts enumerated in this Section shall be criminally and civilly
liable.

If the offender is a public officer, prosecution under this Act shall be
without prejudice to the filing of any administrative case against the
public officer under other existing laws.

(b) Any person who commits an act of infidelity while bound in a
civil partnership, as defined in Section 11 of this Act, shall be punished by
prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods.

SEC. 21. Separability Clause. - If, for any reason, any section or
provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other
sections or provisions which are not affected shall continue to be full force
and effect.

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SEC. 22. Repealing Clause. - Pertinent provisions of the Family
Code of the Philippines, as amended, the Civil Code of the Philippines, as
amended, and the Domestic Adoption Act of 1998, which are inconsistent
with the provisions of this Act are hereby amended accordingly. All other
laws, decrees, executive orders, proclamations, rules and regulations, or
parts thereof, inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are also hereby
amended or repealed accordingly.

SEC. 23. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general
circulation.

Approved,

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