Republic of the Philippines

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES RECEIVED
Quezon City, Metro Manila 3 pare 20 AG 2025
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TWENTIETH CONGRESS
FIRST REGULAR SESSION

3904

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by Representative
ZIAUR-RAHMAN “ZIA” ALONTO ADIONG

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Absolute divorce Is not new to Philippine law. It was previously recognized through
Act No. 2710, or the Divorce Law, which took effect on March 11, 1917, during the
American colonial period. This law allowed for divorce a vinculo matrimonii—or
absolute divorce, but only on fault-based grounds: adultery committed by the wife,
or concubinage committed by the husband, in both cases requiring a final criminal
conviction. This law remained in force until the enactment of the Civil Code of the
Philippines in 1950, which repealed absolute divorce and retained only legal
separation and annulment as remedies for marital breakdown.

This bill seeks to reintroduce absolute divorce in the Philippine legal system as
limited, reasonable, and compassionate remedy for irreparably broken
marriages. It acknowledges the sanctity of marriage but also upholds the rights of
individuals, especially women and children, who endure abuse, neglect, or other
forms of serious harm within dysfunctional unions.

The bill provides clear grounds for the grant of absolute divorce,which include:

a. Physical violence or grossly abusive conduct;

b. Marital infidelity or abandonment;

©. Drug addiction, alcoholism, or chronic gambling;

d. Bigamous marriages and criminal convictions;

e. Homosexuality, perversion, or psychological incapacity;

f. Irreconcilable differences and separation in fact of at least five years;
g. Transitioning or sex reassignment of a spouse;

h. Other forms of domestic or marital abuse, including violations of Republic
Act No. 9262, the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act.

The bill also allows absolute divorce based on the modified grounds for
annulment under Article 45 of the Family Code, including consent obtained by fraud,


force, intimidation, or where a party was of unsound mind or physically incapable of
consummating the marriage.

The bill further protects the rights of children and the financially dependent
spouse. It ensures fair decisions on child custody, support, spousal maintenance, and
the liquidation of conjugal property, with safeguards for the legitime of children. It
imposes penalties for coercion or financial abandonment and encourages
reconciliation at any stage of the process.

By reintroducing divorce in a careful, restricted, and socially sensitive manner,
this bill provides a compassionate legal remedy for families trapped in abusive or
irreparably broken relationships. It balances the duty of the State to protect the
institution of marriage with its obligation to uphold human dignity, social justice, and
the welfare of the Filipino families.

In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought.

REP. = INTO ADION:
1S District, Lanao del Sur


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

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
FIRST REGULAR SESSION

Z
HOUSE BILL NO. 3904

Introduced by Representa tive
ZIAUR-RAHMAN “ZIA” ALONTO ADIONG

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.”

SECTION 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, otherwise known as “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.

SECTION 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.

(c) 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.

(d) 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.

SECTION 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;

(b) 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;

(c) Alcoholism refers to excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages at a
level that interferes with physical or mental health, and social, family, or
occupational responsibilities;

(d) 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;

(e) 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;

(f) 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 given to a
guardian. In the proper cases, a child also refers to an offspring of one of the
spouses;

(g) 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;

(h) 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 contro! disorder in which a person
makes habitual waging in games of chance which compromise, disrupt or
damage family, work and social relations, and vocational pursuits;

(j) Competent court refers to the proper Family Court established under
Republic Act No. 8369, or 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;

(k) 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);

(1) 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:

i. physical violence;
ii. psychological and emotional violence;
iii. sexual violence; or

iv. economic abuse;

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

(n) Irreconcilable differences refer 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;

(p) Legitime refers to the portion of a parent's estate from which they
cannot disinherit the 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;

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

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

(t) Overseas Filipinos refer to Filipino migrant workers, other Filipino
nationals and their dependents abroad or as defined under Section 3 of
Republic Act No. 8042, as amended, otherwise known as the “Migrant
Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995”;

(u) 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;

(v) 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;

(x) 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 or not 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;

(z) Transgender refers to a person whose gender identity or expression
differs from what is typically associated with the sex at birth;

(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.

SECTION 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:

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


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

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;

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

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

vi. Homosexuality of the respondent;

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

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

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

x. Abandonment of petitioner by 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) 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;

(2) Either party was of unsound mind, unless such party after coming
to reason, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife;


(3) 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;

(4) 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;

(5) Either party was physically incapable of consummating the marriage
with the other, and such incapacity continues or appears to be incurable;
or

(6) 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 —supervene__— after ~— the_-—s marriage;

(c) 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;

(d) 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. Definition of Terms,
Subsection (n); and

(g) Other forms of domestic or marital abuse as defined under Section 4.
Definition of Terms, Subsection (1).

The grant of absolute divorce based on domestic or marital abuse or
violation of Republic Act No. 9262, otherwise known as the “Antl-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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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 shail 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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.

(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 oficio 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.

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

(f) Public prosecutors in provinces, cities, and capital towns are mandated to
conduct investigations to find out whether or not 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 findings to the proper Family Court within sixty
(60) days from the filing of the petition.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 11. Summary Judicial Proceedings. - The following grounds for absolute
divorce may be subject to summary judicial proceedings as defined in Section 4.
Definition of Terms, Subsection (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;

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

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

(e) 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.

SECTION 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 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 Republic Act No. 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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;


(b) 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 interest 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), (5), (7), (8), (9), and (10) of this Act;

© Provided, That in a subsequent divorce of a previously divorced spouse,
the custody of children may be granted to the spouse with a lesser
number of children, subject to the discretion of the Family Court;

(c) 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 either 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
interests of the children and the protection of their 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;

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

(e) 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  obligee;

© Provided, finally, That the three (3)-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;

(f) 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;

(g) 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 donee
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 thereof
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
absolute divorce has become final;

(hh) The effects on the divorced spouses with respect to intestate succession,
testamentary dispositions, 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

(Gj) 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.

SECTION 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 to the best interest 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.
In case 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.

SECTION 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 interest 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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:


o i. Cases which involve acts of violence against women and their
children under R.A, No. 9262; and

© ii, Cases on attempt against the life of the offended spouse, a
common child, or a child of the offended spouse;

(c) 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;

(d) The reconciling spouses shall also submit a plan of reconciliation under
oath which shall include the following:

© i. The properties to be contributed anew to the restored regime;

© ii. The properties to be retained as separate properties of each
spouse;
° The names of all their known creditors, their addresses, and the

amounts owing to each;

©. iv. The joint manifestation and verified plan of reconciliation shall be
furnished to the creditors named therein;

© v. 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;

© vi. The order shall be registered in the proper registry of deeds; and

© vii. The recording of the order in the proper registry of deeds shall not
prejudice any creditor not listed or notified.

SECTION 22. Penalty. - 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 (P50,000.00) for the first default;
b. One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00) for the seconf default; and

c. Two hundred thousand pesos (P200,000.00) 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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 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.

SECTION 26. Community-Based Women’s Desk. - The frontline desk in every
barangay established under Republic Act No. 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 Republic Act No. 9262.

SECTION 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 (P50,000) for the entire proceedings. However,
the petitioner and counsel can mutually agree on a higher rate of attorney's fees.

SECTION 28. Creation of More Positions of Public Attorneys and Family Courts. -
The Department of Justice 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.

SECTION 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 from 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 Chairs 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
shall 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.

SECTION 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 Appropriations Acts.

SECTION 31. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The DSWD shall, as lead
agency, together with the Department of Justice, 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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.

SECTION 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,