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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
1st Regular Session 
House Bill No. ________ 
Introduced by Representatives EDVIC G. YAP, JOCELYN P. TULFO, and 
JEFFREY SORIANO 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The continued absence of a divorce law in the country translates to a higher rate of 
not only unhappy marriages, but also abusive ones. According to the 2017 National 
Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), one in four ever-married women aged 15-
49 has ever experienced physical, sexual, or emotional violence by their husband and 
partner. While annulment is a possibility, its prohibitive cost and exhausting process 
makes it inaccessible to many aggrieved spouses. 
Thus, this bill seeks to by define and introduce divorce, amending the Family Code of 
the Philippines. Contrary to the notion that instituting divorce in the country shall 
pave for an 'easy way out' of marriage, this bill shall set specific grounds in which 
divorce can be justified, such as abuse, drug addiction, habitual alcoholism, 
imprisonment, infidelity, and abandonment. 
In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is earnestly sought. 
      EDVIC G. YAP 
   JOCELYN P. TULFO 
 JEFFREY SORIANO 
August 22, 2022
12:57 pm
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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
1st Regular Session 
House Bill No. ________ 
Introduced by Representatives EDVIC G. YAP, JOCELYN P. TULFO, and 
JEFFREY SORIANO 
AN ACT 
AMENDING CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF EXECUTIVE ORDER 209 AS 
AMENDED, IN ORDER TO DEFINE AND INTRODUCE DIVORCE AND FOR 
OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. Title II of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows -   
TITLE II 
“Divorce” 
SECTION 2. Article 55 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 “Article 55. - Divorce is a judicial termination of marriage returning the 
parties thereto to the civil status of ‘single’ allowing both to contract 
marriage which may be instituted by an aggrieved party to the marriage 
on the following grounds: 
1. Repeated physical violence or grossly abusive conducted directed
against the aggrieved spouse, a common child, or a child of the
aggrieved spouse;
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 aggrieved spouse, a
common child, or a child of the aggrieved spouse, to engage in
prostitution, or connivance in such corruption or inducement;
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4. Final Judgment sentencing the offending spouse to imprisonment of 
more than six years, even if pardoned; 
 
5. Drug addiction or habitual alcoholism of the offending spouse; 
 
6. Homosexuality of the offending spouse; 
 
7. Contracting by the offending spouse of a subsequent bigamous 
marriage or a second marriage with another person abroad;  
 
8. Sexual perversion of the offending spouse subjecting the aggrieved 
spouse, a common child, or a child of the aggrieved spouse; 
 
9. Attempt by the offending spouse against the life of the aggrieved 
spouse;  
 
10. Marital Infidelity of the offending spouse;  
 
11. Abandonment of the offending spouse without justifiable cause for 
more than one year; 
 
12. Commission of any of the punishable acts of Republic Act No. 9262 
as amended or the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children 
Act of 2004; 
 
13. Commission of any of the punishable acts of Republic Act No. 7610 
as amended or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, 
Exploitation, and Discrimination Act;” 
 
 
SECTION 3. Article 56 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows - 
 
 
“Article 56. Divorce shall be denied on any of the following grounds: 
 
1. Where the offended spouse has condoned the offense or act 
complained of in a written public document.  
 
2. Where the offended spouse has consented to the commission of the 
offense or act complained of. 
 
3. Where there is connivance between the parties in the commission of 
the offense or act constituting the grounds for divorce; 
 
4. Where there is collusion between the spouses to falsify any ground to 
acquire a decree of divorce; 
 
5. Where the action is barred by prescription.” 
 


 
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SECTION 4. Article 57 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 
“Article 57. An action for divorce shall be filed within five years from the 
time of the occurrence of the cause or within five years from the 
discovery of the cause whichever is later.” 
 
SECTION 5. Article 58 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 
“Article 58. An action for divorce shall in no case be tried before sixty (60) 
days have elapsed since the filing of the petition.” 
 
SECTION 6. Article 59 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows -  
 
“Article 59. No divorce shall be decreed unless the Court has directed the 
parties thereto to any form of Alternate Dispute Resolution and such 
method has failed.” 
 
SECTION 7. Article 60 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 
“Article 60. No decree of divorce shall be based upon a stipulation of facts 
or a confession of judgment.” 
 
SECTION 8. Article 61 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows –  
 
“Article 61. After the filling of the action for divorce, the spouses shall be 
entitled to live separately from each other. 
 
In the absence of a written agreement, the court shall designate either of 
the spouses or a qualified third person to administer the absolute 
community or conjugal partnership property. The administrator 
appointed by the court shall have the same powers and duties as those of 
a guardian under the Rules of Court.” 
 
SECTION 9. Article 62 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 
“Article 62. During the pendency of the action for divorce the provisions 
of Article 49 shall likewise apply to the support of the spouses and the 
custody and support of the common children.” 
 
SECTION 10. Article 63 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 


 
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“Article 63. The decree of divorce shall have the following effects: 
 
1. The spouses in the divorce shall have their marriage bonds severed 
returning them to the civil status of single allowing either to contract 
marriage anew. 
 
2.  The absolute community or conjugal partnership shall be dissolved 
and liquidated. 
 
3. The custody of the minor children shall be awarded to the innocent 
spouse subject to the provisions of Article 213 of this code; and  
 
4. The offending spouse shall be disqualified from inheriting from the 
innocent spouse by intestate succession. Moreover, provisions in 
favor of the offending spouse made in the will of the offended spouse 
shall be revoked by operation of law. 
 
SECTION 11. Article 64 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 
“Article 64. After the finality of the decree of divorce, the innocent spouse 
may revoke donations made by him or her in favor of the offending 
spouse as well as the designation of the latter as beneficiary in any 
insurance policy, even if such designation be stipulated as irrevocable. 
The revocation of the donations shall be recorded in the registries of 
property 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 registries of property shall be respected. 
The revocation of or change in the designation of the insurance 
beneficiary shall take effect upon written notification thereof to the 
insured.” 
 
SECTION 12. Article 65 of Executive Order 209 or the Family Code is hereby 
amended as follows – 
 
“Article 65. Upon finality of a divorce decree, reconciliation between the 
parties shall have no legal effect and the marital relation shall remain 
severed. Parties to a divorce that has reached finality are not barred to 
enter into marriage with each other after obtaining a decree of divorce.” 
 
SECTION 13. Article 66 and Article 67 of Executive Order 209 or the Family 
Code is hereby repealed. 
 
SECTION 14. Separability Clause. - If any section or provision of this Act is 
held unconstitutional or invalid, the other sections or provisions shall not be affected. 
 


 
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SECTION 15. Repealing Clause - All laws, Presidential decrees, executive 
orders and rules and regulations, or parts thereof, inconsistent with the provisions of 
this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.  
 
SECTION 16. Effectivity - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days from the 
date of its complete publication in the Official Gazette at least two (2) newspapers of 
general circulation. 
 
Approved.