1 
Republic of the Philippines 
House of Representatives 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
Twentieth Congress 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 1343 
Introduced by Representative LORDAN G. SUAN 
AN ACT 
ESTABLISHING A SYSTEM PROTECTING THE COMMUNITY INTELLECTUAL 
RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS CULTURAL COMMUNITIES/INDIGENOUS PEOPLES 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Philippines boasts a rich tapestry of indigenous cultures, each with 
unique knowledge and traditions passed down through generations.  This bill, 
the Community Intellectual Rights Act, is a crucial step towards ensuring these 
traditions are respected and protected.  
Currently, indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples 
(ICC/IPs) lack sufficient legal safeguards for their intellectual property.  Their 
knowledge of plants, medicines, agricultural practices, artistic expressions, and 
cultural heritage are all vulnerable to exploitation.  This bill rectifies this by 
establishing a system that recognizes ICC/IPs' ownership and control over their 
community intellectual rights (CIRs). 
Imagine a scenario where a pharmaceutical company uses a traditional 
medicinal plant, discovered, and cultivated by an ICC/IP community, to develop 
a new drug.  Without proper legal protection, the community receives no 
compensation for their knowledge.  This bill prevents such scenarios by 
requiring companies to obtain the community's free, prior and informed 
consent (FPIC) before using their CIRs commercially. Additionally, the bill 
guarantees ICC/IPs fair royalties or other benefits for such use. 
The potential benefits extend far beyond economics.  By safeguarding 
their CIRs, ICC/IPs gain control over how their knowledge and cultural 
July 7, 2025
8:25 am


2 
expressions are used.  This empowers them to preserve their heritage and 
prevent misappropriation or disrespectful representations.  
This bill also establishes a registry system for ICC/IPs to document their 
CIRs.  This not only provides them with a formal record of ownership but also 
fosters greater awareness and appreciation for their unique knowledge systems. 
The National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) will play a central 
role in implementing this bill.  They will manage the registry system, promote 
ICC/IPs' CIRs, and ensure compliance with the law.  Other government agencies 
will also be involved in supporting ICC/IPs and raising awareness. 
Protecting ICC/IPs' CIRs fosters cultural diversity, promotes ethical 
research practices, and ensures these communities are fairly compensated for 
their valuable contributions. 
This bill is not just about protecting the past; it's about empowering a 
vibrant cultural heritage for the future.  By recognizing and respecting ICC/IPs' 
intellectual property rights, we pave the way for a more just and equitable 
society. 
In light of the preceding, this bill’s approval is fervently sought. 
LORDAN G. SUAN 
Cagayan de Oro City – 1st District 


1 
Republic of the Philippines 
House of Representatives 
Quezon City, Metro Manila 
Twentieth Congress 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. 1343 
Introduced by Representative LORDAN G. SUAN 
AN ACT 
ESTABLISHING A SYSTEM PROTECTING THE COMMUNITY INTELLECTUAL 
RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS CULTURAL COMMUNITIES/INDIGENOUS PEOPLES 
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 "Community 
1 
Intellectual Rights of Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous Peoples 
2 
Protection Act of 2025.” 
3 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Principle and Policy. — It shall be a declared 
4 
policy of the State to recognize, respect, protect, and safeguard the traditional 
5 
cultural heritage of indigenous cultural communities/indigenous peoples 
6 
(ICCs/IPs), both tangible and intangible; preserve and protect their culture, 
7 
traditions and institutions; and to recognize and support traditional knowledge 
8 
(K), traditional arts and artisans for their contribution to their cultures, national 
9 
heritage, and social and economic development. 
10 
Towards this end, the state shall take measures to protect and guarantee 
11 
respect for the cultural integrity of ICCs/IPs, and their right to practice and 
12 
revitalize their own cultural traditions and customs. The state shall preserve, 
13 
protect, and develop the past, present, and future manifestations of their 
14 
cultures as well as the right to the restitution of cultural, intellectual, religious, 
15 
and spiritual property taken without their free, prior and informed consent 
16 
(FPIC) or in violation of their laws, traditions, and customs. 
17 
SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this Act, the following 
18 
terms shall be defined as follows: 
19 


 
2 
(a) Commission shall refer to the National Commission on Indigenous 
1 
Peoples (NCIP); 
2 
(b) Community Intellectual Rights shall refer to the rights of indigenous 
3 
cultural communities/indigenous peoples (ICCs/IPs) to own, control, develop, 
4 
protect, and enjoy their indigenous knowledge or creative intellectual activity 
5 
and their manifestations, such as but not limited to: 
6 
1. archeological and historical sites, artifacts, ceremonies, oral 
7 
traditions, visual and performing arts and literature, as well as 
8 
religious and spiritual properties;  
9 
2. science, technologies, human and other genetic resources, 
10 
including derivatives of these resources, seeds, medicines, 
11 
health practices, vital medicinal plants, animals and minerals, 
12 
resource management systems, agricultural technologies, 
13 
knowledge of the properties of fauna and flora, scientific 
14 
discoveries: and 
15 
3. language, script, histories, and teaching and learning systems; 
16 
which are distinctively associated with and integral to the 
17 
cultural and social identity of the ICCs/IPs or groups of ICCs/IPs 
18 
generated, preserved, and transmitted from one generation to 
19 
another either orally or by practice, and are constantly 
20 
evolving, developing, and being recreated within the 
21 
community, and such other new indigenous knowledge or 
22 
creative intellectual activity which are identifiable and adopted 
23 
as community owned. 
24 
(c) Cultural agencies shall refer to the following national government 
25 
agencies with their specific areas of responsibility: National Commission for 
26 
Culture and the Arts (registry of cultural property); National Museum of the 
27 
Philippines (inventory); National Library of the Philippines (books); National 
28 
Historical Commission of the Philippines (Philippine history); National Archives 
29 
of the Philippines (documents); Cultural Center of the Philippines (culture and 
30 
arts); and Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (language); 
31 
(d) Derivative shall refer to any naturally occurring biochemical 
32 
compound resulting from the genetic resources or metabolism of biological or 
33 
genetic resources even if it does not contain functional units of heredity; 
34 
(e) Derivative work shall refer to the infusion or incorporation of 
35 
variations on a community intellectual right that would result in a derivative 
36 
work or craft, which is one that is primarily a new work, but incorporates 
37 
preexisting works or previously published material. A derivative work must be 
38 
different enough from the original to be regarded as a "new work" or must 
39 
contain a substantial amount of new material. Making minor changes or 
40 


 
3 
additions of little substance to a pre-existing work will not qualify the work as a 
1 
new version; 
2 
(f) Genetic material shall refer to any material of plant, animal, microbial 
3 
or other origin containing functional units of heredity; 
4 
(g) Genetic resources shall refer to genetic material of actual or potential 
5 
value; 
6 
(h) Misappropriation shall refer to any access or use of community 
7 
intellectual rights of the indigenous peoples or indigenous cultural communities 
8 
without their free, prior and informed consent or approval and involvement and, 
9 
where applicable, without mutual agreed terms, for whatever purpose, be it 
10 
commercial, research, academic, and technology transfer, in violation of 
11 
customary law and established practices governing the access or use of such 
12 
community intellectual rights; 
13 
(i) Misuse shall refer to any act wherein the user had secured prior 
14 
consent from the ICCs/IPs for the use of the community intellectual rights, 
15 
however, the same is used in a manner violative of customary laws and 
16 
established practices, or those contrary to or beyond what was agreed upon; 
17 
(j) Registry shall refer to the registry of community intellectual rights to 
18 
be established and managed by the Commission; 
19 
(k) Royalty shall refer to the fair and equitable sharing of benefits as 
20 
provided in the mutually agreed terms (MAT) in the memorandum of agreement 
21 
(MOA) after the conduct of the FPIC process or to the payment to the owner of 
22 
the registered cultural property for the right to use their property; 
23 
(l) Traditional Knowledge shall refer to knowledge originating from 
24 
ICCs/IPs that may be dynamic and evolving and is the result of intellectual 
25 
activity, experiences, spiritual means, or insights in or from a traditional context, 
26 
which may be connected to land and environment, including know-how, skills, 
27 
innovations, practices, teaching or learning; and 
28 
(m) Traditional Cultural Expressions shall refer to any form in which 
29 
traditional culture practices and knowledge are expressed by ICCs/IPs, in or from 
30 
a traditional context, and may be dynamic and evolving and comprise verbal 
31 
forms, musical forms, expressions by movement, tangible or intangible forms of 
32 
expression, or combinations thereof; 
33 
SECTION 4. Coverage of Protection. — The ICCs/IPs shall have full 
34 
ownership, control, and protection from misappropriation, misuse, and false 
35 
designation of origin of the community intellectual rights of ICCs/IPs, and they 
36 
shall have the right to the restitution of cultural, intellectual, religious, and 
37 
spiritual property taken without their free, prior and informed consent or in 
38 
violation of their laws, traditions, and customs. The protection of the community 
39 
intellectual rights of the ICCs/Ips shall also cover their economic and moral 
40 


 
4 
interests to be enumerated in the implementing rules and regulations of this 
1 
Act. 
2 
SECTION 5. Implementing Body. — The National Commission on 
3 
Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) shall implement the provisions of this Act. 
4 
SECTION 6. Promotion of Community Intellectual Rights. — The 
5 
Commission shall undertake activities to promote intellectual rights of ICCs/IPs, 
6 
including building the capacity of ICCs/IPs to enhance the protection and 
7 
management of their rights. 
8 
SECTION 7. Registry. — The Commission shall establish and maintain a 
9 
registry in which IKSPs shall be registered for the purpose of this Act and which 
10 
shall be recorded in the order of their registration. The registration of 
11 
community intellectual rights shall be filed before the nearest NCIP Office. The 
12 
application for registration shall contain the pertinent information necessary for 
13 
examination of the community intellectual rights which shall include, but not 
14 
limited to, the following information: 
15 
(a) Identity of ICCs/IPs community intellectual right holder; 
16 
(b) Location; 
17 
(c) Detailed description of the community intellectual right registered; 
18 
(d) Disclosure of agreements/partnerships with private or public 
19 
individuals/entities for the use of their community intellectual rights, 
20 
if any. Enrollment of community intellectual rights in the Registry shall 
21 
be prima face evidence of community intellectual rights of the ICCs/IPs. 
22 
The State recognizes the existence of community intellectual rights of 
23 
ICCs/IPs without need of prior approval from any licensing agency or 
24 
other undertaking, including registration. 
25 
SECTION 8. Coordination by the NCIP with the NCCA and IPOPHL on the 
26 
Registry of Community Intellectual Rights, Cultural Property, and 
27 
Intellectual Property Rights. — The Commission, together with the National 
28 
Commission for Culture and the Arts and the IPOPHL shall establish a system of 
29 
coordination that will be consistent with the policy of this Act, including the 
30 
streamlining of the procedures for the registration of community intellectual 
31 
rights. They may jointly or individually promulgate the appropriate mechanisms 
32 
to ensure the effective implementation of the policies and objectives of this Act, 
33 
and they shall undertake activities geared toward building the capacity of 
34 
ICCs/IPs to enhance the protection and management of their community 
35 
intellectual property rights. 
36 


 
5 
SECTION 9. Period of Ownership. — The community intellectual rights of 
1 
ICCs/Ips shall continue indefinitely to be their exclusive intellectual right and 
2 
shall not expire and shall not become part of the public domain. 
3 
SECTION 10. Original Rights of Ownership. — Though the State recognizes 
4 
the dynamic evolution of community intellectual rights, the ICCs/IPs shall retain 
5 
these intellectual rights as well as derivative works. 
6 
SECTION 11. Royalties. — The concerned ICCs/IPs are entitled to royalties 
7 
and other benefits as may be negotiated by the parties. When the community 
8 
intellectual rights are used commercially, the royalty payment due the 
9 
concerned ICCs/IPs shall, in no case, be less than five percent (5%) of the gross 
10 
proceeds of the sale. 
11 
SECTION 12. Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). — The use of CCs/Ips 
12 
community intellectual rights shall be governed by the provisions of Republic 
13 
Act No. 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997, its Implementing 
14 
Rules and Regulations, and guidelines on Free, Prior and Informed Consent. 
15 
SECTION 13. Role of Government Agencies and Local Government Units. 
16 
— All government agencies, government-owned and controlled corporations, 
17 
public educational institutions, local government units (LGs) and other entities 
18 
shall endeavor to promote ICCs/IPs community intellectual rights. They shall 
19 
endeavor to develop, produce and publish information education campaign 
20 
materials on community intellectual rights, the importance of registration, and 
21 
the prohibited acts under this Act. For this purpose, all national government 
22 
agencies and LGs shall allocate funds for the implementation of programs, 
23 
projects and activities that will recognize, respect, promote and protect the 
24 
rights of the ICCs/IPs, including the protection and promotion of their 
25 
community intellectual rights pursuant to IPRA and this Act. 
26 
SECTION 14. Prohibited Acts. — Under this Act, the following are 
27 
prohibited: 
28 
(a) Misappropriation - any access, infringement, copying, or use of 
29 
community 
intellectual 
rights 
of 
the 
indigenous 
cultural 
30 
communities/indigenous peoples without their free, prior and informed consent 
31 
or approval and involvement and, where applicable, without mutual agreed 
32 
terms, for whatever purpose, be it commercial, research, academic, and 
33 
technology transfer. 
34 
(b) Misuse - any act wherein the user had secured prior consent from the 
35 
ICCs/IPs for the use of the community intellectual rights, however, the same is 
36 
used in a manner violative of national laws or customary laws known to the user, 
37 


 
6 
and established practices, or those contrary to or beyond what was agreed upon 
1 
during the FPIC process. 
2 
(c) False Designations of Origin - any act which will likely cause confusion 
3 
or mistake, or cause deception as to the affiliation, connection, or association of 
4 
such ICCs/IPs IKSPs, including, but not limited, to the following: 
5 
1. false designation of an origin, false or misleading description of 
6 
fact, or false or misleading representation of fact; and 
7 
2. Misrepresentation of the nature, characteristics, qualities, or 
8 
geographic origin of an ICCs/IPs IKSP. 
9 
SECTION 15. Limitations on Community Intellectual Rights. — 
10 
Notwithstanding the protection given to the community intellectual right of 
11 
CCs/IPs, the following shall not be prohibited: 
12 
(a) Government use in cases of national emergencies, national security, 
13 
health, or the development of vital sectors in the national economy as 
14 
determined by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA); and 
15 
(b) Acts necessary to address the needs of non-commercial use, 
16 
including teaching and research for educational purposes, personal or private 
17 
use, criticism or review, reporting of current events, use in the course of legal 
18 
proceedings, the making of recordings and reproductions of traditional 
19 
knowledge or cultural expressions for inclusion in an archive or inventory 
20 
exclusively for the purposes of safeguarding knowledge or cultural heritage, and 
21 
incidental uses. Provided, that the relevant community's customary laws, 
22 
protocols, and practices will be considered and the relevant community shall be 
23 
acknowledged as the source of the traditional knowledge or cultural 
24 
expressions: Provided, further, That researches affecting the ICCs/IPs, their ISPs, 
25 
including their community intellectual right and their ancestral domains of 
26 
which the ICCs/IPs themselves are the primary source of data, shall require 
27 
consultations with the relevant CCs/IPs, including undertaking acts to obtain the 
28 
free, prior and informed consent: Provided, finally, That these acts do not 
29 
conflict with the interests of, or are not derogatory to, the ICCs/IPs and do not 
30 
unduly prejudice the implementation of the rights of ICCs/IPs. 
31 
SECTION 16. Penalties. 
32 
A. Administrative Penalties. — After the conduct of a formal investigation 
33 
and following due process, the Commission, may impose one (1) or more of the 
34 
following administrative penalties: 
35 
(a) Issuance of a cease-and-desist order which shall specify the acts that 
36 
the respondent shall cease and desist from and shall require him to submit a 
37 
compliance report within a reasonable time which shall be fixed in the Order; 
38 


 
7 
(b) The acceptance of a voluntary undertaking of compliance or 
1 
discontinuance as may be imposed. 
2 
(c) The condemnation or seizure of products which are subject of the 
3 
offense. The goods seized hereunder shall be disposed of in such manner as may 
4 
be deemed appropriate by the Commission; 
5 
(d) The forfeiture of paraphernalia and all real and personal properties 
6 
which have been used in the commission of the offense: 
7 
(e) The imposition of administrative fines in such amount deemed 
8 
reasonable by the Commission, 
9 
(f) The cancellation of any permit, license, authority, or registration 
10 
which may have been granted by the Commission, or the suspension of the 
11 
geographic origin of an ICCs/IPs' IKSP. validity thereof for such period of time as 
12 
the Commission may deem reasonable: 
13 
(g) The withholding of any permit, license, authority or registration 
14 
which is being secured by the respondent from the Commission; 
15 
(h) The assessment and award of damages; 
16 
(i) Censure: 
17 
(j) Other analogous penalties or sanctions. 
18 
B. Criminal Penalties. — Independent of the civil and administrative 
19 
sanctions imposed by law, any person found guilty in a criminal action for 
20 
violating any provisions of this Act, shall be imprisoned for not less than nine (9) 
21 
months but not more than nine (9) years or a fine of not less than One hundred 
22 
thousand pesos (P100,000) nor more than Five hundred thousand pesos 
23 
(P500,000), or both such fine and imprisonment upon the discretion of the 
24 
court. 
25 
C. Limitations on Remedies for Innocent Infringers. — If a person is found 
26 
to have committed any of the prohibited acts and is found to be in good faith, 
27 
or one who is considered as an innocent infringer, the community intellectual 
28 
rights holders shall be entitled against such infringer to an injunction against 
29 
future use, payment of reasonable damages, and/or such other sanctions 
30 
provided in this Act. 
31 
SECTION 17. Administrative Adjudication of Cases in Violation of This Act. 
32 
— The Commission, in addition to the jurisdiction and enforcement powers 
33 
given to it under Republic Act No. 8371 or the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 
34 
1997, shall have the following functions and powers to adjudicate administrative 
35 
cases in violation of this Act: 
36 
(a) Exercise original jurisdiction over complaints for violations of the 
37 
community intellectual rights of the ICCs/IPs; 
38 


 
8 
(b) Issue a cease-and-desist order which shall specify the acts that the 
1 
respondent shall cease and desist from and shall require the respondent to 
2 
submit a compliance report within a reasonable time which shall be fixed in the 
3 
order: 
4 
(c) Issue such other provisional remedies as provided under the Rules of 
5 
Court; 
6 
(d) After a formal investigation and following due process, issue 
7 
appropriate sanctions and penalties for the violation of community intellectual 
8 
rights. The Commission shall promulgate the rules and procedures to govern the 
9 
adjudication of violations of community intellectual rights of ICCs/IPs. The final 
10 
decision or order of the Commission shall be immediately executory even 
11 
pending appeal. 
12 
The process of appeal in the Commission in the adjudication of 
13 
administrative complaints involving CIs shall be provided in the rules of 
14 
procedure. 
15 
SECTION 18. Criminal Action for community intellectual rights violation. — 
16 
If the prohibited acts are repeated by the violator or by anyone in connivance 
17 
with him, the offenders shall, without prejudice to the institution of a civil and 
18 
administrative action for damages, be criminally liable therefor. However, if the 
19 
act committed is done with malice, the element of repetition is not required to 
20 
institute the criminal action. 
21 
The criminal action shall be filed with the proper court. The offense shall 
22 
prescribe in five (5) years from date of the commission thereof. 
23 
SECTION 19. Correction of Mistakes of the Commission. — The 
24 
Commission shall have the power to correct, without fee, any mistake in the 
25 
entry of data during the community intellectual rights processing of registration 
26 
incurred through the fault of the Commission when clearly disclosed in the 
27 
records thereof, to make the community intellectual rights application and 
28 
registration conform to the records. 
29 
SECTION 20. Correction of Mistake in the Application. — On request of any 
30 
interested person and payment of the prescribed fee, the Commission is 
31 
authorized to correct any mistake in the community intellectual rights 
32 
application of a formal and clerical nature, not incurred through the fault of the 
33 
Commission. 
34 
SECTION 21. Creation of Offices and Plantilla Positions. — The 
35 
Commission shall create offices and corresponding plantilla positions necessary 
36 
for the implementation of the provisions of this Act. 
37 


 
9 
SECTION 22. Appropriations. — For the initial implementation of this Act, 
1 
the amount of fifty million pesos (Php 50,000,000.00) is hereby appropriated 
2 
and shall be sourced from the President's Contingent Fund. Funds for the 
3 
succeeding years shall be included in the General Appropriations Act. 
4 
SECTION 23. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). — The 
5 
Commission, in consultation with other cultural agencies, IPO-PHIL, the Palawan 
6 
Council on Sustainable Development, the Department of Environment and 
7 
Natural Resources, the Department of Agriculture, the Philippine Institute of 
8 
Traditional and Alternative Health Care (PITAHC), civil society organizations, and 
9 
other relevant government agencies, shall promulgate the IRR of this Act, 
10 
including, but not limited to CIR belonging to several ICCs/IPs, mechanisms for 
11 
the registry, positive and defensive protection of CIR, treatment of derivative 
12 
works, validation, dispute settlement/resolution, and rules of procedure, within 
13 
one hundred and twenty (120) days after the effectivity of this Act. 
14 
SECTION 24. Repealing Clause. — The provisions of existing laws, to the 
15 
extent that they are inconsistent with this Act, are hereby repealed or amended 
16 
accordingly. 
17 
SECTION 25. Separability Clause. — If, for any reason, any part or provision 
18 
of this Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the parts or provisions not 
19 
affected thereby shall remain in full force and effect. 
20 
SECTION 26. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) 
21 
days after its publication in the Official Gazette, in a newspaper of general 
22 
circulation, or on a digital platform provided for by law. 
23 
 
Approved,