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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS 
Second Regular Session 
House Bill No. _______ 
________________________________________________________ 
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE MANUEL ANTONIO F. ZUBIRI 
________________________________________________________ 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
 
The Philippines is a nation that prides itself on its practice of 
bayanihan, where the individual readily lends oneself to the needs of the 
community. In an archipelagic country that has been historically 
vulnerable to strife and disaster, it is crucially hopeful that every tragedy 
is offset by narratives of selflessness—of civilians braving storm surges to 
rescue their neighbors, of volunteers going into war-torn areas to provide 
much-needed aid. 
 
Time has become every individual’s most precious capital, this sense of 
selfless service has found an avenue in volunteerism. It comes as no 
surprise that the Philippines has a notable record of volunteer workers. In 
Charities Aid Foundation’s World Giving Index 2017, the Philippines ranked 
7th out of 139 countries with the highest number of volunteers. According 
to the report, about 25 million Filipinos did volunteer work in 2016.1 
 
This bill seeks to encourage even more volunteers by offering them 
due legal protection while rendering volunteer services for governmental 
entities, non-profit organizations, or the Philippine Red Cross. With this 
bill, volunteers, so long as they are acting in an emergency situation, are 
properly licensed, certified or authorized, and are acting within the scope 
of responsibilities assigned to them, will not have to fear facing misplaced 
legal action. 
In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is urgently sought. 
MANUEL ANTONIO F. ZUBIRI 
1 Flores, Helen. “Pinoys among world’s top volunteers.” The Philippine Star. 9 Sep 2017. Retrieved 
from: https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/09/09/1737538/pinoys-among-worlds-top-
volunteers  
May 26, 2021
10:56 am
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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS 
Second Regular Session 
House Bill No. _______ 
________________________________________________________ 
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE MANUEL ANTONIO F. ZUBIRI 
________________________________________________________ 
AN ACT  
ENCOURAGING VOLUNTEERISM DURING EMERGENCIES BY PROTECTING 
VOLUNTEERS FROM LIABILITY 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of the Representatives of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as the “Emergency 
Volunteer Protection Act of 2021.”
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. – It shall be the policy of the State to 
provide a conducive and enabling legal environment for volunteers by placing 
mechanisms that will protect their rights and award them with privileges for their 
contribution to society. 
SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. – As used in this Act: 
a. “Volunteer” refers to an individual or group who provides reasonable
assistance and contributes time, service and resources in an emergency situation 
and who does not receive compensation other than reasonable reimbursement or 
allowance for expenses actually incurred for rendering volunteer service.  
The volunteers shall be duly licensed, certified or authorized by 
appropriate government entities or nongovernment organizations, or accredited 
by and registered with the Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating 
Agency (PNVSCA) prior to deployment;  
b.
“Emergency” requiring immediate attention and remedial action
involving unforeseen occurrence sudden, and impending threat or dangers to 
life, health, or safety of a person;    
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c. “Volunteer sectors” refer to those sectors that organize themselves into 
volunteers to take advocacy and action primarily for local and national 
development as well as international cooperation and understanding; and  
d. “Spontaneous volunteer” refers to an individual who may either be 
trained volunteers from accredited training institutions, or an untrained person 
who performs voluntary work as necessitated by an emergency situation.  
SEC. 4. Liability Protection for Volunteers. – No volunteer shall be liable 
for harm caused by an act or omission done in performance of his or her duties 
or functions as volunteers if: 
a. The volunteer was acting in an emergency situation;  
b. The volunteer was properly licensed, certified or authorized by the 
appropriate government authorities, either government entities or non-
government organizations, or accredited by and registered with the PNVSCA 
prior to deployment;  
c. The volunteer acted within the scope of his/her responsibilities in the 
government entity, non-profit organization, or the PNVSCA;  
d. The volunteer acted under orders or direction of appropriate 
government authority;  
e. The volunteer acted in an emergency situation, where there are no 
government authority or trained volunteers present, in order to assist or care for 
persons who are: 
i. in serious and imminent danger, or apparently in serious and 
imminent danger, of being injured or further injured;  
ii. injured or apparently injured; or 
iii. suffering, or apparently suffering, from an illness. 
SEC. 5. Exceptions. – The liability protection for volunteers under this Act 
shall not apply to the following:  
a. Where the act constitutes a crime;  


 
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b. Where the volunteer caused damage or harm by willful or criminal 
misconduct, gross negligence, reckless misconduct, or a conscious, flagrant 
indifference to the rights or safety of the individual harmed by the volunteer; or  
c. Where the acts were performed under the influence of intoxicating 
alcohol or any dangerous drug at the time of the misconduct.  
SEC. 6. Mandatory Insurance. – The PNVSCA shall provide an additional 
insurance coverage to all volunteers as defined in this Act which shall give the 
following minimum benefits:  
a. Disability Benefits of Three Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos 
(P350,000.00) for volunteers who shall suffer total or partial disability, whether 
permanent or temporary, as a result of any injury sustained during performance 
of duty;  
b. Death benefits amounting to Three Hundred Thousand Pesos 
(P300,000.00) for volunteers who shall perish in the line of duty; and  
c. Reimbursement of actual medical costs up to Two Hundred Thousand 
Pesos (P200,000.00) for volunteers who shall be hospitalized or who shall require 
medical attendance for injuries sustained while in the performance of duty.   
SEC. 7. Trainings. – The PNVSCA shall conduct mandatory trainings of all 
their registered and potential volunteers.  
SEC. 8. Accreditation of Volunteers. – Unless properly licensed, certified 
or authorized by the appropriate government authorities, other government 
entities or non-government organizations, volunteers must be accredited by and 
registered with the PNVSCA prior to deployment to be exempted from liability.  
SEC. 9. Nationwide Public Information Campaign. – The PNVSCA, in 
consultation with relevant governmental entities and non-profit organizations, 
shall undertake a nationwide information, education and communication 
campaign for the attainment of the objectives of this Act.  
SEC. 10. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – The PNVSCA, in 
consultation with relevant government entities and non-profit organizations, shall 


 
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promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this Act within 
ninety (90) days from its effectivity.  
SEC. 11. Separability Clause. – If any provision of this Act shall be 
declared unconstitutional, any other provision not affected thereby shall remain 
in full force and effect.  
SEC. 12. Repealing Clause. – All laws, decrees, orders, rules and 
regulations or other issuances or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of 
this Act are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.  
SEC. 13. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved,