Republic of the Philippines

Congress of the Philippines

Metro Manila

Twelfth Congress

Third regular Session

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-eight day of July, two thousand three.

[ REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9225 ]

AN ACT MAKING THE CITIZENSHIP OF PHILIPPINE CITIZENS WHO ACQUIRE FOREIGN CIIZENSHIP PERMANENT, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE COMMONWEALTH ACT NO. 63, AS AMENDED, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. – This act shall be known as the “Citizenship Retention and Re-acquisition Act of 2003.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is hereby declared the policy of the State that all Philippine citizens who become citizens of another country shall be deemed not to have lost their Philippine citizenship under the conditions of this Act.

SEC. 3. Retention of Philippine Citizenship. – Any provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, natural-born citizens of the Philippines who have lost their Philippine citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of a foreign country are hereby deemed to have re-acquired Philippine citizenship upon taking the following oath of allegiance to the Republic:

“I _______________, solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines and obey the laws and legal orders promulgated by the duly constituted authorities of the Philippines; and I hereby declare that I recognize and accept the supreme authority of the Philippine and will maintain true faith and allegiance thereto; and that I impose this obligation upon myself voluntarily without mental reservation of purpose of evasion.”

Natural-born citizens of the Philippines who, after the effectivity of this Act, become citizens of a foreign country shall retain their Philippine citizenship upon taking the aforesaid oath.

SEC. 4. Derivative Citizenship. – The unmarried child, whether legitimate, illegitimate or adopted, below eighteen (18) years of age, of those who re-acquire Philippine citizenship upon effectivity of this Act shall be deemed citizens of the Philippines.

SEC. 5. Civil and Political Rights and Liabilities. – Those who retain or re-acquire Philippine citizenship under this Act shall enjoy full civil and political rights and be subject to all attendant liabilities and responsibilities under existing laws of the Philippines and the following conditions:

(1) Those intending to exercise their right of suffrage must meet the requirements under Section 1, Article V of the Constitution, Republic Act No. 9189, otherwise known as “The Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003” and other existing laws;

(2) Those seeking elective public office in the Philippines shall meet the qualifications for holding such public office as required by the Constitution and existing laws and, at the time of the filing of the certificate of candidacy, make a personal and sworn renunciation of any and all foreign citizenship before any public officer authorized to administer an oath;

(3) Those appointed to any public office shall subscribe and swear to an oath of allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines and its duly constituted authorities prior to their assumption of office: Provided, That they renounce their oath of allegiance to the country where they took that oath;

(4) Those intending to practice their profession in the Philippines shall apply with the proper authority for a license or permit to engage in such practice; and

(5) That right to vote or be elected or appointed to any public office in the Philippines cannot be exercised by, or extended to, those who:

(a) are candidates for or are occupying any public office in the country of which they are naturalized citizens; and/or

(b) are in active service as commissioned or non-commissioned officers in the armed forces of the country which they are naturalized citizens.

SEC. 6. Separability Clause. – If any section or provision of this Act is held unconstitutional or invalid, any other section or provision not affected thereby shall remain valid and effective.

SEC. 7. Repealing Clause. – All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC. 8. Effectivity Clause. – This act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days following its publication in the Official Gazette or two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved.

(signed) (signed)JOSE DE VENECIA JR. FRANKLIN M. DRILONSpeaker of the House of President of the Senate Representatives

This Act, which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 2130 and House Bill No. 4720 was finally passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on August 25, 2003 and August 26, 2003,respectively.

(signed) (signed-ROBERTO P. NAZARENO OSCAR G. YABES Secretary General Secretary of the SenateHouse of Representatives

Approved: August 29, 2003

(signed) GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO

President of the Philippines

Republic of the PhilippinesDepartment of Justice

Bureau of ImmigrationManila

March 10, 2004

MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR No. AFF-04-01

RULES GOVERNING PHILIPPINE CITIZENSHIP UNDER REPUBLIC ACT (R.A.) NO. 9225 AND ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER (A.O.) NO. 91 SERIES OF

2004

WHEREAS, R.A. No. 9225 declares that natural-born citizens of the Philippines who become citizens of another country shall be deemed not to have lost their Philippine citizenship under conditions provided therein;

WHEREAS, A.O. No. 91, Section 1 designates the Bureau of Immigration (BI), in consultation with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Civil Registrar-General, National Statistics Office (NSO), as the implementing agency of R.A. No. 9225;

WHEREAS, A.O. No. 91, Section 2 authorizes the BI to promulgate and issue rules and regulations to implement R.A. No. 9255;

WHEREFORE, by authority of A.O. No. 91, Section 2 in relation to Commonwealth Act No. 613, Section 3, as amended, the following rules are hereby adopted to carry out the provisions of R.A. No. 9225.

Section 1. Coverage. – These rules shall apply to former natural-born citizens of the Philippines, as defined by Philippine law and jurisprudence, who have lost their Philippine citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of a foreign country.

Section 2. Former natural-born Philippine citizen already in the Philippines and a BI-registered alien – A former natural-born citizen of the Philippines who is already in the Philippines and registered in the BI shall file a petition under oath to the Commissioner of Immigration for the cancellation of Alien Certificate of Registration (ACR) and Issuance of an Identification Certificate (IC), as the case may be, under R.A. No. 9225.

Section 3. Former natural-born Philippine citizen who is abroad but a BI-registered alien – A former natural-born citizen pf the Philippines who is abroad but who is a BI-registered alien shall file a petition under oath to the nearest Philippine Foreign Post for evaluation. Thereafter, it shall forward the entire records to the Commissioner of Immigration for the cancellation of Alien Certificate of Registration (ACR) and issuance of an IC under R.A. No. 9225.

Section 4. Former natural-born Philippine citizen already in the Philippines and not a BI- registered alien – A former natural-born citizen of the Philippines who is already in the Philippines but has not registered with the BI within sixty (60) days from date of his arrival shall file a petition under oath to the Commissioner of Immigration for the issuance of an IC under R.A. No. 9225.

Section 5. Former natural-born Philippine citizen who is abroad and not a BI-registered alien – A former natural-born citizen of the Philippines who is abroad and is not a BI-registered alien shall file a petition under oath to the nearest Philippine Foreign Post for the issuance of an IC under R.A. No. 9225.

Section 6. Forwarding address, Photographs – In all petitions under Section 2 to 5 hereof, the applicant must indicate his or her latest forwarding address. Three (3) recent 2” X 2” photographs of the applicant (front, left side, and right side views over white background) shall be attached to the petition.

Section 7. Fees. – Each applicant under these Rules shall pay a one-time fee for the processing of the application and issuance of the corresponding IC.

Applicants already in the Philippines shall attach the official receipt for the amount of P2,500.00 as proof of payment of processing fee. Applicants who are abroad shall attach the official receipt for the amount of US$50 or its equivalent in foreign currency acceptable to the Philippine Foreign Post concerned.

Section 8. Proof as natural-born citizen of the Philippines. – A former natural-born citizen of the Philippines, who was born in Philippines, shall submit the NSO-authentication copy of his./her birth certificate.

On the other hand. A former natural-born citizen of the Philippines, who was born abroad, shall submit the original copy of the Report of Birth issued by the Philippine Foreign Post and in applicable cases, the Birth Certificate issued by competent foreign authorities.

These documents shall be sufficient to establish that the applicant is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines for purposes of these Rules.

Section 9. Submission of the Oath of Allegiance. – Applicants under these Rules shall also sign and attach an Oath of Allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines as follows:

I (name of applicant) solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines and obey the laws and local orders promulgated by the duly constituted authorities of the Philippines, and I hereby declare that I recognize the supreme authority of the Philippines and will maintain true faith and allegiance thereto, and that I impose this obligation upon myself voluntarily without mental reservation or purpose of evasion.

Section 10. Strict Compliance. Effect of non-compliance. – All petitions must strictly comply with the preceding requirements prior to the filing at the Office of the Commissioner or at the nearest Philippine Foreign Post, as the case may be. After the filing of the petition, the same shall be assigned to an evaluating officer who shall evaluate the petition without further proceedings.

In the case of petitions that do not comply with the requirements, the applicant shall be notified to submit the required documents within thirty (30) days from receipt thereof. Otherwise, the petition shall not be favorably acted upon by the Bureau of Immigration of by the Philippine Foreign Post.

If after evaluation, the document submitted fail to establish that the applicant is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, the applicant shall be notified of such fact in writing by the Commissioner of Immigration or by the Philippine Foreign Post.

Section 11. Approval Procedures. – If the petition is found to be sufficient in form and in substance, the evaluating officer shall submit the findings and recommendation to the Commissioner of Immigration or Consul-general, as the case may be. Within five (5) days from date of assignment.

For applications filed under Sections 2 and 4 of these Rules, the Commissioner of Immigration shall issue, within five (5) days from receipt thereof, an Order of Approval indicating that the petition complies with provisions of R.A. No. 9225 and its IRR, and further direct of the Chief of the Alien Registration Division (ARD) to cancel the subject ACR and/or to issue the corresponding IC to the applicant.

Each cancelled ACR shall, however, be attached to the Order of Approval to form part of the records of the applicant.

For applications filed under Sections 3 and 5 of these Rules, the Consul-General shall issue, within five (5) days from receipt thereof, the Order of Approval indicating that the petition complies with the provisions of R.A. No. 9225 and its IRR. He shall then transmit copies of the Order of Approval, Oath of Allegiance, including the authenticated Record of Birth of Birth Certificate to the BI. Immediately upon receipt thereof, the BI shall issue the corresponding IC to the applicant and forward the same to the Philippine Foreign Post concerned. If the applicant is a BI-registered alien, the BI shall also cancel the subject ACR.

Section 12. Conferment of Philippine Citizenship. Conditions. – Subject to full compliance with these Rules, the Oath of Allegiance shall be the final act that confers Philippine citizenship.

In case the applicant is in the Philippines, he may take his Oath of Allegiance before the Commissioner of Immigration or any officer authorized under existing

laws to administer oath. In the latter case, the applicant must submit the Oath of Allegiance to the BI to form part of his records.

In case the applicant is abroad, only the Consul-general or a duly commissioned foreign service officer of the Philippine Foreign Post concerned shall administer the Oath of Allegiance.

The Oath of Allegiance shall thereafter be registered in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Registry laws.

Section 13. Repository of Records. – The BI Records Section shall maintain the integrity of all the documents filed under these Rules. It shall send official copies of the Order of Approval and Oath of Allegiance to the NSO.

Section 14. Copies for the Applicant. Identification Certificate, Correction of Errors. – The applicant shall be provided with official copies of the Order of Approval and the Oath of Allegiance. Further, all IC’s issued under these Rules shall indicate Philippine citizenship under R.A. No. 9225 and A.O. No. 91, s. 2004. Any clerical error or errors in the entries of the IC may be corrected, upon written requests to and approval by the Commissioner of Immigration. The NSO shall be promptly provided with a copy of the corrected IC.

Section 15. Confidentiality of Records. – Any application, document or information given before the Bureau of Immigration or any Philippine Foreign Post shall not be divulged in any manner to any person or entity without the express written consent of the person to whom such application, record or information belongs.

Section 16. Other beneficiaries of R.A. No. 9225. – This memorandum circular shall equally apply to the unmarried child, whether legitimate, illegitimate or adopted, below eighteen (18) years of age, of those who re-acquire Philippine citizenship upon the effectivity of R.A. No. 9225.

Section 17. Exemption from administrative review. Limitations. – The conferment of Philippine citizenship under these Rules shall no longer be subject to the affirmation of the Secretary of Justice pursuant to DOJ Policy Directive of 7 September 1970 and Opinion No. 108, s. 1996.

However, Philippine citizenship under these Rules may be revoked by competent authority upon a substantive finding of fraud, misrepresentation or concealment on the part of the applicant.

Section 18. Effectivity. – This memorandum circular takes effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

(signed)ALIPIO F. FERNANDEZ, Jr.

Commissioner

APPROVED:

(signed)MA. MERCEDITAS N. GUTIERREZ

Acting Secretary Department of Justice

Cc: Chief, ARD, This Bureau Records Section, This Bureau DFA DOJ NSO U.P. Law Center