Qualifications to become citizens of the Philippines by naturalization[1]. –
First. He must be not less than twenty-one years of age on the day of the hearing of the petition;
Second. He must have resided in the Philippines for a continuous period of not less than ten years;
Exceptions: The ten years of continuous residence required under the second condition of the last preceding section shall be understood as reduced to five years for any petitioner having any of the following qualifications:[2]
- Having honorably held office under the Government of the Philippines or under that of any of the provinces, cities, municipalities, or political subdivisions thereof;
- Having established a new industry or introduced a useful invention in the Philippines;
- Being married to a Filipino woman;
- Having been engaged as a teacher in the Philippines in a public or recognized private school not established for the exclusive instruction of children of persons of a particular nationality or race, in any of the branches of education or industry for a period of not less than two years;
- Having been born in the Philippines.
Third. He must be of good moral character and believes in the principles underlying the Philippine Constitution, and must have conducted himself in a proper and irreproachable manner during the entire period of his residence in the Philippines in his relation with the constituted government as well as with the community in which he is living;
Fourth. He must own real estate in the Philippines worth not less than five thousand, Philippine currency, or must have some known lucrative trade, profession or lawful occupation;
Fifth. He must be able to speak and write English or Spanish and any one of the principal Philippine languages; and
Sixth. He must have enrolled his minor children of age, in any of the public schools or private schools recognized by the Office of Private Education of the Philippines, where the Philippine history, government and civics are taught or prescribed as part of the school curriculum. During the entire period of the residence in the Philippines required of him prior to the hearing of his petition for naturalization as Philippine citizen;
Disqualifications[3]. – The following cannot be naturalized as citizens of the Philippines:
- Persons opposed to organized government or affiliated with any association or group of persons who upheld and teach doctrines opposing all organized governments;
- Persons defending or teaching the necessity or propriety of violence, personal assault, or assassination for the success or predominance of their ideas;
- Polygamists or believers in the practice of polygamy;
- Persons convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude;
- Persons suffering from mental alienation or incurable contagious diseases;
- Persons, who, during the period of their residence in the Philippines, have not mingled socially with the Filipino, or who have not evinced a sincere desire to learn and embrace the customs, traditions, and ideals of the Philippines;
- Citizens or subjects of nations with whom the United States and the Philippines are at war, during the period of such war;
- Citizens or subjects of a foreign country other than the United States whose laws do not grant Filipinos the right to become naturalized citizens or subjects thereof.
How to go about with naturalization, if a petitioner has all the qualifications and none of the disqualifications provided by law. –
- Declaration of intention[4]. A person who wishes to file a petition for naturalization under C.A. 473 shall file with the Office of the Solicitor General, a declaration under oath that it is his intention to become a citizen of the Philippines, to be filed one year prior to the filing of the petition.
- Contents of the declaration. – The declaration shall set forth the name, age, occupation, personal description, place of birth, las foreign residence and allegiance, the date of arrival, the name of the vessel or aircraft, if any, in which he came to the Philippines, and the place of residence in the Philippines at the time of making the declaration. No declaration shall be valid until lawful entry for permanent residence has been established and a certificate showing the date, place, and manner of his arrival has been issued. The declarant must also state that he has enrolled his minor children, if any, in any of the public schools or private schools recognized by the Office of Private Education of the Philippines, where Philippine history, government, and civics are taught or prescribed as part of the school curriculum, during the entire period of the residence in the Philippine required of him prior to the hearing of his petition for naturalization as Philippine citizen. Each declarant must furnish two photographs of himself.
- Persons exempt from filing Declaration[5]. – Persons born in the Philippines and have received their primary and secondary education in public schools or those recognized by the Government and not limited to any race or nationality, and those who have resided continuously in the Philippines for a period ot thirty years or more before filing their application, may be naturalized without having to make a declaration of intention upon complying with the other requirements of this Act. To such requirements shall be added that which established that the applicant has given primary and secondary education to all his children in the public schools or in private schools recognized by the Government and not limited to any race or nationality. The same shall be understood applicable with respect to the widow and minor children of an alien who has declared his intention to become a citizen of the Philippines, and dies before he is actually naturalized.
- Petition for citizenship[6]. – Any person desiring to acquire Philippine citizenship shall file with the competent court, a petition in triplicate, accompanied by two photographs of the petitioner, setting forth:
- His name and surname;
- His occupation;
- The place and date of his birth;
- whether single or married and the father of children;
- the name, age, birthplace and residence of the wife and of each of the children;
- the approximate date of his or her arrival in the Philippines; the name of the port of debarkation, and if he remembers it, the name of ship on which he came;
- a declaration that he has the qualifications required by the Act, specifying the same and that he is not disqualified for naturalization under the provisions of the Act;
- that he has complied with the requirements of filing the Declaration of Intention (Emphasis mine); and
- that he will reside continuously in the Philippines from the date up to the time of his admission to Philippine citizenship.
The petition must be signed by the applicant in his own handwriting and be supported by the affidavit of at least two credible persons, stating that they are citizens of the Philippines and personally know the petitioner to be a resident of the Philippines for the period of time required by this Act and a person of good repute and morally irreproachable, and that said petitioner has in their opinion all the qualifications necessary to become a citizen of the Philippines and is not in any disqualified under the provisions of this Act. The petition shall also set forth the names and post-office addresses of such witnesses as the petitioner may desire to introduce at the hearing of the case. The certificate of arrival, and the declaration of intention, must be made part of the petition.
Venue and jurisdiction[7]. The Court of First Instance (now Regional Trial Court) of the province in which the petitioner has resided at least one year immediately preceding the filing of the petition shall have exclusive original jurisdiction to hear the petition.
Action upon filing of the petition[8]. – Immediately upon the filing of a petition, it shall be the duty of the clerk of the court to publish the same at petitioner’s expense, once a week for three consecutive weeks, in the Official Gazette, and in one of the newspapers of general publication in the province where the petitioner resides, and to have copies of said petition and a general notice of the hearing posted in. a public and conspicuous place, in his office or in the building where said office is located, setting forth in such notice the name, birthplace and residence of the petitioner, the date and place of his arrival in the Philippines, the names of the witnesses whom the petitioner proposes to introduce in support of his petition, and the date of the hearing of the petition, which hearing shall not be held within ninety days from the date of the last publication of the notice. The clerk, shall, as soon as possible, forward copies of the petition, the sentence the naturalization certificate, and other pertinent data to the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Justice, the Provincial I*inspector of the Philippine Constabulary of the province and the justice of the peace of the municipality wherein the petitioner resides.
Hearing on the petition[9]. – No petition shall be heard within the thirty days preceding any election. The hearing shall be public, and the Solicitor General, either himself or through his delegate or the provincial fiscal concerned, shall appear on behalf od the Commonwealth (Republic) of the Philippines at all the proceedings and at the hearing. If, after the hearing, the court believes, in view of the evidence taken, that the petitioner has all the qualifications required by, and none of the disqualifications specified in this Act and has complied with all the requisites herein established, it shall order the proper naturalization certificate to be issued and the registration of the said naturalization certificate in the proper civil registry as required in section ten of Act Numbered Three Thousand Seven Hundred and Fifty-Three.
Appeal.[10] – The final sentence may, at the instance of either of the parties, be appealed to the Supreme Court (Court of Appeals)
Effect of the naturalization on wife and children. – Any woman who is now or may hereafter be married to a citizen of the Philippines, and who might herself be lawfully naturalized shall be deemed a citizen of the Philippines.
Minor children of persons naturalized under this law who have been born in the Philippines shall be considered citizens thereof.
A foreign-born minor child, if dwelling in the Philippines at the time of the naturalization of the parent, shall automatically become a Philippine citizen, and a foreign-born minor child, who is not in the Philippines at the time the parent is naturalized, shall be deemed a Philippine citizen only during his minority, unless he begisn to reside permanently in the Philippines when still a minor, in which case, he will continue to be a Philippine citizen even after becoming of age.
[1] Sec. 2, CA 473
[2] Sec. 3, CA 473
[3] Section 4, CA 473
[4] Section 5, CA 473
[5] Section 6, CA 473
[6] Section 7, CA 473
[7] Section 8, CA 743
[8]Section 9, CA 473
[9] Section 10, CA 473
[10] Section 11, CA 473