Inheritance Rights of an Illegitimate Child to a Partner’s Property in the Philippines
A Comprehensive Legal Guide (2025 Edition)

1. Why this topic matters

Thousands of Filipino families include children born outside a valid marriage. When one parent dies, those children (and their caregivers) often discover—too late—how complex Philippine succession law still is. This article gathers, in one place, every doctrinal, statutory and procedural rule that presently governs how, when, and how much an illegitimate child may inherit from a parent-partner’s estate.

Key take-away in a single sentence: An illegitimate child is always a compulsory heir of his or her biological parent—but never of the parent’s legitimate relatives or spouse—and the share is usually one-half of what each legitimate child receives, unless legitimated or adopted.

2. Principal legal sources

Instrument	Core provisions on point	Notes
Civil Code (1950), Book III	Arts. 887, 888, 895, 960 – 1016	Still the backbone of Philippine succession law.
Family Code (1987)	Arts. 163 – 182 (filiation), 194, 172 – 173 (proof of filiation), 175 – 176 (rights), 147 – 148 (property of partners)	Modified but did not repeal Civil Code rules.
RA 9858 (2009)	Legitimates children of parents subsequently married in void marriages that were void only for lack of marriage license.
Relevant tax & admin regulations	NIRC, BIR Rev. Regs. 12-2018 (estate tax), PSA rules on annotated birth certificates	Compliance pitfalls often delay release of shares.
Leading Supreme Court cases	Heirs of Donato (1961), Intestate Estate of Manolita Gonzaga (2007), Alcantara v. Guinoo (2012), Aquino v. Aquino (2021)	Confirm, interpret or refine statutory text.

3. Who is an “illegitimate child”?

Under Art. 165 of the Family Code, any child conceived and born outside a valid marriage is illegitimate unless:

legitimated by the subsequent valid marriage of the parents (Arts. 178-182);
legitimated by RA 9858 (void marriage for no license);
legally adopted (Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act, 2022).

An illegitimate child does not lose that status merely because the parents later cohabit or because the child is acknowledged; legitimation or adoption is still required for full legitimacy.

4. Compulsory-heir status and legitime

4.1 The basic rule

Art. 887 of the Civil Code lists “illegitimate children” as compulsory heirs. A testator cannot deprive them of their legitime (the portion of the estate that the law reserves in their favor) except for the narrow causes of disinheritance in Art. 919.

4.2 How much is the legitime?

Scenario (after all debts & funeral expenses)	Share of each illegitimate child	Statutory basis
Only illegitimate children (no spouse, no legitimate children)	Entire estate divided equally among them	Arts. 887, 895
With spouse but no legitimate children	½ estate to spouse, ½ divided equally among all illegitimate children	Arts. 894, 895
With legitimate child(ren)	Each illegitimate child gets ½ of the share of each legitimate child	Art. 895 & Art. 176, Family Code
*With legitimate child(ren) and* surviving spouse**	– Each legitimate child = 1 unit
– Spouse = 1 unit
– Each illegitimate child = ½ unit	Art. 895 juncto Art. 892

“Twice-the-gap” ceiling abolished?
The old rule that all illegitimate children together could not receive more than the legitimate heirs has been impliedly removed by Art. 176 of the Family Code and confirmed in Alcantara v. Guinoo (2012). What remains is only the ½-share ratio.

4.3 Intestate succession

When the parent died without a will, the same ratios above apply via Art. 991 and Art. 992, except that:

Illegitimate children do not inherit by representation beyond their parent. Thus they can succeed to their grandparent through their illegitimate parent only if their illegitimate parent already inherited; otherwise the iron curtain (Art. 992) blocks them.

5. The “iron curtain” of Article 992

“An illegitimate child cannot inherit ab intestato from the legitimate children and relatives of his father or mother and vice-versa.”

5.1 What it blocks

No succession—intestate or testamentary by representation—between:

Illegitimate child ⟷ legitimate siblings;
Illegitimate child ⟷ legitimate grandparents / collateral relatives;
Legitimate child ⟷ illegitimate half-sibling.

5.2 What it does not block

The illegitimate child’s direct right against the parent (always preserved).
Testator’s freedom in the free portion of a will.
Succession after legitimation or adoption (child becomes legitimate).

5.3 Attempts at reform

Bills seeking to repeal Art. 992 (e.g., H.B. 8382, S.B. 1933, both 19th Congress) point to equal protection concerns. As of 24 April 2025 no repeal has been signed into law, and the iron curtain remains in force.

6. Effect of the parents’ relationship status on the estate (“partner’s property” issues)

Situation of the parents	Property regime during cohabitation	What passes to the illegitimate child
Valid marriage	Absolute community (Art. 91) or conjugal partnership (Art. 105) unless agreed otherwise	Child inherits only from the biological parent’s half of the community property + that parent’s exclusive property.
Cohabitation, neither party married to someone else (Art. 147)	Co-ownership: property acquired through their joint efforts is presumed owned ½-½; wages/salaries exclusively belong to each earner.	Child inherits from the biological parent’s share in the co-ownership and from that parent’s exclusive acquisitions.
Bigamous / adulterous union (Art. 148)	Strict co-ownership governed by contributions; no presumption of equal shares.	Same rule: only the biological parent’s aliquot portion devolves.

Important: An illegitimate child has zero legal right in the surviving partner’s share unless (i) the survivor is also the child’s parent, (ii) the partner made a will, or (iii) the partner later adopts the child.

7. Recognition and proof of filiation

Before any share can be released, filiation must be shown. Under Arts. 172-173, this may be proved by:

Record evidence – an authentic birth certificate signed by the parent, or a private handwritten instrument.
Public admission – the parent’s statement in a public instrument or last will.
“Open and continuous possession” – clear public acts of acknowledgement.
DNA testing – now routine and often decisive, ordered under the Rules on DNA Evidence (A.M. 06-11-5-SC, updated 2023).

The action to claim the status of an illegitimate child does not prescribe, but after the parent’s death it is brought against the estate/heirs in the probate or intestate case.

8. Legitimation and adoption: converting a “½-share” into a full share

Mode	Requirements	Effect on succession
*Legitimation by subsequent valid* marriage** (Arts. 178-182)	Child conceived & born when parents were not impeded to marry except lack of formalities; parents later marry validly.	Child becomes legitimate retroactively from birth; inherits in full and “iron curtain” disappears.
Legitimation under RA 9858	Parents’ marriage void for no license but otherwise valid; petition filed with LCR.	Same effect.
Legal adoption (RA 11642, 2022)	Petition via National Authority for Child Care; adopters must be at least 16 years older.	Adopted child is deemed legitimate child of adopter(s) for all purposes of succession.

9. Procedures for actually getting the share

Death certificate and certificate of no will (or the will itself).
Judicial or extrajudicial settlement of estate
- Extrajudicial allowed if no debts and heirs are of age (Rule 74, ROC).
- Publication for three weeks in a newspaper of general circulation.
Estate Tax Return 🠮 6 % of net estate; due one year from death (NIRC §90, as amended).
BIR Certification Authorizing Registration (CAR) – needed before property titles or bank accounts can be transferred.
Title transfer / release of deposit – Registry of Deeds, banks, corporations.

Tip: Banks and registries will refuse to release assets if the illegitimate child’s filiation is still “in dispute”—often requiring an heirship order from the probate court even in seemingly simple extrajudicial settlements.

10. Frequently asked questions

Q1 Does the child need the father’s surname to inherit?
No. Surname choice does not affect filiation once proven.

Q2 Can the parent disinherit an illegitimate child by simply omitting the child from a will?
No. The omission is treated as an involuntary heirship mistake; the child may demand completion of his legitime.

Q3 Can an illegitimate child demand a right to the family home?
Yes, to the extent it forms part of the parent’s net estate—but must respect the legitime of the surviving spouse.

Q4 How long do I have to challenge an unlawful partition?
Ten (10) years for an action to annul an extrajudicial settlement (Art. 1391, Civil Code), counted from discovery of the fraud.

11. Common pitfalls & practical guidance

Ignoring Article 992. The illegitimate child cannot claim from half-siblings’ estates without a will.
Missing the estate-tax deadline. Late filing triggers 25 % surcharge plus interest.
Blurring property regimes. First identify what portion of “partner’s property” actually belonged to the deceased parent.
Over-reliance on affidavits. Banks increasingly insist on a court order when heirs include minors or illegitimate children.
Assuming DNA is automatic. A court order or the parent’s written consent is still required for compulsory DNA sampling.

12. Looking forward

Equal-protection challenges to the iron curtain are pending before Congress and, in one petition, before the Supreme Court (GR No. 268295, Re: Art. 992). Until a statute or decision squarely strikes it down, advisers must apply the current ratios and barriers outlined above.

13. Bottom-line checklist for heirs & practitioners

Confirm filiation (birth record, recognition, DNA).
Map the compulsory heirs (legitimate vs illegitimate vs spouse).
Categorize the estate (exclusive vs conjugal/co-owned).
Compute legitimes using the 1:½ ratio.
Prepare either a will probate or Rule 74 settlement.
File and pay estate tax within one year.
Transfer titles / close accounts only upon BIR CAR issuance.

This article reflects the law as of 24 April 2025 and is intended for general guidance. It is no substitute for personalized legal advice from a Philippine attorney.