Dear Attorney,

I hope this message finds you well. I am seeking clarification on the current legal status of divorce in the Philippines. Is divorce now allowed under Philippine law? Your insights would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards,
Concerned Citizen

Insights

Divorce in the Philippines remains largely illegal. The Philippines is one of the few countries in the world where divorce is not available as a legal option for the dissolution of marriage. The only exception to this is for Muslim Filipinos, who may access divorce through the provisions of the Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines (Presidential Decree No. 1083), which governs marriages and divorces among Muslims.

For non-Muslim Filipinos, the legal options available for ending a marriage include annulment and legal separation.

Annulment: Annulment is the legal process that declares a marriage void, as if it never happened. Grounds for annulment are strictly enumerated under Article 45 of the Family Code and may include lack of parental consent, fraud, psychological incapacity, and other specific circumstances that invalidate the marriage from the start.
Legal Separation: Legal separation allows spouses to live apart and divide property, but it does not dissolve the marriage. Spouses remain legally married and cannot remarry. Grounds for legal separation include physical violence, drug addiction, infidelity, or abandonment, as outlined in Article 55 of the Family Code.

Several bills have been proposed to legalize divorce in the Philippines. However, none have been passed into law as of this writing, leaving annulment and legal separation as the only remedies for troubled marriages.