Recognition of Foreign Divorce Decree in the Philippines
Philippine laws on marital status follow Filipinos wherever they may go. Thus, as a rule, a married Filipino remains married even if a divorce is obtained abroad because divorce is generally not recognized in the Philippines. Luckily there is a limited exception for recognition of a foreign divorce decree which would allow a divorced Filipino to remarry.
Under the Family Code of the Philippines, if a marriage between a Filipino and a foreigner is dissolved by a foreign divorce decree allowing the foreign spouse to remarry, the Filipino spouse can also remarry. This exception was created to address the anomalous situation in the past wherein a foreigner who divorces a Filipino can remarry under the laws of his or her country while the Filipino cannot remarry and remains married to the foreigner. This discriminated against the Filipino spouse and puts him or her in a precarious situation.
For the foreign divorce to be recognized in the Philippines, the following conditions must be present:
1. The marriage was dissolved by a divorce decree in a country where divorce is legal.
2. At the time of the divorce, one of the spouses was a foreign citizen.
Based on rulings of the Philippine Supreme Court, it is not important if the spouses were both Philippine citizens at the time of their marriage, as long as at the time of divorce one of them was a citizen of the country where the divorce was obtained. Also, it does not matter if the one who filed the petition for divorce was the Filipino spouse.
Finally, a petition must be filed in a Philippine court for the recognition of the foreign divorce decree. In this petition, the divorce decree and foreign law on divorce must be proven showing that the foreign spouse can remarry.
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