Question & AnswerQ&A (IRR Republic Act No. 11767)
The Implementing Rules and Regulations shall be known as the IRR of Republic Act No. 11767, also known as the Foundling Recognition and Protection Act.
A foundling is defined as a deserted or abandoned child, infant, or person with unknown facts of birth and parentage, including those registered as foundlings during infancy but who reached majority without adoption under the Act.
Any parent who relinquishes or entrusts an infant thirty days old and younger to a licensed child-caring agency, child-placing agency, church, DOH-accredited health facilities, LSWDO, or DSWD/LGU managed residential care facilities is exempted from criminal liability provided the relinquishment did not result in gross negligence or death.
Foundlings found in the Philippines or Philippine Embassies/Consulates abroad are presumed natural-born Filipino citizens regardless of birth circumstances, and this presumption can only be challenged by substantial proof of foreign parentage transmitting foreign citizenship.
The finder must report within 48 hours to the LSWDO, Barangay officials, police or safe haven provider, execute an affidavit attesting to the circumstances, and cooperate in the search for the biological parents.
The safe haven provider must provide care and temporary custody, inform the parent they may answer questions about the infant, confirm permanent relinquishment if practicable, and notify the NACC through RACCO within 48 hours of the infant's custody.
Any person falsifying foundling registration including required documents faces imprisonment from six months to six years; if linked to kidnapping or trafficking, penalties include imprisonment from three months to two years or fines up to five million pesos, and public officers face higher penalties and perpetual disqualification.
Required documents include the affidavit of the finder, a certification or blotter report from Barangay Captain or police on the circumstances of discovery, and the NACC report signed by an authorized officer.
The NACC oversees the search and inquiry into the foundling's birth and parentage, prepares official reports, processes applications for Certificate of Live Birth, and acts as the central authority for alternative child care and adoption.
Revocation may occur if the parentage is established or if there was fraud to conceal material facts, but the foundling retains Philippine citizenship if acquiring foreign citizenship would result in statelessness.