Question & AnswerQ&A (Commonwealth Act No. 137)
The short title of Commonwealth Act No. 137 is "The Mining Act."
The term 'person' includes individuals, corporations, sociedad anonimas, limited partnerships, and unincorporated associations. Words in singular include the plural and vice versa.
Only citizens of the Philippines or corporations/associations with at least sixty percent of their capital owned by such citizens can exploit, develop, or utilize mineral lands.
No. Ownership and use of land for purposes other than mining do not include the ownership or right to extract or utilize minerals found on or under the surface.
Mineral lands are those where minerals exist in sufficient quantity or quality to justify the necessary expenditures for extraction and utilization.
Officers and employees of the government whose duties relate to the administration or disposition of mineral resources are prohibited from engaging in these activities.
An application for a mining lease must be filed within two years from the date of recording of the claim or from the approval of this Act, otherwise the mining claim is deemed abandoned.
The rentals are one peso per hectare annually for lands in the first, second, fourth, and fifth groups. Royalties are one and one-half percent of the actual market value of the gross output for most minerals, with graduated rates for gold based on output value.
Any person who defaces, alters, removes, or disturbs mining claim markers or notices shall be fined up to five hundred pesos plus compensation for replacement.
A valid mining claim location requires a discovery of minerals, marking the claim with posts or monuments according to prescribed standards, posting notices, recording a declaration of location with affidavits showing the claim is unoccupied and the locator qualified under the law.