Legal basis and amended Code provisions
- Section 1 amends Article 26 of Executive Order No. 209.
- Section 2 amends Article 36 of Executive Order No. 209.
- Section 3 amends Article 39 of Executive Order No. 209.
- The amendments operate by replacing the text of Articles 26, 36, and 39 with the substituted provisions.
Marriage validity for foreign-solemnized marriages
- Article 26 provides that marriages solemnized outside the Philippines, in accordance with the laws in force where celebrated, and valid there as such, are valid in the Philippines.
- Article 26 denies recognition to marriages prohibited under Articles 35(1), (4), (5) and (6), 36, 37, and 38.
- Article 26 includes a specific rule for mixed marriages: where a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated, and a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to remarry, the Filipino spouse acquires capacity to remarry under Philippine law.
- The capacity-to-remarry rule in Article 26 applies when the divorce is (1) validly obtained abroad and (2) capacitating the alien spouse to remarry.
Void marriages due to psychological incapacity
- Article 36 declares void a marriage contracted by any party who, at the time of celebration, was psychologically incapacitated to comply with the essential marital obligations of marriage.
- Article 36 states that the marriage remains void even if the incapacity becomes manifest only after the solemnization.
- Article 36 makes psychological incapacity a ground that voids the marriage regardless of when it becomes apparent.
Nullity action timing and prescription rules
- Article 39 provides that the action or defense for the declaration of absolute nullity of a marriage does not prescribe.
- Article 39 establishes a transitory prescription rule for marriages celebrated before the effectivity of the Family Code that fall under Article 36.
- For those Article 36 marriages celebrated before the Family Code took effect, Article 39 provides that the action or defense prescribes in ten years after the Family Code took effect.
- Article 39 applies the 10-year limit specifically to marriages fitting the Article 36 category and celebrated prior to the Family Code’s effectivity.
Effectivity of the Executive Order
- Section 4 provides that Executive Order No. 227 takes effect upon the effectivity of the Family Code of the Philippines.