INP Personnel Professionalization Law 1977

Policy, purpose, and governing intent

Section 2 declares the policy and purpose to establish a comprehensive personnel development program.
The program must maintain a competent Integrated National Police that is efficient, professional, and loyal to the interest of the public.

Coverage within the Integrated National Police

The decree governs members of the Integrated National Police in relation to personnel professionalization, including ranks, qualifications, recruitment/appointment, training, promotion, discipline, compensation, retirement, benefits, and missing personnel status.
Section 50 keeps Philippine Constabulary components under Armed Forces of the Philippines laws on personnel matters, with this decree as suppletory.

Ranks, strength rules, and distribution

Section 3 establishes uniform INP ranks for police personnel and fire service personnel for efficient administration, uniformity, and discipline.
Police ranks include: Police Brigadier General; Police Colonel; Police Lieutenant Colonel; Police Major; Police Captain; Police Lieutenant; Police Sergeant; Police Corporal; Patrolman/Patrolwoman First Class; Patrolman/Patrolwoman.
Fire ranks include: Fire Brigadier General; Fire Colonel; Fire Lieutenant Colonel; Fire Major; Fire Captain; Fire Lieutenant; Fire Sergeant; Fire Corporal; Fireman First Class; Fireman.
Section 4 sets police strength by peace and order, population density, and general needs of service, with a minimum of one policeman for every one thousand inhabitants in each city or municipality.
Section 5 sets fire service strength by population density, high-value districts and building density/height, location of values, topography, man-made barriers (e.g., railroad or highway structures), traffic congestion, and number of fire apparatus; in cities or large municipalities the minimum fireman-to-population ratio is one fireman for every two thousand inhabitants, while small cities/municipalities follow implementing rules and regulations.
Section 6 limits rank distribution (expressed as percentages of total strength of the Integrated National Police) to maximum percentages and ties authorized personnel per rank to the Table of Organization approved by the Secretary of National Defense.

Qualifications for appointment and promotion

Section 7 requires the following general qualifications for appointment as member of the Integrated National Police:
- Philippine citizenship.
- Good habits and moral conduct.
- Sound mind and body.
- At least high school graduate for appointment to the lowest rank, with a proviso that assignment to city stations requires having finished at least second year college.
- No dishonorable discharge from military service or dismissal for cause from any civilian government position.
- No criminal record.
- Age not less than twenty-one nor more than thirty years for appointment to the lowest rank.
- Height of at least one meter and 62 centimeters; for policewomen at least one meter and 57 centimeters.
- Weight within the standard weight corresponding to height, age, and sex, with no more or less than the standard weight.
Section 7 allows waiver of age, height, and weight requirements when the exigency of the service requires it, upon:
- Recommendation of the appointing authority supported by an evaluation report of the screening committee on merit and fitness.
- Approval by the Director General of the Integrated National Police with attestation by the National Police Commission, considering factors such as possession of relevant police skills, special qualifications, training, acquired experience, geographical location, membership in a cultural minority, and other allied factors—provided the applicant meets other prescribed qualifications.
Section 7 permits waiver of educational qualification (for the high school requirement in Section 7(d)) upon recommendation of the appointing authority supported by screening committee evaluation, approved by the National Police Commission en banc, considering highly exceptional accomplishment or deed of conspicuous gallantry in the interest of peace and order.
Section 7 bars appointment unless the applicant meets the requirements, unless and until the required waiver is secured; the waiver procedure in embattled areas under Presidential Decree No. 1162 continues in effect.
Section 8 establishes special educational qualifications:
- No promotion or appointment to Police/Fire Sergeant unless the person has completed two years college or seventy-three college units (academic and non-academic).
- No appointment or promotion to Police/Fire Lieutenant and up to Police/Fire Colonel unless the person holds a bachelor’s degree.
- Satisfactory work experience plus completion of appropriate training prescribed by the Director General is deemed equivalent for promotion purposes.
Section 9 sets special qualifications for promotion to Police Brigadier General:
- At least forty years of age.
- Either member of the Philippine Bar, or chartered city chief of police eligible, or completion of graduate study in public or police administration, or Bachelor of Science in Criminology (with completion of an advanced law-enforcement course or its equivalent in a recognized foreign police school or allied course recognized by the Philippine Constabulary, National Police Commission, or the National Bureau of Investigation).
- At least ten years experience in executive, command, or staff positions in police or constabulary service.
- Satisfactory service as Police Colonel for at least one year in permanent status.
Section 10 sets special qualifications for promotion to Fire Brigadier General:
- At least forty years of age.
- Bachelor’s degree in an engineering science related to hydraulics, chemistry, structures, electricity, machines, or civil service eligibility for chief of the fire department of chartered cities, with satisfactory completion of an advanced course or its equivalent in fire prevention and suppression in a school recognized by the Integrated National Police or National Police Commission.
- At least ten years experience in executive, command, or staff positions in the fire service.
- Satisfactory service as Fire Colonel for at least one year in permanent status.
Section 11 sets special qualifications for fire inspectors:
- No appointment for assignment as fire inspector unless the person possesses any qualifying degree/course: Electrical Engineering; Mechanical Engineering; Chemistry or Chemical Engineering; Civil Engineering or Architecture; or appropriate technical courses closely related to fire technology, or fire protection and safety.
- Fire inspectors already in service prior to the decree’s effectivity without these qualifications may continue in present positions after special training in the above fields as prescribed by the Director General.

Recruitment, selection, and appointment powers

Section 12 requires the Director General to establish a screening committee in each provincial or district and regional headquarters.
Screening committees must:
- Widely disseminate vacancies in the area.
- Determine merit and fitness among applicants who qualify under the qualification standards.
- Conduct or oversee: panel interview, physical-medical examination, appropriate police service written examination, and psychological and/or neuro-psychiatric test.
Section 12 prohibits appointment without a recommendation of the screening committee.
Section 13 allows lateral entry (instead of normal original appointment starting at the lowest rank) for:
- College graduates in certain technical fields needed by the service, including engineers (as referred to in Section 11), doctors, nurses, lawyers, penologists, and forensic scientists for the crime laboratory.
- Former Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs of Police, and custodial service and fire service personnel whose positions/ranks have been reclassified or are pending reclassification to appropriate ranks commensurate to their positions due to the integration program under Section 1 of Presidential Decree No. 855, as amended.
- Graduates of the Philippine National Police Academy to be established.
Section 14 specifies appointing authorities:
- Patrolman to Police Sergeant and Fireman to Fire Sergeant: appointed by Zone/Regional Directors as recommended by Police Superintendents.
- Police Lieutenant to Police Colonel and Fire Lieutenant to Fire Colonel: appointed by the Director General as recommended by Zone Regional Directors.
- Police Brigadier General and Fire Brigadier General: appointed by the President as recommended by the Director General through the Secretary of National Defense.
- Recommendations for original appointments under Section 14(a) and Section 14(b) may be initiated by the city or municipal mayor, forwarded through channels.
Section 15 provides appointment status rules:
- Appointments are temporary and permanent.
- Temporary appointment: issued when appropriate eligibles are absent and exigency requires filling a vacancy; it is issued to a person meeting all rank/position requirements except appropriate police service eligibility, must not exceed twelve months, and the appointee may be replaced if a qualified eligible becomes available.
- Permanent appointment: issued to a person meeting all rank/position requirements including appropriate eligibility; includes a probationary period of at least one year; the Director General may drop a member for unsatisfactory conduct or performance any time before probation ends under a procedure to be prescribed by the Director General subject to approval by the Secretary of National Defense.
Section 16 permits appointment of women for specific assignments and imposes a numerical cap:
- Women may be appointed for youth aid/juvenile control units, jail matron roles within custodial service, training and administrative duties, and certain operations where policewomen’s services are necessary or more effective (handling, investigation, search and arrest of female or youth offenders).
- The total number of female members nationwide or in each command or unit must not exceed five per centum of the total strength of the force.
Section 17 requires National Police Commission attestation for appointments (including promotions) under Section 14(a) and Section 14(b):
- The National Police Commission must disapprove within ninety days after submission for lack of qualifications/eligibility.
- Appointments become immediately effective upon assumption of duties, entitling the appointees to salaries and benefits until a final notice of disapproval.

Training institution and programs

Section 18 requires the Integrated National Police to provide training including:
- Recruit/basic training for all new appointees under original appointment.
- Unit/specialized training for line and staff assignment preparation.
- Supervisory/command officers’ training for intellectual and temperamental preparation for supervisory responsibilities.
- Management training for top administrative personnel.
- Other courses to enhance efficiency, competency, and technology demands.
Section 18 authorizes detailing for education and training:
- One per centum of total personnel in any fiscal year may be detailed at government expense as students or as students/observers/investigators in technical/professional educational institutions, or as students/observers/investigators at industrial plants, hospitals, public safety installations/facilities, and other places suited to acquire knowledge or experience in specialties needed by the service.
- Such detailing follows rules and regulations prescribed in accordance with the decree.
Section 19 establishes the Philippine National Police Academy as the police and fire services training institution for training and education of Integrated National Police members.
Section 19 requires organization within two years from the effectivity of the decree and administration by the Director General under general supervision and control of the Secretary of National Defense.
Section 19 requires the Academy to develop and conduct comprehensive training programs under standards, rules, and regulations prescribed by the Secretary of National Defense, to professionalize personnel in every level of command.

Promotion standards and systems

Section 20 bars eligibility for promotion unless the member:
- Successfully passes the corresponding promotional examination given by the National Police Commission, or
- Successfully passes the bar examination, or
- Successfully completes an appropriate and accredited course from the Philippine National Police Academy.
Section 20 mandates promotion when a vacancy occurs:
- The next-in-rank member who is competent and qualified to hold the position and possesses an appropriate police/fire service eligibility must be promoted.
Section 20 governs equal merits and disqualification reasons:
- If two or more members have the same merits and qualifications, seniority in police/fire service is preferred.
- If a member should not be promoted, the special reasons must be stated in writing by the promoting authority, the member must be informed, and the member must be given an opportunity to be heard by the appointing authority.
- If the vacancy is not filled by promotion, it must be filled by transfer from other commands or units of the Integrated National Police.
Section 21 provides that promotions are made by appointing authorities under Section 14, upon recommendation of subordinate commanders among those meeting promotion requirements, and promotions may be made only when the prospective promotee occupies a permanent rank or grade at the time of promotion to the next rank.
Section 22 requires the Director General to create promotion boards to assist promotion authorities in selecting the best qualified members.
Section 23 allows special promotion for acts of conspicuous courage and gallantry at the risk of life beyond the call of duty:
- Recommendations go to the relevant promotion board for evaluation.
- The recommendation is then elevated to the Director General for approval, subject to attestation by the National Police Commission.

Discipline, performance, grievances, and rewards

Section 24 requires a performance rating system administered under rules, standards, and regulations to continually foster improvement of individual efficiency and organizational effectiveness.
Section 25 grants members the right to present complaints and grievances to superiors/commanders for expeditious adjudication in the best interest of service, government as a whole, and the member concerned.
Section 25 requires resolution at the lowest possible command level and grants the right to appeal to higher authorities.
Section 26 requires an incentive and awards system administered under rules, regulations, and standards promulgated by the Director General.
Section 26 authorizes the Director General to incur necessary expenses for honorary recognition for subordinate officers and members for superior accomplishments, acts of conspicuous courage and gallantry, other personal efforts contributing to efficiency/economy/improvement of government operations, and other extraordinary acts/services in the public interest connected with or related to official duties.
Section 27 makes health and welfare a concern of the Integrated National Police, requiring the Director General to take proper steps toward an atmosphere conducive to good supervisor-subordinate relations and improved morale.
Section 28 makes discipline promotion a command responsibility and requires strict and judicious implementation of the disciplinary system under Presidential Decree No. 971 and its implementing rules and regulations.

Salary scales, allowances, retirement system

Section 29 establishes authorized monthly salary structures for police and fire service personnel as graduated in six scales or steps within a salary range for each rank, except Police/Fire Brigadier General.
Section 29 sets the Police Brigadier General / Fire Brigadier General monthly salary at PHP 2,500.
Section 29 sets the monthly salary scales (1–6) in pesos as follows:
- Police/Fire Colonel: 1080, 1242, 1428, 1642, 1889, 2172
- Police/Fire Lieutenant Colonel: 939, 1080, 1242, 1428, 1642, 1889
- Police/Fire Major: 817, 939, 1080, 1242, 1428, 1642
- Police/Fire Captain: 710, 817, 939, 1080, 1242, 1428
- Police/Lieutenant: 617, 710, 817, 939, 1080, 1242
- Police/Sergeant: 537, 617, 710, 817, 939, 1080
- Police/Fire Corporal: 466, 537, 617, 710, 817, 939
- Patrolman/Fireman First Class: 406, 466, 537, 617, 710, 817
- Patrolman/Fireman: 353, 406, 466, 537, 617, 710
Section 30 provides that salary adjustments follow Presidential Decree No. 855 as amended by Presidential Decree No. 973, with an additional proviso:
- If a member’s salary prior to effectivity of Presidential Decree No. 973 is between two salary steps, the salary is adjusted to the salary step for the rank next higher than such salary.
Section 31 grants each member a subsistence allowance at rates prescribed by the Secretary of National Defense, and provides:
- The cost-of-living allowance is discontinued and forms part of the subsistence allowance.
Section 32 provides that Commonwealth Act No. 186 and amendments continue to apply to Integrated National Police members, except as modified by the decree; the retirement system remains administered by the Government Service Insurance System.
Section 33 mandates compulsory retirement:
- Automatic and compulsory upon reaching sixty years for ranks Police/Fire Lieutenant and higher.
- Automatic and compulsory upon reaching fifty-five years for ranks Patrolman/Fireman up to Police/Fire Sergeant.
- Continuance beyond these ages may be required for the public good and interest only if recommended by the Director General through the Secretary of National Defense and by the President.
Section 33 sets a transition timetable beginning January 1, 1978:
- Compulsory retirement age for Police/Fireman up to Police/Fire Sergeant becomes sixty years.
- Every year thereafter, for groups of ranks above-mentioned, compulsory retirement ages are reduced by one year effective every first day of January until reaching the fixed ages in Section 33(a).
Section 34 allows optional retirement:
- A member may retire at request regardless of age if he has rendered at least twenty years of satisfactory service.
- If the member was already eligible for optional retirement by age and/or service requirements under Commonwealth Act No. 186 and amendments prior to effectivity, the member has the option to retire thereunder.
Section 35 provides that retirement benefits for both optional and compulsory retirees are the same as those under Commonwealth Act No. 186, notwithstanding the compulsory retirement age.
Section 36 provides that computation of service and eligibility follows Commonwealth Act No. 186 as amended, with a proviso:
- If a prospective compulsory retiree lacks required length of service, the member has the right to continue beyond the age of sixty or fifty-five (as applicable) to fulfill the requirement.
Section 37 requires inclusion in yearly appropriation:
- Necessary amounts determined in consultation with the Government Service Insurance System and remitted to it to cover pension payments to compulsory retirees between ages fifty-five and sixty years.
Section 38 requires studies to upgrade the retirement system to improve viability and responsiveness to the needs/security of members and to meet peculiar requirements of dedicated law enforcement and public safety service.
Section 39 requires the Director General, in close coordination with the General Manager of the Government Service Insurance System, to promulgate necessary rules and regulations for effective implementation of Article X, subject to approval of the Secretary of National Defense.

Disability, death, benefits, and tax/attachment protection

Section 40 grants temporary disability benefits when a member is injured in the performance of duty or contracts sickness/disease arising out of the performance of duty:
- The period of disability due to such injury/sickness is on full pay.
- The member is entitled to payment of reasonable medicines, medical attendance, hospital fees, necessary transportation, and subsistence.
- Absence under these cases is not charged against vacation or sick leaves.
- The member is entitled to a lump sum gratuity ranging from one hundred to two thousand pesos, depending on the merits of the case.
- Claims are paid and adjudicated by the Integrated National Police.
Section 41 grants death and permanent total disability benefits for deaths and injuries/sickness in line of duty:
- Surviving spouse, and if none, surviving dependent legitimate children receive a gratuity equivalent to one year’s salary, with a minimum of six thousand pesos.
- Burial expenses are equivalent to three months’ salary, with a minimum of one thousand pesos.
- A pension equal to eighty per cent of the deceased’s salary.
- The pension is capped: in no case shall the monthly pension exceed five years.
- If the deceased employee has no primary beneficiary, other eligible beneficiaries (non-dependent legitimate children with eligible legitimate children, surviving parents, or in absence, surviving brothers and sisters) receive:
  - A lump sum benefit equivalent to one year’s salary with a minimum of six thousand pesos, and
  - Burial expenses equivalent to three months’ salary with a minimum of one thousand pesos.
- Dependent legitimate children includes a legitimate/legitimated/legally adopted child who is not gainfully employed and under twenty-one years of age, or over twenty-one if congenitally incapacitated and incapable of self-support physically or mentally.
Section 41 addresses permanent total disability:
- If permanently and totally disabled from injuries/sickness contracted or aggravated in line of duty, the Director General causes compulsory retirement upon certification by the appropriate medical officer that disability renders the member unfit/unable to perform duties.
- The member is entitled to a gratuity equivalent to one year’s salary with a minimum of six thousand pesos, and a lifetime pension equal to eighty per cent of the last salary.
- If the retired member dies within five years from retirement, the surviving spouse or, if none, surviving dependent legitimate children are entitled to the pension for the remainder of the guaranteed five-year period.
Section 41 sets claims procedure and adjudication:
- Death or permanent total disability benefit claims are filed with the Hearing Officer/Board of Investigators of the province or city where the member is stationed.
- The Hearing Officer/Board of Investigators conducts the appropriate investigation, then forwards report and recommendation to the National Police Commission for adjudication and payment.
- Dependents who qualify under Presidential Decree No. 577 (November 11, 1974) for certain military dependents are extended the same benefits for dependents of Integrated National Police members who die in performance of duty after promulgation of this decree.
Section 42 provides protection and non-prescription:
- Compensation granted is not subject to attachment, levy, execution, or any tax whatsoever.
- It does not affect benefits received or to be received from the Government Service Insurance System.
- Claims under Article XI shall not prescribe.

Missing in action and continuing pay

Section 43 provides that any Integrated National Police member in performance of duty who is officially reported missing in action, kidnapped, or captured by lawless elements on or after August 8, 1975 is entitled to receive or have credited the same pay and allowances entitled at the beginning of absence or may become entitled to thereafter while so absent.
Section 43 conditions entitlement on authorized absence:
- The member must not have been absent from duty without authority.
Section 43 protects against termination by temporary appointment expiration:
- Expiration of a temporary appointment during the period of absence does not terminate the right to receive salary and allowances.
Section 43 imposes reimbursement consequence:
- If the Director General later determines the member was absent without authority, the member or the estate must reimburse all amounts and allowances received.
Section 44 authorizes support payments to heirs/ dependents:
- The Director General may direct payment of a portion of the absent member’s salary and allowances necessary for reasonable support of heirs/dependents and/or payments of insurance premiums for twelve months from the date of commencement of absence.
Section 45 authorizes missing-status continuation, suspension/resumption, or death finding near the 12-month mark:
- If twelve months from commencement is about to expire and no official report of death has been received, the Director General may direct continuance of missing status, suspension/resumption of payment if the member may be reasonably presumed living, or make a finding of death.
- If missing status continues, the Director General orders review whenever warranted by new information/circumstances.
- A finding of death must include a presumed date of death for settlement and termination purposes:
  - The day following expiration of twelve months, or
  - If the mission status was continued or authorized, a date determined by the Director General.
Section 46 states that within the authority granted, the Director General’s determinations on dependency and directives relative to continuance/suspension/resumption of pay, or finding of death, are conclusive.

Miscellaneous authorities, rules, and legal effects

Section 47 grants officers from the rank of Police/Fire Lieutenant and above the power to administer oaths in matters directly connected with official duties.
Section 48 authorizes the Director General to promulgate necessary rules and regulations for effective implementation, subject to approval of the Secretary of National Defense.
Section 49 repeals or modifies specified laws and regulations inconsistent with the decree regarding the Integrated National Police or members thereof:
- Republic Act No. 4864 (Police Act of 1966), as amended.
- Provisions of all City Charters.
- Presidential Decree No. 807 (Civil Service Law of 1975).
- Presidential Decree No. 855, as amended.
- Commonwealth Act No. 186, as amended.
- All other provisions of decrees, laws, and regulations inconsistent with this decree as far as the Integrated National Police or members thereof are concerned.
Section 50 provides that Philippine Constabulary components of the Integrated National Police continue to be governed by AFP personnel laws, rules and regulations (particularly on personnel matters), and this decree is suppletory thereto.
Section 51 establishes separability: if any part/section/provision is held invalid or unconstitutional, the rest remains effective.