Exemption of CADT Applicants from Assurance Fund Fees

The State’s policy is to protect the rights of indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples to their ancestral lands and ensure their economic well-being.
Republic Act No. 8371 (Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act) recognizes rights of indigenous peoples to their ancestral domains and provides for the issuance of CADTs to indigenous peoples.
Presidential Decree No. 1529 (Property Registration Decree) requires registered owners to contribute to the Assurance Fund.
The Assurance Fund is defined as one-fourth of one percent (¼ of 1%) of the assessed value of the real estate based on the last assessment for taxation purposes.
The Assurance Fund is used to answer claims of a person who, without negligence on his part, sustains loss or damage or is deprived of land or any estate or interest therein as a consequence of bringing the land under the Torrens system.

CADTs are certificates that formally recognize indigenous peoples’ rights over their ancestral domains.
CADTs are registered with the Register of Deeds where the property is situated.
CADTs are not titled under the Torrens system of land registration.
Because CADTs are not under the Torrens system, they are not within the ambit of Presidential Decree No. 1529 on mandatory contribution to the Assurance Fund.

The Land Registration Authority must not impose Assurance Fund contributions on CADT applicants.
The prohibition applies to contributions that would otherwise be imposed under the Assurance Fund requirement.
The rule is implemented through LRA direction to ensure CADT applicants are not charged Assurance Fund contributions.

Any issuances, rules and regulations, or parts thereof that are inconsistent with Memorandum Order No. 179 are repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
The effect of inconsistency extends only to the extent of the inconsistency with the order’s directive on Assurance Fund contributions from CADT applicants.