All You Need to Know About Bigamy, Annulment & Foreign Marriages under Philippine Law

Updated to current jurisprudence as of 18 July 2025. This article is for information only and is not a substitute for personalised legal advice.

1. Foundations: Three Classes of Marriages in the Family Code

Class	Status	Typical Remedy	Prescriptive period
Valid	Produces all civil effects.	None (stand intact)	n/a
Voidable (Art. 45)	Defective from inception but requires judicial annulment to be set aside.	Petition for annulment.	5 years from cause (except minority).
Void ab initio (Arts. 35, 37, 38, 40, 41, 44)	Deemed never to have existed.	Petition for declaration of nullity.	Imprescriptible (can be filed at any time).

Bigamous marriages and most problem foreign marriages fall in the void category, so the correct civil action is a petition for declaration of nullity—not “annulment” in the strict sense.

2. Bigamy in the Philippines

2.1 Criminal Aspect

Article 349, Revised Penal Code (RPC) punishes “any person who shall contract a second or subsequent marriage without the previous marriage having been lawfully dissolved …”. Key elements proven in court:

A first marriage subsists and is valid (no judicial nullity yet).
The accused contracts a second marriage.
The second marriage would have been valid were it not for the first.
No exemption under Article 41 (presumptive death) or Article 26 §2 (foreign divorce) applies.

Penalty: Prisión correccional (6 months – 6 years) plus possible directorate for subsidiary civil effects.

⚖️ Fujiki v. Marinay (G.R. 196049, 26 Jun 2013) clarified that the first spouse may file a civil action to declare the second marriage void and raise bigamy as a criminal act.

2.2 Civil Aspect

Article 35 §4, Family Code declares bigamous (or polygamous) marriages void ab initio “unless they fall within Article 41.” Because they never existed in law:

No conjugal / absolute community property is formed.
Property relations are governed by Articles 147 (cohabitation in good faith) or 148 (bad-faith unions).
Children are illegitimate unless covered by legitimating provisions (e.g., legitimation by subsequent valid marriage does not occur here).
Action to declare nullity is imprescriptible.

3. Article 41: The Safe Harbour for a Lawful Second Marriage

A spouse who honestly believes the absentee spouse is dead may remarry if all of the following are met:

4 years continued absence (2 years if disappearance was due to danger of death).
Well-founded belief of death.
Prior judicial declaration of presumptive death obtained in the first marriage’s venue.
Marriage licence/contract states the fact of the decree.

Failure to secure the decree renders the subsequent marriage bigamous and void.

4. Foreign Marriages: Celebration, Validity & Proof

4.1 Lex Loci Celebrationis

Article 26 §1: A marriage valid where celebrated is valid here—unless it falls into Philippine prohibited degrees (Arts. 35–38). Thus two Filipinos who marry before a Las Vegas Elvis-impersonator judge are still valid if Nevada law so allows and the form complies.

Proof in court:

Authenticated marriage certificate (Rule 132, §24).

Proof of the foreign marriage law—either by official publication, apostilled copy, or expert testimony (recital is not enough; Garcia v. Recio, G.R. 138322, 02 Oct 2001).

5. Foreign Divorce & Article 26 §2

Stage	Doctrine	Leading Case
1985	Divorce obtained abroad by foreign spouse frees the Filipino spouse to remarry.	Van Dorn v. Romillo (G.R. 68470, 17 Oct 1985)
2003	Filipino spouse may rely on foreign divorce obtained by the foreign spouse even if Filipino later becomes foreign.	Republic v. Orbecido (G.R. 154380, 05 Oct 2005)
2018	Either spouse (even if still Filipino) may obtain the foreign divorce and benefit.	Republic v. Manalo (G.R. 221029, 24 Apr 2018)

❗ Recognition proceeding required (Rule 108 in relation to Art. 26 §2):

File a Petition for Recognition of Foreign Divorce in the RTC where the civil registry is located.
Attach:
- Authenticated divorce decree.
- Proof of foreign divorce law and how it allows divorce for the parties.
Registry will annotate the Philippine marriage record only after finality of the recognition judgment.

6. Collision Scenarios: Bigamy × Foreign Divorce

Scenario	Legal status	Criminal bigamy?	Key jurisprudence
Second marriage abroad while first Philippine marriage subsists (no divorce yet).	Second marriage is void for bigamy.	Yes, unless Art 41 or valid Art 26 §2 divorce obtained before the second marriage.	Fujiki; People v. Dizon (G.R. 218083, 13 Jan 2021)
Filipino obtains foreign divorce after both marriages exist, then seeks recognition.	Divorce may dissolve first marriage prospectively once recognised; does not cure earlier bigamy.	Prosecutable; good-faith defence sparingly accepted.	People v. Abundo (G.R. 218839, 15 Jun 2022)
Foreign spouse divorces Filipino, decree recognised before Filipino remarries.	Second marriage is valid; no bigamy.	None; Article 26 §2 applies.	Manalo

7. Actions & Procedures

Action	Venue	Who may file	Notes
Declaration of Nullity (void marriage inc. bigamy)	Family Court, RTC where petitioner resides or where marriage certificate recorded	Either spouse, any interested party, or OSG	Verified petition + OSG representation; decree becomes final & registered under Arts. 50–52
Annulment (voidable marriage)	Same	Only spouse whose consent was vitiated (or parents/guardians for minority)	5-year prescriptive period
Recognition of Foreign Divorce	RTC under Rule 108	Either spouse, even divorced spouse	Must allege & prove foreign law
Criminal Bigamy	MeTC/RTC where second marriage celebrated	State (through Prosecutor)	Private complainant may testify; civil indemnity possible

8. Property & Succession Effects

Before decree: Property regime depends on parties’ good or bad faith.
- Both in good faith → Article 147 co-ownership (½ each, unrebuttable).
- Either/both in bad faith → Article 148 stricter sharing (½ to innocent, forfeiture of share of guilty beyond ¼).
After decree: Properties already acquired are liquidated; future earnings separate.
Succession: Bigamous spouse has no legitime; children retain legitimate or illegitimate status following Arts. 165–176.

9. Status of Children

Marriage status	Children’s status	Remedy
Void marriage (including bigamy)	Illegitimate under Art. 165	May use father’s surname; entitled to support & legitime equal to ½ of legitimate child’s (Art. 895).
Voidable but not yet annulled	Legitimate until decree attains finality	If annulled, children conceived/existing before finality remain legitimate (Art. 45).

10. Defences & Mitigating Factors in Bigamy Cases

Defence	Outcome
Absolute nullity of first marriage judicially declared before second marriage	No bigamy (no valid first marriage).
Article 41 compliance (presumptive-death decree)	Second marriage valid.
Foreign divorce recognised pre-second-marriage	No bigamy (Art. 26 §2).
Good-faith belief in dissolution (without decree)	May mitigate penalty but rarely absolves liability (People v. Salaver).

11. Practical Tips & Checklist

Secure documents in order: obtain a judicial decree first (Art 41 or recognition of divorce) before contracting a new marriage.
Always register final judgments with the civil registry; failure bars remarriage (Arts. 52–53).
Criminal liability independent of civil action; a bigamy complaint may proceed even while a nullity petition is pending.
Proof of foreign law is indispensable—mere recitals of the decree are hearsay.
Consult counsel early; strategy differs when facing bigamy prosecution vs. proactively seeking nullity.

Conclusion

In Philippine law, bigamy renders a second marriage void and exposes the offender to criminal prosecution, while foreign divorces can liberate a Filipino spouse—but only after they are judicially recognised in the Philippines. Navigating these rules demands precise timing, authenticated foreign documents, and strict procedural compliance. If you face transnational marital complications, obtain formal legal advice and act promptly; mistakes can carry lifelong civil and criminal repercussions.