A Philippine Law Guide (legal-article format)

1) Why a “previous marriage” changes everything

When a person dies, many benefits (pension, death claims, insurance proceeds, provident fund payouts, employees’ compensation) are paid to a legally defined set of beneficiaries—often starting with the legal spouse and dependent children. A previous marriage can create competing claimants and legal questions that affect:

Who is the “spouse” for benefit purposes
Which children qualify as dependents
Whether a later marriage is valid or void
Whether a named beneficiary is disqualified
Whether benefits must be held pending court determination

In practice, agencies and insurers typically follow a strict order: documented legal status first, then dependency, and only then any equitable considerations (which are limited).

2) Key legal building blocks (Philippine context)

A. The difference between “legal spouse,” “putative spouse,” and “partner”

Legal spouse: A person validly married to the deceased at the time of death (and not legally disqualified).
Putative spouse: A person who went through a marriage ceremony with the deceased that later turns out void, but acted in good faith believing the marriage was valid. This concept matters mostly for property relations; it is not automatically recognized for statutory death benefits.
Partner/common-law spouse: A cohabiting partner without a valid marriage. This status can matter in limited contexts (e.g., property co-ownership rules), but many death benefits prioritize the legal spouse.

B. Validity of the later marriage if there was a prior marriage

A later marriage can be:

Valid (prior marriage ended by death, final judgment of nullity/annulment where applicable, or other recognized termination), or
Void (most commonly because the prior marriage still existed).

Bigamy risk: If the first marriage was still subsisting, the second marriage is generally void.

C. Why “no court decree” often means the prior marriage is treated as existing

As a working rule in benefits processing: if the prior marriage is on record and there is no final court decree (or other legally recognized proof) ending it, agencies often presume it remains.

D. Children and legitimacy

Legitimate children (from a valid marriage) are compulsory heirs and may also be statutory dependents depending on the benefit system’s age/disability rules.
Illegitimate children are also recognized by law (with different inheritance shares), and many benefit systems recognize them as “dependent children” if they meet the dependency criteria.
Adopted children generally stand on equal footing with legitimate children for many purposes.

3) The main categories of “death benefits” and why rules differ

You’ll usually deal with one or more of these:

SSS death benefits (private sector, voluntary members, etc.)
GSIS death benefits (government employees)
Employees’ Compensation (EC) benefits (work-related death/disability; administered through ECC/SSS/GSIS depending on sector)
Employer benefits (company policy, CBA, group life, final pay, separation pay, retirement plans)
Life insurance proceeds (individual or group; private contracts)
Pag-IBIG/HDMF (savings/MP2 and related payouts)
Estate/succession (judicial or extrajudicial settlement; bank accounts without beneficiary designations; property titles)

Each system has its own beneficiary definitions and dispute-handling procedures.

4) Step one in every case: map the family and marital history

Before filing anything, build a simple “family tree + marriage timeline”:

A. Identify all marriages and their end-status

For each marriage:

Date/place of marriage (PSA record if possible)
Was there a death of spouse? (death certificate)
Was there a court decree?
- Declaration of nullity (void marriage)
- Annulment (voidable marriage)
- Legal separation (marriage bond remains, but can affect rights)
Any recognized foreign divorce situation (special cases)
Any Muslim personal law situation (special cases)

B. Identify all children and their legal status

For each child:

Birth certificate
Father/mother acknowledged?
Adoption papers if adopted
Age at time of death; disability status if relevant
Proof of dependency (school records, medical records, support, etc.)

C. Identify benefit sources

List all potential payors:

SSS / GSIS / ECC route
Employer HR
Insurance companies (individual + group)
Pag-IBIG/HDMF (including MP2)
Banks/investment accounts
Government agencies with special benefits (if applicable)

5) The most common conflict patterns (and what usually happens)

Pattern 1: First marriage exists on record; second “spouse” claims benefits

Typical outcome: The first (legal) spouse is prioritized unless the second spouse proves the first marriage was terminated or void.

What the second spouse often needs:

A final court judgment that the first marriage is void, or
Proof the first spouse died before the later marriage, or
Other legally recognized termination applicable to the situation.

If the later marriage is void, the second spouse may:

Still have property claims (depending on good faith and contribution), but
Often will not qualify as “surviving spouse” for statutory pensions.

Pattern 2: Legal spouse exists but was separated in fact (or abandoned)

Some systems require the spouse to be dependent or “living with” the member at death; others presume dependency but allow rebuttal.

Expect requests for:

Proof of support or lack of support
Proof of cohabitation/separation
Evidence of abandonment or cruelty (rarely decisive by itself without legal proceedings)

Pattern 3: Children from the first marriage vs. the second family

Children’s rights can be independent of spousal disputes. For many benefits:

Dependent minor children (or disabled children) can qualify even if the spouse claim is contested.
If multiple sets of children qualify, benefits may be shared according to the system’s rules.

Pattern 4: Life insurance names the “second spouse/partner” as beneficiary

Insurance is contract-driven, but Philippine civil law principles can invalidate certain designations.

A beneficiary designation may be challenged if:

It is legally treated like a donation and falls under rules voiding donations due to adulterous/concubinage relationships in certain circumstances, or
The beneficiary is disqualified by law (e.g., involvement in the insured’s death).

Important practical point: Insurers often pay the named beneficiary unless there’s a clear legal impediment or a court order—so disputes often become injunction/interpleader situations.

6) SSS death benefits: who usually qualifies when there’s a prior marriage

While exact outcomes depend on facts and documents, the key recurring issues are:

A. Priority of beneficiaries

SSS commonly distinguishes:

Primary beneficiaries (typically the dependent spouse and dependent children)
Secondary beneficiaries (typically dependent parents, if no primary beneficiaries)
Separate funeral benefit rules (often reimbursing the person who shouldered funeral expenses)

B. The “spouse” question

If there are competing spouses:

SSS tends to rely on PSA marriage records and final court decrees.
If the second marriage is void due to a subsisting first marriage, SSS generally treats the first spouse as the spouse-beneficiary (subject to dependency rules).

C. Dependency of the spouse

In contested cases, be ready to prove:

Cohabitation, or
Financial dependence/support, or
That dependency should be presumed and not rebutted

D. Children’s eligibility

Often hinges on:

Age (minority)
Disability (permanent)
Proof of filiation and dependency

E. If there’s a serious dispute

SSS may:

Require additional documents (CENOMAR, decrees, affidavits)
Hold or suspend processing pending a court determination of rightful beneficiaries/heirs

7) GSIS death benefits: government employee context

GSIS claims often turn on:

Whether the claimant is the legal spouse
Whether children are dependents
Whether the member’s records list beneficiaries

Where there is a prior marriage:

GSIS commonly requires strong proof of termination or nullity of the first marriage before recognizing a later spouse.
As with SSS, dependency and documentation are critical.

8) Employees’ Compensation (EC): when death is work-related

EC benefits are separate from SSS/GSIS “regular” benefits and apply when death is compensable (work-related under applicable rules).

Beneficiaries typically follow a priority system:

Primary beneficiaries (commonly the dependent spouse and dependent children)
Secondary beneficiaries (commonly dependent parents)

With a prior marriage:

The same “who is the legal spouse” question arises.
Dependency can be more explicitly scrutinized.

9) Employer benefits: HR-driven but still affected by marital validity

Employer death benefits may include:

Final pay and accrued leave conversion
Company-provided death assistance
Group life insurance
Retirement plan payouts (if plan rules allow)
CBA benefits (if unionized)

A. HR will often ask for “legal heirs” documentation

If there are competing spouses, HR may:

Pay only uncontested amounts (like final pay due to the estate) into the estate route, or
Require:
- Extrajudicial settlement with all heirs’ signatures, or
- Court order (estate settlement / determination of heirs)

B. Group life insurance via employer

This usually follows the insurance contract’s beneficiary designation, but disputes can trigger interpleader or a hold.

10) Life insurance: contract rules + civil law limitations

A. “Insurance proceeds are not automatically part of the estate”

If there is a named beneficiary, insurers generally pay that beneficiary directly—unless:

The designation is invalid/disqualified, or
There is a restraining order/court dispute

B. Challenging the beneficiary when there’s a prior marriage

Common grounds:

The named beneficiary is not legally eligible due to rules treating designation like a donation in prohibited relationships (fact-specific)
Fraud, undue influence, or forgery (evidence-heavy)
Disqualification due to causing the insured’s death

C. Practical reality

If you anticipate a fight:

Move quickly to secure documents and consider court remedies (e.g., injunction, interpleader context)
Expect the insurer to require court guidance when claims are directly adverse

11) Pag-IBIG/HDMF and savings-based payouts

For Pag-IBIG (including MP2), issues often involve:

Who is the recorded beneficiary
If none or contested, who are the legal heirs

When there’s a prior marriage:

A contested “spouse” claim can push the payout into an estate/heirs determination route.
Document quality (PSA records, decrees, acknowledgment of children) becomes decisive.

12) Estate and succession: where the “previous marriage” matters most

Even if you successfully claim pensions/insurance, the deceased’s estate (properties, bank accounts without payable-on-death beneficiaries, titles, receivables) is governed by succession law.

A. Compulsory heirs you should always check

Depending on survivors, these can include:

Legitimate children (and their descendants)
Surviving legal spouse
Illegitimate children
Parents (if no descendants)
Other heirs under intestacy rules (if none of the above)

Children from a prior marriage are commonly compulsory heirs and cannot simply be excluded in intestate settlement.

B. Intestate sharing (high-level guide)

Exact shares can be technical, but common baselines:

Spouse + legitimate children: spouse generally shares alongside children (often treated as equivalent to one child in many intestate computations)
Legitimate + illegitimate children: illegitimate children have legally recognized shares that differ from legitimate children
Spouse + illegitimate children (no legitimate children): both can inherit, with shares determined by the Civil Code rules

C. Property regimes affect the net estate

Before dividing inheritance, you often must determine:

What belongs to the surviving spouse as their share in the community/conjugal property
What belongs to the estate of the deceased for distribution to heirs

If there’s a prior marriage, there may be:

Unliquidated property relations from the first marriage
Competing claims on specific properties acquired during different relationships

13) The “marriage validity” toolkit: documents that win (or lose) claims

When prior marriage issues arise, these documents are repeatedly decisive:

PSA Marriage Certificate(s) (for all marriages)
PSA Death Certificate(s) (of the deceased and, if applicable, of prior spouse)
Final court decree + Certificate of Finality (nullity/annulment/legal separation)
PSA annotation on marriage records (when applicable)
CENOMAR (Certificate of No Marriage Record) — useful but not conclusive alone
Birth certificates of all children (with proper filiation entries)
Proof of dependency (for pensions: school, medical, support evidence)
Government IDs and claimant records
Benefit account records (SSS/GSIS/HDMF member data; insurance beneficiary forms)

14) How disputes are resolved: agency process vs. court process

A. Agency-level resolution (SSS/GSIS/HDMF/insurer)

Expect:

Documentary evaluation
Affidavits
Interviews or clarificatory conferences
Possible denial or hold pending court action

B. Court-level resolution (when truly contested)

Common legal routes:

Settlement of estate (judicial) where heirship and marriage validity issues are litigated incidentally
Petition involving marriage validity (depending on the nature of the defect and who has standing)
Interpleader (often initiated by insurers or institutions when rival claimants demand payment)

C. A practical rule of thumb

If two spouses present facially valid documents and neither can be resolved administratively, many payors will require a court order before releasing contested amounts.

15) Special situations you should not overlook

A. Legal separation

The marriage bond remains, but property relations are affected.
The “guilty spouse” can lose certain rights, including inheritance-related rights in many scenarios.
Agencies may still require proof of dependency and the decree’s effects.

B. Foreign divorce and mixed marriages

Philippine recognition of foreign divorce can be highly fact-specific (citizenship, where divorce was obtained, and judicial recognition requirements). If this is the fact pattern, expect:

Requests for the foreign decree and proof of foreign law
A need for judicial recognition before agencies accept a change in civil status

C. Muslim personal law

Muslim Filipinos may have marital dissolutions recognized under the Code of Muslim Personal Laws, which can affect whether a prior marriage was still subsisting.

16) Filing strategy: the cleanest way to move fast without getting denied

A. File in parallel, but document-consistently

It is common to file:

SSS/GSIS claim
Employer claim
Insurance claim
HDMF claim

…but only if your documents tell a consistent story.

B. If you expect a spouse dispute, lead with the strongest proof

Attach early:

Marriage certificates (both, if needed)
Court decrees (with finality)
Proof the prior marriage ended before the later marriage

C. Protect children’s claims even when spouse claims are disputed

If children clearly qualify (minor/disabled + filiation proven), pursue their benefit entitlement promptly.

D. Keep receipts and proof of funeral expenses

Funeral benefits (where applicable) can be paid to the person who shouldered expenses even when heirship is disputed.

17) Red flags that almost always trigger a hold or denial

Two marriage certificates with overlapping timelines and no decree resolving the overlap
A “second spouse” relying only on cohabitation and affidavits without proof the first marriage ended
Missing PSA records or unannotated decrees
Children with unclear filiation (no acknowledgment, incomplete birth records)
Conflicting beneficiary forms, or alleged forgery
Multiple claimants demanding the same benefit

18) Practical checklists

A. Checklist for the surviving spouse (or spouse-claimant)

PSA marriage certificate to the deceased
Proof prior marriage ended (death certificate/court decree + finality + annotation if applicable)
IDs and claimant forms
Proof of dependency if required (especially if separated in fact)

B. Checklist for children (especially from a prior marriage)

PSA birth certificate
Proof of dependency (minor status, schooling; or disability documentation)
Proof of relationship and support where needed

C. Checklist for contesting a questionable spouse claim

PSA marriage certificate of the earlier marriage
Evidence it was subsisting at the time of the later marriage
Lack of decree/termination proof
Evidence relevant to dependency/disqualification where legally applicable

19) Bottom line

When the deceased has a previous marriage, death benefit claims in the Philippines become a status-and-documents problem before they become a hardship story. The single most important question is often:

“Who was the legal spouse at the time of death, based on PSA records and final court decrees?”

From there, agencies and courts determine:

Whether the spouse is also a dependent spouse (for pension systems that require it)
Which children are qualified dependents
Whether payments should be released, shared, or held pending court action
How the estate will be liquidated and divided among compulsory heirs

20) Short caution

This is a general legal guide for Philippine context and does not replace advice tailored to your facts. If there are competing spouses, overlapping marriage dates, missing decrees, or significant assets, it’s usually worth consulting a lawyer to choose the right procedural path (administrative claim vs. estate proceeding vs. targeted court action).