Quick answer

There is no single prescriptive period for filing a case in the Philippines. The correct deadline depends on:

the legal nature of the claim or offense;
the statute, rule, or contract governing it;
the date the cause of action accrued or the offense was committed or discovered;
any event that interrupted, suspended, or restarted the period; and
the filing act that legally counts in the proper court, prosecutor’s office, agency, or tribunal.

Use this basic formula:

Filing deadline = legally recognized starting date + applicable period − legally excluded time, adjusted for a valid interruption, suspension, or restart.

Do not identify the period from the case’s informal label alone. Courts examine the complaint’s material allegations and the relief actually sought. A claim called “damages,” “annulment,” or “collection” may be governed by a different period once its true legal basis is identified.

When more than one law appears applicable, a specific statute ordinarily controls over the Civil Code’s general periods. If the earliest reasonably possible deadline is near, file promptly through the legally authorized channel instead of waiting for every prescription issue to be settled.

First identify exactly what is being filed

Before counting days or years, answer these questions:

Is the matter civil, criminal, labor, tax, election, administrative, probate, family, land-registration, or another special proceeding?
What right was violated, and what act or omission completed the violation?
Is the claim based on a written contract, oral agreement, statute, judgment, tort or quasi-delict, fraud, possession, ownership, employment, or a special law?
What remedy will the pleading request?
Which court, prosecutor, agency, or tribunal has jurisdiction?
Does the governing law require a demand, barangay conciliation, administrative claim, reconsideration, exhaustion of remedies, or another step before filing?
Does the statute prescribe its own period or method of computation?

The nature of an action is determined principally from the complaint’s allegations and the character and purpose of the relief sought—not simply from its caption. The Supreme Court has repeatedly applied this approach when choosing among the Civil Code’s different periods, including in Selerio v. Bancasan.

Common civil prescriptive periods

The following are general periods under Articles 1140 to 1149 of the Civil Code. A special statute, a more specific Civil Code provision, or controlling jurisprudence may provide a different rule.

Nature of civil action	General period
Recover movable property	8 years from loss of possession, subject to acquisitive-prescription rules
Real action over immovable property	30 years, subject to special rules
Foreclose or enforce a mortgage	10 years
Action upon a written contract	10 years from accrual
Action upon an obligation created by law	10 years, unless a special law provides otherwise
Action upon a judgment	10 years, subject to the separate rules on execution
Action upon an oral contract	6 years
Action upon a quasi-contract	6 years
Action for injury to rights	4 years
Action upon a quasi-delict	4 years
Forcible entry or unlawful detainer	1 year under the applicable accrual rule
Civil action for defamation	1 year
Other actions with no period fixed elsewhere	5 years

These classifications require care:

A document’s existence does not automatically make every related suit an “action upon a written contract.” The breach alleged and relief requested still matter.
A statutory obligation falls under the ten-year general rule only if no special law fixes another period.
“Rescission” may refer to legally different remedies with different periods. The Supreme Court illustrated this distinction in Heirs of Quirong v. Development Bank of the Philippines.
The one-year period for forcible entry or unlawful detainer concerns the summary ejectment remedy. Depending on the facts, another possessory or ownership action may exist, but it will have different elements, jurisdictional requirements, and periods.
An action upon a judgment should not be confused with execution by motion. Under Rule 39, Section 6, a final judgment may generally be executed by motion within five years from entry. After that period, and before the judgment is barred, enforcement ordinarily requires an independent action. See the 2019 Rules of Civil Procedure.

When the civil period begins

Under Article 1150, prescription generally begins when the right of action accrues—when the claimant has a legally enforceable right, the other party has a corresponding obligation, and an act or omission violates that right.

The starting date may therefore be:

the contractual due date;
the date payment or performance was refused;
the date a required demand was made and not

Quick answer

There is no single prescriptive period for filing a case in the Philippines. The deadline depends on:

the true nature of the claim or offense;
the law that governs it;
the date the cause of action accrued or the offense was committed or discovered;
any valid interruption, suspension, or restart of the period; and
whether a special statute, procedural rule, or court order sets a different deadline.

A reliable working formula is:

Last filing date = legally correct starting date + applicable period − legally recognized interruptions or suspensions

Do not identify the period from the case label alone. Courts look at the material allegations, the right allegedly violated, and the relief sought. A complaint called “damages,” for example, may actually be based on a written contract, quasi-delict, defamation, employment law, or a special statute—each potentially carrying a different period.

When two periods appear possible, calculate both and work toward the earliest defensible deadline. Filing early is safer than depending on a disputed discovery date, demand letter, tolling event, or extension.

Determine the deadline in this order

1. Identify the exact legal claim or offense

Write down:

the right allegedly violated;
the act or omission that violated it;
the relief sought;
whether the obligation comes from a contract, law, judgment, tort, crime, employment relationship, property right, or special statute;
whether the document is written, oral, void, voidable, rescissible, or already reduced to judgment; and
the proposed defendant or accused.

The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that the nature of an action is determined principally by the complaint’s allegations and the relief sought, not merely by its caption. This distinction can be decisive. An action based on breach of a written contract may have a ten-year period, while an action for injury to rights generally has four years.

2. Check for a special law or special rule first

The Civil Code supplies many general periods, but it does not control when another law specifically governs the claim. Special periods commonly arise in:

labor disputes;
tax assessments and refunds;
election cases;
insurance claims;
corporate and securities matters;
agrarian disputes;
claims against a decedent’s estate;
government procurement and public contracts;
administrative disciplinary proceedings;
family cases;
special penal laws; and
petitions for review, appeals, and special civil actions.

A special statute ordinarily prevails over a general Civil Code period. A contract may also contain a claims or suit provision, but its validity and effect must be checked against the governing law.

3. Find the legally correct starting date

Under Article 1150 of the Civil Code, prescription generally begins when the action may legally be brought. Ordinarily, that means a cause of action already exists:

the claimant has a legal right;
the other party has a corresponding obligation; and
an act or omission breaches that right or obligation.

The signing date of a contract is therefore not automatically the starting date. If payment becomes due later, prescription normally cannot begin before a legally enforceable default or breach occurs.

The starting point may instead be:

the due date stated in a contract;
the date of nonpayment or refusal to perform;
the date a required demand was made and ignored;
the date possession was unlawfully withheld;
the date damage occurred;
the date fraud or another concealed act was discovered, if the applicable law recognizes discovery as the starting point;
the date a judgment became final;
the date of dismissal from employment;
the date an offense was committed or discovered; or
another date expressly fixed by a special statute.

Do not assume that every concealed injury uses a discovery rule or that every repeated effect creates a continuing violation. Both conclusions depend on the governing law and facts.

4. Identify every event that may affect the running of time

Prepare a chronology containing:

Date	Event	Possible legal effect	Supporting evidence
Date right arose	Due date, dismissal, injury, discovery, or offense	Possible accrual	Contract, notice, medical record, post, receipt
Demand date	Written demand sent and received	Possible interruption in a civil claim	Demand letter and proof of receipt
Acknowledgment date	Debtor admitted the obligation in writing	Possible interruption	Signed letter, email, settlement document
Barangay filing	Dispute referred to the lupon	Limited statutory interruption	Barangay complaint and certification
Prosecutor filing	Criminal complaint filed	Possible interruption of criminal prescription	Official receiving copy
Court filing	Complaint or information accepted	Commencement or interruption	Docket receipt and payment record
Dismissal or termination	Earlier proceeding ended	Period may resume or restart	Final order and proof of finality

An undocumented demand, acknowledgment, filing, or discovery date may be difficult to prove.

Common Civil Code periods

The following are general periods under Articles 1140 to 1149 of the Civil Code. They are starting points, not substitutes for checking special laws and jurisprudence.

Nature of action	General period
Recover movable property	8 years from loss of possession, subject to acquisitive-prescription rules
Real action over immovable property	30 years, subject to other property-law provisions
Foreclose or otherwise enforce a mortgage	10 years
Written contract	10 years
Obligation created by law	10 years, unless a special law fixes another period
Action upon a judgment	10 years
Oral contract	6 years
Quasi-contract	6 years
Injury to the claimant’s rights	4 years
Quasi-delict or negligence action	4 years
Forcible entry or unlawful detainer	1 year
Defamation	1 year
Action without another period fixed by law	5 years

Important qualifications to the civil table

A written document does not automatically make every dispute an action “upon a written contract.” The writing must be the legal basis of the obligation being enforced. Conversely, asking for damages does not necessarily turn a contract case into a four-year injury-to-rights case.

For forcible entry and unlawful detainer, the one-year period concerns the summary ejectment remedy. Its starting point depends on whether possession was unlawful from the beginning or became unlawful after tolerance or the termination of a right to possess. The loss of that summary remedy does not automatically answer whether another possessory or ownership action remains available.

For judgments, distinguish prescription from the method of enforcement. Under Rule 39, Section 6, a final judgment generally may be executed by motion within five years from its entry. After that period, and before the judgment is barred, enforcement ordinarily requires an independent action. The Rules of Civil Procedure and circumstances beyond the judgment creditor’s control may affect the calculation.

What interrupts a civil prescriptive period?

Article 1155 of the Civil Code provides that prescription of actions is interrupted by:

filing the action in court;
a written extrajudicial demand by the creditor; or
a written acknowledgment of the debt by the debtor.

A demand should identify the obligation, state what performance is required, and be supported by reliable proof of receipt. Preserve the signed receiving copy, registry return card, courier tracking and delivery record, or authenticated electronic record.

Do not treat a demand letter as a universal extension. Article 1155 may not govern a period fixed by a special statute, a procedural deadline, an appeal period, or a contractual condition. An oral demand normally does not satisfy Article 1155’s written-demand requirement.

A prematurely filed case, filing in the wrong forum, failure to pay required filing fees, or failure to proceed against the correct party may also create disputes over whether prescription was effectively interrupted.

Barangay conciliation and prescription

When the Katarungang Pambarangay requirements apply, prior barangay conciliation may be a condition before bringing the action to court. Section 410(c) of the Local Government Code provides that referral to the lupon interrupts prescription while the dispute is under mediation, conciliation, or arbitration. The interruption cannot exceed 60 days from filing the complaint with the punong barangay.

After the proper certification is received—or the legally relevant barangay proceeding ends—the remaining period resumes. Keep:

the barangay complaint and receiving stamp;
summons or notices;
minutes or settlement documents;
the certificate to file action; and
proof of the date the certificate was received.

Do not assume that an informal meeting with barangay officials has the same effect as a formally filed complaint.

Civil claims that may not prescribe

Some actions are expressly imprescriptible. Examples include:

an action or defense to declare an inexistent or void contract under Article 1410 of the Civil Code;
an action or defense for declaration of absolute nullity of marriage under Republic Act No. 8533; and
the registered owner’s protection against acquisition of registered land through prescription or adverse possession under Section 47 of Presidential Decree No. 1529.

These rules are narrow. A voidable contract, rescissible contract, reconveyance claim, possessory action, or claim for damages may have a definite period even if the dispute involves the same document or property. Calling a transaction “void” does not make it so; the allegations and evidence must support a legal ground for absolute nullity.

“Imprescriptible” also does not remove requirements concerning jurisdiction, proper parties, proof, procedure, or other available defenses.

Criminal cases

Offenses under the Revised Penal Code

Article 90 of the Revised Penal Code generally provides:

Penalty attached by law to the offense	Prescriptive period
Death, reclusion perpetua, or reclusion temporal	20 years
Other afflictive penalties	15 years
Correctional penalties, except arresto mayor	10 years
Arresto mayor	5 years
Libel and similar offenses	1 year
Oral defamation and slander by deed	6 months
Light offenses	2 months

When the statutory penalty is compound, Article 90 uses the highest penalty for determining prescription. The calculation is based on the penalty legally attached to the offense, not the punishment the complainant expects or the sentence ultimately imposed.

Under Article 91, prescription generally begins when the crime is discovered by the offended party, the authorities, or their agents. It is interrupted by the filing of the complaint or information and may run again if the proceedings terminate without conviction or acquittal, or are unjustifiably stopped for a reason not attributable to the accused. The period does not run while the offender is absent from the Philippine Archipelago.

The precise discovery date and the filing that interrupts prescription can be fact-sensitive. Preserve the original complaint-affidavit, receiving stamp, prosecutor’s docket number, referrals, resolutions, motions, and court information.

Offenses punished by special laws

First check whether the special statute states its own period. If it does not, Act No. 3326 generally supplies these periods:

Penalty under the special law	General period
Fine only, imprisonment of not more than 1 month, or both	1 year
Imprisonment of more than 1 month but less than 2 years	4 years
Imprisonment of 2 years or more but less than 6 years	8 years
Imprisonment of 6 years or more	12 years
Violation of a municipal ordinance	2 months
Violation of an administrative regulation or order	1 year

Act No. 3326 generally counts from commission or, if the violation was not known then, from discovery under the conditions stated in the Act. Proceedings instituted against the alleged offender interrupt the period, which may run again following a qualifying dismissal.

Current Supreme Court doctrine is important here. In People v. Consebido, G.R. No. 258563, April 2, 2025, the Court clarified that filing the complaint with the prosecutor for investigation interrupts prescription, including for offenses covered by summary procedure. The governing special law can still provide otherwise, so the exact offense and current procedural rule must be checked. See the official decision.

Because some criminal periods are only two or six months, a complainant should not wait for informal negotiations, a police follow-up, or a promised settlement before obtaining advice and making the proper filing.

Labor claims

Labor disputes illustrate why the special law must be checked before using the Civil Code:

Claim	General period
Money claim arising from an employer-employee relationship	3 years from accrual
Unfair labor practice	1 year from accrual
Illegal dismissal	4 years from accrual under Article 1146 of the Civil Code

Article 306 of the Labor Code governs employment-related money claims, even when the benefit is contained in a written collective bargaining agreement or employment contract. The special three-year period ordinarily prevails over the Civil Code’s ten-year period for written contracts. The Supreme Court discusses the distinction in Villafuerte v. Commission on Audit.

Different components of one labor complaint can have different periods. An illegal-dismissal claim may remain timely while older unpaid-wage or benefit installments are already barred. The accrual date for benefits such as service incentive leave can also depend on the nature of the benefit and when payment became demandable.

Prescription is not the same as every other legal deadline

Do not confuse prescription with:

an appeal or motion-for-reconsideration period;
the 60-day period for a petition for certiorari under Rule 65;
a redemption period;
a statutory notice-of-claim requirement;
a contractual claim-notice period;
an administrative exhaustion deadline;
the period fixed in a court’s notice to creditors of an estate; or
a period of repose that runs from a specified event regardless of accrual or discovery.

For example, in settlement proceedings for a deceased person’s estate, the probate court’s notice generally fixes a claims period of not less than six months and not more than 12 months after the first publication. This “statute of nonclaims” can control even when the underlying debt’s ordinary Civil Code period has not expired. Limited late-claim relief may be available only under the conditions in Rule 86.

Procedural deadlines are frequently shorter and stricter than ordinary prescriptive periods. The controlling court notice, statute, or rule must be examined separately.

How to compute the final day

Unless a special law provides a different method:

Identify the event from which time begins.
Exclude the first day.
Count calendar months or years, not a fixed number of 30- or 365-day blocks where the law uses months or years.
Include the final day.
Under Rule 22, if the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday where the court sits, the period generally continues to the next working day.
Recheck whether a special statute, court order, or jurisdictional rule requires a different result.

Example: If a written debt became unconditionally due and was breached on June 15, 2020, and no special law or interruption applies, the ten-year Civil Code period would ordinarily end on June 15, 2030. This changes if the contract required a valid prior demand, a written demand interrupted the period, the debtor acknowledged the debt in writing, or another law governs the transaction.

Never wait deliberately for the weekend or holiday rule. Filing systems can reject incomplete documents, and a document sent through an unauthorized channel may not be treated as filed.

Filing safely

A civil action is generally commenced by filing the original complaint in court. Before the deadline:

confirm the court, agency, or prosecutor with jurisdiction;
confirm venue;
identify all indispensable and responsible parties;
prepare the required verification, certification, affidavits, and attachments;
determine whether barangay conciliation or another pre-filing process applies;
calculate and arrange payment of filing or docket fees;
check whether electronic and paper copies are both required;
use only the court’s authorized filing channel; and
obtain official proof of filing and payment.

Electronic-filing requirements have changed in stages and differ between lower courts and the Supreme Court. Check the judiciary’s current electronic-filing guidance and eCourt PH information. Do not assume that sending an ordinary email, uploading an incomplete document, or receiving an automated transmission notice is equivalent to an accepted filing.

Evidence to preserve immediately

Keep original or authenticated copies of:

contracts, promissory notes, deeds, receipts, invoices, and checks;
demand letters and proof of delivery;
written acknowledgments, settlement offers, and payment records;
text messages, emails, chat exports, and complete message headers;
photographs, videos, posts, URLs, account identifiers, and metadata;
employment contracts, payslips, payroll records, notices, and time records;
medical records, medico-legal certificates, and expense receipts;
police blotters, complaint-affidavits, subpoenas, and prosecutor’s resolutions;
barangay complaints and certifications;
titles, tax declarations, registry records, and surveys;
judgments, entry-of-judgment notices, and writs;
death certificates and probate notices; and
a dated record explaining when and how a concealed act was discovered.

Preserve the complete record, not just screenshots or excerpts favorable to one side. Do not alter metadata, edit original files, coach witnesses, or obtain evidence through unlawful access.

Common mistakes

Selecting a period from the complaint’s proposed title instead of its actual legal basis.
Counting from the contract date when the obligation became enforceable later.
Assuming prescription always begins upon discovery.
Treating continuing harm as a continuing violation without legal support.
Applying the Civil Code despite a special statute.
Believing an oral demand stops civil prescription.
Assuming settlement talks automatically suspend the period.
Filing only with the police when the legally significant filing must be made with another office.
Treating an informal barangay meeting as a formal referral.
Filing in the wrong court, agency, or venue.
Omitting a required defendant until after the period has expired.
Waiting for the last day to pay docket fees or correct rejected filings.
Confusing the deadline to start a case with the deadline to appeal, execute a judgment, redeem property, or file a claim against an estate.

When legal help is urgent

Seek a Philippine lawyer immediately when:

the possible deadline is within the next 90 days;
the offense may prescribe in two or six months;
a prosecutor, court, barangay, employer, agency, insurer, or estate administrator has already issued a notice;
the starting date is disputed;
the claim may fall under more than one law;
fraud, concealment, minority, incapacity, absence, or continuing conduct affects the calculation;
an earlier case was dismissed or filed in another forum;
the opposing party signed an acknowledgment or made partial payment;
a party has died;
online evidence may be deleted;
the claim involves land, family status, taxes, elections, public employment, or government liability; or
the last day may already have passed.

Qualified applicants may request free legal assistance from the Public Attorney’s Office. For criminal complaints, the Department of Justice National Prosecution Service provides information about the prosecution system and its offices.

Frequently asked questions

Does a demand letter extend the deadline?

For civil actions governed by Article 1155, a written extrajudicial demand by the creditor can interrupt prescription. Its content, timing, receipt, and connection to the claim must be provable. It does not automatically extend appeal periods, criminal prescription, or deadlines under every special statute.

Do negotiations or mediation stop prescription?

Not automatically. There must be a statute, valid written acknowledgment, qualifying written demand, formal filing, or other recognized basis for interruption or suspension. Formal barangay conciliation has the limited effect provided by Section 410(c) of the Local Government Code.

Does filing with the prosecutor stop criminal prescription?

Under the Supreme Court’s current ruling in People v. Consebido, filing a complaint with the prosecutor for investigation interrupts the prescriptive period, including for cases under summary procedure. A special law may provide a different rule, and proof of the actual filing date remains essential.

What if the injury was discovered years later?

Use a discovery date only when the governing statute or jurisprudence permits it. Record when the material facts were actually learned, how they were discovered, and why they could not reasonably have been known earlier.

Can a case still be filed after the apparent period has expired?

Possibly, if the wrong period or starting date was used, the period was interrupted or suspended, the claim is legally imprescriptible, or another recognized exception applies. Filing a plainly prescribed claim, however, can lead to dismissal. The documents and full chronology should be reviewed before reaching a conclusion.

Does an imprescriptible action mean it is safe to delay?

No. Witnesses disappear, records are lost, electronic evidence is deleted, property is transferred, and separate remedies may expire. Jurisdictional, procedural, evidentiary, and equitable issues may remain even when the principal action does not prescribe.

Is the deadline extended when the last day is a weekend or holiday?

Rule 22 generally moves the deadline to the next working day when the final day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday where the court sits. Confirm that the applicable special law or rule does not require a different computation.

Does filing a small-claims case create a different prescriptive period?

No. Small-claims procedure changes how an eligible money claim is handled; it does not normally create a new substantive period. The underlying contract, obligation, or special statute still determines prescription.

Official sources

This article provides general legal information, not legal advice or a definitive computation for any particular case. Prescription depends on the precise claim, documents, dates, parties, and controlling law. Sources and procedures were checked as of August 3, 2026.