A practitioner-oriented explainer that cleanly separates the three different remedies—legal separation, annulment, and declaration of nullity—with grounds, effects, evidence, timelines, and practical strategy.

The Three Different Civil Remedies (Quick Map)

Legal Separation Ends the marital cohabitation and property relations, assigns custody/support, and allows spouses to live separately—but the marriage bond remains. No remarriage.
Annulment (Voidable Marriage) The marriage was valid when celebrated but is voidable because of a defect in consent/capacity. If granted, the marriage is set aside from the time of judgment (not from the beginning). Remarriage allowed after finality/registration.
Declaration of Nullity (Void Marriage) The marriage was void from the start (e.g., bigamy, psychological incapacity, no license/authority, incest). If granted, it is deemed never to have existed in law. Remarriage allowed after finality/registration.

There is no general no-fault divorce under current law. Foreign divorces by a foreign spouse may be recognized through a separate recognition case, but that is not the same as annulment or legal separation.

Grounds (What You Must Prove)

A) Legal Separation (fault-based)

Typical grounds include:

Repeated physical violence or grossly abusive conduct
Attempt on life of the spouse or child
Sexual infidelity or perversion
Abandonment without just cause (usually > 1 year)
Drug addiction, habitual alcoholism
Imprisonment exceeding a threshold period
Bigamy or contracting another marriage
Incest/sexual abuse against descendants
Other grave offenses indicating marital breach

Defenses/barriers: condonation/forgiveness, connivance, recrimination (both parties at fault), collusion, prescription (5 years) from occurrence of the ground, and no prior final reconciliation.

B) Annulment (voidable)

Lack of parental consent (18–21 at time of marriage)
Insanity/unsound mind (not known to the other)
Fraud, intimidation, undue influence vitiating consent
Impotence existing at the time of marriage and continuing
Serious sexually transmissible disease existing at marriage and unknown to the other

Time bars vary: e.g., for fraud/intimidation, a 5-year period from discovery/cessation; for lack of parental consent, until the party reaches 21 plus a defined window; for insanity, while it continues or before lucid interval cohabitation—details are technical and fact-specific.

C) Declaration of Nullity (void from the start)

Bigamous/polygamous marriage (absent a valid prior dissolution/recognition)
Incestuous or void by public policy (close relatives)
No marriage license (unless covered by license-exempt situations recognized by law)
No authority of the solemnizing officer (and parties not in good faith)
Psychological incapacity present at the time of marriage and incurable as to essential marital obligations
Same-sex marriages celebrated when not authorized by Philippine law
Mistaken identity/substitution and other causes rendering the union legally inexistent

Psychological incapacity today focuses on true inability—not mere difficulty—to perform essential marital obligations, rooted in causes existing at the time of marriage, with legal (not purely medical) proof of gravity, juridical antecedence, and incurability. Courts are less fixated on medical labels and more on behaviors and their legal implications.

Effects (What Changes—And What Doesn’t)

Topic	Legal Separation	Annulment (Voidable)	Declaration of Nullity (Void)
Marital bond	Continues	Set aside from judgment	Considered never existed
Right to remarry	No	Yes (after decree final & recorded)	Yes (after decree final & recorded)
Property regime	Dissolved; liquidation & forfeitures possible	Dissolved; effects depend on good/ bad faith	No absolute community/conjugal partnership ever arose; co-ownership rules may apply
Parental authority & custody	Court allocates custody; best interests standard; possible limitations for violence/abuse	Same	Same
Support (spousal/child)	May be ordered (especially for innocent spouse & children)	May be ordered	May be ordered
Use of surnames	Wife may retain husband’s surname unless court orders otherwise	Parties revert to maiden/surnames (option rules apply)	Parties revert to maiden/surnames (option rules apply)
Succession rights	Spouses remain legal heirs unless disqualified by ground; wills can still be made	Spousal inheritance ends after decree; prior rights during marriage may be limited by bad faith	No spousal inheritance because marriage is void; putative spouse rules may protect good-faith party
Criminal/civil liability	Grounds (e.g., violence, bigamy) may have separate liabilities	Fraud etc. may have liabilities	Bigamy/false statements may trigger liabilities

Procedure (Family Court Basics)

Where to file: Family Court where either spouse resides (venue rules apply). Who files: Only the aggrieved spouse (or authorized party such as a guardian for incapacitated spouses). Respondents: The other spouse; the State participates through the Prosecutor/OSG to prevent collusion and ensure evidence is sufficient.

Core stages:

Verified Petition with detailed facts, marriage certificate, child birth certificates, property regime data.
Raffle & Summons; Prosecutor’s investigation on collusion.
Pre-trial/Mediation/JDR: Mandatory efforts to settle incidental matters (support, custody, visitation, property), not the civil status itself.
Provisional relief: Protection orders, hold-departure/travel restraints (as warranted), support pendente lite, custody/visitation schedules, exclusive use of the family home, etc.
Trial: Testimonial, documentary, and expert evidence (psychologist/psychiatrist or other specialists in nullity cases where relevant).
Decision: If granted, court issues Decree (of Legal Separation / Annulment / Nullity).
Registration/Annotation: Decree must be recorded with the Local Civil Registrar and PSA, and entered on the civil registry and appropriate registries (property, immigration documents, etc.). Only after registration may one validly remarry (for annulment/nullity).
Appeals: Either party (or the State) may appeal within the reglementary period; finality is essential for effects to attach.

Cooling-off/Reconciliation:

Legal separation has a cooling-off orientation and recognizes reconciliation; if spouses reconcile, proceedings may be terminated and effects undone prospectively (with proper court processes).
For annulment/nullity, reconciliation does not cure a void marriage nor waive the defect in a voidable marriage once grounds are proven; parties may choose to cohabit but legal status depends on the decree.

Evidence & Strategy

Legal Separation

Fault-based proof: police blotters, medical reports, VAWC protection orders, messages/admissions, photos, videos, witness testimony, work/immigration records showing abandonment, prison records, drug dependency proofs.
Risk: defenses like condonation (forgiveness) or mutual fault; be precise on dates for prescription.

Annulment (Voidable)

Consent defects: contemporaneous chats/letters, witness accounts of threats/intimidation, records showing minority and lack of parental consent, medical/psych records showing insanity at marriage, medical evidence for impotence/STD at the time of marriage.
Mind the clock: most grounds have prescriptive windows tied to discovery or majority.

Nullity (Void)

Status-type proof: prior undissolved marriage records, lack of license/authority, identity/mistaken ceremony, psychological incapacity shown through a fact-rich narrative of behaviors before and at marriage that persist and make performance of essential obligations truly impossible. Expert testimony helps but is not always mandatory; the court needs clear, cogent facts.

Children: Legitimacy, Custody, Support, Travel

Legitimacy/Filial status: Children’s status is generally not impaired by legal separation or annulment; in nullity, putative child protections and the best-interests principle often preserve rights.
Custody: Best interests of the child governs. For children under seven, the tender-age rule in favor of the mother applies unless proven unfit. Violence/abuse overrides presumptions.
Support: Both parents remain solidarily responsible; amounts are tailored to needs and means.
Travel/Passports: Court orders may define passport consent and travel clearance rules; expect no-removal clauses in high-conflict cases.

Property, Debts, and Forfeitures

Legal Separation
- Dissolution of the property regime (absolute community/conjugal partnership).
- Forfeiture of the guilty spouse’s share in favor of common children (or innocent spouse) may apply where the ground is marital fault.
- Support and damages may be awarded.
Annulment
- Effects depend on good faith: a spouse in bad faith may forfeit benefits; property acquired may be subject to co-ownership accounting; donations by reason of marriage may be revoked.
- Return/partition principles and reimbursement for contributions apply.
Nullity
- If void ab initio, there was no absolute community; apply co-ownership and putative marriage rules to protect the spouse in good faith and the children.
- Loans/debts: liability follows who benefited or consented; family-home rules and exempt properties may matter.

Surnames & Civil Status Documents

Legal Separation: Wife may continue using husband’s surname unless the court orders otherwise.
Annulment/Nullity: Parties typically revert to prior surname (with statutory options for women if they wish to continue using the surname under certain conditions—confirm during implementation).
Implementing changes: Update PSA records via decree annotation, then cascade to PhilID/Passport/SSS/GSIS/Pag-IBIG/BIR/land titles/banks.

Interplay with Criminal/Protective Laws

Anti-VAWC protection orders may run parallel to family cases, prioritizing safety and custody arrangements.
Adultery/Concubinage and other crimes are separate tracks (rarely helpful to family outcomes but sometimes relevant to fault).
Perjury/Bigamy and document falsification risk arise if parties misstate civil status in affidavits or new marriages.

Costs, Timelines, and Practical Tips

Time: Contested cases commonly span many months to years, depending on court load, complexity, and appeals.
Costs: Filing/expert/psychological evaluations, counsel fees, transcript and publication (where applicable), and post-decree annotation.
Do’s:
- Preserve original civil documents; obtain multiple PSA copies.
- Keep a chronology of facts with dates and corroborations.
- Consider interim relief (support, custody, protection orders).
- Be candid about property/debts; propose an auditable inventory.
Don’ts:
- Don’t rely on bare allegations for psychological incapacity; courts want behavioral specifics and marital-obligation analysis.
- Don’t assume a decree is effective for remarriage until final and recorded with the civil registry.

Side Notes You Shouldn’t Miss

Foreign divorce recognition: If the foreign spouse validly divorces abroad, the Filipino spouse can seek recognition locally to remarry. If both are Filipino at the time of the foreign divorce, recognition typically fails absent specific legal bases.
Separation of property by agreement: Post-marriage agreements allowed by law/court approval can restructure property relations without ending the marriage (distinct from legal separation).
Church vs. State: Church nullity affects only religious status unless and until a civil court issues a decree.

Decision Framework (Which Remedy Fits?)

You need to live apart and protect assets/children, but don’t intend to remarry → Legal Separation.
There was a defect in consent/capacity at the wedding and you can meet the time limits → Annulment.
The marriage was void from the start (e.g., bigamy, psychological incapacity) → Declaration of Nullity.
A foreign spouse has already divorced you abroad → Consider recognition of foreign divorce (separate process).

Mini-Checklists

Filing Packet (core)

PSA Marriage Certificate; children’s Birth Certificates
Proof of residence/venue
Detailed narrative of facts and timeline
Evidence (medical, police, messages, financials, expert reports)
Property/debt inventory and proposed arrangements
Prayer for provisional relief (support, custody, access, protection)

Post-Decree

Secure Entry of Judgment and Decree
Register/Annotate with LCR/PSA and relevant registries
Update IDs, records, titles; notify schools/insurers/banks
Implement custody/support orders; set review checkpoints

Bottom Line

Legal separation separates lives and property but does not free you to remarry.
Annulment (voidable) cancels a once-valid marriage due to consent/capacity defects; nullity declares a marriage void from the beginning. Both allow remarriage only after final decree and civil-registry annotation.
Choose the remedy that matches your facts, goals, and evidentiary strength. Prepare a fact-driven record, pursue interim protections for children and property, and follow through with registration so the decree has full civil effect.