1. Overview of Donations Under Philippine Law

A donation is an act of liberality where a person (donor) disposes gratuitously of a thing or right in favor of another (donee), who accepts it. Philippine rules on donations are primarily in the Civil Code. Donations can cover movables (personal property) or immovables (real property like land, houses, condos).

The central legal questions in the topic usually fall into three buckets:

Form and execution (Was the deed signed properly? Were the dates consistent?).
Acceptance and completion (Did the donee accept during the donor’s lifetime?).
Registration and enforceability against third persons (Does failure to register invalidate, or only affect third-party rights?).

2. Essential Requirements for a Valid Donation

For a donation to be valid, three elements must exist:

Donative Intent The donor must clearly intend to give gratuitously.
Delivery / Conveyance The property or right must be transferred in the manner required by law.
Acceptance by the Donee Acceptance is indispensable. Without acceptance, no donation arises.

Acceptance must occur during the lifetime of both donor and donee. If the donor dies before acceptance, the donation fails because no perfected donation exists.

3. Formal Requirements: Movables vs. Immovables

A. Donation of Movable Property

If the value is ₱5,000 or less, donation may be oral, but must be accompanied by delivery.
If the value is more than ₱5,000, donation must be in writing, and acceptance must be in writing too.

Failure to comply makes the donation void.

B. Donation of Immovable Property

This is stricter. For land or buildings:

The donation must be in a public instrument (a notarized deed).
The deed must specify the property donated and the burdens, if any.
Acceptance must be in the same instrument OR in a separate public instrument.
If acceptance is separate, the donor must be notified in authentic form, and this fact must be noted in both instruments.

Non-compliance with any of these requirements makes the donation void (not merely voidable).

4. Effect of Different Signing Dates on the Deed

A deed that shows different signing dates can arise from:

donor signed earlier, donee later;
acceptance executed later in a separate instrument;
clerical issues in notarization.

Key rule: Different signing dates do not automatically invalidate the donation. What matters is:

Did acceptance occur during the donor’s lifetime?
Were the form requirements satisfied?

A. If Donor Signed First, Donee Accepted Later (Same Instrument)

This is legally possible as long as acceptance happened before donor’s death. The deed is perfected only upon acceptance. The earlier donor signature is merely an offer until accepted.

B. If Acceptance Is in a Separate Instrument

This is valid only if:

acceptance is also notarized;
donor is notified of acceptance while alive;
notification is noted in both documents.

If the acceptance instrument is dated later but still within donor’s lifetime and notification requirements are met, the donation stands.

C. If the Later Acceptance Happened After Donor’s Death

Then the donation never became effective. Even if a deed exists, it remained an unaccepted offer.

5. Timing and Perfection of Donation

In Philippine civil law, donations generally follow this timeline:

Execution by donor (offer stage).
Acceptance by donee (perfection stage).
Delivery/transfer (consummation stage).
Registration (if immovable) (public notice / effect vs. third persons).

A donation is perfected only upon acceptance.

So a deed signed by donor on Day 1 and by donee on Day 10 is valid if:

donor was alive on Day 10; and
acceptance complied with legal form.

If donor dies on Day 5, acceptance on Day 10 is ineffective.

6. Registration of a Deed of Donation: Is It Required for Validity?

A. Between Donor and Donee

Registration is not required for validity. A valid donation of real property is binding between parties once the deed + acceptance requirements are met.

So, failure to register during donor’s lifetime does not void the donation as between donor and donee.

B. As to Third Persons

Registration becomes crucial for enforceability against:

heirs disputing title,
buyers in good faith,
creditors,
later transferees.

Unregistered donations may be defeated by registered transactions under the Torrens system if the third party is in good faith.

7. What Happens if Donor Dies Before Registration?

There are two distinct possibilities:

Scenario 1: Donation Was Already Perfected Before Death

Meaning:

donor executed valid public instrument;
donee accepted validly while donor was alive;
required notifications were completed (if separate acceptance).

Effect: The property no longer belongs to donor at death. It is excluded from the estate. The donee may register the deed even after death because ownership already transferred during donor’s life.

Heirs cannot invalidate it merely because it was unregistered before death.

Scenario 2: Donation Was Not Perfected Before Death

Meaning:

acceptance missing; or
acceptance defective; or
acceptance done after donor’s death; or
form requirements missing.

Effect: No transfer occurred. The property remains in donor’s estate and will pass by succession, not donation.

8. Common Defects That Make Donations Void

Even with a signed deed, donations (especially of immovables) often fail due to:

No written acceptance
Acceptance not notarized
Acceptance after donor’s death
Separate acceptance without donor notification
Deed not a public instrument
Property not clearly described
Donation violates rules on legitimes (discussed next)

9. Donations and the Rights of Compulsory Heirs

Even if a donation is formally valid, it may still be reduced if it impairs the legitime of compulsory heirs (children, spouse, parents depending on who survived).

A. Donation Inter Vivos vs. Succession

A donation made during life is respected, but subject to collation and reduction upon death if it exceeds the donor’s free portion.

B. Reduction Is Not the Same as Invalidity

The donation is not void.
But the excess beyond the free portion may be brought back to the estate for distribution.

So heirs challenging a donation often argue:

formal defect (void donation), or
impairment of legitime (reduction).

These are different legal routes with different consequences.

10. Burden of Proof in Disputes

If heirs attack a deed post-death, typical issues are:

authenticity of signatures,
capacity of donor,
compliance with formalities,
timing of acceptance.

The donee generally must prove:

existence of a public instrument,
valid acceptance,
that acceptance occurred during donor’s lifetime,
and compliance with notification rules (if applicable).

If dates in the deed are inconsistent or suspicious, courts look at evidence of actual execution and acceptance, not just what is typed.

11. Notarization Issues and Different Dates

Notarization gives a deed public character and presumption of regularity. But this presumption can be rebutted by:

proof donor didn’t appear before notary;
donor already dead or incapacitated on the stated date;
falsity or forgery;
irregular notarial register.

If donor’s signature is dated earlier than the notarization date, courts usually treat the notarization date as controlling unless evidence shows false notarization.

12. Practical Takeaways (Doctrinal Summary)

Different signing dates are not fatal by themselves. What matters is acceptance during donor’s lifetime and proper form.
Acceptance is indispensable. Without acceptance, the deed is an unperfected offer.
Acceptance after donor’s death is void. The donation never became effective.
Registration is not required for validity between parties. But it is critical against third persons.
A perfected donation before death removes property from the estate. Donee can register later.
Heirs may still seek reduction if legitimes are impaired, even if donation is valid.

13. Illustrative Applications

Example A (Valid):

Donor signs deed January 1.
Donee signs acceptance January 10.
Donor dies February 1.
Deed registered March 5.

Donation is valid because acceptance occurred while donor alive. Registration after death does not affect validity between parties.

Example B (Void):

Donor signs deed January 1.
Donor dies January 5.
Donee signs acceptance January 10.

Donation is void because acceptance was after donor’s death.

Example C (Void for form):

Donation of land in notarized deed.
Acceptance is only a private letter or unsigned note.

Void regardless of timing, because immovable donations need acceptance in a public instrument.

14. Conclusion

In Philippine law, a deed of donation with different signing dates is not automatically invalid. The decisive factors are (1) strict compliance with formal requirements, especially written notarized acceptance for immovables, and (2) acceptance during the donor’s lifetime. Registration is not a condition for validity between donor and donee, but determines enforceability against third parties, including heirs who may later contest ownership. Even a valid donation may be reduced if it unlawfully encroaches on compulsory heirs’ legitimes, but such reduction does not erase the donation itself—only the excessive portion.