Republic Act No. 9048

No entry in a civil register shall be changed or corrected without a judicial order, except for clerical or typographical errors and change of first name or nickname which can be corrected or changed by the concerned city or municipal civil registrar or consul general in accordance with the provisions of this Act and its implementing rules and regulations.

As used in this Act, the following terms shall mean:

• 1

  "City or Municipal civil registrar" refers to the head of the local civil registry

  office of the city or municipality, as the case may be, who is appointed as such

  by the city or municipal mayor in accordance with the provisions of existing laws.

• 2

  "Petitioner" refers to a natural person filing the petition and who has direct

  and personal interest in the correction of a clerical or typographical error in

  an entry or change of first name or nickname in the civil register.

• 3

  "Clerical or typographical error" refers to a mistake committed in the performance

  of clerical work in writing, copying, transcribing or typing an entry in the civil

  register that is harmless and innocuous, such as misspelled name or misspelled

  place of birth or the like, which is visible to the eyes or obvious to the understanding,

  and can be corrected or changed only by reference to other existing record or

  records: Provided, however, That no correction must involve the change of nationality,

  age, status or sex of the petitioner.

• 4

  "Civil Register" refers to the various registry books and related certificates

  and documents kept in the archives of the local civil registry offices, Philippine

  Consulates and of the Office of the Civil Registrar General.

• 5

  "Civil registrar general" refers to the Administrator of the National Statistics

  Office which is the agency mandated to carry out and administer the provision

  of laws on civil registration.

• 6

  "First name" refers to a name or nickname given to a person which may consist

  of one or more names in addition to the middle and last names. '

Any person having direct and personal interest in the correction of a clerical or typographical error in an entry and/or change of first name or nickname in the civil register may file, in person, a verified petition with the local civil registry office of the city or municipality where the record being sought to be corrected or changed is kept.\n\nIn case the petitioner has already migrated to another place in the country and it would not be practical for such party, in terms of transportation expenses, time and effort to appear in person before the local civil registrar keeping the documents to be corrected or changed, the petition may be filed, in person, with the local civil registrar of the place where the interested party is presently residing or domiciled. The two (2) local civil registrars concerned will then communicate to facilitate the processing of the petition.\nnCitizens of the Philippines who are presently residing or domiciled in foreign countries may file their petition, in person, with the nearest Philippine Consulates.\nnThe petitions filed with the city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general shall be processed in accordance with this Act and its implementing rules and regulations.\n\nAll petitions for the clerical or typographical errors and/or change of first names or nicknames may be availed of only once.

The petition for change of first name or nickname may be allowed in any of the following cases:

• 1

  The petitioner finds the first name or nickname to be ridiculous, tainted with dishonor or extremely difficult to write or pronounce.

• 2

  The new first name or nickname has been habitually and continuously used by the petitioner and he has been publicly known by that by that first name or nickname in the community; or

• 3

  The change will avoid confusion.

The petition shall be in the form

of an affidavit, subscribed and sworn to before any person authorized by the law

to administer oaths. The affidavit shall set forth facts necessary to establish

the merits of the petition and shall show affirmatively that the petitioner is

competent to testify to the matters stated. The petitioner shall state the particular

erroneous entry or entries, which are sought to be corrected and/or the change

sought to be made.

• The petition shall be supported with the following documents:

  • 1

    A certified true machine copy of the certificate or of the page of the registry

    book containing the entry or entries sought to be corrected or changed.

  • 2

    At least two (2) public or private documents showing the correct entry or entries

    upon which the correction or change shall be based; and

  • 3

    Other documents which the petitioner or the city or municipal civil registrar

    or the consul general may consider relevant and necessary for the approval of

    the petition.

• In case of change of first name or nickname, the petition shall likewise be supported

  with the documents mentioned in the immediately preceding paragraph. In addition,

  the petition shall be published at least once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks

  in a newspaper of general circulation. Furthermore, the petitioner shall submit

  a certification from the appropriate law enforcement agencies that he has no pending

  case or no criminal record.

• The petition and its supporting papers shall be filed in three (3) copies to be

  distributed as follows: first copy to the concerned city or municipal civil registrar,

  or the consul general; second copy to the Office of the Civil Registrar General;

  and third copy to the petitioner.

The city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general to whom the petition is presented shall examine the petition and its supporting documents. He shall post the petition in a conspicuous place provided for that purpose for ten (10) consecutive days after he finds the petition and its supporting documents sufficient in form and substance.\n\nThe city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general shall act on the petition and shall render a decision not later than five (5) working days after the completion of the posting and/or publication requirement. He shall transmit a copy of his decision together with the records of the proceedings to the Office of the Civil Registrar General within five (5) working days from the date of the decision.

The civil registrar general shall, within ten (10) working days from receipt of the decision granting a petition, exercise the power to impugn such decision by way of an objection based on the following grounds:\n\n1. The error is not clerical or typographical;\nn2. The correction of an entry or entries in the civil register is substantial or controversial as it affects the civil status of a person; or\n\n3. The basis used in changing the first name or nickname of a person does not fall under SECTION 4.\n\nThe civil registrar general shall immediately notify the city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general of the action taken on the decision. Upon receipt of the notice thereof, the city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general shall notify the petitioner of such action.\n\nThe petitioner may seek reconsideration with the civil registrar general or file the appropriate petition with the proper court.\n\nIf the civil registrar general fails to exercise his power to impugn the decision of the city or municipal civil registrar or of the consul general within the period prescribed herein, such decision shall become final and executory.\n\nWhere the petition is denied by the city or municipal civil registrar or the consul general, the petitioner may either appeal the decision to the civil registrar general or file the appropriate petition with the proper court.

The city or municipal civil registrar or the consul

general shall be authorized to collect reasonable fees as a condition for accepting

the petition. An indigent petitioner shall be exempt from the payment of the said

fee.

A person who violates any of the provisions of this Act shall, upon conviction, be penalized by imprisonment of not less than six (6) years but not more than twelve (12) years, or a fine of not less than Ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) but not more than One Hundred Thousand pesos (P100,000.00), or both, at the discretion of the court.\nIn addition, if the offender is a government official or employee he shall suffer the penalties provided under civil service laws, rules and regulations."

The civil registrar general shall, in consultation with the Department of Justice, the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the Supreme Court Administrator, the University of the Philippines Law Center and the Philippine Association of Civil Registrars, issue the necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act not later than three (3) months from the effectivity of this law."

This Act shall have retroactive effect insofar as it does not prejudice or impair vested or acquired rights in accordance with the Civil Code and other laws."

If any portion or provision of this Act is declared void or unconstitutional, the remaining portions or provisions thereof shall not be affected by such declaration."

All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations, other issuances, or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly."

This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its complete publication in at least two (2) national newspapers of general circulation."