The law on dual citizenship

Republic Act No. 9225 which was approved on August 29, 2003 does away with the provision in Commonwealth Act No. 63104[5] which takes away Philippine citizenship from natural-born Filipinos who become naturalized citizens of other countries. R. A. 9225 allows dual citizenship to natural-born Filipino citizens who have lost Philippine citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of a foreign country.

Section 2 of the law allows all Filipinos, either natural-born or naturalized, who become foreign citizens, to retain their Philippine citizenship without losing their foreign citizenship. Section 3 permits dual citizenship because said law allows natural-born citizens of the Philippines to regain their Philippine citizenship by simply taking an oath of allegiance without forfeiting their foreign allegiance.

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The law further provides that the unmarried child, whether legitimate, illegitimate or adopted, below eighteen (18) years of age, of those who re-acquire Philippine citizenship under RA 9225 shall be deemed citizens of the Philippines.

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Those who retain or re-acquire Philippine citizenship under RA 9225 shall enjoy full civil and political rights and be subject to all attendant liabilities and responsibilities under existing laws of the Philippines and the following conditions: (1) those intending to exercise their right of suffrage must meet the requirements under Section 1, Article V of the Constitution, Republic Act No. 9189, otherwise known as "The Overseas Absentee Voting Act of 2003" and other existing laws; (2) those seeking elective public office in the Philippines shall meet the qualification for holding such public office as required by the Constitution and existing laws and, at the time of the filing of the certificate of candidacy, make a personal and sworn renunciation of any and all foreign citizenship before any public officer authorized to administer an oath; (3) those appointed to any public office shall subscribe and swear to an oath of allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines and its duly constituted authorities prior to their assumption of office: provided, that they renounce their oath of allegiance to the country where they took that oath; (4) those intending to practice their profession in the Philippines shall apply with the proper authority for a license or permit to engage in such practice.

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The right to vote or be elected or appointed to any public office in the Philippines cannot be exercised by, or extended to, those who: (a) are candidates for or are occupying any public office in the country of which they are naturalized citizens; and/or (b) are in active service as commissioned or non-commissioned officers in the armed forces of the country which they are naturalized citizens.

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There is no provision in R.A. 9225 requiring "duals" to actually establish residence and physically stay in the Philippines first before they can exercise their right to vote. On the contrary, R.A. 9225, in implicit acknowledgment that "duals" are most likely non-residents, grants under its Section 5(1) the same right of suffrage as that granted an absentee voter under R.A. 9189. Thus, R.A. 9189 aims, in essence, to enfranchise as much as possible all overseas Filipinos who, save for the residency requirements exacted of an ordinary voter under ordinary conditions, are qualified to vote.

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Our Supreme Court has ruled that when a person with dual citizenship files a certificate of candidacy, this already constitutes as a renunciation of foreign citizenship. In these cases, the Court made an important distinction between "dual citizenship" and "dual allegiance." Dual citizenship is the result of the application of the different laws of two states, whereby a person is simultaneously considered a national by the said states. Dual allegiance, on the other hand, arises when a person simultaneously owes his loyalty to two or more states by undertaking a positive act. While dual citizenship is involuntary, dual allegiance is the result of an individual's volition. Thus, Article IV, Section 5 of the Constitution provides that: "Dual allegiance of citizens is inimical to national interest and shall be dealt with by law." In the cases involving candidates with dual citizenship, the candidates whose qualifications are being challenged became citizens of another state without performing another act. They have Filipino parents, became citizens of the foreign state where they were born under the principal of jus soli and had not taken an oath of allegiance to said foreign state.

Posted in: Legal Law