Dear PAO,
I arrived in this country in 2001 as a refugee. I am really interested to acquire Philippine citizenship, so I have been asking about the naturalization process. My friend told me that, as a refugee, my naturalization would be automatically granted. However, an immigration officer informed me that my application might be denied because the country where I came from does not grant naturalization to Filipinos. Would my refugee status matter if I apply for naturalization? If the country where I came from does not grant naturalization to Filipinos, would that mean that my application will be denied?
Velaga
Dear Velaga,
Naturalization is the legal act of adopting an alien and clothing him with the political and civil rights belonging to a citizen (Garcia vs. Recio, GR 138322, Oct. 2, 2001, Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban). In the Philippines, the law governing naturalization process is Commonwealth Act 473 or the Revised Naturalization Law, as amended.
The qualifications provided under Section 2 of the said law are as follows:
“Section 2. Qualifications. – Subject to section four of this Act, any person having the following qualifications may become a citizen of the Philippines by naturalization:
“First. He must be not less than twenty-one years of age on the day of the hearing of the petition;
“Second. He must have resided in the Philippines for a continuous period of not less than ten years;
“Third. He must be of good moral character and believes in the principles underlying the Philippine Constitution, and must have conducted himself in a proper and irreproachable manner during the entire period of his residence in the Philippines in his relation with the constituted government as well as with the community in which he is living.
“Fourth. He must own real estate in the Philippines worth not less than five thousand pesos, Philippine currency, or must have some known lucrative trade, profession, or lawful occupation;
“Fifth. He must be able to speak and write English or Spanish and any one of the principal Philippine languages; and
“Sixth. He must have enrolled his minor children of school age, in any of the public schools or private schools recognized by the Office of Private Education of the Philippines, where the Philippine history, government and civics are taught or prescribed as part of the school curriculum, during the entire period of the residence in the Philippines required of him prior to the hearing of his petition for naturalization as Philippine citizen.”
On the other hand, the disqualifications for naturalization are those mentioned under Section 4 of the law, and one of which is “Citizens or subjects of a foreign country other than the United States whose laws do not grant Filipinos the right to become naturalized citizens or subjects thereof.” This disqualification is on the basis of the principle of reciprocity adhered to under international law, which basically means that grants by one state to the citizens of another country should be returned in kind.
Nevertheless, the reciprocity requirement is not absolute and this was illustrated in Republic of the Philippines v. Karbasi, GR 210412, July 29, 2015, where the Supreme Court, speaking through Associate Justice Jose Mendoza, disregarded reciprocity and stated that:
“Considering the above disquisitions, the Court does not need to belabor the last issue on reciprocity between Iranian and Philippine laws on naturalization. True, the Naturalization Law disqualifies citizens or subjects of a foreign country whose laws do not grant Filipinos the right to become naturalized citizens or subjects. A perusal of Karbasi’s petition, both with the RTC and the CA, together with his supplemental pleadings filed with the Court, however, reveals that he has successfully established his refugee status upon arrival in the Philippines. In effect, the country’s obligations under its various international commitments come into operation. Articles 6 and 34 of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, to which the Philippines is a signatory, must be considered in this case, to wit:
“Article 6 of the 1951 Convention:
“For the purposes of this Convention, the term ‘in the same circumstances’ implies that any requirements (including requirements as to length and conditions of sojourn or residence) which the particular individual would have to fulfill for the enjoyment of the right in question, if he were not a refugee, must be fulfilled by him, with the exception of requirements which by their nature a refugee is incapable of fulfilling.
“Article 34 of the 1951 Convention:
“The Contracting States shall as far as possible facilitate the assimilation and naturalization of refugees. They shall in particular make every effort to expedite naturalization proceedings and to reduce as far as possible the charges and costs of such proceedings.
“In the same vein, Article 7 of the said Convention expressly provides exemptions from reciprocity, while Article 34 states the earnest obligation of contracting parties to ‘as far as possible facilitate the assimilation and naturalization of refugees.’ As applied to this case, Karbasi’s status as a refugee has to end with the attainment of Filipino citizenship, in consonance with Philippine statutory requirements and international obligations. Indeed, the Naturalization Law must be read in light of the developments in international human rights law specifically the granting of nationality to refugees and stateless persons.”
Applying the afore-cited decision in your situation, while it is true that the current law on naturalization requires the existence of reciprocity, the said requirement may be relaxed by the Supreme Court in the case of refugees, such as yourself, in consideration of the country’s commitments under the 1951 Refugee Convention.
To this extent, your status as refugee becomes material in your plan to apply for naturalization. Nonetheless, it is important to emphasize that you still need to comply with the other requirements (both qualifications and disqualifications). After all, those who seek Philippine citizenship through naturalization must prove, to the satisfaction of the court, that they have complied with all the requirements of the law.
We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice is based solely on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.
Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to [email protected]
