The House Committee on revision of laws has endorsed a plan to allow divorced Filipinos to remarry.

House Bill #5907 seeks to allow Filipino spouses to remarry after their alien or foreign spouse has obtained a foreign judicial decree of absolute divorce.

A second objective of the bill would also help simplify the process of recognition of a foreign judgement on divorce obtained by a foreign spouse.

Under House Bill #5907 – Section #1 states: “Article 13 of Executive Order No. 209, otherwise known as the Family Code of the Philippines is hereby amended to read as follows “Article 13. In case either of the contracting parties has been previously married, the applicant shall be required to furnish, instead of the birth or baptismal certificate required in the last preceding article, the death certificate of the deceased spouse or the judicial decree of the absolute divorce obtained by the alien spouse duly authenticated by the Philippine Consul of the country where the decree was obtained or the judicial decree of annulment or declaration of nullity of his or her previous marriage.”

Likewise, the bill stated that “Where a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated and a Judicial Decree of Absolute divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse, the Filipino spouse shall thereupon acquire the capacity to remarry under Philippine Laws.”