Amendment of LOI No. 270 (s. 1975)

December 29, 1976

LETTER OF INSTRUCTIONS NO. 491

In order to enhance the integration into the national fabric of deserving aliens by the grant of Philippine citizenship, LOI 270 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1. As Chairman and members of the Special Committee on Naturalization created by LOI 270, you are authorized to receive anew applications for naturalization by decree from any alien residing in this country with the following qualifications and none of the following disqualifications:

Qualifications:

(a) He must not be less than 18 years of age on the date of the filing of his petition; acd

(b) If born in a foreign country, he must have been legally admitted into the Philippines either as an immigrant or non-immigrant;

(c) He must have had a continuous residence in the Philippines of ten (10) years, which period shall be reduced to five (5) years for applicants with any of the following special qualifications:

(1) Having honorably held office under the Government of the Philippines or under that of any of the provinces, cities, municipalities or political subdivisions thereof;

(2) Having established a new industry or introduced a useful invention in the Philippines;

(3) Being married to a Filipino;

(4) Having been engaged as a teacher in the Philippines in a public or recognized private school not established for the exclusive instruction of children of persons of a particular nationality or race, in any of the branches of education or industry, for a period of not less than two years;

(5) Having been born in the Philippines;

(d) 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;

(e) He must have a known trade, business, profession, assets or lawful occupation from which he derives income sufficient for his support, and if he is married or has dependents, also that of his family;provided that this requirement may be waived with respect to bona fide students at least 18 years of age who, on the basis of their qualifications and potentials, can become useful citizens of the country;

(f) He must be able to speak and write Pilipino or any of the principal Philippine dialects; provided that where the applicant is, in the opinion of the Committee, otherwise clearly qualified for naturalization by decree, the requirement that the applicant should know how to write Pilipino or any principal Philippine dialect may be waived or dispensed with;

(g) He must have enrolled his minor children of school age in any of the public or private schools recognized by the Department of Education and Culture during the period of residence in the Philippines required of him prior to the filing of his petition hereunder; and acd

(h) He must have, during the period of his residence in the Philippines, mingled socially with the Filipinos and evinced a sincere desire to learn and embrace the customs, traditions and ideals of the Filipino people.

Disqualification:

(a) He must not be opposed to organized government or affiliated with any association or group of persons who uphold and teach doctrines opposing all organized governments;

(b) He must not defend or teach the necessity or propriety of violence, personal assault, or assassination for the success and predominance of his ideas;

(c) He must not be a polygamist or a believer in the practice of polygamy;

(d) He must not have been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude;

(e) He is not suffering from mental alienation or any incurable contagious disease.

Aliens born of Filipino mothers: If, however, the applicant was born of a Filipino mother before the effectivity of the new Constitution and has resided continuously in the Philippines since birth, he shall be considered qualified without need of any further qualification, provided he is at least 18 years of age and does not suffer from the disqualifications above enumerated.

2. The application shall be in triplicate, signed and verified by the petitioner himself and accompanied by his photographs and certified true or xerox copies of his certificate of arrival (if any), his Alien Certificate of Registration and his Immigrant Certificate of Residence (if any), and supported by the separate affidavits of two credible witnesses stating that they have personally known the petitioner for the period of time required under par. 1 hereof, that petitioner is a person of good repute and morally irreproachable, and that said petitioner has, in their opinion, all the qualifications necessary to become a citizen of the Philippines and is not in any way disqualified under the provisions of this LOI; casia

3. The application shall be filed with your Committee not later than March 31, 1977;

4. On the basis of the data available to your Committee, you shall submit appropriate recommendations to me as to who, among the aforesaid applicants, are eligible and qualified for naturalization by decree;

5. You are authorized to promulgate additional rules and regulations and prescribe appropriate forms and collect appropriate fees for the effective and expeditious implementation of these instructions; and

6. These instructions amend Letters of Instructions Nos. 270 and 283 on the same subject.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 29th day of December, in the year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and Seventy-Six. casia