LAW ON NATURAL RESOURCES
neither timber nor mineral lands.
Natural Resources
 In general, natural resources refer to material
objects of economic value and utility to man
produced by nature. They constitute the
patrimony of the nation.
 The 1987 Constitution enumerates our
natural resources as well as those that can be
alienated. It also provides for the control of
the State over their exploration, development
and utilization and the manner by which they
may be utilized, explored and developed. (See
Art. XII Sec. 2 of the 1987 Constitution)
Importance of Natural Resources
 “Lands and natural resources are immovable
and as such can be compared to the vital
organs of a person’s body, the lack of
possession of which may cause instant death
or the shortening of life. If we do not
completely nationalize these two of our most
important belongings, I am afraid that the
time will come when we dhall be sorry for the
time we were born. Our independence will be
just a mockery, for what kind of independence
are we going to have if a part of our country is
not in oour hands but in those of foreignenrs?”
(Aruego)
Lands of Public Domain
 Public domain is synonymous to public
dominion or public ownership, as distinguish
from private ownership.
 Under the 1987 Constitution, there is a
classification of the public doman, thus:
Lands of public domain are classified into:
 Agricultural – Alienable Lands
 Forest of Timber
 Mineral Lands, and
 National Parks
Private Corporations or association may not
hold such alienable lands of public domain
except by lease for a period not exceeding 25
years and not exceeding 1,000 hectraes
Citizens of the Philippines may not lease more
than 500 hectares or acquire not more than
12 hectares by purchase, homestead or grant.
Public Agricultural Lands, etc.
 Agricultural lands under the 1987
Constitutional classification used to be
Page 1 of 9
construed as referring to those that are
 Any parcel of land or building lot whenever
susceptible to cultivation and may be
converted into a field and planted with
vegetation or where such land is not mining
nor forest in its nature, must of necessity be
deemed included within the category of
agricultural land.
Public Forests
 Forest is a large tract of land covered with a
natural growth of trees and underblush; a
large wood.
 It is a land covered with tress, usually of
considerable extent
 Not alienable and disposable
Mineral Lands
 Any land that contains minerals
 According to Black’ Law Dictionary, mineral
lands may be defined as land containing
deposits of valuable, useful or precious
mineral in such quantities as to justify
expenditures in the effort to extract them,
and which are more valuable for the mineral
they contain than from agricultural or other
uses
Meaning of Full Control
 From the Constitution, the State has full
control of the utilization of inalienable lands.
Economic Policy of Exploration is geared towards
more equitable distribution of Opportunities, Income,
etc.
Part I – PUBLIC LANDS
Alienable and Disposable Lands in General
Public Lands
 Refers to such lands of the public domain as
are subject to alienation and disposal by the
State in accordance with the Public Land Act
Laws Governing Public Land
 Commonwealth Act No. 141
 Mineral Lands are governed by the Mining
Act, the Petroleum Act Act of 1949
 Timber Lands are governed by forest laws,
Commonwealth Act No. 452, PD Nos. 389 and
705.
Officers Charged with the Administration of Public
Lands
 Secretary of Natural Resourcers
o Director of Lands – direct executive
control over surveys, classification,
leases, sales and other forms of
concession. Prepares and issue such
forms, instructions, rules and
regulations as may be necessary and
proper to carry out the provisions of
Public Land Act. He is a quasi-judicial
Officer.
Reversion of Land acquired through fraud.
 The doctrine of indeafisibility of Torrens Title
does not bar the filing of an action for
cancellation of title and reversion of land even
if more than 1 year has elalpsed from the
issuance of the free paent in case of fraud in
obtaining it.
Powers and Functions of the Bureau of Lands
 Charged with the administration of all laws
relative to public lands, besides friar lands and
other public real property
 Exercises the power to regulate the
occupation or provisional use of public lands.
 The officers and employees and employees of
the BoL has police authority over such lands,
including the power to execute decisions,
resolutions and decrees promulgated by the
office relative thereto.
 Conducts surveys of public lands, cadastral
surveys and official surveys of private
property.
 Charged with the preservation of all existing
records of the Spanish grants and concessions
of agricultural lands, issuing certified copies
thereof
 Under Sections 14, 16, 20 and 102 of the
Public Land Act, the Director of Lands is
empowered to cancel and application and a
homestead entry, or refuse the issuance of
patent if after hearing he finds that the
applicant has not complied with the
requirements and the provision of the law or
has violated mandatory provisions thereof.
Classification of Alienable and Disposable Lands
 According to the use and purposes
o Agricultural (farmland);
o Residential, commercial, industrial, or
for similar productive purposes;
Page 2 of 9
o Educational, charitable, or other
similar purposes; and
o Reservations for town sites and for
public and quasi public uses.
 The President upon the recommendation
SENR is authorized to make the above
classification as well as to transfer lands from
one class to another from time to time as
circumstances may warrant
Prerequisites for Disposition
 Before any public land may be alienated or
disposed of, it is indispensable that there be a
formal declaration by the President upon
recommendation of the SENR, to the effect
that such lands are open to disposition or
concession, and whenever practicable the
lands should have been previously surveyed.
 The word alienation/disposition/concession as
used in the PLA is meant any of the methods
authorized by the said law for the acquisition,
lease, use or benefit of the lands of the public
domain other than timber or mineral land.
Modes of Disposition
 For homestead settlement
 Sale
 Lease
 Confirmation of imperfect or incomplete title
 By judicial legalization; and
 By administrative legalization (free patent)
Application of Grant of Public Land
*Applications for public land grants or concession are
to be addressed to the Director of Lands, made under
oath and must set for the following:
a. Full name of applicant, age, place of birth,
citizenship, civil status, and post-office
address.
If applicant is a corporation, association or co-
partnership – articles of incorporation,
association or co-partnership together with
the affidavit giving the names of stockholders
or members, their citizenship, the amount of
shares subscribed by each
b. That the applicant has all the legal
qualifications and none of the
disqualifications
c. That the application is made for the actual
purpose of using the land according to the
object specified therein and for no other
 purpose and that the land is suitable for the
purpose contemplated
d. That the application is made for the exclusive
use of the applicant
e. An accurate description of the land and its
location,
f. Whether the land is occupied, cultivated or
improved, and if so, by whom and since when
g. That the land applied for is not timber nor
mineral land and does not contain guano or
deposits of salt or coal
h. That the applicant agrees that a strip of 40
meters wide from the bank on each side of
any river or stram that may be found on the
land applied for be demarcated and preserved
as permanent timberland to be planted
exclusively to trees of know economic value
and that applicant shall not make any clearing
thereon or utilize the same for ordinary
farming purposes.
Applicant required to work on the land by himself
 The employment or use of share tenants in
whatever form for purposes of complying
with the requirements of the law regarding
entry, occupation, improvement and
cultivation, is prohibited
Appeals form Decisions of Director of Lands
According to Lands Administrative Order No,
6, the aggrieved party may, within a prescribed period
from date of receipt of copy of the decision of the
DoL, avail himself of two alternatives:
 To file a motion for reconsideration based
upon any of the grounds for new trial new
trial such as provided in the Rules of Court as
may be applicable; or
 To appeal the decision of the Director of
Lands to the Secretary of Natural Resources
 But where administrative remedies have not
been exhausted, it only implies that there is
an absence of a cause of action
Time within which to appeal administrative decision
to court
 In case where it was case where it was
charged that there was unreasonable delay
(120 days) in taking the matter to the courts
after final decision in the executive branch of
the Government, it was held that there being
no such proof or admission, the plea of laches
or unreasonable delay cannot be decided.
CHAPTER II – HOMESTEAD
Page 3 of 9
Concept of Homestead
 Is meant the home, the house and the
adjoining land where the head of the family
dwells; the home farm; the fixed residence of
the head of the family, with the land and
buildings surrounding the main house.
 The purpose of the law is to give to the
homesteader a place to live in with his family
so that he may become a happy citizen and a
useful member of our society
Qualifications and Area Obtainable
An applicant for homestead must:
a. Filipino Citizen
b. Over the age of 18 or the head of the family
c. Must not own more than 24 hectares land in
the Philippines nor has had the benefit of any
gratuitous allotment of more than 24 hectares
of land since the occupation of the Philippines
by the United States.
 With respect to corporation or association
already holding or controlling agricultural
public land, its members or stockholders as
well as its officers, respresentatives,
attorneys, agents, empoyees or bondholders,
may if qualified apply for homestead or free
patent but not for any other modes of
acquiring agricultural lands.
 A married woman is not allowed to apply or
make a homestead entry except
o Leaving separately from her husband
and not dependent upon him for her
support
o When her husband is insane or
physically incapacitated to work; and
o When husband is in prison, serving
such a term of such duration as would
prevent him from complying with the
requirements of the law regarding
residence of the land.
Procedure to obtain homestead Patent
1. A person who is legally qualified may file his
application for homestead with the Bureau of
Lands
2. Within 6 months after the approval of the
application, the applicant or homesteader
shall start to improve and cultivate the land;
and within of not less than 1 year or more
than 5 years from the approval of the
application, must have cultivated 1/5 of the
land
3. Must have continuous residence in the same
municipality where the homestead is located,
or in adjacent municipality for at least 1 year
 4. Shall notify the DoL that he is ready to present
final proof of his compliance with the legal
requirements to be entitle to the issuance of
homestead patent. (joint affidavit subscribed
by the applicant and 2 witnesses
5. Before hearing for the presentation of the
final proof, due notice shall be given to the
homesteader and to the public in the manner
prescribed by the SENR stating among other
things, the name and address of the
homesteader, description of the land with its
boundaries and area, the names of the
witnesses
6. If the DoL finds that the applicant has
complied with the cultivation and residence
requirements, a homestead patent may be
granted the applicant upon payment of five
person as final fee.
Right of Possession by the homestead Applicant
 Approval of a homestead application gives the
applicant authority to take the possession of
the land and priority right to acquire title
upon his compliance with the requirements of
the law,
Payment of Real Estate Taxes by Applicant
 Applicant not yet the owner to pay such taxes
on the land applied for beginning January 1 of
the year following that in which the
application has been filed, without need of
waiting even for the approval of his
application
When the right to homestead become vested in the
applicant
 When the homesteader has already complied
with all the terms and conditions which
entitled him to a patent for a particular tract
of public land, he acquires a vested interest
therein, and is to be regarded as the equitable
owner thereof.
When homestead considered conjugal property or
otherwise
 If final proof was completed and the final fee
paid during the marriage, the homestead is
unquestionably conjugal
 If accomplished after the dissolution of the
marriage by the death of the wife, then the
homestead becomes private property of the
husband.
Who succeeds applicant in case of his death
Page 4 of 9
 Section 3 of the PLA provides that in the event
of the death of an applicant prior to the
issuance of a patent, his widow shall be
entitled to have patent for the land applied
for issued to her upon showing that she has
consummated the requirements of law for
homesteading the land and that only in case
the deceased applicant leaves no widow shall
his interest in the land descend and the
patent issue to his legal heirs.
One person entitled to only one homestead;
exceptions.
 A homestead patent issued for less than 24
hectares is allowed to apply again for another
homestead, provided the area be allowed to
apply again for another homestead, provided
the area does not exceed 24 hectares.
 Under the 1987 Constitution, an application
for homestead shall not exceed 12 hectares
(Art. XII Section 3, Constitution)
Transfer of Rights of Applicant when Allowable
a. That the applicant has complied with all the
requirements of the law so far
b. That he cannot continue with his homestead
thru no fault of his own
c. That the transfer is made to a bona fide
purchaser who himself is legally qualified to
apply for a homestead;
d. That the proposed transfer is not for
speculative purpose; and
e. That it shall be subject to the approval of the
Director of Lands, without which approval, it
shall be null and void and the homestead
entry subject cancellation.
Non-Christian Filipinos Permitted to Occupy Reserved
Lands Preparatory to Application for homestead.
 May apply for a permit to occupy a tract of
land not exceeding 4 hectares within certain
reservations purposely made for them
 Within 6 months after receipt of the permit it
is essential to begin the cultivation, otherwise
the permit may be cancelled
 The term of the permit is for 1 year and the
fee is 1 peso
 At the expiration of the permit or at anytime
prior to thereto, the holder may apply for a
homestead including the portion of land
covered by the permit.
 Non-christian refers not to religious belief, but
in a way to a geographical area, and more
directly to natives of the Philippines of a low
grade of civilization.

Patented Land not Subject to further adjudication
 A homestead patent issued and registered
becomes irrevocable and enjoys the same
privileges as torrents title issued under the
LRA.
 It is indefeasible, imprescriptible and
unassailable
 If actual fraud was committed in obtaining the
patent, the certificate may still be annulled
and cancelled provided appropriate action is
taken within one year from and after the
issuance of the patent.
Reversion of land to state subject to action
 The annulment and cancellation of a
homestead paten and the consequent
reversion of the property to the state are
matters between the state and the grantee or
his heirs.
 The rights of the homesteader stand and must
be recognized in the courts of law pending the
action of the state.
Homestead Patent Cannot Cover Private Land
 A homestead patent which purports to convey
land to which the government did not have
any title at the time of tis issuance does not
vest any title at all in the patentee as against
the true owner.
Restriction on subsequent Alienation and
Encumbrance
 Sec. 118 of the Public Land Law, amended by
Comonwealth Act No. 456 provided that No
alienation, transfer, or conveyance of any
homestead after 5 years and before 25 years
after issuance of title shall be valid without
the approval of SENR, which approval shall
not be denied except on constitutional and
legal grounds
Sale within 5 years Void
 To constitute a violation of Section 118 of
Commonwealth Act of No. 141 it is enough
the homestead, or even a part thereof, be
encumbered or alienated within the
prohibitory period of 5 years; it is not
necessary that the transaction be registered
in the office of the Register of Deeds.
Liability to Debt or Obligation
 The homestead cannot be held liable for the
satisfaction of any debt or obligation
Page 5 of 9
contracted prior to the expiration of five years
from the date of the issuance of the patent.
Cases Not Covered by Legal Prohibition
Purchase or Lease by Private Individual Subject to
Limitation
 Under the new Constitution, an individual nay
acquire public land by purchase or homestead
of not more than 12 hectares. However, the
limitation does not apply to acquisition by
hereditary succession, much less when
involving private land
Restrictions for Corporation
 A corporation may only acquire or have any
right, interest or property right to any such
land or to any permanent improvements
thereon under the following conditions:
o That the consent of the homesteader
or grantee should be secured
o That the approval of the Minister of
Natural Resources should be obtained
o That the land shall be used for
commercial, industrial, educational,
religious or charitable purposes or for
a right of way.
Sale After Five years and within 25 years
 While the sale of a homestead after 5 years
from the issuance of the patent and before 25
years after the issuance of the title needs the
approval of the MENR, it was held that this
approval is only for formality.
Mortgage or Lease to Aliens
 As a rule lands of private ownership may not
be alienated in favor of aliens, but may be
mortgaged or leased to them.
 In the case of lands originally acquired by
private persons in any manner provided under
the PLA, the same cannot be mortgaged or
leased in favor of aliens.
Right of Redemption
 When proper, land can be subject to
repurchase by the applicant, his widow or
legal heirs, within a period of five years from
the date of conveyance.
Purchaser in a foreclosure sale has only an inchoate
right under Act No. 3135
 The purchaser in a foreclosure sale has, during
the redemption period, only an inchoate right
and not the absolute right to the property
with all the accompanying incidents.

How much to pay for redemption
Effect of expropriation of the land during the period of
redemption
CHAPTER III
SALE OF PUBLIC AGRICULTURAL LANDS
Who are Qualified to Purchase Public Agricultural
Lands
 Only Filipino Citizens
 Legal Age or Heads of Family
 Under Sec. 22 of CA 141, a corporation or
association at least 60% of capital of which
belonged to Filipinos
Maximum Area that may be Acquired
 Individuals – 12 hectares only
 Corporation are not allowed to purchase.
Excess landholdings temporarily Allowed for Recovery
of Mortgage Loan
 Excess area should be disposed of within 5
years.
 Failure to dispose will result in 50% surtax for
the first year and thereafter.
 In excess of 50 hectares.
Pre-existing rights Respected
 Rights over public agricultural lands, including
the improvements thereon, as have been
acquired prior to the effectivity of the
constitution of the Philippines, are to be
respected as vested rights. Such persons,
corporations, associations or partnerships
concerned, although they may not meet the
qualifications now prescribed, are authorized
to continue to hold the land as if they were
qualified, but they are forbidden to
encumber, convey or alienate the same
except those legally qualified.
Procedure for the Sale of Public Agricultural Land
a. Filing of applications
b. Appraisal
c. Publication of notice of sale
d. Submission of bids
e. Opening of bids
In case there are two or more equal bids,
which are higher than the others, and one of
such equal bids belongs to the applicant, the
latter shall get the award. However, if the bid
of the applicant is not one of them, the
Page 6 of 9
Director of Lands shall at once call for oral
public bidding and the person making the
highest bid shall be awarded.
f. Payment of price
Procedure to obtain public agricultural land.
 Section 2, Act No, 141 provides that:
o By homestead settlement
o By lease
o By sale
o By confirmation of imperfect title
o By judicial legalization
o By administrative legalization (free
patent)
Conditions of award under Sec. 65 Act No. 141 must
be complied with.
When buyer deprived of his right may resort to court
 Thus, whether an applicant is entitled or not
to purchase the parcel of land of the public
domain applied for, depends upon citizenship
aside from other requirements prescribed by
law. If she is a Filipino Citizen as she claims,
she should go ahead with the administrative
proceedings in the BoL and submit evidence
to prove her citizenship.
Conveyance of Land Before Issuance of Sales Patent
 After cultivation of the land has been begun, ‘
to covey or encumber his rights to any person
provided such conveyance or encumbrance
does not affect any right or interest in the
Government on land, and the transferor is not
delinquent in the payment of any instament
due and payable.
Effect of sale of land pending application
 The sale of the property covered by pending
application for a sales patent without the
required approval of the government
produced the effect of annulling the sales
application as if non had been filed
Joint Venture
Legal Limitations and restrictions
1. No sale patent shall be issued unless the land
purchased has been surveyed and an accurate
plat made thereof by the BoL
2. Patents or certificates of title issued shall not
include nor convey title to mineral deposits
contained in the land granted inasmuch as
such mineral remain property of the State
 3. Such land purchased shall be subject to the
same public servitudes as are imposed on land
owned by private persons including those
with reference to the littoral (or coastal
region) of the sea and the banks of navigable
rivers or rivers upon which rafting may be
done
4. Said land shall further be subject to a right of
way not exceeding 60 meters in width for
public highways, railroads, irrigation ditches,
aqueducts, telegraph and telephone lines and
similar works as the govt or public or quiasi
public service enterprise…
Additional purchases allowed
1. The additional land to be purchased shall be
adjacent to or not distant from the land
originally purchased
2. That the total are of the land purchased and
to be purchased shall not exceed the
maximum allowed – 12 hectares
3. That the previously purchase or purchases
must have been fully paid
4. That at least 1/5 of the land previously
punchsed must have been cultivated
5. That all additional purchases shall be subject
to the same conditions as prescribed by the
PLA for the first purchase
Land becomes of private owenehrship only after
issuance and registration of sales patent
Appeals to president merely permissive; when court
may act without need of exhaustion of administrative
remedies.
Officer chared to sign patents
 The president through the SENR
CHAPTER IV
LEASE OF PUBLIC AGRICULTURAL LANDS
Who are qualified to lease agricultural lands
a. Any Filipino citizen of lawful age
b. Any corporation or association of which at
least 60% of the capital or stock or any
interest in said capital stock belongs wholly to
Filipinos, and which is organized and
constituted under the laws of the Philippines
Disqualifications and Limitations
a. 1,000 hectares of land for corporations
b. 500 hectares in case of individuals
Page 7 of 9
Procedure for the lease of Public Agricultural Lands
 Same procedure with the sale of land
 No bid shall be accepted if the lease is less
than 3% of the appraised value of the land.
Payment of Rentals
 Payable yearly in advance accruing from the
date of approval of the lease and payable In
the BoL before the execution of the lease
contract.
Period of Lease
 Initital, 25 years and renewable for another
25 years.
Cultivation Requirement
 Section 39 PLA, land shall be cultivated at
least 1/3 within 5 years
 If devoted to pasture, grazed on the land a
number of heads of cattle in proportion of
one head for every rwo hectares
Restrictions Upon Lessee
 Lessee cannot subsequently assign,
encumber, sublet his rights over public
agricultural land without the approval of the
SENR.
Lease of Additional Area
 Lessee occupying lease are less than the
maximum allowed may apply for additional
lease but not to exceed maximum limit
Lessee’s Option to Purchase
 PLA of the lease is to be sold by the
government during the term of the lease, the
lessee shall have the option to purchase
Right of Lessee to Oppose Registration of Land Filed
by Other Persons
 Where a lessess has already introduced
substantial improvements on a parcel of land
supposedly a public land, pursuant to a lease
agreement with the government, and
someone has filed an application for
registration, the lessee is considered a party in
interest entitle to file opposition to such land.
Registration of Lease of Public Land Not Necessary
CHAPTER V
CONFIRMATION OF IMPERFECT OR INCOMPLETE
TITLE
(A) Acquisition by Judicial Legalization
Persons Entitle to Benefits
 Those who prior to the transfer of sovereignty
from Spain to the US have applied for the
purchase, composition or other form of grant
of lands of public domain under the laws and
royal decrees thin in force
 Those who by themselves or through their
predecessors-in-interest have been in open,
continuous, exclusive, and notorious
possession and occupation of agricultural
lands of the public domain, under a bona fide
claim of acquisition of ownership, since June
12, 1945, immediately preceding the filing of
the application for confirmation of title,
except when prevented by war or force
majeure.
Form of Application
 Must include plan of the land and documents
evidencing the right of the applicant to the
land claimed.
 Should also state the citizenship
 Nature of claim
Aliens Barred
 Aliens are bot entitle to a decree of
registration, they being disqualified from
acquiring lands of the public domain
Difference between Registration under LRA and PLA
LRA
 It is presumed that there exists already a title
to the land which is sought to be confirmed by
the court
 Court may dismiss the application with or
without prejudice to the right to file a new
application
 The ordinary risk that an applicant runs is to
have his application denied, without
necessarily losing the property.
PLA
 Land applied for is admittedly one belonging
to the state and applicant is claiming the same
by virtue of his open, continuous, exclusive
and notorious possession thereof, which
amounts to an imperfect title.
 Court had the jurisdiction and power to
adjudicate the land in favor of any of the
conflicting claimants, and if none of them in
favor of the government
 The applicant runs the risk of losing the land
applied without affording another source.
Page 8 of 9
Prescription Against State
 Section 48 of the PLA, as amended, has
expressly provided that where a person has
been in open, continuous, exclusive and
notorious possession and occupation of
agricultural lands of the public domain, under
a bona fide claim of acquisition of ownership,
for a period of at least 30 years (June 12,
1945), he shall be conclusively presumed to
have performed all the conditions essential to
government grant and shall be entitle to a
certificate of title to the property.
Limitation as to Area
 Homestead Grant – 12 hectares
 Under the Royal Decree -1000
 Under RA 6236 – 144
When Payment for the Grant Necessary
 Where it appears that for the purpose of
perfecting or completing the title of the
applicant to a public grant it was a
prerequisite to pay to government certain
sum of money in accordance with the laws
and royal decrees governing the particular
case.
When burden of proof is upon government
 Government to prove that the land which it
avers to be public domain is really of such
nature.
Presumption of Ownership in favor of occupant
ACQUISITION BY ADMINISTRATIVE LEGALIZATION OR
FREE PATENT
Person entitled to apply
 Natural Born citizen of the Philippines
 Not the owner of more than 24 hectares
 Since July 4, 1945 or prior thereto, has
continuously occupied and cultivated, either
by himself or through his predecessors-in-
interest, such publics lands subject to
liquidation
 Now, 12 hectares under the constitution
Procedures to obtain free patent
 Filing of Application
 Posting of Notices – notices thereof posted in
conspicuous places for two consecutive weeks
 Action upon application
Free Patent When Deemed Final and Conclusive
  After one year from the issuance of the free
patent, the title of the land becomes
indefeasible and introvertible.
Restrictions on Free Patents
 Lands acquired under free patents, just like
those acquired under the homestead
provisions of the Public Land Act, cannot be
encumbered or alienated within 5 years from
and after the date of the issuance of the
patent or grant, except in favor of the
government or any of its branches, units or
institutions, nor shall they become liable to
the satisfaction of any debt contracted prior
to the expiration of the said period.
Corporations may acquire under Execution Sale
Jurisdiction of Director of Lands Lost After Registration
of Patent
 Once free patent is registered and
corresponding certification of title issue, the
land ceases to be part of public domain and
becomes private property over which the DoL
has neither control nor jurisdiction
CHAPTER VI
LANDS FOR RESIDENTIAL, COMMERCIAL, IDUSTRIAL
PURPOSES
Classification
 Lands of public domain, other than timber or
mineral lands, not being devoted to
agriculture or used as a farmland, may be
open to disposition or concession for
residential, commercial, industrial or other
productive purposes. Such lands as may be
disposed of are classified as follows:
a. Lands reclaimed by the government by
dredging, filling, or other means
b. Foreshore
c. Marshy lands or lands covered with water
bordering upon shores or banks of
navigable lakes or rivers
d. Lands not included in any of the foregoing
classes
 Residential Land
 Reclaimed Lands – refers to submerged land
which by deliberate act of dredging and filling
has submerged to the surface. Such lands
belong to the state
Page 9 of 9
 Foreshore – refers to that part of the land
adjacent to the sea which is alternatively
covered and uncovered by the ordinary flow
of the tides. Belongs to the state.
 Marshy Land – refers to such land bordering
on shores and banks of navigable rivers and
lakes; it is generally swampy or soft wet land.
Available for purchase
 As a rule, reclaimed lands, foreshores and
marshy are made available for lease only and
not otherwise, as soon as the
May aliens lease public lands
 Aliens not allowed under the Constitution to
lease disposable land of the public domain
Procedures for sale
 Survey
 Subdivision
 Publication
 Oral Public Bidding
Private Sale Allowed in Special Cases
 Sale without public bidding
a. Purchaser Filipino and of legal age
b. Not the owner of any home lot in the
municipality or city in which he resides
and who in faith has established his
residence on a parcel of land therein
which is not needed for public service.
Permits for temporary Occupation and Use
Conditions to be incorporated in lease contract
a. The minimum rental shall be 3% of the
appraised of reappraised value of the land,
plus 1.% of the appraised and reappraised
value of the improvements
b. Lease term not more than 25 yards
c. Lease Term exceeds 10 years, the land
imprivements shall be reappraise every 10
years
d. Within 6 months from the date of award of
the lease, construction of permanent
improvements must be commence and within
18 months
e. Upon the termination of the lease, all
improvements shall become property of the
government