Yes, as long as the dissolved marriage is between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner and that the latter is the one who obtained the divorce. It also applies to cases where both spouses were Filipino citizens and one of them became a naturalized foreign citizen and obtained a divorce.

Under Art. 26 (par. 2) of the Family Code:

“Where a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated and a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to remarry, the Filipino spouse shall likewise have the capacity to remarry under Philippine law.“

It’s clear that the above provision in the Family Code benefits only the Filipino spouse and not the foreign spouse who obtained the divorce.

In other words, if you’re a Filipino divorcee, you can remarry in the Philippines without the need to file an annulment. What you need to do, however, is to file a Petition for Recognition of Foreign Divorce before the Regional Trial Court in order for the divorce to be recognized in the Philippines.

Once the divorce is recognized, that is the time you can remarry.

Meanwhile, if both Filipino citizens got married and then later divorced abroad, the divorce will not be valid in the Philippines. Laws relating to family rights and obligations are mandatory to Filipinos even though they are living abroad.

Go back to the main article: How to File Annulment in the Philippines: An Ultimate Guide