Article 109 of the Family Code: Exclusive property of each spouse
Status: In force
What does Article 109 say?
The following shall be the exclusive property of each spouse:
(1) That which is brought to the marriage as his or her own;
(2) That which each acquires during the marriage by gratuitous title;
(3) That which is acquired by right of redemption, by barter or by exchange with property belonging to only one of the spouses; and
(4) That which is purchased with exclusive money of the wife or of the husband.
What does it mean in plain language?
Article 109 of the Family Code lists the property that stays the exclusive property of each spouse under the conjugal partnership of gains. It covers what each spouse brought into the marriage, what each received for free during the marriage (such as an inheritance or a donation), what was swapped or redeemed with that spouse's own property, and what was bought with that spouse's own money. Everything else acquired during the marriage is presumed conjugal under Article 116.
How does it work in real life?
Marites: a lot bought with inherited money
Marites and Jun are under the conjugal partnership. After their wedding, Marites inherits money from her mother and uses it to buy a lot. The lot was bought during the marriage, so it is presumed conjugal; but if she proves it was purchased with her exclusive money, it is her exclusive property under Article 109(4).
Arturo: a house he owned before the wedding
Arturo owned a house before he married Celia under the conjugal partnership. The house was brought to the marriage as his own, so it stays his exclusive property under Article 109(1).
These are made-up examples to show how the rule works. They are not advice for any real case.
What does this mean in practice?
- Proof that property is exclusive comes from evidence such as deeds of sale, bank records and estate papers; the court weighs it in each case.
- For selling property during the marriage, see can a spouse sell conjugal property without consent?
- For the bigger picture, see the topic property of spouses and the meaning of conjugal partnership of gains.
What does Article 109 say?
The following shall be the exclusive property of each spouse: (1) That which is brought to the marriage as his or her own; (2) That which each acquires during the marriage by gratuitous title; (3) That which is acquired by right of redemption, by barter or by exchange with property belonging to only one of the spouses; and (4) That which is purchased with exclusive money of the wife or of the husband.
What do the four items mean?
| Item | In plain words | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Brought to the marriage | Property a spouse already owned on the wedding day | A lot bought while single |
| (2) Gratuitous title | Property received for free during the marriage | An inheritance or a donation to one spouse |
| (3) Redemption, barter, exchange | Property that replaces property of only one spouse | A car swapped for a motorcycle owned before the marriage |
| (4) Exclusive money | Property bought with money that belongs to only one spouse | A condo unit paid for with money inherited by one spouse |
Who does Article 109 apply to?
Article 109 sits in the chapter on the conjugal partnership of gains. That regime applies when:
- the future spouses chose it in their marriage settlement (Article 75); or
- the conjugal partnership was already established before the Family Code took effect (Article 105, without prejudice to vested rights).
If a couple signed no marriage settlement, Article 75 says absolute community of property governs. Under that regime the rule starts from the other side: Article 91 puts into the community all the property owned by the spouses at the time of the marriage or acquired after, unless the Code or the marriage settlements provide otherwise. Article 92 then excludes only three kinds of property:
- property acquired during the marriage by gratuitous title, and its fruits and income, unless the donor, testator or grantor provided that they form part of the community;
- property for the personal and exclusive use of either spouse, except jewelry, which forms part of the community;
- property acquired before the marriage by a spouse who has legitimate descendants by a former marriage, and its fruits and income.
So a house owned before the wedding is exclusive under the conjugal partnership (Article 109(1)) but, as a rule, part of the community under absolute community (Article 91).
For a full side-by-side view of the two regimes, see absolute community vs conjugal partnership.
Who has to prove that property is exclusive?
The spouse who says so. Article 116 presumes that all property acquired during the marriage is conjugal, whoever's name is on it, unless the contrary is proved. In Villanueva v. Court of Appeals (2004), the Supreme Court said the burden of proving that a property is the exclusive property of a spouse rests on the party asserting it, and the evidence must be clear and convincing. Tax declarations in one spouse's name were not enough.
Frequently asked questions
What is the exclusive property of a spouse under the conjugal partnership?
Article 109 of the Family Code lists four kinds: what each spouse brings to the marriage as his or her own; what each acquires during the marriage by gratuitous title; what is acquired by redemption, barter or exchange with property of only one spouse; and what is bought with the exclusive money of the wife or the husband.
Is an inheritance received during the marriage conjugal?
Under the conjugal partnership, property each spouse acquires during the marriage by gratuitous title, such as an inheritance or a donation, is his or her exclusive property (Article 109(2)).
Does Article 109 apply to every married couple?
No. It belongs to the chapter on the conjugal partnership of gains. Under Article 75, couples who married without a marriage settlement are under absolute community of property, where the exclusions are in Article 92 instead. Article 105 applies the conjugal partnership rules to couples who chose it and to conjugal partnerships that existed before the Family Code.
Is land titled in one spouse's name automatically exclusive?
No. Article 116 presumes that property acquired during the marriage is conjugal, even if registered in the name of one spouse. In Villanueva v. Court of Appeals (2004), the Supreme Court said a title or tax declaration in one spouse's name does not rebut that presumption.
General information, not legal advice. For your case, ask a lawyer, the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) or the agency.
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