Article 355 of the Revised Penal Code: Penalty for libel in writing and similar means
Status: Amended
Amended
This provision has been amended. The text below is the current version.
- Amended by: Republic Act No. 10951 (Wording as amended by this law.)
What does Article 355 say?
A libel committed by means of writing, printing, lithography, engraving, radio, phonograph, painting, theatrical exhibition., cinematographic exhibition, or any similar means, shall be punished by prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods or a fine ranging from Forty thousand pesos (P40,000) to One million two hundred thousand pesos (P1,200,000), or both, in addition to the civil action which may be brought by the offended party.
What does it mean in plain language?
Article 355 sets the penalty for libel committed in writing or a similar means: prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods (6 months and 1 day to 4 years and 2 months), or a fine from ₱40,000 to ₱1,200,000, or both. The offended party may also bring a civil action for damages. Libel committed online is cyber libel, and the Cybercrime Prevention Act makes its penalty one degree higher.
Article 353 defines libel. Article 355 adds two things: the means by which libel is committed, and the penalty. Defamation by spoken words is a different crime, oral defamation or slander, with its own penalty.
How does it work in real life?
Lito: flyers about a neighbor
Lito prints flyers saying that his neighbor sells fake medicine, and hands them out in the barangay. If convicted of libel, he faces prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods, a fine from ₱40,000 to ₱1,200,000, or both, and he may also have to pay damages.
Jessa: the same claim on Facebook
Jessa writes the same claim in a public Facebook post. The charge would be cyber libel under RA 10175, with a penalty one degree higher than libel under Article 355. She cannot be charged a second time for libel under the Code for the same post.
Dennis: a radio commentary
Dennis, a radio commentator, accuses a local businessman on air of bribing officials, without any basis. Radio is one of the means listed in Article 355, so this can be libel and not slander.
What does this mean in practice?
- Libel prescribes in one year under Article 90. For cyber libel, Causing v. People (2023) held that the one-year period also applies, counted from the day the crime is discovered by the offended party, the authorities or their agents.
- The offended party can claim damages in a civil action, as the article says.
- Defenses include privileged communications (Article 354) and proof of the truth (Article 361). See is truth a defense in libel?
- Full overview: libel in the Philippines: elements, penalty and deadline and cyber libel: can you be sued for a Facebook post?
What means of libel does Article 355 cover?
The article lists writing, printing, lithography, engraving, radio, phonograph, painting, theatrical exhibition, cinematographic exhibition, or "any similar means". In today's terms, this covers printed letters, flyers, posters, newspapers and magazines, radio broadcasts, films and plays, among others.
Online posts are covered by a separate law. Section 4(c)(4) of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10175) punishes libel "as defined in Article 355 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, committed through a computer system or any other similar means which may be devised in the future." In Disini v. Secretary of Justice (2014), the Supreme Court said this merely adds the computer system to the list of media in Article 355.
What is the penalty for libel?
The court may impose prison, a fine, or both:
shall be punished by prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods or a fine ranging from Forty thousand pesos (P40,000) to One million two hundred thousand pesos (P1,200,000), or both, in addition to the civil action which may be brought by the offended party.
| Part of the penalty | What it means |
|---|---|
| Prision correccional, minimum and medium periods | 6 months and 1 day to 4 years and 2 months (Article 76 table) |
| Fine | ₱40,000 to ₱1,200,000 |
| Both | The court may impose prison and the fine together |
| Civil action | The offended party may also claim damages |
How is cyber libel punished?
Section 6 of RA 10175 says that crimes under the Revised Penal Code committed through information and communications technologies are punished with a penalty "one (1) degree higher than that provided for by the Revised Penal Code, as amended". Disini upheld Section 6 as valid and constitutional.
This page does not give a computed prison range or fine for cyber libel. Working out a penalty one degree higher, and how it applies to the fine, depends on other rules of the Code and on the court. A lawyer can explain how it applies to a specific charge.
Disini also held that the same online post cannot be charged both as libel under the Code and as cyber libel, because that would violate the rule against double jeopardy. See libel vs cyber libel.
What did Republic Act No. 10951 change?
Republic Act No. 10951 (2017) raised the fine. The original 1930 text, still printed on the Supreme Court E-Library, set "a fine ranging from 200 to 6,000 pesos". Today it is ₱40,000 to ₱1,200,000. The prison penalty, prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods, did not change.
Which Supreme Court rulings are relevant?
- Disini v. Secretary of Justice (G.R. No. 203335)Disini v. Secretary of Justice explained: cyber libel applies only to the author of a post, not to those who react, and three cybercrime rules were voided.
- Causing v. People (G.R. No. 258524)Causing v. People explained: the 2023 ruling that cyber libel prescribes in one year, counted from discovery of the post, abandoning the 15-year rule.
Frequently asked questions
What is the penalty for libel in the Philippines?
Under Article 355, as amended by Republic Act No. 10951, libel is punished by prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods (6 months and 1 day to 4 years and 2 months), or a fine from ₱40,000 to ₱1,200,000, or both. The offended party may also bring a civil action.
What is the penalty for cyber libel?
Section 6 of the Cybercrime Prevention Act (RA 10175) says the penalty is one degree higher than the one in the Revised Penal Code. The Supreme Court upheld this in Disini v. Secretary of Justice (2014). This page does not compute the exact range, which depends on rules a court applies to each case.
Can a judge impose only a fine for libel?
The article allows it. The penalty is prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods 'or' a fine, 'or both', so the court may choose.
How long do I have to file a libel case?
Article 90 says libel prescribes in one year. For cyber libel, Causing v. People (2023) held that the one-year period also applies, counted from the day the crime is discovered by the offended party, the authorities or their agents.
Is a defamatory statement on the radio libel or slander?
Article 355 lists radio among the means of libel, together with theatrical and cinematographic exhibitions and 'any similar means'. Defamatory spoken words outside these means are oral defamation (slander) under Article 358.
General information, not legal advice. For your case, ask a lawyer, the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) or the agency.
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