Tenant Eviction Law in Philippines

Rental law in the Philippines is much different than that in the United States and the process to evict a tenant is much different as well. The land owner has certain obligations to take into consideration before considering eviction if the tenant has withheld rent. The land or property owner must be in 100% of the law before you can start the process of eviction and the unit must be habitable; plumbing, electrical, heating and hot water must all be working.

The property owner must also comply with all health laws, building statutes and homeowners association regulations prior to beginning any eviction process. The property owner can not change the locks of any unit to keep the tenants out and will face serious fines, jail or both if this occurs. A property owner must deliver a three day notice, giving the renter(s) three business days, to leave of their own accord. If the tenant pays rent, if they are being evicted due to non-payment of rent, then the situation has been resolved. But if the tenant does not pay rent or leave the property then the issue is taken up in the court system, which is expensive for both parties and takes up valuable time.

A landlord may evict a tenant for non-payment of rent after the third month of no rent payment with the above mentioned three day notice. After which the land owner must sue the tenant, wait for a response from the tenant or a writ from the courts stating abandonment. Only the police can evict a tenant under court order and if the land owner decides to take the matter into their own hands then they will face serious consequences for their actions. Which may include reimbursement to the tenant of their deposit.

Other than non-payment of rent a property owner can evict a tenant for subleasing the unit without prior written consent, the landlords need for the property for personal use and repairs needed to be done to the unit. If the property owner is evicting the tenant to gain the property for personal use the landlord must give the tenant three months formal notice delivered by certified mail. For repairs the ejected tenant has first rights to rent the unit again.

If the property has been condemned then the property owner must give a fifteen day notice to leave the rental unit. The tenant has ten days to file a permit to reclaim the property and the courts must decide withing 30 days to evict; (appeals, counter appeals and delays may take up to 164 days to evict a tenant).