Section 1. Title. — This Act shall be known as "The Alien
Social Integration Act of 1995."
Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. — The State shall
control and regulate the admission and integration of aliens into its
territory and body politic. Towards this end, aliens with
unlawful residence status shall be integrated into the mainstream of
Philippine society subject to national security and interest, and in
deference to internationally recognized human rights.
Sec. 3. Coverage. — Upon effectivity Act, all
aliens whose stay in the Philippines is otherwise illegal under
existing laws and who have entered the country prior to June 30, 1992,
including those who availed in good faith of the benefits of Executive
Order No. 324 whose applications have been approved before or after
November 21, 1988, are hereby granted legal residence status upon
compliance with the provisions of this Act, and shall not be prosecuted
for crimes defined under Commonwealth Act No. 613, otherwise known as
the Immigration Act of 1940, which are inherent to illegal residence
such as the absence of valid travel documents or visa: provided, that
in no case shall alien refugees in the Philippines be qualified to
apply under this Act.
The bar to prosecution shall apply only to such crimes or felonies
committed due to acts necessary or essential to maintain a false or
fraudulent or illegal residence, such as falsification of marriage,
birth or baptismal certificates or travel documents, visas or alien
certificates of registration.
Sec. 4. Integration Requirements and Fees. — The
social integration of aliens established under Sec. 3 shall be
effective and its benefits enjoyed by illegal residents upon completion
of all the following acts:
4.1. Filing of registration forms with the following
agencies: (1) the civil register of his place of residence; (2) the
Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR); (3) the Bureau of Immigration; (4)
the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI); and (5) the commercial or
universal bank to which the alien pays the integration fee as hereafter
provided.
In lieu thereof, the filing of registration forms may be done in five
(5) sets with a commercial or universal bank certified by the BIR as
authorized collectors for income tax.
4.2 The registration forms shall contain the
applicant's full name and one alias by which he may be known; proof of
his identity, good moral character and financial capacity through
affidavits from two (2) Filipino citizens of good reputation in his/her
place of residence; history of stay in the Philippines; residential
address for the immediate past five (5) years; four (4) passport size
pictures and a complete fingerprint card for each of the agencies
mentioned in 4.1, including his/her most recent dental records which
shall be submitted to the NBI.
4.3. Payment of the integration fees to any duly
licensed commercial or universal bank accredited by the BIR as
authorized to receive income tax payments in the following amounts:
4.3.1. One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000) upon
filing of the registration forms with the bank plus Fifty thousand
pesos (P50,000) per year over a three-year period from the payment of
the first installment. The subsequent three (3) installment
payments should be paid within twelve (12) months from the date of the
first payment without any extensions: provided, that the payments made
by those who availed of the benefits of Executive Order No. 324 whose
applications were approved before or after November 20, 1988 shall be
credited to their favor.
In lieu of the above installment payments, the applicant may
immediately pay two hundred thousand pesos (P200,000).
4.3.2. A single payment of Fifty thousand pesos
(P50,000) for the spouse and Twenty-five thousand pesos (P25,000) for
each legitimate child below eighteen (18) years of age.
4.3.3 Children born after June 30, 1992 of parents
who received the benefits of this Act shall, upon proper registration
with the Bureau of Immigration, become legal residents.
4.3.4. The integration fees paid by an alien shall be
in lieu of all immigration fees and fines said alien may have incurred
during his unlawful residence in the country.
4.4. Submission of a medical certificate stating that
the applicant is not a user of prohibited drugs or otherwise a drug
addict and that he is not affiliated with Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome (AIDS).
Sec. 5. Official Receipt. — The commercial or
universal bank shall issue an official receipt acknowledging receipt of
the integration fee, upon payment by the applicant of a processing fee
of One thousand pesos (P1,000). In the event registration was
effected under paragraph 2 of subsection 4.1, the bank shall furnish
copies of the registration documents to the following agencies: (1) the
civil register of the applicant's place of residence; (2) the BIR; and
(3) the NBI. Thereafter, the bank shall issue a certification to
this effect in favor of the applicant.
Sec. 6. Duties of the Bureau of Immigration. —
Upon presentation by the applicant of the official receipt from the
bank, together with a certification from the bank or the agency
concerned, as the case may be that the civil registrar, BIR and NBI
received copies of the registration forms, and the submission to the
Bureau of Immigration of the registration forms defined in Sec. 4.2
hereof, the Bureau of Immigration shall immediately issue an alien
certificate of registration (ACR) to the applicant. The legal
residence granted under this Act shall commence from the date the
Bureau of Immigration issues the ACR.
The Bureau of Immigration shall publish, at the applicant's cost, the
names, ages, addresses, and a photograph of each of the applicants in a
national newspaper of general circulation at the end of each calendar
month during the effectivity of the application period, as hereinafter
provided in Sec. 8. The banks authorized under this Act to
collect the fees herein required shall collect a publication fee of
five Thousand pesos (P5,000) from the applicant.
Sec. 7. Ministerial Duty of the Civil Registrar,
the BIR and the NBI. — The civil registrar, the BIR and the NBI shall
have the ministerial duty to accept the registration forms required
under Sec. 4. Each of these agencies may charge no more than
One hundred pesos (P100) for the filing of the registration forms. Upon
payment of the filing fee, the agency concerned shall issue a
certification that the alien has filed with said office by
himself/herself or through the bank, all the forms required under
Sec. 4.
Sec. 8. Application Period. — The benefits
extended by Sec. 3 can be availed of from June 1, 1995 to December
31, 1996.
Sec. 9. Administrative Confirmation. — The
procedure herein provided may be availed of by any alien who may want a
confirmation or affirmation of his stay in the Philippines.
SECTION 10. Eligibility for Citizenship. — Aliens
granted legal residence under this Act shall be eligible to apply for
naturalization after five (5) years from the approval of his/her
application.
SECTION 11. Compliance Report and Oversight
Functions. — The Bureau of Immigration shall submit to the chair of the
committees on justice of each chamber of Congress, copy furnished the
Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, a
written report on the developments in the implementation of this Act on
November 30, 1995, May 31, 1996, November 30, 1996, and May 31, 1997
for purposes of oversight functions.
SECTION 12. Perjury. — The registration forms,
together with the proof required therein, shall be supported by
affidavits of two (2) Filipino citizens of good reputation in the
applicant's place of residence.
All applications shall be under oath or affirmation, which oath or
affirmation shall be required for their registration. Applicants
who violate their oath or affirmation by knowingly making untruthful
statements on any material matter in their applications shall be liable
for perjury under the Revised Penal Code.
In addition to the penalty imposed on perjury, the subsequent
convictions of the applicant shall revoke the legal residence granted
him/her and shall subject applicant to deportation proceedings.
SECTION 13. Appropriation. — There is hereby
appropriated, out of the payments received under Sec. 4 hereof, an
amount of Five million pesos (P5,000,000) to cover administrative and
other expenses to be incurred in the implementation of this Act.
SECTION 14. Privacy Clause. — Information submitted
by an alien applicant pursuant to this Act, shall be used only for the
purpose of determining the veracity of the factual statements by the
applicant or for enforcing the penalties prescribed by this Act.
SECTION 15. Rule-making Powers. — The provisions of
this Act are self-executory and shall not be dependent on the issuance
of any rules or regulations. The Secretary of Justice is hereby
authorized, however, to promulgate only such rules and regulations as
may be needed to efficiently and administratively implement the
provisions of this Act.
SECTION 16. Separability Clause. — If any provision
of this Act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the provisions not
affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect.
SECTION 17. Repealing Clause. — All laws, decrees or
rules inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed
or modified accordingly.
SECTION 18. Effectivity Clause. — This Act shall take
effect fifteen (15) days after the completion of its publication in at
least two (2) national newspapers of general circulation.
Approved: February 24, 1995
|