You do not have to produce your spouse
Section 6 of A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC, the Rule on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages, adopts Rule 14 of the Rules of Court and then adds its own provision for the missing respondent:
(1) Where the respondent cannot be located at his given address or his whereabouts are unknown and cannot be ascertained by diligent inquiry, service of summons may, by leave of court, be effected upon him by publication once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines and in such places as the court may order. In addition, a copy of the summons shall be served on the respondent at his last known address by registered mail or any other means the court may deem sufficient.
Section 6(2) requires the published summons to be contained in a court order stating the case title, the docket number, the nature of the petition, the principal grounds and reliefs prayed for, and a directive to answer within thirty days from the last issue of publication. Publication costs money and adds months, so budget for both in the timeline and the cost.
Serving a spouse who lives overseas
Because Section 6 incorporates Rule 14, the extraterritorial-service provision applies, and an action to end your marriage is exactly the kind of case it contemplates:
Sec. 17. Extraterritorial service. — When the defendant does not reside and is not found in the Philippines, and the action affects the personal status of the plaintiff or relates to, or the subject of which is, property within the Philippines, in which the defendant has or claims a lien or interest, actual or contingent, or in which the relief demanded consists, wholly or in part, in excluding the defendant from any interest therein, or the property of the defendant has been attached within the Philippines, service may, by leave of court, be effected out of the Philippines by personal service as under [S]ection [5]; or as provided for in international conventions to which the Philippines is a party; or by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in such places and for such time as the court may order, in which case a copy of the summons and order of the court shall be sent by registered mail to the last known address of the defendant, or in any other manner the court may deem sufficient. Any order granting such leave shall specify a reasonable time, which shall not be less than sixty calendar days after notice, within which the defendant must answer.
Rule 14, Section 16 covers the defendant whose identity or whereabouts are unknown. Which route fits depends on what you know: a current address in Dubai is a different problem from a spouse last seen in 2013.
The warning nobody gives you at the start
Publication is available. It is not safe by default. In Calubaquib-Diaz v. Diaz and Republic (G.R. No. 235033, October 12, 2022) a decree of nullity granted after summons by publication was reversed, because the process server's return did not establish diligent efforts at personal service:
Regardless of the type of action — whether it is in personam, in rem, or quasi in rems — the preferred mode of service of summons is personal service. If parties resort to other modes of service, the sheriff's or the process server's return must detail the actions taken and show that the other party cannot be personally served despite diligent and reasonable efforts. Failure to meet these requisites will render other modes of service, including summons by publication, defective. As a result, the court will have no jurisdiction over the other party, and any judgment rendered against them will be null and void.
In Ancheta v. Ancheta (G.R. No. 145370, March 4, 2004) a decree was undone for defective substituted service, and the Court put it in one line:
Jurisdiction cannot be acquired by the court on the person of the defendant even if he knows of the case against him unless he is validly served with summons.
Your spouse knowing about the case is not service. A cousin's message or a screenshot does not substitute for a return showing what was genuinely tried.
Silence does not win the case for you
Clients often hope the absent spouse is an advantage. The Rule takes the opposite view. Section 8 provides:
(2) If the respondent fails to file an answer, the court shall not declare him or her in default.
(3) Where no answer is filed or if the answer does not tender an issue, the court shall order the public prosecutor to investigate whether collusion exists between the parties.
Section 9(1) then gives the prosecutor a deadline:
(1) Within one month after receipt of the court order mentioned in paragraph (3) of Section 8 above, the public prosecutor shall submit a report to the court stating whether the parties are in collusion and serve copies thereof on the parties and their respective counsels, if any.
If the prosecutor finds collusion, the report is set for hearing and the petition may be dismissed; if not, the case proceeds to pre-trial with the prosecutor appearing for the State. The statutory source is Article 48 of the Family Code:
Article 48. In all cases of annulment or declaration of absolute nullity of marriage, the Court shall order the prosecuting attorney or fiscal assigned to it to appear on behalf of the State to take steps to prevent collusion between the parties and to take care that evidence is not fabricated or suppressed.
In the cases referred to in the preceding paragraph, no judgment shall be based upon a stipulation of facts or confession of judgment.
So there is no uncontested annulment in the Philippines. Whether your spouse fights, agrees, or never surfaces, the grounds are proved the same way.
Getting service right is what makes the decree hold
The point of all this care is not the hearing. It is the day, five or ten years on, when you hand a PSA record to a registrar, an embassy, or an employer, and someone checks how the case was served. That is what Calubaquib-Diaz is about: a decree that existed, and then did not. Bring us what you know about your spouse's last address, employer and relatives before we file — that is the record the service is built on. Book a consultation and start with the facts you have.
Frequently asked
My spouse lives overseas. How is he or she served with summons?
Through extraterritorial service. Because an annulment affects your personal status, Rule 14, Section 17 of the Rules of Civil Procedure allows service outside the Philippines, by leave of court, by personal service abroad, as provided in international conventions to which the Philippines is a party, by publication with a copy mailed to the last known address, or in any other manner the court deems sufficient.
What if my spouse cannot be found at all?
Section 6 of A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC allows service by publication once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation, by leave of court, where the respondent cannot be located and the whereabouts are unknown and cannot be ascertained by diligent inquiry. A copy of the summons is also sent to the last known address. You do not have to produce your spouse.
If my spouse ignores the case, do I win by default?
No. Section 8(2) of the Rule states that if the respondent fails to file an answer, the court shall not declare him or her in default. Instead the court orders the public prosecutor to investigate whether collusion exists between the parties, and the grounds still have to be proved by evidence.
Why does service still matter years after the decree?
Because defective service means the court never acquired jurisdiction over your spouse, and a judgment rendered without it is null and void. In Calubaquib-Diaz v. Diaz, G.R. No. 235033, October 12, 2022, a granted decree of nullity was undone because the process server's return did not show diligent efforts at personal service.