Short answer. Under this law, yes. RA 8187 grants paternity leave only to a married male employee, for the deliveries of the legitimate spouse with whom he is cohabiting. So the statute ties the seven-day benefit to marriage and to living with your legal wife; an unmarried father does not qualify under RA 8187's own terms.
What the law says
every married male employee in the private and public sectors shall be entitled to a paternity leave of seven (7) days with full pay for the first four (4) deliveries of the legitimate spouse with whom he is cohabiting
RA 8187, Section 2 — Seven Days Paternity Leave. Read the full provision →
What the law says
shall notify his employer of the pregnancy of his legitimate spouse and the expected date of such delivery
RA 8187, Section 2 — Seven Days Paternity Leave. Read the full provision →
What the law says
For purposes of this Act, delivery shall include childbirth or any miscarriage
RA 8187, Section 2 — Seven Days Paternity Leave. Read the full provision →
RA 8187 is built around marriage
On the text of RA 8187, the answer is yes: this particular benefit is for married employees. The law says: every married male employee in the private and public sectors shall be entitled to a paternity leave of seven (7) days with full pay for the first four (4) deliveries of the legitimate spouse with whom he is cohabiting. The word married is not incidental. It defines who the statute covers. Paternity leave under this Act is granted to a male employee in relation to his legitimate spouse, so being married is a threshold condition, not an optional detail. An employee who is not married does not fit the description the law uses.
Two linked requirements: a legitimate spouse and cohabitation
The provision does more than require marriage; it ties the leave to a specific relationship. The delivery must be that of the legitimate spouse with whom he is cohabiting. So two things go together: the child's mother must be your legitimate spouse, your legal wife, and you must be living together with her. A marriage on paper while the spouses live apart may not satisfy the cohabitation element, and a child with a partner you never married falls outside the wording entirely. The law frames the benefit around the married household, and both the marriage and the cohabitation are written into who may claim.
The other conditions on the seven days
Assuming you meet the marriage and cohabitation requirements, the law adds further limits. The leave is seven days with full pay, and it is available only for the first four (4) deliveries of the legitimate spouse; deliveries beyond the fourth are not covered. You are also expected to give notice: the male employee shall notify his employer of the pregnancy of his legitimate spouse and the expected date of such delivery. Helpfully, the Act reads delivery broadly, since For purposes of this Act, delivery shall include childbirth or any miscarriage, so the benefit is not confined to a live birth. These conditions shape exactly when and how often you can claim.
What this does not decide
Two clarifications. First, RA 8187 governs this seven-day paternity leave specifically; it does not speak to every benefit a parent might have. Different laws provide other forms of parental leave for situations this Act does not cover, including some aimed at parents raising a child on their own, and those have their own separate requirements. So being ineligible for this particular leave does not necessarily mean no leave benefit exists anywhere for your circumstances. Second, this answer is about entitlement under the statute's wording. Your workplace, or a collective agreement, may extend benefits beyond the legal minimum, so check your company policy alongside the law, since an employer is free to be more generous than RA 8187 requires.