Short answer. Yes. An application for a protection order must be in writing and sworn. Section 11 of RA 9262 states that the application must be in writing, signed and verified under oath by the applicant, and it may be filed as an independent action or as incidental relief in another case.
What the law says
The application for a protection order must be in writing, signed and verified under oath by the applicant.
RA 9262, Section 11 — How To Apply. Read the full provision →
Writing and oath are both required
Section 11 of Republic Act No. 9262 lays down the form of the request. The application for a protection order must be in writing, signed and verified under oath by the applicant. Three things are demanded: it must be written, it must be signed, and it must be verified under oath — meaning the applicant swears to the truth of what it says. The oath matters because a protection order can restrain a person's liberty and contact quickly, sometimes before the other side is heard, so the law wants the applicant to stand behind the allegations under penalty for falsehood.
How and where it can be filed
The same section makes the remedy flexible in how it reaches a court. A protection order may be sought as an independent action on its own, or as incidental relief inside any civil or criminal case whose subject matter involves the violence the law describes. A standard application form, in English with translations into the major local languages, is to be made available so applicants are not defeated by paperwork. An application filed with a court is treated as a request for both a temporary and a permanent protection order at once.
What the application should contain
The law expects the written application to carry the essentials: the names and addresses of the applicant and the respondent, their relationship, a statement of the circumstances of the abuse, and the specific reliefs sought. It also allows requests for counsel and for waiver of application fees until hearing, and an attestation that no protection order application is pending in another court. Where revealing the victim's address would endanger her, that danger is stated instead, with a mailing address given for service. If the applicant is not the victim, an affidavit on the abuse and the victim's consent must be attached.
You do not have to do it alone
The formality of writing and oath does not mean an applicant is left to navigate it unaided. Section 11 directs barangay officials and court personnel to assist in preparing the application, and law enforcement agents to help where cases are brought to their attention. So a person in danger who cannot draft a sworn pleading can still get the required document prepared with official help. The requirement is real, but the law builds in the assistance needed to satisfy it, so that form never becomes a barrier to protection.