Short answer. Yes. The Civil Code defines donation as an act of liberality whereby a person disposes gratuitously of a thing or right in favor of another, who accepts it. A parent's lifetime gift of property fits that definition exactly — which means the law of donations, with its formalities and consequences, applies to it.

What the law says

Donation is an act of liberality whereby a person disposes gratuitously of a thing or right in favor of another, who accepts it.

Civil Code, Article 725 — Donation Defined. Read the full provision →

The three ingredients of a donation

Unpack the definition and three elements appear. Liberality: the disposition is made out of generosity, not in payment of a debt or in exchange for something. Gratuitous disposition of a thing or right: the donor actually parts with ownership — of land, a house, shares, a claim — receiving nothing in return. And acceptance: the definition ends with who accepts it, making the donee's acceptance part of the concept itself. A gift that is never accepted is not a completed donation. When a parent hands property to a child for free and the child takes it, all three elements are present; the family setting does not take the transaction out of the legal category.

Why the label matters: form

Calling the transfer "just a family arrangement" does not exempt it from the law that governs what it actually is. Because it is a donation, the formalities the law imposes on donations apply — and for immovable property those formalities are strict and non-negotiable, going to the validity of the donation itself, not merely its proof. Acceptance, too, must be made in the manner the law requires. Families discover this the hard way decades later, when the land "given" to one child by word of mouth or bare turnover of the title cannot be defended against siblings, because a donation that never satisfied the required form conveyed nothing. The linked commentary on the formalities of donating immovable property walks through the requirements.

Why the label matters: taxes and inheritance

Two further consequences follow the classification. Gratuitous transfers during life are subject to donor's tax, and the transfer will not be registered without the tax being settled — a cost families should price in before choosing a lifetime gift over succession. And within the family, a donation to a child is not necessarily the last word: when the donor-parent dies, lifetime donations to compulsory heirs generally enter the reckoning of the estate, and a gift that impaired the reserved shares of other heirs can be challenged and reduced. A donation, in other words, is often an advance on inheritance rather than an addition to it — a point that surprises both the favoured child and the others.

Doing a family gift properly

If a parent wants to give property to a child now, do it in the form the law requires for what it is: a deed of donation, in the proper instrument, with acceptance made and documented as the law provides, taxes computed and paid, and the transfer registered. Keep the whole family's picture in view — what this gift does to the eventual estate and to the shares of the other children — and consider recording the donor's intention on whether the gift is meant as an advance on the child's inheritance. An hour with a lawyer at the time of the gift is far cheaper than the estate dispute the shortcut version tends to produce.

Cases citing this provision

These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.

Related provisions

Note. Statute text quoted on this page is reproduced from the official enactment and is linked to the full provision. The explanation around it is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Whether it applies to your situation depends on facts only a lawyer reviewing them can assess.