Short answer. Yes. Article 14 of the Family Code allows parental consent to be given in either of two ways: by personal appearance before the local civil registrar, or in the form of an affidavit made in the presence of two witnesses and attested before any official authorized by law to administer oaths.
What the law says
in the form of an affidavit made in the presence of two witnesses and attested before any official authorized by law to administer oaths
Family Code, Article 14 — Parental Consent for Applicants Aged 18 to 21. Read the full provision →
What the law says
the consent to their marriage of their father, mother, surviving parent or guardian, or persons having legal charge of them, in the order mentioned
Family Code, Article 14 — Parental Consent for Applicants Aged 18 to 21. Read the full provision →
Who needs consent, and whose consent counts
Article 14 applies to applicants who are between the ages of eighteen and twenty-one and have not been emancipated by a previous marriage. They must exhibit to the local civil registrar the consent to their marriage of their father, mother, surviving parent or guardian, or persons having legal charge of them, in the order mentioned. The order matters: the father and mother come first, and the guardian or person having legal charge enters the picture in their absence. Past twenty-one, this consent requirement falls away — although the Family Code separately asks for parental advice a few years beyond that.
The affidavit route for absent parents
The article gives consent two equally valid forms. It may be manifested in writing by the interested party, who personally appears before the proper local civil registrar — or, precisely for situations like parents abroad, in the form of an affidavit made in the presence of two witnesses and attested before any official authorized by law to administer oaths. Personal appearance is not required for the second form. A parent overseas can execute the affidavit where they are, before an official empowered to administer oaths there — for Filipinos abroad, this is commonly done at a Philippine embassy or consulate — with two witnesses present at the signing.
What happens to the document
The article also says where each form of consent goes: The personal manifestation shall be recorded in both applications for marriage license, and the affidavit, if one is executed instead, shall be attached to said applications. So the affidavit is not a private keepsake — it becomes part of the marriage license application itself. Practical consequences follow: the affidavit must arrive in the Philippines in time for the application, it should identify the marrying child and the intended spouse without ambiguity, and the couple should keep a copy, since the original will sit in the civil registrar's file.
Why getting this right matters
Consent for the eighteen-to-twenty-one bracket is not a formality to be papered over. A marriage contracted by a party in that age range without the required consent is among those the law allows to be annulled at the instance of the parties it protects, within the periods it sets. The affidavit route exists so that distance never forces a family to choose between postponing a wedding and cutting corners. If your parents are abroad, start the affidavit early, confirm with your local civil registrar what it should contain, and have it sent with time to spare before you apply for the license.