Short answer. The reserve must be kept for relatives within the third degree who belong to the line from which the property originally came. Article 891 of the Civil Code defines both the beneficiaries — third-degree relatives — and the qualifying condition: they must belong to the same ancestral line as the property.
What the law says
The ascendant who inherits from his descendant any property which the latter may have acquired by gratuitous title from another ascendant, or a brother or sister, is obliged to reserve such property as he may have acquired by operation of law for the benefit of relatives who are within the third degree and who belong to the line from which said property came.
Civil Code, Article 891 — Reserva Troncal. Read the full provision →
How the reserva troncal operates
Article 891 of the Civil Code describes the situation that triggers the reserve: The ascendant who inherits from his descendant any property which the latter may have acquired by gratuitous title from another ascendant, or a brother or sister, is obliged to reserve such property as he may have acquired by operation of law for the benefit of relatives who are within the third degree and who belong to the line from which said property came. The rule applies when property descends to a child (or other descendant) by gift or inheritance, then climbs back up to a parent (or other ascendant) by operation of law when the descendant dies intestate. That ascending transfer triggers the duty to reserve.
Who the beneficiaries are: third-degree relatives
The reserve is kept for relatives within the third degree who belong to the line from which the property came. Third-degree relatives under the Civil Code include: parents (first degree), grandparents and children (second degree), and great-grandparents, grandchildren, brothers, and sisters (third degree). All of these are within the protected third degree. The key additional requirement is that the relative must belong to the same ancestral line as the property — the line from which the property originally came through the deceased descendant. A relative who is third-degree but on a different branch of the family does not qualify.
What it means to belong to the line
The line from which the property came refers to the original source of the property. If the descendant received the property as a gift or inheritance from their maternal grandfather, the property came from the maternal line. The reserve then runs in favor of relatives within the third degree who are on the maternal side — not paternal relatives who happen to be within the third degree. This line-of-origin requirement is what gives the reserva troncal its name and purpose: to keep inherited property within the branch of the family from which it came, preventing it from passing permanently out of that line through the accident of intestate succession.
The reservor's position and obligations
As the reservor — the ascendant who inherited the property from the deceased descendant — you hold the property with an obligation attached to it. You may use and enjoy the property during your lifetime, but you cannot freely dispose of it by testament or gift in a way that would deprive the reservatarios — the qualified relatives — of their right to receive it when you die. The reserve ends and the qualified relatives take the property when you, the reservor, die. If none of the qualifying relatives survive you, the reservation obligation lapses and the property passes as part of your general estate without the restriction.
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.
- Maria Mendoza, et al. vs. Julia Policarpio, et al, G.R. No. 176422, March 20, 2013 — read the decision on LawPhil →