I donated land on condition the donee build something, and they didn't — can I take it back?

A conditional gift can be undone

When you attach a condition to a donation — build a structure, use the land for a purpose, do or refrain from something — the gift is not unconditional. Article 764 provides that the donation shall be revoked at the instance of the donor, when the donee fails to comply with any of the conditions which the former imposed upon the latter. The word 'shall' matters: on non-compliance the law gives the donor a right to revoke, and the remedy is triggered by the donee's failure, not by the donor's mere change of mind. A condition ignored is a promise broken.

What happens to the property

Revocation is not just symbolic; it reaches the property itself. The article directs that the property donated shall be returned to the donor, and it goes further to unwind what the donee did with it — the alienations made by the donee and the mortgages imposed by him being void. So a donee who sold or mortgaged the land after taking it under condition cannot defeat your recovery through those dealings. This protection, however, is expressly subject to limits set, as regards third persons, by the Mortgage Law and the Land Registration laws — so how the transaction was registered can matter to what you recover.

You have four years — and heirs are covered

Timing is critical. Article 764 states that this action shall prescribe after four years from the noncompliance with the condition, may be transmitted to the heirs of the donor, and may be exercised against the donee's heirs. The clock runs from the moment the donee fails to comply, not from when you discover it or change your mind, so a donor who waits too long loses the remedy. The same sentence protects continuity: if you die before suing, your heirs may pursue it; and if the donee has died, the action lies against their heirs. The right does not simply vanish with a death.

The limits of this remedy

Two cautions. First, revocation here depends on a genuine condition that the donor actually imposed and that the donee actually failed to meet — not on vague expectations, hopes or motives that were never made terms of the gift. If what you describe was only a wish, the article may not apply. Second, the four-year period is unforgiving, and third-party rights acquired through registration can complicate recovery, so proof of the condition and of the exact date of non-compliance is essential. Keep the deed of donation and any writing that records the condition, since the case will turn on them.

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.

• Edgardo D. Dolar vs. Barangay Lublub (Now P.D. Monfort North) of the Municipality of Dumangas, herein represented by Its Punong Barangay, et al, G.R. No. 152663, November 18, 2005 — read the decision on LawPhil →
• Camarines Sur Teachers and Employees Association, Inc., represented by its President, Dr. Antonio A, G.R. No. 199666, October 7, 2019 — read the decision on LawPhil →
• Socorro T. Clemente, as substituted by Salvador T. Clemente vs. Republic of the Philippines, G.R. No. 220008, February 20, 2019 — read the decision on LawPhil →
• The Secretary of Education vs. Heirs of Rufino Dulay, Sr., et al, G.R. No. 164748, January 27, 2006 — read the decision on LawPhil →

Related provisions

• Civil Code, Article 764 — Revocation For Non-Compliance With Conditions