Short answer. Yes, as a general rule. Article 83 of the Family Code says donations by reason of marriage are governed by the rules on ordinary donations in the Civil Code, but only insofar as those rules are not modified by the specific articles that follow it in the same set of provisions.
What the law says
These donations are governed by the rules on ordinary donations established in Title III of Book III of the Civil Code, insofar as they are not modified by the following articles.
Family Code, Article 83 — Donations by Reason of Marriage Governed by the Rules on Ordinary Donations. Read the full provision →
The general incorporation of ordinary donation rules
Article 83 states that these donations are governed by the rules on ordinary donations established in Title III of Book III of the Civil Code, insofar as they are not modified by the following articles. "These donations" refers to donations made by reason of marriage — the kind of gift given to a spouse-to-be in contemplation of an upcoming wedding. Rather than write an entirely separate body of rules for them, the Family Code starts by folding them into the Civil Code's general framework for donations.
The qualifier is doing real work
That incorporation is not unconditional. The phrase insofar as they are not modified by the following articles signals that the ordinary donation rules apply only as a default, and that some specific points are handled differently for marriage donations by articles that come after this one in the same set of provisions. Article 83 does not itself say which particular rules get modified or how — it simply establishes the relationship: general rule first, specific departures layered on top elsewhere.
Why this two-layer structure matters
Because of this structure, answering a specific question about a wedding gift usually requires checking two things: what the general Civil Code rule on ordinary donations says, and whether one of the marriage-specific articles changes that answer for this particular kind of gift. Article 83 does not walk through the ordinary donation rules themselves here, so those specifics are not something this provision spells out on its own.
What this means for a specific wedding-gift question
If you are trying to work out something about a gift given in contemplation of marriage — its form, its validity, whether it can be revoked — Article 83 tells you where to start looking: the ordinary donation rules, unless a more specific marriage-donation rule says otherwise. It functions as a signpost to that broader framework rather than as a complete answer standing on its own.
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.
- Sps. Juan and Antonia Cano, et al. vs. Sps. Arturo and Emerenciana Cano/Sps. Juan Cano and Antonia Soriano-Cano vs. Sps. Arturo Cano and Emerenciana Decasin, G.R. No. 188666 / G.R. No. 190750, December 14, 2017 — read the decision on LawPhil →