Short answer. Under Article 122 of the Revised Penal Code, attacking or seizing a vessel on the high seas — or seizing its cargo without being a member of the complement or a passenger — is punished by reclusion temporal, imprisonment of twelve years and one day to twenty years. The same penalty applies to mutiny on the high seas.
What the law says
The penalty of reclusion temporal shall be inflicted upon any person who, on the high seas, shall attack or seize a vessel or, not being a member of its complement nor a passenger, shall seize the whole or part of the cargo of said vessel, its equipment or personal belongings of its complement or passengers.
Revised Penal Code, Article 122 — Piracy And Mutiny. Read the full provision →
What acts constitute piracy under Article 122
Article 122 of the Revised Penal Code defines two forms of the offense. The first is attacking or seizing a vessel while on the high seas — the act of assault or forcible takeover of the ship itself. The second is seizing all or part of the vessel's cargo, equipment, or the personal belongings of crew or passengers, but only when the offender is not a member of the vessel's complement and is not a passenger. A crew member or passenger who takes cargo commits a different offense; outsiders who board and take goods commit piracy.
The penalty: reclusion temporal
Both forms of piracy carry reclusion temporal, which spans twelve years and one day to twenty years of imprisonment. This places piracy among the serious felonies in the Code. The Indeterminate Sentence Law applies, so the actual sentence is expressed as a range with a minimum and a maximum. The minimum falls within the penalty one degree lower than reclusion temporal, while the maximum is within the range of reclusion temporal itself, adjusted for any attending mitigating or aggravating circumstances.
Mutiny on the high seas carries the same penalty
Article 122 also addresses mutiny: when the crew of a vessel on the high seas rises up against the officers or takes control of the ship by force, the same penalty of reclusion temporal applies. Mutiny differs from piracy in that the offenders are already on board as part of the complement or as passengers — they are not external attackers. The law treats both offenses with equal severity because both involve the violent seizure of control over a vessel in international waters, far from normal law enforcement reach.
Jurisdiction and the high seas requirement
Article 122 applies specifically on the high seas — waters beyond the territorial jurisdiction of any state. Piracy and mutiny occurring within Philippine territorial waters fall under other applicable laws rather than this provision of the Revised Penal Code. This geographic element is part of what must be established to sustain a charge under Article 122. International maritime law also recognizes piracy on the high seas as a crime against all nations, allowing states to assert jurisdiction even over foreign vessels and offenders.