Text of the provision

Art. 93. Property acquired during the marriage is presumed to belong to the community, unless it is proved that it is one of those excluded therefrom.

(160)

Family Code of the Philippines, Executive Order No. 209, approved July 6, 1987. The Code took effect on August 3, 1988 (Republic v. Orbecido III, G.R. No. 154380, October 5, 2005). Reproduced in full.

What this article means

A one-sentence rule with enormous practical weight: property acquired during the marriage is presumed to belong to the community. The burden is on whoever claims a thing is separate to prove it falls within an Article 92 exclusion. Mere registration of a title in one spouse's name does not, by itself, rebut the presumption.

This is the default that decides most property disputes in an absolute-community marriage: absent clear proof of exclusion, it is shared.

Related provisions

Cases interpreting this article

Note. The text of the provision above is reproduced in full from the official enactment. The annotation, case summaries and commentary around it are the work of Vivas & Nobles Law Office and are general legal information, not legal advice. Whether this provision applies to a particular marriage depends on facts that only a lawyer reviewing your situation can assess.