Text of the provision

Art. 280. Qualified trespass to dwelling. - Any private person who shall enter the dwelling of another against the latter’s will shall be punished by arresto mayor and a fine not exceeding Two hundred thousand pesos (₱200,000). If the offense be committed by means of violence or intimidation, the penalty shall be prisión correccional in its medium and maximum periods and a fine not exceeding Two hundred thousand pesos (₱200,000). The provisions of this article shall not be applicable to any person who shall enter another’s dwelling for the purpose of preventing some serious harm to himself, the occupants of the dwelling or a third person, nor shall it be applicable to any person who shall enter a dwelling for the purpose of rendering some service to humanity or justice, nor to anyone who shall enter cafes, taverns, inns and other public houses, while the same are open.

Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, Act No. 3815, as amended. Reproduced in full from the official enactment and verified against the LawPhil and ChanRobles renderings.

What this article means

A private person who enters another’s dwelling against the occupant’s will suffers arresto mayor and a fine not exceeding Two hundred thousand pesos (₱200,000), rising to prisión correccional in its medium and maximum periods with the same fine ceiling if done with violence or intimidation. It does not cover entry to prevent serious harm, entry to render service to humanity or justice, or entry into cafes, taverns, inns and other public houses while open.

Questions about this provision

Related provisions

Penalty amounts. The text above is the article as amended by Republic Act No. 10951 (2017), which revised the property values and fines throughout this Code. Older reproductions of the Revised Penal Code still print the 1930 amounts — for theft and estafa they show 12,000 and 22,000 pesos where the current figures run to millions. Check which version any source you rely on is giving you.

Cases interpreting this article

Note. The text of the provision above is reproduced in full from the official enactment (Act No. 3815), verified against the LawPhil and ChanRobles renderings. The Revised Penal Code has been amended many times; this page reproduces the text as those sources carry it. The annotation and commentary around it are the work of Vivas & Nobles Law Office and are general legal information, not legal advice. How a provision applies to a particular situation depends on facts that only a lawyer reviewing your case can assess.