Your case is filed with the Regional Trial Court of Dasmariñas
Petitions for declaration of nullity and for annulment are filed with the Regional Trial Court of Dasmariñas in the province of Cavite, provided you or your spouse has resided in Dasmariñas for at least six months before filing. Venue turns on residence, not on where you were married.
What matters locally
Dasmariñas is one of Cavite's largest cities. As with the rest of the province, the petition is filed in Cavite — with the Dasmariñas court — and not in Metro Manila, based on your six-month residence.
What actually happens, in order
- Case build-up — facts, documents, and, for an Article 36 case, the psychological evaluation;
- Filing with the court and payment of docket fees;
- Service of summons on the respondent, by publication where they are abroad;
- Prosecutor's investigation for collusion, required in every case;
- Trial, then decision, finality, and annotation with the civil registrar and the PSA.
Timeline and cost, honestly
An uncontested petition commonly runs one to three years to a registered annotation. Cost is driven by the psychological evaluation, publication, and docket fees. See the full picture on our annulment hub, and estimate the total with the annulment cost calculator.
Elsewhere in Metro Manila
Quezon City · Makati · Manila · Pasig · Taguig / BGC · all locations
Frequently asked
I live in Dasmariñas. Do I file in Manila?
No. Dasmariñas is in Cavite, so your petition is filed with the Regional Trial Court of Dasmariñas, provided the six-month residency is met. The court that hears the case follows your residence, and Dasmariñas is a provincial venue.
How long does an annulment take?
For an uncontested petition, commonly one to three years from filing to a registered PSA annotation. The largest variables are service of summons on the respondent, the court's docket, the prosecutor's investigation for collusion, and whether the decision is appealed by the State.
Is the case over once the court grants the petition?
Not for your records. The decision must become final and then be registered and annotated with the local civil registrar and the PSA before your civil status changes. Until that annotation appears, you are still considered married.