An annulment or nullity case does not start the way an ordinary civil suit does. The rule that governs it is stricter about who may bring the case, where it must be filed, and who has to be notified from day one, and a petition that skips any of these formal requirements can be dismissed before its substance is ever reached. This page covers the filing stage only — the grounds themselves are a separate question from the mechanics of getting the case properly before a court.

  1. File in the Family Court where you or your spouse has lived for at least six months

    The petition is filed in the Family Court of the province or city where the petitioner or the respondent has resided for at least six months before the date of filing. If the respondent does not reside in the Philippines, the petitioner may instead file where the respondent may be found in the country, at the petitioner's election.

    A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC, the Rule on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages (2003), Section 4. Read the source →

  2. Only the husband or wife may bring the case, and a voidable-marriage petition has its own deadline

    A petition to declare a marriage void may be filed solely by the husband or the wife — no relative, guardian, or third party may bring it. A petition to annul a voidable marriage may be filed only by the specific person the ground names, and within the period the rule sets for that ground; several of the listed grounds carry a five-year window measured from a triggering event such as reaching majority or discovering the fraud.

    A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC, the Rule on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages (2003), Section 3. Read the source →

  3. Verify the petition yourself, certify against forum shopping, and serve two government offices within five days

    The petition must be verified and carry a certification against forum shopping signed personally by the petitioner — not by counsel or an attorney-in-fact — and filed in six copies. The petitioner must then serve a copy on the Office of the Solicitor General and on the Office of the City or Provincial Prosecutor within five days of filing, and submit proof of that service to the court within the same period. Skipping any of these steps can be a ground for immediate dismissal.

    A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC, the Rule on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages (2003), Section 5. Read the source →

None of this touches whether the marriage actually qualifies for nullity or annulment — it only decides whether the case is filed in a way the court can act on. A petition filed by the wrong person, in the wrong venue, or without the required service is vulnerable on that basis alone, regardless of how strong the underlying ground is.

Note. This page describes a procedure by reference to the issuances that create it. It is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Deadlines, offices and requirements can shift with new circulars; a lawyer reviewing your specific facts is the safer path than acting on this alone.