This article has been superseded and is no longer the law in force.
Superseded by RA 8552 (1998), RA 11642 (2022). The former text is shown below for reference only.
A person of age and in possession of full civil capacity and legal rights may adopt, provided he is in a position to support and care for his children, legitimate or illegitimate, in keeping with the means of the family.
Only minors may be adopted, except in the cases when the adoption of a person of majority age is allowed in this Title.
In addition, the adopter must be at least sixteen years older than the person to be adopted, unless the adopter is the parent by nature of the adopted, or is the spouse of the legitimate parent of the person to be adopted. (27a, EO 91 and PD 603)
Adoption is now administrative
Adoption in the Philippines is now governed by Republic Act No. 11642 (2022), the Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act. Domestic adoption petitions are filed with and decided by the National Authority for Child Care (NACC), not the courts. This article was first displaced by the Domestic Adoption Act (RA 8552, 1998), which RA 11642 later repealed. The Family Code text is shown for reference only.
Read RA 11642 →Consolidated by Alleba from the text of Executive Order No. 209 (Lawphil), which already includes the changes made by Executive Order No. 227 (1987) before the Code took effect, and the amending Republic Acts in our library. Later amendments made by Presidential Decrees, Batas Pambansa or other executive orders are not included. For information and research only, and not legal advice. For certified copies, refer to the Official Gazette or the issuing agency.