THE COMPREHENSIVE AGRARIAN REFORM LAW

Republic Act No. 6657, as amended

I. Introduction
A. Constitutional Basis
1. Article II, Section 21:
The State shall promote comprehensive rural
development and agrarian reform.
2. Article XII, Section 1: x x x The State shall promote industrialization
and full employment based on sound agricultural development and
agrarian reform, x x x
3. Article XIII, Section 3: x x x The State shall regulate the relations
between workers and employers, recognizing the right of labor to its just
share in the fruits of production and the right of enterprises to
reasonable returns on investments, and to expansion and growth.
4. Article XIII, Section 4: The State shall, by law, undertake an agrarian
reform program founded on the rights of farmers and regular
farmworkers, who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands
they till or, in the case of other farmworkers, to receive a just share of
the fruits thereof. To this end, the State shall encourage and undertake
the just distribution of all agricultural lands, subject to such priorities
and reasonable retention limits as the Congress may prescribe, taking
into account ecological, developmental, or equity considerations, and
subject to the payment of just compensation. In determining retention
limits, the State shall respect the right of small landowners. The State
shall further provide incentives for voluntary land-sharing.
5. Article XIII, Section 5: The State shall recognize the rights of farmers,
farmworkers, and landowners, as well as cooperatives, and other
independent farmers' organizations to participate in the planning,
organization, and management of the program, and shall provide
support to agriculture through appropriate technology and research, and
adequate financial, production, marketing, and other support services.
6. Article XIII, Section 6: The State shall apply the principles of agrarian
reform or stewardship, whenever applicable in accordance with law, in
the disposition or utilization of other natural resources, including lands
of the public domain under lease or concession suitable to agriculture,
subject to prior rights, homestead rights of small settlers, and the rights
of indigenous communities to their ancestral lands.
The State may resettle landless farmers and farmworkers in its own
agriculture estates which shall be distributed to them in the manner
provided by law.
7. Article XIII, Section 8:

The State shall provide incentives to

landowners to invest the proceeds of the agrarian reform program to

promote industrialization, employment creating, and privatization of
public sector enterprises. Financial instruments used as payment for
their lands shall be honored as equity in enterprises of their choice.
B. Declaration of Principles and Policies [Section 2]
It is the policy of the State to pursue a Comprehensive Agrarian Reform
Program (CARP). The welfare of the landless farmers and farmworkers will
receive the highest consideration to promote social justice and to move the
nation toward sound rural development and industrialization, and the
establishment of owner cultivatorship of economic-size farms as the basis
of Philippine agriculture.
The State shall promote industrialization and full employment based on
sound agricultural development and agrarian reform, through industries
that make full and efficient use of human and natural resources, and which
are competitive in both domestic and foreign markets: Provided, That the
conversion of agricultural lands into industrial, commercial or residential
lands shall take into account, tillers' rights and national food security.
Further, the State shall protect Filipino enterprises against unfair foreign
competition and trade practices.
The State recognizes that there is not enough agricultural land to be
divided and distributed to each farmer and regular farmworker so that each
one can own his/her economic-size family farm. This being the case, a
meaningful agrarian reform program to uplift the lives and economic status
of the farmer and his/her children can only be achieved through
simultaneous industrialization aimed at developing a self-reliant and
independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos.
To this end, the State may, in the interest of national welfare or defense,
establish and operate vital industries.
A more equitable distribution and ownership of land, with due regard to
the rights of landowners to just compensation, retention rights under
Section 6 of Republic Act No. 6657, as amended, and to the ecological
needs of the nation, shall be undertaken to provide farmers and
farmworkers with the opportunity to enhance their dignity and improve the
quality of their lives through greater productivity of agricultural lands.
The agrarian reform program is founded on the right of farmers and
regular farmworkers, who are landless, to own directly or collectively the
lands they till or, in the case of other farmworkers, to receive a just share
of the fruits thereof. To this end, the State shall encourage and undertake
the just distribution of all agricultural lands, subject to the priorities and
retention limits set forth in this Act, taking into account ecological,
developmental, and equity considerations, and subject to the payment of
just compensation. The State shall respect the right of small landowners,

and shall provide incentive for voluntary land-sharing.

As much as practicable, the implementation of the program shall be
community-based to assure, among others, that the farmers shall have
greater control of farmgate prices, and easier access to credit.
The State shall recognize the right of farmers, farmworkers and
landowners, as well as cooperatives and other independent farmers'
organizations, to participate in the planning, organization, and
management of the program, and shall provide support to agriculture
through appropriate technology and research, and adequate financial,
production, marketing and other support services.
The State shall recognize and enforce, consistent with existing laws, the
rights of rural women to own and control land, taking into consideration the
substantive equality between men and women as qualified beneficiaries, to
receive a just share of the fruits thereof, and to be represented in advisory
or appropriate decision-making bodies. These rights shall be independent
of their male relatives and of their civil status.
The State shall apply the principles of agrarian reform, or stewardship,
whenever applicable, in accordance with law, in the disposition or
utilization of other natural resources, including lands of the public domain,
under lease or concession, suitable to agriculture, subject to prior rights,
homestead rights of small settlers and the rights of indigenous
communities to their ancestral lands.
The State may resettle landless farmers and farm workers in its own
agricultural estates, which shall be distributed to them in the manner
provided by law.
By means of appropriate incentives, the State shall encourage the
formation and maintenance of economic-size family farms to be constituted
by individual beneficiaries and small landowners.
The State shall protect the rights of subsistence fishermen,
especially of local communities, to the preferential use of communal
marine and fishing resources, both inland and offshore. It shall provide
support to such fishermen through appropriate technology and
research, adequate financial, production and marketing assistance and
other services. The State shall also protect, develop and conserve
such resources. The protection shall extend to offshore fishing grounds
of subsistence fishermen against foreign intrusion. Fishworkers shall
receive a just share from their labor in the utilization of marine and
fishing resources.
The State shall be guided by the principles that land has a
social function and land ownership has a social responsibility.
Owners of agricultural land have the obligation to cultivate
directly or through labor administration the lands they own
and thereby make the land productive.

The State shall provide incentives to landowners to invest the

proceeds of the agrarian reform program to promote industrialization,
employment and privatization of public sector enterprises. Financial
instruments used as payment for lands shall contain features that
shall enhance negotiability and acceptability in the marketplace.
The State may lease undeveloped lands of the public domain to
qualified entities for the development of capital-intensive farms, and
traditional and pioneering crops especially those for exports subject to
the prior rights of the beneficiaries under this Act.
C. Definition of Agrarian Reform
1. Agrarian Reform means the redistribution of lands, regardless of
crops or fruits produced, to farmers and regular farmworkers who
are landless, irrespective of tenurial arrangement, to include the
totality of factors and support services designed to lift the
economic status of the beneficiaries and all other arrangement
alternative to the physical redistribution of lands, such as production or profit-sharing, labor administration, and the distribution of
stock, which will allow beneficiaries to receive a just share of the
fruits of the lands they work. [Section 3(a) of RA 6657]
2. Distinguished from Land Reform
*

Land Reform is the physical redistribution of land such as the

program under Presidential Decree No. 27. Agrarian reform
means the redistribution of lands including the totality of factors
and support services designed to lift the economic status of the
beneficiaries. Thus, agrarian reform is broader than land reform.

D. RA 6657 is Constitutional
In the case of Association of Small Landowners in the Philippines,
Inc. v. Secretary of Agrarian Reform, 1 the Supreme Court held:
"The case before us presents no knotty complication insofar as the
question of compensable taking is concerned. To the extent that the
measures under challenge merely prescribe retention limits for
landowners, there is an exercise of the police power for the regulation
of private property in accordance with the Constitution. But where, to
carry out such regulation, it becomes necessary to deprive such
owners of whatever lands they may own in excess of the maximum
area allowed, there is definitely a taking under the power of eminent
domain for which payment of just compensation is imperative. The
taking contemplated is not a mere limitation of the use of the land.
1

175 SCRA 343.

What is required is the surrender of the title to and the physical

possession of the said excess and all beneficial rights accruing to the
owner in favor of the farmer-beneficiary. This is definitely an exercise
not of the police power but of the power of eminent domain.
"Classification has been defined as the grouping of persons or
things similar to each other in certain particulars and differ ent from
each other in these same particulars. To be valid, it must conform to
the following requirements: (1) it must be based on substantial
distinctions; (2) it must be germane to the purpose of the law; (3) it
must not be limited to existing conditions only; and (4) it must apply
equally to all the members of the class. The Court finds that all these
requisites have been met by the measures here challenged as
arbitrary and discriminatory.
"Equal protection simply means that all persons or things similarly
situated must be treated alike both as to the rights conferred and the
liabilities imposed. The petitioner have not shown that they belong to
a different class and entitled to a different treatment. The argument
that not only landowners but also owners of other properties must be
made to share the burden of implementing land reform must be
rejected. There is a substantial distinction between these two classes
of owners that is clearly visible except to those who will not see.
There is no need to elaborate on this matter. In any event, the
Congress is allowed a wide leeway in providing for a valid
classification. Its decision is accorded recognition and respect by the
courts of justice except only where its discretion is abused to the detriment of the Bill of Rights.
"It is worth remarking at this juncture that a statute may be
sustained under the police power only if there is a concurrence of the
lawful subject and the lawful method. Put otherwise, the interests of
the public generally as distinguished from those of a particular class
require the interference of the State and, no less important, the
means employed are reasonably necessary for the attainment of the
purpose sought to be achieved and not unduly oppressive upon
individuals. As the subject and purpose of agrarian reform have been
laid down by the Constitution itself, we may say that the first
requirement has been satisfied. What remains to be examined is the
validity of the method employed to achieve the Constitutional goal.
"Eminent domain is an inherent power of the State that enable it to
forcibly acquire private lands intended for public use upon payment of
just compensation to the owner. Obviously, there is no need to
expropriate where the owner is willing to sell under terms also
acceptable to the purchaser, in which case an ordinary deed of sale
may be agreed upon by the parties. It is only where the owner is
unwilling to sell, or cannot accept the price or other conditions offered
by the vendee, that the power of eminent domain will come into play
to assert the paramount authority of the State over the interest of the

property owner. Private rights must then yield to the irresistible

demands of the public interest on the time-honored justification, as in
the case of the police power, that the welfare of the people is the
supreme law.
"But for all its primacy and urgency, the power of expropriation is
by no means absolute (as indeed no power is absolute). The limitation
is found in the constitutional injunction that "private property shall not
be taken for public use without just compensation" and in the
abundant jurisprudence that has evolved from the interpretation of
this principle. Basically, the requirements for a proper exercise of the
power are: (1) public use and (2) just compensation.
"[T]he determination of just compensation is a function addressed
to the courts of justice and may not be usurped by any other branch
or official of the government. EPZA v. Dulay resolved a challenge to
several decrees promulgated by President Marcos providing that the
just compensation for property under expropriation should be either
the assessment of the property by the government or the sworn
valuation thereof by the owner, whichever was lower.
"With these assumptions, the Court hereby declares that the
content and manner of the just compensation provided for in the
afore-quoted Section 18 of the CARP Law is not violative of the
Constitution. We do not mind admitting that a certain degree of
pragmatism has influenced our decision on this issue, but after all this
Court is not a cloistered institution removed from the realities and
demands of society or oblivious to the need for its enhancement. The
Court is as acutely anxious as the rest of our people to see the goal of
agrarian reform achieved at last after the frustrations and deprivations
of our peasant masses during all these disappointing decades. We are
aware that invalidation of said section will result in the nullification of
the entire program, killing the farmer's hopes even as they approach
realization and resurrecting the specter of discontent and dissent in
the restless countryside. That is not in our view the intention of the
Constitution, and that is not what we shall decree today.
"Accepting the theory that payment of the just compensation is not
always required to be made fully in money, we find further that the
proportion of cash payment to the other things of value constituting
the total payment, as determined on the basis of the areas of the
lands expropriated, is not unduly oppressive upon the landowner. It is
noted that the smaller the land, the bigger the payment in money,
primarily because the small landowner will be needing it more than
the big landowner, who can afford a bigger balance in bonds and other
things of value.
No less importantly, the government financial
instruments making up the balance of the payment are "negotiable at
any time." The other modes, which are likewise available to the
landowner at his option, are also not unreasonable because payment
is made in shares of stock, LBP bonds, other properties or assets, tax

credits, and other things of value equivalent to the amount of just

compensation."
II. Scope
A. Lands Covered
1. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law of 1988 shall cover,
regardless of tenurial arrangement and commodity produced, ALL
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE AGRICULTURAL LANDS as provided in
Proclamation No. 131 and Executive Order No. 229, including other
lands of the public domain suitable for agriculture: Provided, That
landholdings of landowners with a total area of five (5) hectares
and below shall not be covered for acquisition and distribution to
qualified beneficiaries. [Section 4]
a. Agricultural land refers to land devoted to agricultural activity
and not classified as mineral, forest, residential, commercial or
industrial land [Section 3(c)].
b. Agricultural activity means the cultivation of the soil, planting
of crops, growing of fruit trees, raising of fish, including the
harvesting of such farm products, and other farm activities and
practices performed by a farmer in conjunction with such
farming operations done by persons whether natural or juridical
[Section 3(b)].
2. Specifically, the following lands are covered by the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Program:
a. All alienable and disposable lands of the public domain devoted
to or suitable for agriculture. No reclassification of forest or
mineral lands to agricultural lands shall be undertaken after the
approval of this Act until Congress, taking into account
ecological, developmental and equity considerations, shall have
determined by law, the specific limits of the public domain;
b. All lands of the public domain in excess of the specific limits as
determined by Congress in the preceding paragraph;
c. All other lands owned by the Government devoted to or suitable
for agriculture; and
d. All private lands devoted to or suitable for agriculture regardless
of the agricultural products raised or that can be raised thereon.
B. Exclusions from the Coverage of CARL

1. Under Section 102, excluded from the coverage of the CARL are
lands actually, directly and exclusively used for:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.

Parks;
Wildlife;
Forest reserves;
Reforestation;
Fish sanctuaries and breeding grounds;
Watersheds and mangroves.

2. Private lands actually, directly and exclusively used for prawn farms
and fishponds shall be exempt from the coverage of this Act:
Provided, That said prawn farms and fishponds have not
been distributed and Certificate of Land Ownership Award
(CLOA) issued to agrarian reform beneficiaries under the
Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program.
In cases where the fishponds or prawn farms have been subjected
to the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law, by voluntary offer to
sell, or commercial farms deferment or notices of compulsory
acquisition, a simple and absolute majority of the actual regular
workers or tenants must consent to the exemption within one (1)
year from the effectivity of this Act. When the workers or tenants
do not agree to this exemption, the fishponds or prawn farms shall
be distributed collectively to the worker - beneficiaries or tenants
who shall form a cooperative or association to manage the same.
3. Likewise, excluded from the coverage the CARL are lands actually,
directly and exclusively used and found to be necessary for:
a. National defense;
b. School sites and campuses including experimental farm stations
operated by public or private schools for educational purposes;
c. Seeds and seedling research and pilot production center;
d. Church sites and convents appurtenant thereto;
e. Mosque sites and Islamic centers appurtenant thereto;
f. Communal burial grounds and cemeteries;
g. Penal colonies and penal farms actually worked by the inmates;
and
h. Government and private research and quarantine centers.
4. All lands with eighteen percent (18%) slope and over which are not
developed for agriculture are exempted from the coverage of CARL.
*

An eighteen percent slope is not equivalent to an eighteen

degree angle. Eighteen percent slope is obtained by having a
100 meter run and an 18 meter rise.

As amended by Republic Act No. 7881.

5. In the case of Luz Farms v. Secretary of Agrarian Reform,3 the

Supreme Court has excluded agricultural Lands Devoted to
Commercial Livestock, Poultry and Swine Raising from the coverage
of CARL.
The Supreme Court said:
"The transcripts of the deliberations of the Constitutional
Commission of 1986 on the meaning of the word "agricultural,"
clearly show that it was never the intention of the framers of the
Constitution to include livestock and poultry industry in the
coverage of the constitutionally-mandated agrarian reform program
of the Government.
"The Committee adopted the definition of "agricultural land" as
defined under Section 166 of RA 3844, as lands devoted to any
growth, including but not limited to crop lands, saltbeds, fishponds,
idle and abandoned land (Record, CONCOM, August 7, 1986, Vol. III,
p. 11).
"The intention of the Committee is to limit the application of the
word "agriculture." Commissioner Jamir proposed to insert the
word "ARABLE" to distinguish this kind of agricultural land from
such lands as commercial and industrial lands and residential
properties because all of them fall under the general classification
of the word "agricultural." This proposal, however, was not considered because the Committee contemplated that agricultural lands
are limited to arable and suitable agricultural lands and therefore,
do not include commercial, industrial and residential lands (Record,
CONCOM, August 7, 1986, Vol. III, p. 30).
"In the interpellation, then Commissioner Regalado (now a
Supreme Court Justice), posed several questions, among others,
quoted as follows:
xxx xxx xxx
"Line 19 refers to genuine reform program founded on the
primary right of farmers and farmworkers. I wonder if it means
that leasehold tenancy is thereby proscribed under this provision
because it speaks of the primary right of farmers and farmworkers to own directly or collectively the lands they till. As also
mentioned by Commissioner Tadeo, farmworkers include those
who work in piggeries and poultry projects.
I was wondering whether I am wrong in my appreciation that
if somebody puts up a piggery or a poultry project and for that
purpose hires farmworkers therein, these farmworkers will
automatically have the right to own eventually, directly or
ultimately or collectively, the land on which the piggeries and
3

192 SCRA 51.

poultry projects were constructed. (Record, CONCOM, August 2,

1986, p. 618).
xxx xxx xxx"
"The question were answered and explained in the statement of
the then Commissioner Tadeo, quoted as follows:
xxx xxx xxx
"Sa pangalawang katanungan ng Ginoo ay medyo hindi kami
nagkaunawaan. Ipinaaalam ko kay Commissioner Regalado na
hindi namin inilagay ang agricultural worker sa kadahilanang
kasama rito ang piggery, poultry at livestock workers. Ang inilagay namin dito ay farm worker kaya hindi kasama ang piggery,
poultry at livestock workers (Record, CONCOM, August , 1986,
Vol. II, p. 621).
"It is evident from the foregoing discussion that Section 11 of RA
6657 which includes "private agricultural lands devoted to
commercial livestock, poultry and swine raising" in the definition of
"commercial farms" is invalid, to the extent that the aforecited
agro-industrial activities are made to be covered by the agrarian
reform program of the State. There is simply no reason to include
livestock and poultry lands int he coverage of agrarian reform.
(Rollo, p. 21).
"PREMISES CONSIDERED, the instant petition is hereby
GRANTED. Sections 3(b), 11, 13 and 32 of R.A. No. 6657 insofar as
the inclusion of raising of livestock, poultry and swine in its
coverage as well as the Implementing Rules and Guidelines
promulgated in accordance therewith, are hereby DECLARED null
and void for being unconstitutional and the writ of preliminary
injunction issued is hereby MADE permanent."
III. Schedule of Implementation
A. Period for Implementation [Section 5]
1. The DAR, in coordination with the Presidential Agrarian Reform
Council (PARC) shall plan and program the final acquisition and
distribution of all remaining unacquired and undistributed
agricultural lands from the effectivity of this Act until June 30,
2014.
B. Priorities [Section 7]
1. Guiding Principle: In effecting the transfer, priority must be given
to lands that are tenanted.
2. Factors to consider in the Implementation

a. Need to distribute lands to the tillers at the earliest practical

time;
b. Need to enhance agricultural productivity; and
c. Availability of funds and resources to implement and support the
program
3. Phases of Implementation
Phase One: During the five (5)-year extension period hereafter all
remaining lands above fifty (50) hectares shall be covered for
purposes of agrarian reform upon the effectivity of this Act. All private
agricultural lands of landowners with aggregate landholdings in excess
of fifty (50) hectares which have already been subjected to a notice of
coverage issued on or before December 10, 2008; rice and corn lands
under Presidential Decree No. 27; all idle or abandoned lands; all
private lands voluntarily offered by the owners for agrarian reform:
Provided, That with respect to voluntary land transfer, only those
submitted by June 30, 2009 shall be allowed: Provided, further, That
after June 30, 2009, the modes of acquisition shall be limited to
voluntary offer to sell and compulsory acquisition: Provided,
furthermore, That all previously acquired lands wherein valuation is
subject to challenge by landowners shall be completed and finally
resolved pursuant to Section 17 of Republic Act No. 6657, as amended:
Provided, finally, as mandated by the Constitution, Republic Act No.
6657, as amended, and Republic Act No. 3844,as amended, only
farmers (tenants or lessees) and regular farmworkers actually tilling
the lands, as certified under oath by the Barangay Agrarian Reform
Council (BARC) and attested under oath by the landowners, are the
qualified beneficiaries. The intended beneficiary shall state under oath
before the judge of the city or municipal court that he/she is willing to
work on the land to make it productive and to assume the obligation of
paying the amortization for the compensation of the land and the land
taxes thereon; all lands foreclosed by government financial
institutions; all lands acquired by the Presidential Commission on Good
Government (PCGG); and all other lands owned by the government
devoted to or suitable for agriculture, which shall be acquired and
distributed immediately upon the effectivity of this Act, with the
implementation to be completed by June 30, 2012.
Phase Two: (a) Lands twenty-four (24) hectares up to fifty (50)
hectares shall likewise be covered for purposes of agrarian reform
upon the effectivity of this Act. All alienable and disposable public
agricultural lands; all arable public agricultural lands under
agro-forest, pasture and agricultural leases already cultivated and
planted to crops in accordance with Section 6, Article XIII of the
Constitution; all public agricultural lands which are to be opened for
new development and resettlement: and all private agricultural lands
of landowners with aggregate landholdings above twenty-four (24)
hectares up to fifty (50) hectares which have already been subjected

to a notice of coverage issued on or before December 1O, 2008, to

implement principally the rights of farmers and regular farmworkers,
who are landless, to own directly or collectively the lands they till,
which shall be distributed immediately upon the effectivity of this Act,
with the implementation to be completed by June 30, 2012; and
(b) All remaining private agricultural lands of landowners with
aggregate landholdings in excess of twenty-four (24) hectares,
regardless as to whether these have been subjected to notices of
coverage or not, with the implementation to begin on July 1, 2012 and
to be completed by June 30, 2013
Phase Three: All other private agricultural lands commencing with
large landholdings and proceeding to medium and small landholdings
under the following schedule:
(a)Lands of landowners with aggregate landholdings above ten (10)
hectares up to twenty- four (24)hectares, insofar as the excess
hectarage above ten (10) hectares is concerned, to begin on July
1,2012 and to be completed by June 30, 2013; and
(b)Lands of landowners with aggregate landholdings from the
retention limit up to ten (10) hectares, to begin on July 1, 2013 and
to be completed by June 30, 2014; to implement principally the
right of farmers and regular farmworkers who are landless, to own
directly or collectively the lands they till.
The schedule of acquisition and redistribution of all agricultural
lands covered by this program shall be made in accordance with the
above order of priority, which shall be provided in the implementing
rules to be prepared by the PARC, taking into consideration the
following: the landholdings wherein the farmers are organized and
understand ,the meaning and obligations of farmland ownership; the
distribution of lands to the tillers at the earliest practicable time; the
enhancement of agricultural productivity; and the availability of funds
and resources to implement and support the program: Provided, That
the PARC shall design and conduct seminars, symposia, information
campaigns, and other similar programs for farmers who are not
organized or not covered by any landholdings. Completion by these
farmers of the aforementioned seminars, symposia, and other similar
programs shall be encouraged in the implementation of this Act
particularly the provisions of this Section.
The PARC shall establish guidelines to implement the above
priorities and distribution scheme, including the determination of who
are qualified beneficiaries: Provided, That an owner-tiller may be a
beneficiary of the land he/she does not own but is actually cultivating
to the extent of the difference between the area of the land he/she
owns and the award ceiling of three (3) hectares: Provided, further,

That collective ownership by the farmer beneficiaries shall be subject

to Section 25 of Republic Act No. 6657, as amended: Provided,
furthermore, That rural women shall be given the opportunity t o
participate in the development planning and implementation of this
Act: Provided, finally, That in no case should the agrarian reform
beneficiaries' sex, economic, religious, social, cultural and political
attributes adversely affect the distribution of lands.
C. Exceptions from the Implementation Phases
1. Land acquisition and distribution shall be completed by June 30,
2014 on a province by province basis. In any case, the PARC or
the
PARC
Executive
Committee
(PARC
EXCOM),
upon
recommendation by the Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating
Committee (PARCCOM), may declare certain provinces as priority
land reform areas, in which case the acquisition and distribution of
private agricultural lands therein under advanced phases may be
implemented ahead of the above schedules on the condition that
prior phases in these provinces have been completed: Provided,
That notwithstanding the above schedules, phase three (b) shall
not be implemented in a particular province until at least ninety
percent (90%) of the provincial balance of that particular province
as of January 1, 2009 under Phase One, Phase Two (a), Phase Two
(b),,and Phase Three (a), excluding lands under the jurisdiction of
the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR),
have been successfully completed. PARC, upon recommendation of
the Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee (PARCCOM),
may declare certain provinces or regions as priority land reform
areas, in which case the acquisition and distribution of private
agricultural lands therein may be implemented ahead of schedule.
[Section 7]
2. The PARC may suspend the implementation of CARL with respect to
ancestral lands for purpose of identifying and delineating such
lands. [Section 9]
IV. Improvement of Tenurial and Labor Relations
A. Leasehold Tenancy
1. Tenancy in General
a. Definition: Agricultural tenancy is the physical possession by a
person of land devoted to agriculture, belonging to or legally
possessed by another for the purpose of production through the
labor of the former and of the members of his immediate farm
household in consideration of which the former agrees to share
the harvest with the latter or to pay a price certain or ascer-

tainable, either in produce or in money, or in both [Section 3 of

RA 1199, Guerrero v. CA4]
b. Types of Tenancy Relation
i. Sharehold Tenancy; and
ii. Leasehold Tenancy
2. Leasehold vs. Sharehold Tenancy
*

The two tenancy systems are distinct and different form each
other. In sharehold, the tenant may choose to shoulder, in
addition to labor, any one or more of the items of contributions
(such as farm implements, work animals, final harrowing,
transplanting), while in leasehold, the tenant or lessee always
shoulders all items of production except the land. Under the
sharehold system, the tenant and the landholder are comanagers, whereas in leasehold, the tenant is the sole manager
of the farmholding. Finally, in sharehold tenancy, the tenant and
the landholder divide the harvest in proportion to their
contributions, while in leasehold tenancy, the tenant or lessee
gets the whole produce with the mere obligation to pay a fixed
rental. [People v. Adillo 5]
Sharehold

Leasehold

Expenses of Production

Tenant and
Landowner

Tenant

Management

Tenant and
Landowner

Tenant

Payment

Tenant and
landowner divide the
harvest in proportion
to their contributions.

Tenant gets the

whole produce with
the mere obligation
to pay rent.

3. Leasehold vs. Civil Lease

*

There are important differences between a leasehold tenancy and a

civil law lease. The subject matter of leasehold tenancy is limited
to agricultural lands; that of civil law lease may be either rural or
urban property. As to attention and cultivation, the law requires the
leasehold tenant to personally attend to, and cultivate the
agricultural land, whereas the civil law lessee need not personally
cultivate or work the thing leased. As to purpose, the landholding
in leasehold tenancy is devoted to agriculture, whereas in civil law

142 SCRA 136.

68 SCRA 90.

lease, the purpose may be for any other lawful pursuit. As to the
law that governs, the civil law lease is governed by the Civil Code,
whereas leasehold tenancy is governed by special laws. [Gabriel v.
Pangilinan6]
Leasehold Tenancy

Civil Law Lease

Subject Matter

Agricultural lands
only

Both rural and urban

properties

Attention and Cultivation

Tenant must
personally cultivate

Lessee does not

have to personally
cultivate

Purpose

Agriculture only

Any lawful purpose

Governing Law

Special laws

Civil Code

4. Purpose of the Leasehold Relation: To protect and improve the

tenurial and economic status of the farmers in tenanted lands.
[Section 12]
5. Application [Section 12]
a. Tenanted lands under the retention limit; and
b. Tenanted lands not yet acquired under the CARL
B. Production Sharing Plan
1. Application [Section 13]
a. Any enterprise adopting the scheme provided for in Section 32;
b. Any enterprise operating under a production venture, lease,
management contract or other similar arrangement;
c. Any farm covered by Section 8 (Private agricultural lands leased
by Multinational corporations) and Section 11 (Commercial
farming); and
d. Corporate farms pending final land transfer.
2. Period for Compliance: Within ninety (90) days from effectivity of
CARL
3. Scheme (Applies to those individuals or enterprises realizing gross
sales in excess of five million pesos per annum, unless the
DAR sets a lower ceiling) [Section 32]
a. Three percent (3%) of the gross sales from the production of
6

58 SCRA 590.

such lands;
b. Distributed within sixty (60) days of the end of the fiscal year;
c. Treated as additional compensation to regular and other farmworkers of such lands;
d. During the transitory period (before the land is turned over to
the farmworker-beneficiaries), at least one percent (1%) of the
gross sales shall be distributed to the managerial, supervisory
and technical group; and
e. If profit is realized, an additional ten percent (10%) of the net
profit after tax shall be distributed to the regular and other
farmworkers within ninety (90) days of the end of the fiscal year.
V. Registration
A. Within 180 days from the effectivity of CARL, landowners, natural or
juridical, shall file a sworn statement in the assessor's office the following information:
a.
b.
c.
d.

the description and area of the property;

the average gross income from the property for at least 3 years;
the names of all tenants and farmworkers therein;
the crops planted in the property and the area covered by the crop
as of June 1, 1987;
e. the terms of mortgages, leases and management contracts subsisting as of June 1, 1987; and
f. the latest declared market value of the land as determined by the
city or provincial assessor. (Section 14)
B. The DAR, in coordination with the Barangay Agrarian Reform
Committee (BARC) shall register all agricultural lessees, tenants and
farmworkers who are qualifies to be beneficiaries under the CARL.
These potential beneficiaries shall provide the following data:
a. names and members of their immediate farm household;
b. owners and administrators of the lands they work on and the length
of tenurial relationship;
c. location and area of the land they work;
d. crops planted; and
e. their share in the harvest or amount of rental paid or wages
received.
VI. Private Land Acquisition
A. Retention Limit [Section 6]

1. Five hectares is the retention limit. No person may own or

retain, directly or indirectly, any public or private agricultural land,
the size of which shall vary according to factors governing a viable
family-sized farm, such as commodity produced, terrain,
infrastructure, and soil fertility as determined by the Presidential
Agrarian Reform Council (PARC), but in no case shall the retention
limit exceed five (5) hectares.
2. Additional three hectares may be awarded to each child,
subject to the following qualifications:
a. That the child is at least fifteen (15) years of age; and
b. That the child is actually tilling the land or directly managing the
farm.
3. Exceptions to the retention limit of five hectares.
a. Landowners whose lands have been covered by PD 27; and
b. Original homestead grantees or direct compulsory heirs who still
own the original homestead at the time of the approval of CARL,
as long as they continue to cultivate said homestead.
C. Provincial, city and municipal government ,units acquiring
private agricultural lands by expropriation or other modes of
acquisition to be used for actual, direct and exclusive public
purposes, such as roads and bridges, public markets, school
sites, resettlement sites, local government facilities, public parks
and barangay plazas or squares, consistent with the approved
local comprehensive land use plan, shall not be subject to the
five (5)-hectare retention limit under this Section and Sections
70 and 73(a) of Republic Act No. 6657, as amended: Provided,
That lands subject to CARP shall first undergo the land
acquisition and distribution process of the program: Provided,
further, That when these lands have been subjected to
expropriation, the agrarian reform beneficiaries therein shall be
paid just compensation [Section 6-A].
4. Right to choose the area to be retained.
The right to choose the area to be retained, which shall be
compact or contiguous, shall pertain to the landowner. If the land
retained is tenanted, the tenant shall have the option to choose
whether to remain therein or be a beneficiary in the same or
another agricultural land. In case the tenant chooses to remain in
the retained area, he shall be considered a leaseholder and shall
lose his right to be a beneficiary under this Act. In case the tenant
chooses to be a beneficiary in another agricultural land, he loses
his right as a leaseholder to the land retained by the landowner.
The tenant must exercise this option within a period of one (1) year
from the time the landowner manifest his choice of the area for

retention.
B. Procedure
1. Voluntary Land Transfer (VLT) [Section 20]
a. Must be submitted to the DAR within one year from effectivity of
the CARl;
b. Must not be less favorable to the transferee than those of the
government's standing ; and
c. Shall include sanctions for non-compliance by either party and
shall be duly recorded and its implementation monitored by the
DAR.
D. Only those submitted by June 30, 2009 shall be allowed.
2. Compulsory Acquisition [Section 16]
a. Notice to acquire the land shall be sent to the landowner and the
beneficiaries. The notice shall also be posted in a conspicuous
place in the municipal building and the barangay hall of the
place where the property is located.
b. Within thirty (30) days from receipt of the written notice, the
landowner shall inform the DAR of his acceptance or rejection of
the offer.
c. If the offer is accepted, the LBP pays the landowner and within
thirty (30) days, the landowner executes and delivers a deed of
transfer to the Government and surrenders the Certificate of
Title and other muniments of title.
d. In case of rejection or failure to reply, the DAR shall conduct
summary administrative proceedings to determine the
compensation. If he does concur with the compensation determined by the DAR, he can the matter to the Courts.
e. Payment of the just compensation as determined by the DAR or
the Court.
f. Registration with the Register of Deeds for the issuance of
Transfer Certificate of Title in the name of the Republic of the
Philippines.
g. Standing Crops: The landowner shall retain his share of any
standing crops unharvested at the time the DAR shall take
possession of the land and shall be given reasonable time to
harvest the same (Section 28).
C. Compensation
1. Determination of Just Compensation.
In determining just compensation, the cost of acquisition of the
land, the value of the standing crop, the current: value of like

properties, its nature, actual use and income, the sworn valuation
by the owner, the tax declarations, the assessment made by
government assessors, and seventy percent (70%) of the zonal
valuation of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), translated into a
basic formula by the DAR shall be considered, subject to the final
decision of the proper court. The social and economic benefits
contributed by the farmers and the farmworkers and by the
Government t o the property as well as the nonpayment of taxes or
loans secured from any government financing institution on the
said land shall be considered as additional factors to determine its
valuation [Section 17].
2. Under EO 405 (1990), Land Bank of the Philippines shall be
primarily responsible for the determination of the land valuation
and compensation.
3. Mode of Payment [Section 18]
a. Cash under the following scheme:
i. For lands above 50 hectares
ii. For lands above 24 and up to 50
iii. For lands 24 and below
*

:
:
:

25%
30%
35%

In case of VOS, the landowner shall be entitled to an

additional 5% cash payment. [Section 19]

b. Balance in any of the following:

i. Shares of stock in government-owned or controlled
corporations, LBP preferred shares, physical assets or other
qualified investments;
ii. Tax credits which can be used against any tax liability;
iii. Land Bank of the Philippines Bonds which shall have the
following features:
* Market interest rates aligned with 91-day treasury bill
rates;
* Ten percent (10%) of the face value of the bonds shall
mature every year from the date of issuance until the
tenth year; and
* Transferability and negotiability
c. Set-off
*

All arrearages in real property taxes, without penalty or

interest, shall be deductible from the compensation to which
the owner is entitled. [Section 66]

D. Exemptions from Taxes and Fees

1. Transactions under CARL involving a transfer of ownership, whether
from natural or juridical persons, shall be exempted from taxes
arising from capital gains.
These transactions shall also be
exempted from the payment of registration fees, and all other taxes
and fees for the conveyance or transfer thereof; Provided, That all
arrearages in real property taxes, without penalty or interest, shall
be deducted from the compensation to which the owner may be
entitled. [Section 66]
2. All Registers of Deeds are hereby directed to register, free from
payment of all fees and other charges, patents, titles and
documents required for the implementation of CARP. [Section 67]
VII.

Land Redistribution

A. Beneficiaries [Section 22]

Beneficiaries, in their order of priority, are:
1. Agricultural lessees and share tenants;
2. Regular Farmworkers: a natural person who is employed on a
permanent basis by an agricultural enterprise or farm [Section
3(h)];
a. Farmer refers to a natural person whose primary livelihood is
cultivation of land or the production of agricultural crops,
livestock and/or fisheries either by himself/herself, or primarily
with the assistance of his/her immediate farm household,
whether the land is owned by him/her, or by another person
under a leasehold or share tenancy agreement or arrangement
with the owner thereof [Section 3(f)].
b. Farmworker is a natural person who renders service for value as
an employee or laborer in an agricultural enterprise or farm
regardless of whether his compensation is paid on a daily,
weekly, monthly or "pakyaw" basis. It includes an individual
whose work has ceased as a consequence of, or in connection
with, a pending agrarian dispute and who has not obtained a
substantially equivalent and regular farm employment [Section
3(g)].
3. Seasonal farmworkers: a natural person who is employed on a
recurrent, periodic or intermittent basis by an agricultural
enterprise or farm, whether as a permanent or an non-permanent
laborer, such as "dumaan", "sacada", and the like [Section 3(i)];
4. Other farmworkers: a farmworker who is not a regular nor a
seasonal farmworker [Section 3(j)];

5. Actual tillers or occupants of public lands;

6. Collective or cooperatives of the above beneficiaries; and
*

Cooperatives shall refer to organizations composed primarily of

small agricultural producers, farmers, farmworkers, or other
agrarian reform beneficiaries who voluntarily organize
themselves for the purpose of pooling land, human, technological, financial or other economic resources, and operated on the
principle of one member, one vote. A juridical person may be a
member of a cooperative, with the same rights and duties as a
natural person [Section 3(k)].

7. Others directly working on the land.

Before any award is given to a farmer, the qualified children of the
landowner must receive their three hectare award.
Rural women refer to women who are engaged directly or indirectly
in farming and/or fishing as their source of livelihood, whether paid or
unpaid, regular or seasonal, or in food preparation, managing the
household, caring for the children, and other similar activities [Section
3(l)].
B. Disqualifications of Beneficiaries [Section 22]
1. Beneficiaries under Presidential Decree No. 27 who have culpably
sold, disposed of, or abandoned their land;
2. Beneficiaries guilty of negligence or misuse of the land or any
support extended to them;
*

The mere fact that the expected quantity of harvest, as

visualized and calculated by agricultural experts, is not actually
realized, or that the harvest did not increase, is not a sufficient
basis for concluding that the tenants failed to follow proven farm
practices. [Belmi v. CAR7]

3. Beneficiaries with at least three (3) hectares of agricultural land;

and
*

Under the CARL, a beneficiary is landless if he owns less than

three (3) hectares of agricultural land. [Section 25]

4. Beneficiaries whose land have been the subject of foreclosure by

the Land Bank of the Philippines. [Section 26]
*

Under the CARL, the LBP may foreclose on the mortgage for nonpayment of the beneficiary of an aggregate of three (3) annual

7 SCRA 812.

amortizations. [Section 26]

C. Awards
1. Emancipation Patents (EPs) are issued for lands covered under
Operation Land Transfer (OLT) of Presidential Decree No. 27.
2. Certificates of Land Ownership Award (CLOAs) are issued for
private agricultural lands and resettlement areas covered under
Republic Act No. 6657, otherwise known as the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Law of 1988.
3. Free Patents are issued for public agricultural lands.
*

Under Section 15 of EO 229 (1987), all alienable and disposable

lands of the public domain suitable for agriculture and outside
proclaimed settlements shall be redistributed by the Department
of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
4. Certificates of Stewardship Contracts are issued for forest
areas under the Integrated Social Forestry Program.
D. Manner of Payment [Section 26]
1. Lands awarded shall be paid by the beneficiaries to the LBP in thirty
(30) annual amortizations at six percent (6%) interest per annum.
The payments for the first three (3) years after the awards may be
at reduced amounts as established by the PARC: Provided, That the
first five (5) annual payments may not be more than five percent
(5%) of the value of the annual gross production as established by
the DAR. Should the scheduled annual payments after the fifth
year exceed ten percent (10%) of the annual gross production and
the failure to produce accordingly is not due to the beneficiary's
fault, the LBP may reduce the interest rate or reduce the principal
obligation to make the repayment affordable.
2. Payment shall be:
a. Thirty (30) annual amortizations (First 3 years may be at
reduced amounts);
b. Six percent (6%) interest per annum; and
c. First five (5) annual payments may not be more than five
percent (5%) of the value of the annual gross production.
E. Ownership Limitations on the Awarded Lands
1. Transferability of Awarded Lands. - Lands acquired by beneficiaries may not be sold, transferred or conveyed except through
hereditary succession, or to the government, or to the Land Bank of
the Philippines, or to other qualified beneficiaries for a period of ten
(10) years. [Section 27]

VIII.

If the land is sold to the government or to the LBP, the children

or the spouse of the transferee shall have a right to repurchase
within a period of two (2) years.

2. Conversions of Lands. - An application for conversion may be

entertained only after the lapse of five (5) years from the award,
when the land ceases to be economically feasible and sound for
agricultural purposes or the locality has become urbanized and the
land will have a greater economic value for residential, commercial
or industrial purpose. [Section 66]
Corporate Farms

A. Definition
*

Corporate farms are farms which are owned or operated by

corporations or other business associations. [Section 29]

B. Distribution
1. Land Transfer (Voluntarily Offer to Sell or Compulsory Acquisition)
a. General rule: Lands shall be distributed directly to the individual
farmworker-beneficiaries.
b. Exception: However, if it is not economically feasible and sound
to divide the land, then it shall be owned collectively by the
farmworker-beneficiaries through a workers' cooperative or
association. [Section 29]
c. In case the land is transferred to a cooperative or association,
the individual members of the cooperatives shall be provided
with homelots and small farmlots for their family use, to be
taken from the land owned by the cooperative. [Section 30]
2. Capital Stock Transfer [Section 31]
a. This is a non-land transfer. Corporations or associations which
voluntarily divest a proportion of their capital stock, equity or
participation in favor of their workers or other qualified
beneficiaries shall be deemed to have complied with CARL.
b. Amount to be divested: Corporations owning agricultural lands
may give their qualified beneficiaries the right to repurchase
such proportion of the capital stock of the corporation that the
agricultural land, actually devoted to agricultural activities,
bears in relation to the company's total assets.
*

Agricultural activity means the cultivation of the soil, planting

of crops, growing of fruit trees, raising of fish, including the
harvesting of such farm products, and other farm activities

and practices performed by a farmer in conjunction with such

farming operations done by persons whether natural or juridical [Section 3(b)].
c. Conditions of the Capital Stock Transfer.
i. The books of the corporation shall be subject to periodic audit
by certified public accountants chosen by the beneficiaries;
ii. The beneficiaries shall be assured of at least one (1)
representative in the board of directors, or in a management
or executive committee, if one exists;
iii. Any share acquired by the beneficiaries shall have the same
rights and features as all other shares; and
iv. Any transfer of shares of stock by the original beneficiaries
shall be void ab initio unless said transaction is in favor of a
qualified and registered beneficiary within the same
corporation.
d. Period for Compliance: If within TWO (2) YEARS from the
approval of CARL or from the approval of the PARC of the plan
for stock distribution, the stock transfer is not made or realized,
the agricultural land shall be subject to compulsory coverage of
the CARL.
IX. Support Services
A. General Support and Coordinative Services [Section 35]
1. Irrigation facilities;
2. Infrastructure development and public works projects in areas and
settlements that come under agrarian reform;
3. Government subsidies for the use of irrigation facilities;
4. Price support and guarantee for all agricultural produce;
5. Extending the necessary credit;
6. Promoting, developing and extending financial assistance to small
and medium scale industries in agrarian reform areas;
7. Assigning sufficient numbers of agricultural extension workers to
farmers' organizations;
8. Undertaking research, development and dissemination of
information on agrarian reform and low-cost and ecologically sound
farm inputs and technologies to minimize reliance on expensive
and imported agricultural inputs;
9. Development of cooperative management through intensive
training;
10. Assistance in the identification of ready markets for agricultural
produce and training in other various aspects of marketing; and
11. Administration, operation, management and funding of support
service programs and projects including pilot projects and models

related to agrarian reform.

B. Support Services to Beneficiaries [Section 37]
1. Land surveys and titling;
2. Liberalized terms on credit facilities and production loans;
3. Extension services by way of planting, cropping, production and
post-harvest technology transfer, as well as marketing and
management assistance and support to cooperatives and farmers'
organizations;
4. Infrastructure such as access trail, mini-dams, public utilities,
marketing and storage facilities; and
5. Research, production and use of organic fertilizers and other local
substances necessary in farming and cultivation.
C. Support Services to Landowners [Section 38]
1. Investment information, financial and counselling assistance;
2. Facilities, programs and schemes for the conversion or exchange of
bonds issued for payment of the lands acquired with stocks and
bonds issued by the National Government, the Central Bank and
other government institutions and instrumentalities;
3. Marketing of LBP bonds, as well as promoting the marketability of
said bonds in traditional and non-traditional financial markets and
stock exchanges;
4. Other services designed to utilize productively the proceeds of the
sale of such lands for rural industrialization;
5. Incentives granted to a registered enterprise engaged in a pioneer
or preferred area of investment as provided for in the Omnibus
Investment Code or granted by the PARC, the LBP or other
government financial institutions for those who invests in ruralbased industries; and
6. Redemption by the LBP of up to thirty percent (30%) of the face
value of the its bonds for landowners who will invest the proceeds
of the redemption in a BOI-registered company or in any agribusiness or agro-industrial enterprise in the region where they have
previously made investments.
D. Funding
*

At least twenty-five percent (25%) of all appropriations for agrarian

reform shall be immediately set aside and made available for
support services. In addition, the DAR shall be authorized to
package proposals and receive grants, aid and other forms of
financial assistance from any source. [Section 36]

X. Special Areas of Concern [Section 40]

A. Subsistence Fishing:

Small fisherfolk, including seaweed farmer,

shall be assured of greater access to the utilization of water resources.

B. Logging and Mining Concessions: Subject to the requirement of a
balanced ecology and conservation of water resources, suitable areas
in logging, mining and pasture areas, shall be opened up for agrarian
settlements whose beneficiaries shall be required to undertake
reforestation and conservation production methods.
*

Certificates of Stewardship Contracts are issued for forest areas

under the Integrated Social Forestry Program.

C. Sparsely Occupied Public Agricultural Lands: Sparsely occupied

agricultural lands of the public domain shall be surveyed, proclaimed
and developed as farm settlements for qualified landless people.
*

Agricultural land allocations shall be made for ideal family-size

farms.

Uncultivated lands of the public domain shall be made available on

a lease basis to interested and qualified parties. Priority shall be
given to those who will engage in the development of capitalintensive, traditional or pioneering crops.

D. Idle, Abandoned, Forecloses and Sequestered Lands:

Idle,
abandoned, foreclosed and sequestered lands shall be planned for
distribution as home lots and family-size farmlots to actual occupants.
If land area permits, other landless families shall be accommodated in
these lands.
E. Rural Women: All qualified women members of the agricultural labor
force must be guaranteed and assured equal rights to ownership of
the land, equal shares of the farm's produce, and representation in
advisory or appropriate decision-making bodies.
F. Veterans and Retirees: Landless ware veterans and veterans of
military campaigns, their surviving spouses and orphans, retirees of
the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Integrated National Police,
returnees, surrenderees and similar beneficiaries shall be given due
consideration in the disposition of agricultural lands of the public
domain.
G. Agriculture Graduates: Graduates of agricultural schools who are
landless shall be assisted by the government in their desire to own
and till agricultural lands.
XI. Program Implementation
A. Presidential Agrarian Reform Council (PARC)

1. Composition [Section 41]

a. Chairman: President of the Philippines
b. Vice-Chairman: Secretary of Agrarian Reform
c. Members:
i. Secretary of Agriculture;
ii. Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources;
iii. Secretary of Budget and Management;
iv. Secretary of Local Government;
v. Secretary of Public Works and Highways;
vi. Secretary of Trade and Industry;
vii. Secretary of Finance;
viii. Secretary of Labor and Employment;
ix. Director-General of National Economic and Development
Authority;
x. President of Land Bank of the Philippines;
xi. Administrator of National Irrigation Authority;
xii. Three (3) representatives of affected landowners to represent
Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao; and
xiii. Six (6) representatives of agrarian reform beneficiaries, two
(2) each from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, provided that
one of them shall be from cultural communities.
2. Functions and Duties [EO 229, 1987]
a. Formulate and implement policies, rules and regulations
necessary to implement the CARP;
b. Recommend small farm economy areas;
c. Schedule the acquisition and distribution of specific agrarian
reform areas; and
d. Control mechanisms for evaluating the owner's declaration of
current fair market value.
3. Executive Committee (EXCOM) of the PARC [Section 42]
a. There shall be an Executive Committee of the PARC which shall
meet and decide on any and all matters in between meetings of
the PARC: Provided, however, That its decision must be reported
in the PARC immediately and not later than the next meeting.
b. Composition: The Secretary of Agrarian Reform shall be the
Chairman and its members shall be designated by the President,
taking into account Article XIII, Section 5 of the Constitution
(Rights of farmers to participate in the planning, organization
and management of the CARP).
4. PARC Secretariat [Section 43]
a. A PARC Secretariat is established to provide general support and
coordinative services such as inter-agency linkages, program

and project appraisal and evaluation and general operations

monitoring for the PARC.
b. Composition: The Secretariat shall be headed by the Secretary
of Agrarian Reform who shall be assisted by an Undersecretary
and supported by a staff whose composition shall be determined
by the PARC Executive Committee.
B. Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee (PARCCOM)
1. Composition (Section 44)
a. Chairman: an appointee of the President upon recommendation
of the PARC EXCOM;
b. Executive Officer: Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer;
c. Members:
i. Representative from the Department of Agriculture;
ii. Representative for the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources;
iii. Representative for the Land Bank of the Philippines;
iv. One representative each from existing farmers' organizations,
agricultural
cooperatives
and
non-governmental
organizations in the province;
v. Two representatives from the landowners, at least one of
whom shall be a producer representing the principal crop of
the province;
vi. Two representatives from farmers and farmworker beneficiaries, at least one of whom shall be a farmer or
farmworker representing the principal crop of the province;
and
vii.In areas where there are cultural communities, there shall be
one representative from them.
2. Functions and Duties
a. Coordinate and monitor the implementation of the CARP in the
province;
* The PARC shall provide the guidelines for a province-byprovince implementation of the CARP. The ten-year program
of distribution of public and private lands in each province
shall be adjusted from year to year by the province's
PARCCOM, in accordance with the level of operations
previously established by the PARC, in every case ensuring
that support services are available or have been programmed
before actual distribution is effected. [Section 45]
b. Provide information on the following:
i. Provisions of the CARP;
ii. Guidelines issued by the PARC; and
iii. Progress of the CARP in the province.
C. Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee (BARC)

1. Composition [EO 229, 1987]

*

The BARC shall be operated on a self-help basis and will be

composed of the following:

a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.

Representatives of farmer and farmworker beneficiaries;

Representatives of farmer and farmworker non-beneficiaries;
Representatives of agricultural cooperatives;
Representatives of other farmer organizations;
Representatives of the Barangay Council;
Representatives of non-governmental organization (NGOs);
Representatives of landowners;
Department of Agriculture official assigned to the area;
Department of Environment and Natural Resources official
assigned to the area;
j. DAR Agrarian Reform Technologist assigned to the area; and
k. Land Bank of the Philippines representative.
2. Functions [EO 229, 1987 and Section 47]
*

The BARC shall have the following functions:

a. Mediate and conciliate between parties involved in an agrarian

dispute;
b. Assist in the identification of qualified beneficiaries and landowners within the barangay;
c. Attest to the accuracy of the initial parcellary mapping of the
beneficiary's tillage;
d. Assist qualified beneficiaries in obtaining credit from lending
institutions;
e. Assist n the initial determination of the value of the land;
f. Assist the DAR representative in the preparation of periodic
reports on the CARP implementation;
g. Coordinate the delivery of support services to beneficiaries;
h. Participate and give support in the implementation of CARP; and
i. Perform such other functions as may be assigned by the PARC
and DAR.
D. Others
1. No injunction, restraining order, prohibition or mandamus shall be
issued by the lower courts against the DAR, DA, DENR and DOJ in
their implementation of CARP. [Section 68]
*

This does not apply to the Supreme Court.

2. The PARC, in the exercise of its functions, is hereby authorized to

call upon the assistance and support of other government agencies,
bureaus and offices, including government-owned or controlled

corporations. [Section 69]

XII.

Administrative Adjudication

A. Jurisdiction
1. The Department of Agrarian Reform is hereby vested with primary
jurisdiction to determine and adjudicate agrarian reform
matters and shall have exclusive original jurisdiction over
all matter involving the implementation of agrarian reform,
except those falling under the exclusive jurisdiction of the
Department of Agriculture and the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources. [Section 50]
2. DAR Adjudicator
a. Department of Agrarian Reform Adjudication Board (DARAB)
i. Exercises both original and appellate jurisdiction
ii. Exercises functional supervision over the RARADs and PARADs
b. Regional Agrarian Reform Adjudicator (RARAD)
i. Executive Adjudicator in his region
ii. Receives, hears and adjudicates cases which the PARAD
cannot handle because the latter is disqualified or inhibits
himself or because the case is complex or sensitive
c. Provincial Agrarian Reform Adjudicator (PARAD)
3. Exclusive Jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agrarian Reform
*

Matter involving strictly the administrative implementation of the CARP and agrarian laws and regulations shall
be the exclusive prerogative of and cognizable by the Secretary
of Agrarian Reform

B. BARC Certification Requirement

1. The DAR shall not take cognizance of any agrarian dispute of
controversy unless a certification from the BARC that the dispute
has been submitted to it for mediation and conciliation without any
success of settlement is presented. [Section 53]
*

Failure to present a BARC certification is not a ground for

dismissal of the action. The complainant or petitioner will be
given every opportunity to secure the BARC certification. [Rule
III, Section 1(c) of the DARAB Rules]

2. Exceptions to the BARC Certification Requirement:

a. Failure of the BARC to issue a certification within thirty (30) days
after a matter or issue is submitted to it;
b. The required certification cannot be complied with for valid
reasons like the non-existence or non-organization of the BARC
or the impossibility of convening it. A certification to that effect
may be issued by the proper agrarian reform officer in lieu of the
BARC certification; [Rule III, Section 1(b) of DARAB Rules]
c. The issue involves the valuation of the land to determine just
compensation; [Rule III, Section 2 of DARAB Rules]
d. The parties reside in different barangays, unless they adjoin
each other;
* Where the lands involved in the dispute straddles two or
more barangays, the BARC of the Barangay where the biggest
portion lies, shall have the authority to conduct the mediation
or conciliation proceeding.
e. One of the party is a public or private corporation, a partnership,
association or juridical person, or a public officer or employee
and the dispute relates to the performance of his official
functions;
f. The issue involves merely the administrative implementation of
agrarian reform law, rule, guideline or policy; and
g. The issue is beyond the pale of mediation, conciliation or
compromise, as determined by the Secretary of Agrarian
Reform.
C. Rules of Procedure
1. It shall not be bound by technical rules of procedure and evidence
but shall proceed to hear and decide all cases, disputes or
controversies in a most expeditious manner, employing all
reasonable means to ascertain the facts of every case in
accordance with justice and equity and the merits of the case.
[Section 50]
2. Responsible leaders shall be allowed to represent themselves, their
fellow farmers, or their organizations in any proceedings before the
DAR [Section 50]
3. To discourage frivolous or dilatory appeals from the decision or
order on the local or provincial levels, the DAR may impose
reasonable penalties, including but not limited to fines or censures
upon erring parties. [Section 52]
D. Enforcement Powers
1. It shall have the power to summon witnesses, administer oaths,
take testimony, require submission of reports, compel the

production of books and documents and answers to interrogatories

and issue subpoena, and subpoena duces tecum and to enforce its
writs through sheriffs or other duly deputized officers. It shall
likewise have the power to punish direct and indirect contempt in
the same manner and subject to the same penalties as provided in
the Rules of Court. [Section 50]
2. The DAR has executed a Memorandum of Agreement with the
Philippine National Police, in order that the latter may assist the
DAR in the enforcement of its orders.
E. Judicial Review
1. Any decision, order, award or ruling of the DAR on any agrarian
dispute or on any matter pertaining to the application,
implementation, enforcement or interpretation of the CARL and
other pertinent laws on agrarian reform may be brought to the
Court of Appeals by certiorari within fifteen (15) days from
receipt of a copy thereof. [Section 54]
2. The findings of fact of the DAR shall be final and conclusive if based
on substantial evidence.
3. Notwithstanding an appeal to the Court of Appeals, the decision of
the DAR shall be immediately executory. [Section 50]
XIII.

Special Agrarian Court

A. Jurisdiction [Section 57]

1. The Special Agrarian Courts (Regional Trial Courts) shall have
original and exclusive jurisdiction over:
a. All petitions for the determination of just compensation to
landowners; and
b. The prosecution of all criminal offenses under the CARL.
2. The Special Agrarian Courts, upon their own initiative or at the
instance of any of the parties, may appoint one or more
commissioners to examine, investigate and ascertain facts relevant
to the dispute, including the valuation of properties and to file a
written report thereof with the court.
B. Appeals
1. Appeal from the Decision of the Special Agrarian Court

Within fifteen (15) days from the receipt of the decision of the
Special Agrarian Court, an appeal may be taken by filing a
petition for review with the Court of Appeals.

2. Appeal from the Decision of the Court of Appeals

*

XIV.

Within a non-extendible period of fifteen (15) days from the

receipt of the decision of the Court of Appeals, an appeal may be
taken by filing a petition for review with the Supreme Court.

Prohibited Acts and Omissions

A. Prohibited Acts and Omissions

1. Section 73. The following are prohibited.
a. The ownership or possession, for the purpose of circumventing
the provisions of CARL, of agricultural lands in excess of the total
retention limits or award ceilings by any person, natural or
juridical, except those under collective ownership by farmerbeneficiaries.
b. The forcible entry or illegal detainer by persons who are not
qualified beneficiaries to avail themselves of the rights and
benefits of the CARP.
c. The conversion by any landowner of his agricultural land into
non-agricultural uses with intent to avoid the application of CARL
to his landholdings and to dispossess his tenant farmers of the
land tilled by them.
d. The willful prevention or obstruction by any person, association
or entity of the implementation of the CARP.
e. The sale, transfer, conveyance or change of the nature of lands
outside of urban centers and city limits either in whole or in part
after the effectivity of CARL.
i. Upon the effectivity of CARL, any sale, disposition, lease,
management contract or transfer of possession of private
lands executed by the original landowner in violation of CARL
shall be null and void; Provided, however, that those
executed prior to CARL shall be valid only when registered
with the Register of Deeds within a three (3) months after the
effectivity of CARL. [Section 6]
* Exception: Banks and other financial institutions allowed by
law to hold mortgage rights or security interests in
agricultural lands to secure loans and other obligations of
borrowers, may acquire title to these mortgaged properties,
regardless of area, subject to existing laws on compulsory
transfer of foreclosed assets and acquisition as prescribed
under Section 16 of CARL [Section 71]

ii. Disposition of private lands is in violation of CARL if it is over

the retention limit.
iii. The date of registration of the deed of conveyance in the
Register of Deeds with respect to title lands and the date of
the issuance of the tax declaration to the transferee of the
property with respect to untitled lands shall be conclusive for
this purpose.
f. The sale, transfer of conveyance by a beneficiary of the right to
use or any other usufructuary right over the land he acquired by
virtue of being a beneficiary, in order to circumvent the
provisions of CARL. [Refer to VII(E) of this Outline]
2. Any person who knowingly or willfully violates the provisions of
CARL shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one (1)
month to not more than three (3) years or a fine of not less than
one thousand pesos (P 1,000.00) and not more than fifteen
thousand pesos (P 15,000.00), or both at the discretion of the
court.
If the offender is a corporation or association, the officer
responsible therefor shall be criminally liable.
B. Conversions
1. Authority to Allow Conversion of Agricultural Land for Nonagricultural Uses
a. Under Executive Order No. 129-A, Series of 1987, the Department of Agrarian Reform is authorized to:
i. Approve or disapprove the conversion, restructuring or
readjustment of agricultural lands into non-agricultural uses;
[Section 4(j)]
ii. Have exclusive authority to approve or disapprove conversion
of agricultural lands for residential, commercial, industrial and
other land uses as may be provided for by law. [Section 5(l)]
b. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law provides that the
DAR ... may authorize the reclassification or conversion on the
land and its disposition. [Section 65]
2. Conversion
a. After the lapse of five (5) years from its award, when the land
ceases to be economically feasible and sound for agricultural
purposes, or the locality has become highly urbanized and the land
will have greater economic value for residential, commercial or
industrial purposes, the DAR, upon application of the beneficiary or
the landowner, may authorize the reclassification or conversion on
the land and its disposition: Provided, That the beneficiary shall

have fully paid his obligation. [Section 65]

b. Grounds for conversion
i. Five (5) years had lapsed from the award of the land;
ii. The land ceases to be economically feasible and sound for
agricultural purposes, or the locality has become highly
urbanized and the land will have greater economic value for
residential, commercial or industrial purposes; and
iii. Beneficiary shall have fully paid his obligation.
c. Administrative Order No. 20, Series of 1992 [Took effect on 30
December 1992]
*

President Fidel V. Ramos directed the observance by all

agencies and local government units the following interim
guidelines on agricultural land use conversion.
i. All irrigated or irrigable agricultural lands shall not be
subject to and non-negotiable for conversion;
ii. All other agricultural lands may be converted only upon
strict compliance with existing laws, rules and regulations.

3. Disturbance Compensation

XV.

Section 36(1) of Republic Act No. 3844, as amended provides:

the agricultural lessee shall be entitled to disturbance
compensation equivalent to five years rental on his landholding.

Displaced farmers are entitled to disturbance compensation

which varies depending on the agreement between the farmers
and the landowners.

Relation to Other Laws

A. Suppletory Application: The provisions of Republic Act No. 3844, as

amended, Presidential Decree Nos. 27 and 266, as amended,
Executive Order Nos. 228 and 229, both Series of 1987; and other laws
not inconsistent with this Act shall have suppletory effect. [Section 75]
B. Repealing Clause: Section 35 of Republic Act No. 3844, Presidential
Decree No. 316, the last two paragraphs of Section 12 of Presidential
Decree No. 946, Presidential Decree No. 1038, and all other laws,
decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations, issuances or parts
thereof inconsistent with CARL are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.
XVI.

Effectivity

CARL takes effect immediately after publication in at least two (2)

national newspapers of general circulation. CARL was printed 15 June
1988.

Prepared by:

Atty. Ferdinand M. Casis