07.Digested-moy Ya Lim Yao Vs

MOY YA LIM YAO VS. COMMISSIONER OF IMMIGRATION G.R. No. L-21289, October 4 1971, 41 SCRA 292 FACTS Lau Yuen Yeung applied for a passport visa to enter the Philippines as a non-immigrant on 8 February 1961. In the interrogation made in onnetion !ith her appliation for a temporary visitor"s visa to enter the Philippines# she stated that she !as a $hinese residing at %o!loon# &ong'ong# and that she desired to ta'e a pleasure trip to the Philippines to visit her great grand unle# Lau $hing Ping. (he !as permitted to ome into the Philippines on 1) *arh 1961 for a period of one month. •

+n the date of her arrival# ,sher Y. $heng filed a bond in the amount of  P1#. to underta'e# among others# that said Lau Yuen Yeung !ould atually depart from the Philippines on or before the epiration of her authori/ed period of  stay in this ountry or !ithin the period as in his disretion the $ommissioner of  Immigration or his authori/ed representative might properly allo!. •

,fter ,fter repeat repeated ed etens etension ions# s# Lau Yuen Yuen Yeung Yeung !as !as allo!ed allo!ed to stay stay in the Philippines up to 1) February 1960. +n 0 2anuary 1960# she ontrated marriage !ith *oy Ya Lim Yao alias 3dilberto ,guinaldo Lim an alleged Filipino iti/en. 4eaus 4e ause e of the ontem ontempla plated ted ation ation of the $ommis $ommissio sioner ner of Immigr Immigrati ation on to onfisate her bond and order her arrest and immediate deportation# after the epiration of her authori/ed stay# she brought an ation for in5untion. ,t the hearing !hih too' plae one and a half years after her arrival# it !as admitted that Lau Yuen Yeung ould not !rite and spea' either 3nglish or agalog# eept for a fe! !ords. (he ould not name any Filipino neighbor# !ith a Filipino name eept one# 7osa. (he did not 'no! the names of her brothers-in-la!# or sistersin-la!. ,s a result# the $ourt of First Instane of *anila denied the prayer for preliminary in5untion. *oya Lim Yao and Lau Yuen Yuen Yeung appealed. •

I((3 :hether or not Lau Yuen Yeung ipso fato beame a Filipino iti/en upon her marriage to a Filipino iti/en. &3L; Yes. nder (etion 1 of $ommon!ealth ,t <=)# an alien !oman marrying a Filipino# native born or naturali/ed# beomes ipso fato a Filipina provided she is not dis>ualified to be a iti/en of the Philippines under (etion < of the same la!. Li'e!ise# an alien !oman married to an alien !ho is subse>uently naturali/ed here follo!s the Philippine iti/enship of her husband the moment he ta'es his oath oa th as Filip Filipino ino iti iti/e /en# n# prov provide ided d that that she she does does no nott suffe sufferr from from any any of the the dis>ua dis>ualifi lifiat ation ions s under under said said (etion (etion <. :heth :hether er the alien alien !oman !oman re>uire re>uires s to underg undergo o the natura naturali/a li/atio tion n proee proeeding dings# s# (etio (etion n 1 is a parall parallel el provis provision ion to •

(etion 16. hus# if the !ido! of an appliant for naturali/ation as Filipino# !ho dies during the proeedings# is not re>uired to go through a naturali/ation proeedings# in order to be onsidered as a Filipino iti/en hereof# it should follo! that the !ife of a living Filipino annot be denied the same privilege. his is plain ommon sense and there is absolutely no evidene that the Legislature intended to treat them differently. ,s the la!s of our ountry# both substantive and proedural# stand today# there is no suh proedure ?a substitute for naturali/ation proeeding to enable the alien !ife of a Philippine iti/en to have the matter of her o!n iti/enship settled and established so that she may not have to be alled upon to prove it every time she has to perform an at or enter into a transation or business or eerise a right reserved only to Filipinos@# but suh is no proof that the iti/enship is not vested as of the date of marriage or the husband"s a>uisition of iti/enship# as the ase may be# for the truth is that the situation obtains even as to native-born Filipinos. 3very time the iti/enship of a person is material or indispensable in a 5udiial or administrative ase. :hatever the orresponding ourt or administrative authority deides therein as to suh iti/enship is generally not onsidered as res ad5udiata# hene it has to be threshed out again and again as the oasion may demand. Lau Yuen Yeung# !as delared to have beome a Filipino iti/en from and by virtue of her marriage to *oy Ya Lim Yao al as 3dilberto ,guinaldo Lim# a Filipino iti/en of 0 2anuary 1960. •