Philippine nationality law

Constitution of the Philippines Article IV: Citizenship
Constitutional Commission
Territorial extent	Philippines
Passed by	Constitutional plebiscite
Passed	February 2, 1987
Commenced	February 2, 1987[1]
Status: Current legislation

Philippine nationality law details the conditions by which a person is a national of the Philippines. The two primary pieces of legislation governing these requirements are the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines and the 1939 Revised Naturalization Law.

Any person born to at least one Filipino parent receives Philippine citizenship at birth. Foreign nationals may naturalize as Philippine citizens after meeting a minimum residence requirement (usually 10 years), acquiring real estate, demonstrating proficiency in either English or Spanish as well as a Philippine language, and fulfilling a good character requirement.

The Philippines was previously a territory of the United States and local residents were non-citizen U.S. nationals in addition to their status as Philippine citizens. During American rule, any person born in the country automatically received Philippine citizenship by birth regardless of the nationalities of their parents. Since independence, citizenship is generally acquired only by descent from Filipino parents.