AGUSTIN DE AUSTRIA, CHAN YUEN YING AND SY SUN KIN, MINOR, REPRESENTED IN THIS INSTANCE BY HIS MOTHER CHAN YUEN YING, PETITIONERS AND APPELLEES, VS. HON. AGAPITO CONCHU, IN HIS C…

De Austria versus Conchu

The Case

This is a petition for mandamus and prohibition filed by Chan Yuen Ying, her Filipino husband Agustin de Austria, and her minor son Sy Sun Kin against the Commissioner of Immigration. The petitioners sought to compel the cancellation of Chan Yuen Ying's Alien Certificate of Registration and to stop the deportation of her son, on the theory that she became a Philippine citizen by marrying a Filipino. The case matters because it fixes the rule on the citizenship of an alien woman who marries a Filipino: marriage alone does not naturalize her, and she must first show that she might herself be lawfully naturalized.

Procedural History

The petition for mandamus and prohibition with preliminary injunction was filed in the Court of First Instance of Manila. The trial court issued a temporary injunction restraining the arrest and deportation of Chan Yuen Ying and her son. After the parties entered into a stipulation of facts, the trial court rendered judgment granting the petition. It issued a writ of permanent injunction against the Commissioner, declared null and void the denial of the petition to cancel the alien registry, and ordered the Commissioner to cancel that registry. The Commissioner of Immigration appealed after his motion for reconsideration was denied, and the case reached the Supreme Court on appeal.

Facts

Chan Yuen Ying, a widow, and her minor son Sy Sun Kin, both citizens of the Republic of China, were admitted to the Philippines on November 16, 1960 as temporary visitors. Their stay was later extended up to April 24, 1962.

About a month before the extended stay expired, on March 20, 1962, Chan Yuen Ying married Agustin de Austria, a natural born Filipino citizen. Fifteen days later, on April 5, 1962, she petitioned the Commissioner of Immigration to cancel her Alien Certificate of Registration on the ground that she acquired Philippine citizenship upon her marriage.

On April 10, 1962, the Commissioner denied the petition, stating that her marriage to a Filipino did not automatically confer citizenship on her and that she must, in addition, possess all the qualifications for naturalization required by law. The petitioners then went to court. It was admitted that Chan Yuen Ying and her son did not possess all the qualifications required for naturalization, although a joint affidavit in the form prescribed by the Bureau of Immigration showed that she was not suffering from any of the disqualifications under the Revised Naturalization Law.

Issues

• Whether or not an alien woman who marries a Filipino citizen thereby becomes a Filipino upon proof merely that she lacks the disqualifications for naturalization, without showing that she possesses all the qualifications therefor.
• Whether or not the minor son Sy Sun Kin, who relies solely on his mother's claimed acquisition of citizenship by marriage, has himself remained an alien.

Applicable Provisions

Section 15 of the Revised Naturalization Law provides:

Section 15. Effect of the naturalization on wife and children. Any woman who is now or may hereafter be married to a citizen of the Philippines, and who might herself be lawfully naturalized shall be deemed a citizen of the Philippines.

The case turns on the meaning of the phrase "might herself be lawfully naturalized," which the Court reads as requiring compliance with both the qualifications and the disqualifications for naturalization.

Ruling

On the first issue, the Court ruled against the petitioners. It held that the phrase "might herself be lawfully naturalized" in Section 15 refers to the qualifications and disqualifications for naturalization enumerated in Sections 2 and 4 of the statute. Speaking through Justice Bengzon, the Court stated the rule thus:

The alien wife of a Filipino citizen must first show that she has all the qualifications required by Section 2 and none of the disqualifications enumerated in Section 4 of the Naturalization Law before she may be deemed a Philippine citizen.

The Court noted that in the earlier case of Choy King Tee versus Galang the provision was invoked after the alien spouse had himself become a Filipino citizen by naturalization. Here, Chan Yuen Ying married a Filipino only a month and four days before her scheduled stay expired. The Court found more reason to apply the rule, since there was ground to doubt whether her marriage was not taken with a view to avoid her deportation and that of her minor son.

On the second issue, the Court held that since the minor son relied merely on his mother's acquisition of Filipino citizenship by marriage, and that acquisition did not take place, he has likewise remained an alien.

Doctrine

An alien woman married to a Filipino citizen does not become a Filipino by the mere fact of marriage. Under Section 15 of the Revised Naturalization Law, she is deemed a citizen only if she "might herself be lawfully naturalized," which means she must show that she has all the qualifications required by Section 2 and none of the disqualifications enumerated in Section 4 of the Naturalization Law. Proof of lack of disqualifications alone is not enough. A minor child who derives his claim to citizenship solely from the mother's marital naturalization acquires nothing where the mother herself does not qualify.

Disposition

The Court reversed the judgment appealed from and dismissed the petition, without costs; the Commissioner of Immigration prevailed.

Remember This

The line to memorize is that the alien wife of a Filipino must show all the qualifications under Section 2 and none of the disqualifications under Section 4 before she is deemed a citizen. Examiners use this case on the effect of marriage on citizenship and on the meaning of "might herself be lawfully naturalized" in Section 15 of the Revised Naturalization Law.