GR L 5874; (December, 1910) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-5874
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff-appellant, vs. CHAN SAM, defendant-appellee.
December 9, 1910
FACTS:
Chan Sam, a Chinese person, unlawfully entered the Philippine Islands as a laborer sometime in 1902 or 1903 without the knowledge or consent of immigration officers. He continued working as a laborer until January 1907. He failed to obtain the mandatory certificate of registration prescribed for Chinese persons under Section 5 of Act No. 702 within the time limit, offering no satisfactory excuse. He was arrested on September 23, 1909, for deportation as an unregistered Chinese laborer. Chan Sam alleged that from January 1907 until his arrest, he had ceased being a laborer and was engaged in buying and selling merchandise in his own name. The trial court sustained his contention that he had changed his occupation to that of a merchant.
ISSUE:
Can an unregistered Chinese laborer who unlawfully entered the Philippine Islands and failed to obtain a certificate of registration avoid deportation by changing his occupation from a laborer to a member of a privileged class (e.g., merchant) before a deportation order is entered against him?
RULING:
No. The Supreme Court ruled that an unregistered Chinese laborer who has become subject to deportation for failure to comply with the provisions of Section 4 of Act No. 702 cannot be purged of this liability merely because he changed his occupation to that of one of the privileged classes after the liability had attached.
The Court held that allowing such a change in status to negate the liability for unlawful entry and non-registration would set a premium on the unlawful evasion of immigration laws. Chan Sam’s initial unlawful entry and failure to register rendered his residence unlawful. An unlawful resident cannot lawfully assume the status of a merchant, as only a lawful status can confer the privileges accorded to merchants. His liability to deportation continues as a result of this unlawful residence, even if he ceases to be a laborer in fact.
Therefore, the Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the Court of First Instance and directed the lower court to enter the proper order of deportation against Chan Sam.