G.R. No. L-20716 June 22, 1965
AGUSTIN DE AUSTRIA, CHAN YUEN YING and SY SUN KIN, minor, represented by his mother CHAN YUEN YING, petitioners-appellees, vs. HON. AGAPITO CONCHU, in his capacity as Commissioner of Immigration, respondent-appellant.

FACTS

Chan Yuen Ying and her minor son, Sy Sun Kin, citizens of the Republic of China, were admitted to the Philippines as temporary visitors on November 16, 1960, with their stay extended up to April 24, 1962. On March 20, 1962, about a month before the expiration of their stay, Chan Yuen Ying married Agustin de Austria, a natural-born Filipino citizen. On April 5, 1962, she petitioned the Commissioner of Immigration to cancel her Alien Certificate of Registration, claiming she acquired Philippine citizenship through the marriage. The Commissioner denied the petition on April 10, 1962, stating that marriage to a Filipino citizen does not automatically confer Philippine citizenship and that she must also possess all qualifications for naturalization. The petitioners (Chan Yuen Ying, her husband, and her minor son) filed a petition for mandamus and prohibition with preliminary injunction in the Court of First Instance of Manila to compel the cancellation of the Alien Certificate of Registration and to stop deportation. The trial court granted the petition, ordering the Commissioner to cancel the alien registry and enjoining deportation. The Commissioner appealed.

ISSUE

Whether an alien woman who marries a Filipino citizen automatically becomes a Filipino citizen, or if she must prove she possesses all the qualifications and none of the disqualifications for naturalization under the Revised Naturalization Law.

RULING

The Supreme Court reversed the trial court’s judgment and dismissed the petitioners’ petition. The Court held that under Section 15 of the Revised Naturalization Law, which states that any woman married to a Filipino citizen “who might herself be lawfully naturalized shall be deemed a citizen of the Philippines,” the alien wife must prove 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 Filipino citizen. This ruling follows the precedent set in Choy King Tee vs. Galang. Since it was admitted that Chan Yuen Ying did not possess all the qualifications for naturalization, she did not acquire Philippine citizenship through her marriage. Consequently, her minor son, Sy Sun Kin, who relied solely on his mother’s alleged acquisition of citizenship, also remained an alien. The Court also noted the timing of the marriage, occurring shortly before the expiration of her authorized stay, raised doubt about its purpose to avoid deportation.