The short answer, from the Constitution and the Condominium Act:
The rules turn on citizenship, not nationality: the same limits apply to Americans, Koreans, Chinese, Australians and everyone else.
| Buyer | Condo unit | House | Land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign national (any nationality) | Yes, within the 40% cap | Yes, the building only; the land is leased | No, except as a legal heir when there is no will |
| Former natural-born Filipino, now a foreign citizen | Yes, within the 40% cap | Yes | Yes, limited: 1,000 sqm urban or 1 ha rural for a home; up to two lots; one limit per couple |
| Dual citizen (Republic Act 9225) | Yes | Yes | Yes, as a Filipino citizen, no limit |
| Foreign spouse of a Filipino | Yes, in the foreign spouse's own name, within the cap | Yes, the building | No: land is titled to the Filipino spouse alone |
| Company at least 60% Filipino-owned | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Answered directly, with the law behind each one.
No. The 1987 Constitution (Article XII, Section 7) allows private land to be transferred only to Filipino citizens and to companies that are at least 60% Filipino-owned. The rule is the same for every nationality.
The one exception is inheritance: a foreign national can receive land from a Filipino as a legal heir when there is no will. The Supreme Court has held that the exception does not cover land left by will (Ramirez v. Vda. de Ramirez, 1982).
Yes. A foreign national can buy a condo unit and hold the title in their own name, as long as foreign ownership in that building's condominium corporation stays within 40% (Condominium Act, Republic Act 4726, Section 5).
The title is a Condominium Certificate of Title (CCT) issued in the buyer's name. The land under the building belongs to the condominium corporation, which is why a foreigner can own the unit without owning land.
Foreign ownership in a condo project's condominium corporation may not exceed 40%; at least 60% must be Filipino. The Condominium Act voids any sale that would push foreign interest in the building's condominium corporation past the constitutional limit.
The cap is counted per project, not per developer or per floor, and it moves as units sell. Before paying a reservation fee, ask for the building's current foreign-ownership ratio.
Yes, with limits on land. A former natural-born Filipino who is now a foreign citizen can buy up to 1,000 square meters of urban land or one hectare of rural land for a home (Batas Pambansa 185), and up to 5,000 square meters urban or three hectares rural for business use (Republic Act 8179). Up to two lots in different cities or municipalities may be bought within one combined limit, and a married couple shares a single limit.
Condo units are open to former Filipinos on the same terms as any foreign national, within the 40% cap.
Yes, without limit. A former Filipino who reacquires citizenship under Republic Act 9225 owns land and property as a Filipino citizen, so the area limits for former Filipinos no longer apply.
Yes, under the same rules as every other foreign national: a condo unit within the 40% cap, a house without the land, or a long-term lease of the land. The law separates Filipino citizens from non-citizens and makes no exception for any nationality, and there is no reciprocity rule.
A foreign national may own the house but not the land under it. The usual route is to buy or build the house and lease the land: for a home, a lease of up to 25 years, renewable for another 25 (Presidential Decree 471).
The 99-year lease created by Republic Act 12252 in September 2025 applies only to foreign investors with a registered business venture, for that venture's purpose. It does not cover a family home.
A company can own land in the Philippines only if at least 60% of its capital is Filipino-owned. The same 60/40 split sets the condo cap above.
Using a Filipino nominee, relative or front company to hold land for a foreign national is a crime under the Anti-Dummy Law (Commonwealth Act 108), and the arrangement is void.
Yes, but only a condo unit in the foreign spouse's own name; land bought during the marriage is titled to the Filipino spouse alone, and the foreign spouse gains no ownership of it. A foreigner cannot own land through a spouse (Matthews v. Taylor, 2009), and the Supreme Court has ruled that the foreign spouse cannot later recover the money used to buy the land (Beumer v. Amores, 2012).
A condo unit is the exception: the foreign spouse can hold it in their own name, within the 40% cap.
Yes. Under the Philippine Retirement Authority's SRRV Classic visa, the required deposit can be put toward a condo unit worth at least US$50,000, or toward a lease of at least 25 years on a house and lot, townhouse or condo. The title carries a PRA annotation.
As of September 2026, the Classic deposit is US$15,000 (with a pension, age 50 and over), US$25,000 (with a pension, age 40 to 49), US$30,000 (no pension, 50 and over) or US$50,000 (no pension, 40 to 49). The visa never allows land ownership.
Not for land: no law or constitutional change has opened land ownership to foreign nationals. The one change since 2024 is Republic Act 12252 (September 2025), which lengthened leases for registered foreign business ventures to 99 years. The 2024 proposals to amend the Constitution did not touch the land rule and lapsed with the 19th Congress.
DMCI Homes sells condo units to foreign nationals within the 40% cap. What is different from a Filipino buyer:
Every statute and decision above was checked against its primary text in September 2026.
This page summarizes Philippine law for buyers; it is not legal advice. Land limits, inheritance and corporate ownership turn on your own facts, so confirm your case with a Philippine lawyer before you sign.