May a married woman revert to use of maiden name in passport during subsistence of marriage

Facts: Virgie B. Mora is married to Francisco R. Rallonza. In her passport, the following entries appeared: “Rallonza” as her surname, “Maria Virginia” as her given name, and “Remo” as her middle name. She applied for the renewal of her passport with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) office in Chicago, Illinois, USA with a request to revert to her maiden name and surname (Virgie B. Mora) in the replacement passport. The DFA denied the request.

 

Ruling: RA 8239, the Philippine Passport Act of 1996, and its implementing rules and regulations do not prohibit a married woman from using her maiden name in her passport. The DFA in fact allows a married woman who applies for a passport for the first time to use her maiden name. In the case of renewal of passport, a married woman may either adopt her husband’s surname or continuously use her maiden name. However, once a married woman opts to adopt her husband’s surname in her passport, she may not revert to the use of her maiden name except in cases of: (1) death of husband, (2) divorce, (3) annulment, or (4) declaration of nullity of marriage. Since Virgie’s marriage to her husband subsists, she may not resume her maiden name in the replacement passport (Remo vs. Secretary of Foreign Affairs, G.R. 169202, March 5, 2010).