October 6, 1999
DAR OPINION NO. 52-99
MR. MANUEL C . TAN
# Sungka St. Pleasantville Subd.
Talipapa, Quezon City
Dear Mr. Tan:
This refers to your letter of 17 August 1999 requesting for clarification on certain provisions of Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Administrative Order No. 08, Series of 1995, concerning the rules and procedures governing the transferrability of lands awarded to agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 27, as amended by Executive Order No. 228 and Republic Act No. 6657 wherein you would like to be clarified on the following issues:
1. May an ARB legally and validly sell the land awarded to him without prior DAR clearance?
2. When is the DAR clearance supposed to be obtained — before or after the sale?
3. If the DAR clearance is supposed to be obtained after the sale, what would be the effect on a consummated sale between an ARB and his buyer should the DAR, for some reason, disapprove and withhold its clearance for the transfer of the awarded land?
4. If an ARB sells the land awarded to him without prior DAR clearance, would he and his buyer be committing any crime or violating any law? What would be the crime/s committed or the law/s violated? What, if any, would be the other consequences of such a sale?
Anent your first query in relation to your second query, the answer is in the negative. Item II.1 of DAR Administrative Order No. 08, Series of 1995 clearly provides that lands awarded to ARBs pursuant to either P.D. No. 27 or R.A. No. 6657 may be transferred and registered by the Register of Deeds only after the issuance of a DAR Clearance. The issuance of a DAR Clearance is therefore an essential requisite before a valid transfer could be effected. Otherwise, the sale or transfer is void.
Anent your third query, the issuance of a DAR clearance does not validate what is otherwise an invalid sale or transaction. Rather, it serves as a safeguard that only valid transactions pursuant to P.D. No. 27 and R.A. No. 6657 (Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law) could be registered to foreclose possible circumvention of agrarian laws.
Anent your fourth query, the transfer from the original awardee to third person presupposes that the same was made with prior consent of the DAR. Absent such consent taints the transfer with invalidity. Section 74 of R.A. No. 6657 provides for penalties in cases of willful violations of the provisions thereof, quote:
"Any person who knowingly or willfully violates the provisions of this Act shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one (1) month to not more than three (3) years or a fine of not less than one thousand pesos (P1,000.00) and not more than fifteen thousand pesos (P15,000.00), or both, at the discretion of the court."
We hope to have clarified the matters with you.
Very truly yours,
(SGD.) DANILO T. LARA
Undersecretary for Legal Affairs, and Policy and Planning
Copy furnished:
Conrado S. Navarro
Undersecretary
FOSSO
This Department