Republic of the Philippines

Congress of the Philippines

Metro Manila
Tenth Congress

Republic Act No. 8294

June 6, 1997

AN ACT AMENDING THE PROVISIONS OF PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1866, AS AMENDED,

ENTITLED "CODIFYING THE LAWS ON ILLEGAL/UNLAWFUL POSSESSION, MANUFACTURE,
DEALING IN, ACQUISITION OR DISPOSITION OF FIREARMS, AMMUNITION OR EXPLOSIVES
OR INSTRUMENTS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF FIREARMS, AMMUNITION OR
EXPLOSIVES, AND IMPOSING STIFFER PENALTIES FOR CERTAIN VIOLATIONS THEREOF,
AND FOR RELEVANT PURPOSES."
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled::
Section 1. Sec. 1 Presidential Decree No. 1866, as amended, is hereby further amended to read as
follows:
"Sec. 1. Unlawful manufacture, sale, acquisition, disposition or possession of firearms or
ammunition or instruments used or intended to be used in the manufacture of firearms or
ammunition. The penalty of prision correccional in its maximum period and a fine of not
less than Fifteen thousand pesos (P15,000) shall be imposed upon any person who shall
unlawfully manufacture, deal in, acquire, dispose, or possess any low powered firearm, such
as rimfire handgun, .380 or .32 and other firearm of similar firepower, part of firearm,
ammunition, or machinery, tool or instrument used or intended to be used in the manufacture
of any firearm or ammunition: Provided, That no other crime was committed.
"The penalty of prision mayor in its minimum period and a fine of Thirty thousand pesos
(P30,000) shall be imposed if the firearm is classified as high powered firearm which
includes those with bores bigger in diameter than .38 caliber and 9 millimeter such as caliber
.40, .41, .44, .45 and also lesser calibered firearms but considered powerful such as caliber .
357 and caliber .22 center-fire magnum and other firearms with firing capability of full
automatic and by burst of two or three: Provided, however, That no other crime was
committed by the person arrested.
"If homicide or murder is committed with the use of an unlicensed firearm, such use of an
unlicensed firearm shall be considered as an aggravating circumstance.
"If the violation of this Sec. is in furtherance of or incident to, or in connection with
the crime of rebellion or insurrection, sedition, or attempted coup d'etat, such violation shall
be absorbed as an element of the crime of rebellion, or insurrection, sedition, or attempted
coup d'etat.

"The same penalty shall be imposed upon the owner, president, manager, director or other
responsible officer of any public or private firm, company, corporation or entity, who shall
willfully or knowingly allow any of the firearms owned by such firm, company, corporation or
entity to be used by any person or persons found guilty of violating the provisions of the
preceding paragraphs or willfully or knowingly allow any of them to use unlicensed firearms
or firearms without any legal authority to be carried outside of their residence in the course of
their employment.
"The penalty of arresto mayor shall be imposed upon any person who shall carry any
licensed firearm outside his residence without legal authority therefor."
Section 2. Sec. 3 of Presidential Decree No. 1866, as amended, is hereby further amended to read
as follows:
"Sec. 3. Unlawful manufacture, sale, acquisition, disposition or possession of explosives.
The penalty of prision mayor in its maximum period to reclusion temporal and a fine of not
less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) shall be imposed upon any person who shall
unlawfully manufacture, assemble, deal in, acquire, dispose or possess hand grenade(s),
rifle grenade(s), and other explosives, including but not limited to 'pillbox,' 'molotov cocktail
bombs,' 'fire bombs,' or other incendiary devices capable of producing destructive effect on
contiguous objects or causing injury or death to any person.
"When a person commits any of the crimes defined in the Revised Penal Code or special
laws with the use of the aforementioned explosives, detonation agents or incendiary devices,
which results in the death of any person or persons, the use of such explosives, detonation
agents or incendiary devices shall be considered as an aggravating circumstance.
"If the violation of this Sec. is in furtherance of, or incident to, or in connection with the crime
of rebellion, insurrection, sedition or attempted coup d'etat, such violation shall be absorbed
as an element of the crimes of rebellion, insurrection, sedition or attempted coup d'etat.
"The same penalty shall be imposed upon the owner, president, manager, director or other
responsible officer of any public or private firm, company, corporation or entity, who shall
willfully or knowingly allow any of the explosives owned by such firm, company, corporation
or entity, to be used by any person or persons found guilty of violating the provisions of the
preceding paragraphs."
Section 3. Sec. 5 of Presidential Decree No. 1866, as amended, is hereby further amended to read
as follows:
"Sec. 5. Tampering of firearm's serial number. The penalty of prision correccional shall be
imposed upon any person who shall unlawfully tamper, change, deface or erase the serial
number of any firearm."
Section 4. Sec. 6 of Presidential Decree No. 1866, as amended, is hereby further amended to read
as follows:
"Sec. 6. Repacking or altering the composition of lawfully manufactured explosives. The
penalty of prision correccional shall be imposed upon any person who shall unlawfully
repack, alter or modify the composition of any lawfully manufactured explosives."

Section 5. Coverage of the Term Unlicensed Firearm. The term unlicensed firearm shall
include:
1) firearms with expired license; or
2) unauthorized use of licensed firearm in the commission of the crime.
Section 6. Rules and regulations. The Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior
and Local Government shall jointly issue, within ninety (90) days after the approval of this Act, the
necessary rules and regulations pertaining to the administrative aspect of the provisions hereof,
furnishing the Committee on Public Order and Security and the Committee on Justice and Human
Rights of both Houses of Congress copies of such rules and regulations within thirty (30) days from
the promulgation hereof.
Section 7. Separability clause. If, for any reason, any Sec. or provision of this Act is declared to
be unconstitutional or invalid, the other Sec.s or provisions thereof which are not affected thereby
shall continue to be in full force and effect.
Section 8. Repealing clause. All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or parts thereof
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
Section 9. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days following its publication in
the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.
Approved: June 6, 1997.

R.A. No. 8294 -- Illegal Possession of Firearm

Started with R.A. No. 54. The penalty was only arresto mayor. During his regime, Pres. Marcos
ammended it by passing P.D. 1866.
The decree set the new penalty from arresto mayor to reclusion temporal in its maximum period (17 yrs.
and 1 day - 20 yrs.) to reclusion perpetua (20 yrs. and 1 day - 40 yrs.). Furthermore, if the unlicensed
firearm was used in the commission of the crime of murder or homicide, penalty is death.
The offender, however, could be tried for both crimes - Illegal Possession of Firearm and
Murder/Homicide - and still it would not constitute double jeopardy. There was also no distinction made
as to the caliber of the weapon. Whether it is .22, .35, .45, high-caliber or low-caliber, the penalty is the
same RECLUSION TEMPORAL max to RECLUSION PERPETUA.
Robin Padilla was sentenced to 17 yrs. and 1 day to 21 yrs. The Indeterminate Sentence Law did not
apply so no possibility of parole. No probation either, and no mitigating circumstance, not even if the
offender pleaded "guilty."
Q: If the firearm was licensed but the same is already expired?
A: It is the same as possessing an unlicensed firearm.
Q: How is a firearm obtained?
A: File an application at the Firearms and Explosives Office. If you are a member of the police force, you
already have the "privilege" to carry a firearm. There are two separate licenses, one for the purpose of
keeping a licensed firearm at home and one for carrying it outside. The order required for the latter is
often termed as the "mission order."
Q: If your licensed firearm is only for home use and you are caught carrying it outside, are you liable
under this law?
A: Yes, you're liable for carrying a firearm without authority.
Q: Can Illegal Possession of Firearms be complexed by Murder or Homicide?
A: In the case of People v. Barros, Justice Laurence Regalado said that under P.D. 1866, two kinds of
crimes could be charged -- that of Illegal Possession of Firearm and Murder or Homicide. It would not
constitute double jeopardy. However, if the law already punishes the act (Murder or Homicide) with
death, the highest penalty under the law, it would be useless to punish the accused by another penalty for
the other crime, which is Illegal Possession. The Supreme Court thus ruled, en banc, that there is only one
crime - that of Murder or Homicide aggravated with the use of unlicensed firearm.
Later on, in a separate case of People v. Quijado, Justice Davide overturned Justice Regalado's ruling, by
stating that the two crimes are under two separate laws. Murder or Homicide is governed by the Revised
Penal Code while Illegal Possession is under Special Penal Laws. One crime cannot be absorbed into the

other because the two are distinct and separate from each other. Besides, one is not barred from making
two separate charges.
The issue became moot when Congress passed R.A. 8294.
Under the new law, several new distinctions were made, including the caliber of the weapon. For lowpowered weapons, the penalty is only prision correccional (6 mos. and 1 day - 6 yrs.), which means that
the offender can avail of the benefits of probation. If it is a high-powered gun, the measurement of the
ring exceeds 9mm, the penalty is prision mayor (6 yrs. and 1 day - 12 yrs.).
Q: Are air rifles covered under this law?
A: There are air rifles that can be converted into .22 caliber rifles, in which case, it is covered under the
law.
Q: Under the new law, are there still two separate crimes of Murder or Homicide and Illegal Possession?
A: No. R.A. No. 8294 provides that if the unlicensed firearm is used in the commission of any of the acts
under the Revised Penal Code or special laws, possession is considered as an aggravated circumstance.
The crime therefore is Murder or Homicide aggravated with the use of unlicensed firearm, and the penalty
is death.
Q: The firearm is licensed but you are not the owner. Liable?
A: Yes, because the holder of the license is only the owner of the firearm.
Q: Security guards do not apply for license. Are they liable?
A: Not liable if the agency has a license. What the security guard holds, therefore, is not the actual license
but an authority from the agency that he works for and that has a license. The rule is that these firearms
are restricted to the designated posts of the guards. They could not be brought home. Otherwise, it would
constitute a violation of the law. This is true even if the guard did not intend to bring home the gun. Under
the Special Penal Laws, intention is immaterial.
Q: There are instances where the agency will only secure licenses for three guns and then go ahead and
distribute six guns to six different guards, changing only the serial numbers of each gun to match the
serial numbers in the licenses. Who is liable - the agency or the security gun?
A: A distinction must be made. If the security guard is aware that he is carrying an unlicensed firearm,
then he can be charged with the crime. If not, the other two possible offenders are the owner of the
company or the manager of the agency.
An employee is entitled to assume that his employer had the requisite license to possess the firearm.
Q: How many guns is a person allowed?
A: Usually two - one long caliber and one short. Long caliber weapons are usually just issued to the
military.

Q: Who issues the license?

A: Only the President has the authority to issue a license, but his power is delegated to the Chief of the
PNP. If your license was not issued by the PNP Chief, then that license is invalid.

NOTA BENE:

There is no such thing as a complex crime of Illegal Possession of Firearm with Homicide.

There is only one crime, but aggravated (Justice Regalado's ruling).

If you are a member of a gun club, the club will be the one who will process everything for you and you
will only receive the gun.