Dear PAO,

I have been married to my husband for three years already. When we were still dating, he would always reluctantly kiss me and avoid premarital sex with me. After two years, we decided to get married. However, he kept on refusing to have sex with me; hence, we never really consummated our marriage. One day, I accidentally discovered his collection of naked and half-naked men’s magazines hidden in his belongings. I confronted him, and he admitted that he is homosexual. Thus, I am writing this letter to inquire whether I could file an annulment against him because of his sexuality? Had I known that he was homosexual, I would not have married him.

Astrid

Dear Astrid,

Based on your narration, you may file an annulment case against your husband pursuant to Article 45 of the Family Code, provided you left your husband after discovering homosexuality.

The said provision states that:

“Art. 45. A marriage may be annulled for any of the following causes, existing at the time of the marriage: xxx

“(3) That the consent of either party was obtained by fraud, unless such party afterwards, with full knowledge of the facts constituting the fraud, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife xxx”

Corollary thereto, Article 46 of the Family Code enumerates the circumstances which constitute fraud for the purpose of annulling a marriage, and it includes “[c]oncealment of drug addiction, habitual alcoholism or homosexuality or lesbianism existing at the time of the marriage.”

At the core, it is the concealment of homosexuality that nullifies the marriage and not the sexual orientation per se. As stressed in the recent case of Salva-Roldan v. Roldan and the Republic of the Philippines, GR 268109, March 3, 2025, the Supreme Court, speaking through Associate Justice Antonio Kho Jr., “it is the concealment of homosexuality constitutive of fraud that serves as a valid ground to annul a marriage.”

Based on the foregoing, your husband’s lack of intimacy and indifference toward you, such that you never consummated your marriage, and your recent discovery of his hidden collection of naked and half-naked men’s magazines, coupled by his admission that he is homosexual only after you confronted him, could constitute intentional concealment of homosexuality. Indeed, if you had not discovered his hidden collection and confronted him, your husband would have continued to conceal his homosexuality and deceive you.

You entered the marriage in good faith hoping to build a family of your own, only to discover that it may never happen because your husband could not fulfill his marital obligations due to his sexual orientation, which he concealed from you. In as much as the Constitution regards marriage as the foundation of the family and an inviolable social institution, it cannot be denied that in your situation, your marriage never attained its essential purpose.

In relation to this, pursuant to Article 47 of the Family Code, the action for annulment of marriage on the ground of fraud must be filed by the injured party within five years after the discovery of the fraud.

We hope that we were able to answer your queries. This advice was solely based on the facts you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.

Thank you for your trust and support.

Editor’s note: Dear PAO is a daily column of the Public Attorney’s Office. Questions for Chief Acosta may be sent to [email protected]