QUEZON City – The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) is warning the public to desist from buying farmlands awarded to agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) under pain of being invalidated unless the agency issues a transfer clearance for the farm lot that is the subject of a deed of sale.
Undersecretary for Legal Affairs Office (LAO) Luis Meinrado Pangulayan stressed that any contracts of sale involving farmlots awarded to a farmer-beneficiary under the government’s land reform program are invalid if they were found to have been consummated without first securing DAR Transfer Clearance.
“Without the DAR Transfer Clearance, the contract of sale involving a CARP-covered farm lot is invalid,” Pangulayan said.
Pangulayan explained that the transfer clearance refers to a document that certifies that the farmer-beneficiary has met the three major conditions, the most notable among them is the 10-year holding period during which he maintains full possession and control and continues tilling the farm lot awarded to him.
“The 10-year holding period starts from the time the farmer-beneficiary received the Certificate of Land Ownership Award and gained full possession and control of the farm lot,” Pangulayan said.
The two other conditions are the full payment of the annual amortization for 30 years and the payment of real estate tax and other government fees, he added.
The DAR LAO undersecretary cautioned would-be buyer to be mindful of the size of lot he or she is already possessing or buying since the law allows a Filipino citizen to own a maximum of only five hectares of farmlot.
“Anything in excess of the five-hectare limit will be placed under the coverage of the government’s land reform program,” Pangulayan said.(DAR)
