S. No.

1849
H. No. 6517

^BpuMtc office pi{tltpptnes

Cangress nftlje piitlipputES
(^Bfr0(^amia

Congress

(^trsf JRgguiar^^Bsston

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-fifth

day of July, two thousand twenty-two.

[ Republic Act No. 11939

AN ACT FURTHER STRENGTHENING PROFESSIONALISM
AND PROMOTING THE CONTINUITY OF POLICIES
AND MODERNIZATION INITIATIVES IN THE ARMED
FORCES OF THE PHILIPPINES, AND AMENDING FOR
THIS PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 11709

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the

'Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section l. Section 2 of Republic Act No. 11709 is hereby

amended to read as follows;

“Sec. 2. Tour of Duty and Appointment of Key

Officers. —
(a) The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines shall have a maximum tour of duty of
three (3) consecutive years, which shall commence on
the date the appointment is signed, unless sooner
terminated by the President;
 (b) The following officers holding key positions in
the AFP shall have a maximum tour of duty of
two (2) consecutive years, which shall commence on
the date the appointment is signed, unless sooner
terminated by the President:

(1) Commanding General, Phihppine Army;

(2) Commanding General, Phihppine Air Force;

(3) Flag Officer In Command, Phihppine Navy; and

(4) Superintendent of the Philippine Military

Academy.

The key officers with maximum tour of duty

mentioned in Section 2(b) shall not be ehgible for any
position in the AFP unless promoted to the position of
Chief of Staff.

To be ehgible for appointment or promotion to the

grade of Brigadier General/Commodore (0-7) or higher,
except for positions under Section 2(a) and 2(b), the
officer must have at least one (1) year remaining of
active service before compulsory retirement.”

Sec. 2. Section 6 of Republic Act No. 11709 is hereby

amended to read as foUows:

“Sec. 6. Compulsory Retirement for Military

Personnel. —

(a) The following officers of the AFP shall be

compulsorily retired:

(1) Those in the grades of Second Lieutenant/Ensign

(0-1) to Lieutenant GeneraWice Admiral (0-9), upon
reaching the age of fifty-seven (57) years old, or upon
accumulation of thirty (30) years of satisfactory active
duty, whichever comes later;
 (2) The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines under Section 2(a) of this Act, upon
completion of the tour of duty or upon relief by
the President;

(3) Those occupying a key position under Section

2(b) of this Act, upon completion of the tour of duty,
or upon relief by the President; and

(4) Those commissioned under Presidential Decree

No. 1908, and those appointed in the Corps of
Professors upon reaching the age of sixty (60) years
old or completion of twenty (20) years of satisfactory
active duty, whichever comes later.

(b) An enlisted personnel shall be compulsorily

retired upon accumulation of at least thirty (30) years
of satisfactory active duty or upon reaching the age
of fifty-seven (57) years old, whichever comes later.”

Sec. 3. Section 9(a) of Republic Act No. 11709 is hereby

amended to read as follows:

“Sec. 9. Definition of Terms. — As used in this Act,

the following terms shall mean:

(a) Active Duty refers to the service or duty as a

commissioned officer, enlisted personnel, cadet,
probationary officer, trainee or draftee in the regular
force of the AFP: Provided, That the period of
cadetship as creditable service for foreign service
academy/foreign military training institutions shall
include the number of days/months/years of cadetship
prior to entry to such academy/institution and the
equivalent mandated period of the program instructions
of the training institution attended, to include the
required language course, if applicable.

X X X.”
 Sec. 4. Section 10, subsection (b), paragraphs (1) and (2)
of Republic Act No. 11709 is hereby amended to read as
follows;

“Sec. 10. Forced Attrition of Officers. - x x x.

(a) XXX.

(b) Maximum Tenure-In-Grade for Officers. —

(1) Generals/Flag Officers. - The maximum tenure

of officers in the grades of General/Flag Officer in the
AFP are hereby prescribed as follows:

Grade Maximum
Tenure-in-Grade

General/Admiral Three (3) years

(0-10)

Lieutenant General/ Three (3) years

Vice Admiral
(0-9)

Major General/ Three (3) years

Rear Admiral
(0-8)

Brigadier General/ Five (5) years

Commodore
(0-7)

(2) Officers. — The maximum tenure of officers

in the grades of Colonel, Lieutenant Colonel, Major,
and Captain, or their equivalent in the other services
in the AFP are hereby prescribed as follows:
 Grade Maximum
Tenure-in-Grade

Colonel/Captain (PN) Ten (10) years

(0-6)

Lieutenant Seven (7) years

Colonel/Commander (PN)
(0-5)

Major/Lieutenant Six (6) years

Commander (PN)
(0-4)

Captain/Lieutenant (PN) Six (6) years

(0-3)

Provided, That the President may lengthen the

tenure-in-grade of officers in the permanent grades of
Captain, Major, and Lieutenant Colonel, or their
equivalent, up to two (2) promotional cycles when
necessary, to maintain the desirable officer rank
structure and uphold the progressive professional
development of the officer corps.

X X X.”

Sec. 5. Section 15 of Repubhc Act No. 11709 is hereby

amended to read as follows:

“Sec. 15. Officer Grade Distribution. — The

Secretary of National Defense, in consultation with the
Armed Forces of the Phihppines, shall prescribe the
authorized number of officers in the active force in
each grade and in each major, technical or
administrative service and shall implement the gradual
increase or decrease in the number of officers in each
officer rank as part of, and in line with, the
Modernization Program of the AFP: Provided, That
such number shall not exceed the number in each
grade provided hereunder:

(1) One and twenty-five hundredths percent (1.25%)

in the General/Flag Officer grade based on the total
officer strength under the AFP Table of Organization;

(2) Six percent (6%) in the grade of Colonel/Captain

(PN) based on the total officer strength under the AFP
Table of Organization;

(3) Twelve percent (12%) in the grade of Lieutenant

Colonel/Commander (PN) based on the total officer
strength under the AFP Table of Organization;

(4) Eighteen percent (18%) in the grade of

Major/Lieutenant Commander (PN) based on the total
officer strength under the AFP Table of Organization;

(5) Twenty percent (20%) in the grade of

Captain/Lieutenant (PN) based on the total officer
strength under the AFP Table of Organization; and

(6) Forty-two and seventy-five hundredths percent

(42.75%) in the grades of First Lieutenant/Lieutenant
Junior Grade (PN) and Second Lieutenant/Ensign (PN)
based on the total officer strength under the AFP Table
of Organization.

Provided, further, That the AFP Table of

Organization of units of the active force shall be
adjusted in accordance with their respective missions
and officer requirements, and in accordance with rules
and regulations as the Secretary of National Defense
shall prescribe: Provided, furthermore. That in the
determination of the officer to enhsted personnel ratio,
 the mission requirement, capabilities, scope of
responsibility, technical nature of the position and task,
and equipment inventory of units shall be taken into
consideration: Provided, furthermore, That considering
the highly technical nature of the Air Force and the
Navy, they shall be allocated a higher officer to enhsted
personnel ratio: Provided, furthermore, That as far as
practicable, officers in the technical or administrative
services such as surgeon general, chief dental service
and chief nurse may be eligible for promotion to
General/Flag Officer grade: Provided, furthermore.
That the quota hmitation provided herein shall not
apply in the promotion to the rank of General/Flag
Officer of reserve officers in the inactive service:
Provided, finally. That if the actual number in a grade
is less than the number prescribed, the difference may
be apphed as an increase to the number prescribed in
a lower grade.”

Sec. 6. Application. - The provisions of this Act shall

also apply to the officers and enlisted personnel appointed
and/or promoted under Republic Act No. 11709 and other
pertinent laws.

Sec. 7. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The

Department of National Defense shall formulate the rules and
regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this Act
within thirty (30) days from its effectivity.

Sec. 8. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part

of this Act is declared unconstitutional or invalid, the
remaining parts or provisions not affected shall remain in full
force and effect.

Sec. 9. Repealing Clause. - Sections 3 and 11 of Repubhc

Act No. 11709 are hereby repealed. All laws, executive orders,
rules and regulations or parts thereof which are inconsistent
with the provisions of this Act are hereby amended or
repealed accordingly.
 Sec. 10. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15)
days after its pubhcation in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper
of general circulation.

Approved,

)INAND DflARTIN'G. RO? ALDEZ MIGUEL F. ZUBIRI

Speaker of the House President of the Senate
of Representatives

This Act, which is a consohdation of Senate Bill No. 1849

and House Bill No. 6517, was passed by the Senate of the
Philippines and the House of Representatives on March 22,
2023.

REGI^LD S. VELASCO NATO N. BA^TUG JR

Secretary General Secretary o/the Senate
House of Representatives

Approved: J 7 MAY 2023

FERDINAND ROMmLDEZ MARCOS JR.

President of the Philippines

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REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES