Compiled from an official source version. Later amendments or repeals may not be reflected; the official text prevails.・Read the official text ↗
Time Limit to Apply for Lease.
SEC. 34. Time Limit to Apply for Lease.- Application for lease of mining claims shall be filed with the Director within two (2) years from the date of the recording thereof. Failure to file the said application within this period automatically constitutes absolute abandonment of the mining claims, and the land embraced therein shall be open to location by qualified persons other than the original locator, his heirs, successors and assigns.
Application for Lease for Contiguous Claims.
SEC. 35. Application for Lease for Contiguous Claims. - A single application for lease may be filed and a single lease may be granted covering adjoining or contiguous mining claims belonging to the same claim owner: Provided, That the total area under a single lease application shall not exceed the maximum number of hectares that may be held or leased in any one province by the applicant.
Application Form.
SEC. 36. Application Form. - All applications for mining lease shall be in the prescribed form and under oath, it shall state, among others, the full name, address, citizenship, civil status of the applicant, his place and date of birth. If the applicant is a partnership or corporation, the application shall be accompanied by (1) certified copy of the duly registered articles of partnership or incorporation, (2) a certified copy of the duly registered by-laws, (3) a statement under oath certifying to the percentage of ownership of the partnership or corporation by Filipinos and aliens, and (4) a certified list of the officers, directors and partners. There should be attached to each application a report prepared by a duly licensed geologist or mining engineer to the effect that the mining claim shows adequate mineralization.
SEC. 37. Qualification of Lease Applicant. -In addition to the qualifications required of a locator, an applicant for a mining lease shall present proof of the availability of technical competence and financial resources sufficient to develop the claim applied for. The regulations shall prescribe in detail the additional qualifications herein required.
SEC. 38. Application Forms Part of Lease Contract. All statements in the application and those submitted in support thereof shall be considered as conditions of the lease. Any falsehood made in these statements or omissions which may alter, change or affect substantially the facts set forth therein shall constitute sufficient cause for denial of the application or the cancellation of the lease granted.
Publication of Lease Application.
SEC. 39. Publication of Lease Application. - If the Director finds the application in order, he shall cause the publication of the notice of the application once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks in two (2) newspapers, one of general circulation published in Manila either in Pilipino or English and another published in the municipality or province where the mining claim is situated, if there be such newspaper, otherwise in the newspaper published in the nearest municipality or province. The Director shall also cause posting of the said notice on the bulletin board of the Bureau of Mines for two (2) consecutive weeks and shall order the applicant to post for the same period the notice and a copy of the approved plan of the mining claims on the bulletin boards of the municipal building of the municipality, and the mines regional office where the mining claim is located. Immediately after the expiration of the period of publication, the applicant shall file with the Director an affidavit attesting to the fact that the required notices and approved plan have been posted at the required places and during the specified period.
SEC. 40. Issuance of Mining Lease Contract. -If no adverse claim is filed within fifteen (15) days after the first date of publication, it shall be conclusively presumed that no such adverse claim exists and thereafter no objection from third parties to the grant of the lease shall be heard, except protest pending at the time of publication, and the Secretary shall approve and issue the corresponding mining lease contract after the area has been verified as to its mineralization and the due execution of the lease survey, which contract shall be for a period not exceeding twenty-five (25) years, renewable under such terms and conditions as may be provided by law for another period not exceeding twenty-five (25) years. Upon the expiration of the lease, the operation of the mine may be undertaken by the Government through one of its agencies or through a qualified independent contractor. The contract for the operation of a mine by an independent contractor shall be awarded to the highest bidder in a public bidding held after due publication of the notice thereof: Provided, That the lessee shall have the right to equal the highest bid upon reimbursement of all reasonable expenses of the highest bidder.
Withdrawal from Lease.
SEC. 41. Withdrawal from Lease. - The lessee may, at any time during the life of the lease, apply for the cancellation of the lease contract due to force majeure or for other causes which render continued mining operations no longer profitable.
Mining Lease on Private Land.
SEC. 42. Mining Lease on Private Land. - A mining lease may be granted on mining claims located on private lands: Provided, That the applicant shall submit a written authority of the landowner. If the landowner refuses or fails to enter into an agreement with the applicant, the latter shall have the remedy provided for in Section 12 of this Decree.
Maximum Lease Area Allowed.
SEC. 43. Maximum Lease Area Allowed. - The maximum area of mining claims which may be leased shall be as follows: (1) In any one province: (a) To Individuals, Five Hundred Hectares; (b) To Mining Partnerships or Corporations, Five Thousand Hectares; (2) In the entire Philippines: (a) To Individuals, One Thousand Hectares; (b) To Mining Partnerships or Corporations, Ten Thousand Hectares. The foregoing provisions of this section notwithstanding, the Director with the approval of the Secretary, may allow an applicant to lease a larger area not exceeding 10,000 hectares in any one province, depending upon the nature of the deposit, the kind of minerals located, and other circumstances inherent in the operation of the mining claim justifying the grant.
Mining Lease Rights.
SEC. 44. Mining Lease Rights. - A mining lease contract shall grant to the lessee, his heirs, successors and assigns the right to extract all mineral deposits found on or underneath the surface of his mining claims covered by the lease, continued vertically downward; to remove, process, and otherwise utilize the mineral deposits for his own benefit; and to use the lands covered by the lease for the purpose or purposes specified therein: Provided, however, That the Secretary shall reserve the right to grant and use easements in, over, through, or upon the said claims as may be needed by other claim owners or lessees for right-of-way to enable them to have access to and/or facilitate the operation of, their mining claims: Provided, further, That in case of conflict of interest between claim owners for this purpose the Director is hereby authorized to mediate: Provided, furthermore, That in granting any lease under this Decree the Government reserves the right to lease, or otherwise dispose of the surface of the lands embraced within such lease which is not needed by the lessee in extracting and removing the mineral deposits from his mining claims, or in the beneficiation of the ores extracted therefrom: Provided, finally, That a lessee may on his own or through the Government, enter into a service contract with a qualified domestic or foreign contractor for the exploration, development and exploitation of his claims and the processing and marketing of the product thereof, subject to the rules and regulations that shall be promulgated by the Director, with the approval of the Secretary, and on the condition that if the service contractor will provide the necessary financial and technical resources, he may be paid from the proceeds of the operation not exceeding forty per centum (40%) thereof. Service contracts shall be approved by the Secretary upon recommendation of the Director.
Laws and Regulations Considered Part of Lease Contract.
SEC. 45. Laws and Regulations Considered Part of Lease Contract. - All mining lease contracts shall contain a provision that the lessee shall comply with the provisions of this Decree and with all the rules and regulations promulgated concerning the safe operation and sanitary upkeep of the mines as well as pollution control laws and regulations.
Termination of Lease Rights.
SEC. 46. Termination of Lease Rights. - Immediately after a mining lease contract is cancelled or otherwise terminated, the Director shall cause the same to be entered in the mining register and a notice thereof shall be posted on the bulletin board of the Bureau of Mines, and the lands covered thereby shall thereupon be open to location and lease by other qualified persons.
Removal of Improvements.
SEC. 47. Removal of Improvements. - The lessee shall within one (1) year from the abandonment, termination or cancellation of the lease, remove all improvements on the mining premises, except roads and bridges; otherwise said improvements shall become the property of the Government.
Provisions on this page are reproduced verbatim from official open data. See the attribution line.
Source: Supreme Court E-Library, Republic of the Philippines. Philippine laws are public documents (works of the government).