Can You Own the Lake or River Near Your Property?

Do You Have Legal Rights Over Bodies of Water Within Your Property?

People are curious whether it’s possible to own a lake, river, or any waters within or near their property in the Philippines. If you’re one of them, this is a good topic to discuss because not every Filipino is aware of the certain limitations of owning a piece of land or property in the country. So, can you own any bodies of water that’s located in your property? Why or why not? Read and learn how to go about this legal concern based on our national law on property.

Inalienable and Indisposable Land of Public Domain

First things first, let’s talk about the meaning of inalienable and indisposable land of public domain according to Philippine laws. Fundamentally, our law regarding this matter is very simple and straightforward. When we say “waters” like river, lake, and stream, these are all categorized under inalienable and indisposable land of public domain. Meaning, they are owned by the state, including the waters and the riverbed underneath.
Inalienable refers to areas or bodies of water that cannot be transferred. On the other hand, indisposable also means that they can’t be given or transferred to another owner. Therefore, even if you see in your land title that there’s a portion of a river or lake in your property, that doesn’t mean that you own that part. Again, the riverbed or land underneath cannot be obtained by a private individual or any Filipino.
These bodies of water are for everyone, for all Filipinos who want to use it. So no one can really say that they own the river or lake within or near their property. Technically, it belongs to the state and not to anyone owning the property. A simple explanation for this is that the river or stream cannot be susceptible or subject of appropriation since it is under the inalienable and indisposable category by the government.

Are All "Waters" Property of the State?

Rivers, lakes, streams, and other similar bodies of water are always the property of the state. If your neighbor is claiming that they own the river near them, that is a false claim. No one has the right to say any of these waters belong to them even if the title says so. So the next time you see a lake or stream, remember that they cannot be owned by anyone based on Philippine property laws.

Final Thoughts

Now that you know these bodies of water are owned by the state, you cannot claim that you own the river in your property nor your neighbor can say they own the lake near their land. If you have questions regarding legal claims on Philippine properties, you can message us on REALS.PH website or Facebook page. You may also check out our property listings, including house and lot for sale in Baguio City and other prime locations outside Manila.