PROCEDURES IN APPLYING FOR PROBATION

1. The offender or his counsel files a petition with the convicting court.
2. The court determines convicts qualifications and notifies the prosecutor of the filing of the
petition.
3. The prosecutor submits his comments on such application within 10 days from receipt of the
notification.
4. If petitioner is qualified, his application is referred to the probation officer for post-sentence
investigation.
5. The post-sentence investigation report (PSIR) is submitted by the probation officer to the court
within 60 days.
6. The court grants or denies the petition for probation within 15 days upon receipt of the PSIR.

PROCEDURES OF PROBATION
A convicted defendant must apply for probation and once granted, must comply with the
conditions imposed by the court and the supervision of the probation officer; otherwise,
the defendant will have to serve the original sentence. The agency in charge of the
administration of the probation system is the Probation Administration under the
Department of Justice. Probation applies to all but the following types of offenders:
FIRST those sentenced to a maximum imprisonment of more than 6 years, SECOND
those convicted of any offense against national security, THIRD those previously
convicted of an offense and punished by imprisonment of not less than 1 month and 1 day
or a fine of not less than 200 pesos, FOURTH those who have already been on probation,
and FIFTH those already serving sentences at the time the Probation law became
applicable. The period of probation shall not exceed 2 years for a defendant sentenced to
a term of imprisonment of not more than 1 year and 6 years for all other defendants.
Probationary supervision aims at implementing the conditions in the court order and
facilitating the rehabilitation of the offender through corrective guidance and the use of
community resources. A probation plan is based on a thorough analysis of the offender's
background and needs. No references are cited.