Answer
A small claims case is a purely civil action for the payment or reimbursement of a sum of money not exceeding One Million Pesos (₱1,000,000.00), exclusive of interest and costs, filed before the first-level courts (the Metropolitan and Municipal Trial Courts). This threshold was set by the Rules on Expedited Procedures in the First Level Courts, approved by the Supreme Court En Banc on 1 March 2022 and effective 11 April 2022, which raised it from the earlier, lower limit.
The small claims threshold is fixed by a Supreme Court rule (A.M. No. 08-8-7-SC, as amended), not by statute. Because the claim must be purely for a sum of money, cases that seek other relief — such as recovery of possession or damages beyond a money debt — do not qualify as small claims.