Everything

php

[VOTE] Deprecate returning values from construct() and destruct()

php.internals

Tim Düsterhus

78 days ago

Hi

I just opened the vote on “Deprecate returning values from __construct()
and __destruct()”.

RFC: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/deprecate-return-value-from-construct
Discussion: https://news-web.php.net/php.internals/130808

There is a single primary vote to cast. Voting closes 2026-06-29
14:00:00 UTC.

Best regards
Tim Düsterhus

Kamil Tekiela

78 days ago

On Mon 15 Jun 2026, 15:09 Tim Düsterhus, <tim@bastelstu.be> wrote:

> Hi
>
> I just opened the vote on “Deprecate returning values from __construct()
> and __destruct()”.
>
> RFC: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/deprecate-return-value-from-construct
> Discussion: https://news-web.php.net/php.internals/130808
>
> There is a single primary vote to cast. Voting closes 2026-06-29
> 14:00:00 UTC.
>
> Best regards
> Tim Düsterhus
>

Just to clarify: return $this->privateVoidReturning(); will also trigger a
deprecation?

Tim Düsterhus

78 days ago

Hi

Am 2026-06-15 15:19, schrieb Kamil Tekiela:

> Just to clarify: return $this->privateVoidReturning(); will also
> trigger a
> deprecation?

Yes. This is consistent with `return some_void();` in a function that
has an explicit `: void` return type:

<?php

function foo(): void {
return;
}

function bar(): void {
return foo();
}

see: https://3v4l.org/2cQYR#v

I'll make sure to add a corresponding test case to the implementation
for completeness.

Best regards
Tim Düsterhus

Levi Morrison

78 days ago

On Mon, Jun 15, 2026 at 7:11 AM Tim Düsterhus <tim@bastelstu.be> wrote:

>
> Hi
>
> I just opened the vote on “Deprecate returning values from __construct()
> and __destruct()”.
>
> RFC: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/deprecate-return-value-from-construct
> Discussion: https://news-web.php.net/php.internals/130808
>
> There is a single primary vote to cast. Voting closes 2026-06-29
> 14:00:00 UTC.
>
> Best regards
> Tim Düsterhus

Tim, sorry if I missed it in the discussion and RFC: is there any plan
to allow declaring `function __construct(): void` at the same time?
Since:
1. We are going to actively enforce that they don't return anything,
2. and returning `void` is the correct declaration for such functions
(and I would argue `null` as well but I don't care too much about
this, I debated mentioning it at all because it's a bit off in the
weeds),

doesn't it make sense to also allow declaring a void return at the same time?

Tim Düsterhus

78 days ago

Hi

On 6/15/26 16:56, Levi Morrison wrote:

> Tim, sorry if I missed it in the discussion and RFC: is there any plan
> to allow declaring `function __construct(): void` at the same time?
> Since:
>   1. We are going to actively enforce that they don't return anything,
>   2. and returning `void` is the correct declaration for such functions
> (and I would argue `null` as well but I don't care too much about
> this, I debated mentioning it at all because it's a bit off in the
> weeds),
>
> doesn't it make sense to also allow declaring a void return at the same time?

Allowing an explicit `: void` return is not part of the RFC.

I intentionally focused on the deprecation to keep the RFC focused on
the “important bits”, namely removing this confusing behavior.

That's also why `__clone()` is intentionally left to future scope, since
the situation there is slightly different. It definitely makes sense to
me to align `__clone()` with `__construct()` in one way or another,
though, since they effectively only differ in s/new/clone/ for their
intended use.

Best regards
Tim Düsterhus

Tim Düsterhus

64 days ago

Hi

Am 2026-06-15 15:09, schrieb Tim Düsterhus:

> I just opened the vote on “Deprecate returning values from
> __construct() and __destruct()”.
>
> RFC: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/deprecate-return-value-from-construct
> Discussion: https://news-web.php.net/php.internals/130808
>
> There is a single primary vote to cast. Voting closes 2026-06-29
> 14:00:00 UTC.

The RFC was accepted unanimously with 39 (Yes) votes and no abstentions.

Best regards
Tim Düsterhus

[VOTE] Deprecate returning values from __construct() and __destruct()

Tim Düsterhus

Kamil Tekiela

Tim Düsterhus

Levi Morrison

Tim Düsterhus

Tim Düsterhus

[VOTE] Deprecate returning values from construct() and destruct()