From July 1, 2025, will official housing sold by the State to current tenants be subject to VAT in Vietnam?

Who is eligible to rent official housing in Vietnam?

The individuals eligible to rent official housing are specified under point a, clause 1, Article 126 of the Housing Law 2023 as follows:

Subjects, conditions for renting, renting to buy, purchasing houses belonging to public assets

1. The subjects eligible to rent, rent to buy, or purchase houses belonging to public assets are stipulated as follows:

a) Subjects specified in clause 1, Article 45 of this Law are only eligible to rent official housing;

b) Subjects specified in clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 of Article 76 of this Law can be considered for renting, renting to buy, or purchasing social housing; subjects specified in clause 7, Article 76 can be considered for renting, renting to buy, or purchasing housing for the people's armed forces if not renting, renting to buy, or purchasing social housing;

c) Subjects mentioned in clause 10, Article 76, if not renting, renting to buy, or purchasing social housing, can proceed to rent, rent to buy, or purchase housing serving for resettlement;

d) Subjects currently using housing as specified in point d, clause 1, Article 13 of this Law can be considered for renting or purchasing that housing;

đ) Subjects specified in clause 11, Article 76 of this Law can be considered for renting social housing.

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According to the provisions in clause 1, Article 45 of the Housing Law 2023, the subjects eligible to rent official housing include:

(i) Leadership officers of the Communist Party, State who are required to stay in official housing during their tenure;

(ii) Officials belonging to agencies of the Communist Party, State, political-social organizations not falling under case (i), who are transferred, rotated, or seconded from local to central agencies, holding positions from Deputy Head of a government agency of Vietnam or equivalent and above; or transferred, rotated, or seconded from central agencies to local positions or between localities for positions from Deputy Chairman of the District People's Committee, Deputy Director of a Department and equivalent or above;

(iii) Officials and public employees belonging to agencies of the Communist Party, State, political-social organizations not falling under cases (i), (ii), transferred, rotated, or seconded to work in remote, isolated areas, economically, and socially exceptionally difficult areas, border areas, islands;

(iv) Officers, professional soldiers, non-commissioned officers of the people's armed forces who are transferred, rotated, seconded for defense and security needs; police workers, officials, workers, public defense employees, cipher workers, other workers in cipher organizations paid from the state budget belonging to people's armed forces who are transferred, rotated, or seconded to work in remote, isolated areas, economically, and socially exceptionally difficult areas, border areas, islands; except cases where the law requires such individuals to stay in military barracks of the people's armed forces;

(v) Teachers, doctors, medical staff coming to work in rural areas, remote, isolated areas, economically, and socially exceptionally difficult areas, border areas, islands;

(vi) Scientists assigned to lead national-level, exceptionally important scientific and technological tasks as prescribed by the Law on Science and Technology; talents with significant contributions to the nation recognized by competent authorities as per legal regulations;

(vii) Based on actual conditions, the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam decides on individuals not falling within the above cases who can be allocated official housing upon the recommendation of the Ministry of Construction based on consolidated proposals from ministries, agencies, organizations at central, provincial-level People's Committees.

Will official housing sold by the State to current tenants be subject to VAT in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

What conditions must be met to rent official housing in Vietnam?

The conditions for renting official housing are stipulated in clause 1, Article 45 of the Housing Law 2023 as follows:

Case 01: Subjects specified in point (i) are considered for official housing allocation based on security requirements;

Case 02: Subjects specified in points (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi), and (vii) must meet the condition of not owning any housing and not having purchased, rent-purchased, or rented social housing at the locality where they work or if they own housing at the locality, the living area per capita is lower than the minimum housing area.

From July 1, 2025, will official housing sold by the State to current tenants be subject to VAT in Vietnam?

Based on the provisions in clause 5, Article 5 of the Value Added Tax Law 2024 (effective from July 1, 2025), housing belonging to public assets sold by the State to current tenants is not subject to value-added tax.

Therefore, as guided in this document, official housing sold by the State to current tenants is not subject to value-added tax.