What is the definition of non-agricultural land use tax in Vietnam?

What is the definition of non-agricultural land use tax in Vietnam?

According to the Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010 as well as related guiding documents, there is no specific definition of non-agricultural land use tax.

However, it can be understood that non-agricultural land use tax is the amount of money that individuals, organizations, or units must pay to the state budget when using non-agricultural land.

What is the definition of non-agricultural land use tax in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

What types of land are subject to non-agricultural land use tax in Vietnam?

(1) Types of land subject to non-agricultural land use tax:

According to Article 2 of the Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010, the types of land subject to non-agricultural land use tax include:

- Residential land in rural and urban areas.

- Non-agricultural production and business land, including land for the construction of industrial parks; land for the construction of production and business establishments; land for mineral exploitation and processing; and land for the production of construction materials and pottery articles.

- Non-agricultural land specified in Article 3 of Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010 which is used for commercial purposes.

(2) Types of land not subject to non-agricultural land use tax:

Under the regulations in Article 3 of the Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010, the types of land not subject to non-agricultural land use tax are non-agricultural land used not for business purposes, including:

- Land used for public purposes, including traffic and irrigation land, land for the construction of cultural, healthcare, education and training, and physical training and sports works for public interests; land with historicalcultural relics or scenic places; and land for the construction of other public works under the Government’s regulations;

- Land used by religious institutions;

- Land used for cemeteries and graveyards;

- Land under rivers, canals, ditches, streams and special-use water surface;

- Land with communal houses, temples, worship halls or clans’ worship houses;

- Land for the construction of working offices or non-business works or for national defense and security purposes;

- Other non-agricultural land provided for by law.

Which entities are required to pay non-agricultural land use tax in Vietnam?

According to Article 4 of the Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010, the entities are required to pay non-agricultural land use tax are specified as follows:

- Taxpayers are organizations, households and individuals that have the right to use tax-liable land specified in Article 2 of Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010.

- When organizations, households or individuals have not yet been granted land use right certi-ficates or house and land-attached asset ownership certificates (below collectively referred to as certificates), current land users will be taxpayers.

- Taxpayers in some cases are specified as follows:

+ When land is leased by the State for the implementation of investment projects, lessees will be taxpayers;

+ When persons having land use rights lease land under contracts, taxpayers shall be identified as agreed upon in these contracts. When no agreement on taxpayers is made in contracts, persons having land use rights will be taxpayers;

+ When land has been granted a certificate but is currently under dispute, pending the dispute settlement, current land users will be taxpayers. Tax payment does not serve as a ground for the settlement of disputes over land use rights;

+ When many persons have the right to co-use a land plot, the lawful representative of these co-users will be the taxpayer;

+ When a person having land use rights contributes his/her land use rights as business capital, thereby forming a new legal entity that has the right to use tax-liable land specified in Article 2 of Non-agricultural Land Use Tax Law 2010, the new legal entity will be the taxpayer.

Which types of land are subject to the non-agricultural land use tax reduction in Vietnam?

According to Article 11 of Circular 153/2011/TT-BTC, the entities eligible for a 50% reduction in non-agricultural land use tax include:

(1)  Land of investment projects in the sectors eligible for investment promotion; investment projects in geographical areas with socio­economic difficulties; land of enterprises with between 20% and 50% of their employees being war invalids or diseased soldiers.

(2) Within-quota residential land in geographical areas with socio-economic difficulties.

( 3) Within-quota residential land of war invalids of 3/4 or 4/4 grade; persons enjoying policies like war invalids of 3/4 or 4/4 grade; martyrs' children enjoying monthly allowances,

(4) Taxpayers facing difficulties due to force majeure circumstances, provided the value of damage related to their land and houses on land accounts for between 20% and 50% of the taxable price.

In this cases, certification of commune-level People's Committees of the localities where exists such land is required.