What are penalties for using land for wrong purposes in Vietnam?

1. Administrative sanction for using land for wrong purposes

Article 6 of Vietnam's Land Law 2013 stipulates Land use principles

- Compliance with land use master plans and plans, and use for proper purposes.

- Economy, effectiveness, environmental protection, and causing no harm to the legitimate interests of adjacent land users.

- Land users may exercise their rights and perform their obligations within the land use term in accordance with this Law and other relevant laws.

The determination of a land type must be based on the following:

- The certificate of land use rights, or certificate of house ownership and residential land use rights which is granted before December 10, 2009; and the certificate of land use rights and ownership of houses and other land-attached assets.

- Papers on land use rights prescribed in Clauses 1, 2 and 3, Article 100 of this Law, for the cases in which the certificates mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article have not been granted.

- Decisions on land allocation, land lease or permission for change of land use purpose issued by competent state agencies, for the cases in which the certificates mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article have not been granted.

- For the cases in which papers prescribed in Clauses 1, 2 and 3 of this Article are not available, the determination of land type must comply with the Government’s regulations.

Articles 9 to 13 of Decree 91/2019/ND-CP stipulate in details each case that is considered to be using land for improper purposes, together with the level of sanction, including:

- Use of paddy land for other purposes without permission of regulatory authorities as specified in Points a and d Clause 1 Article 57 of Land Law

- Use of land for protection forests, reserve forests or production forest for other purposes without permission of regulatory authorities as specified in Points c and d Clause 1 Article 57 of Land Law.

- Use of agricultural land other than paddy land, land for protection forests, reserve forests or production forest for other purposes without permission of regulatory authorities as specified in Points b and d Clause 1 Article 57 of Land Law

- Use of non-agricultural lands without permission of regulatory authorities as specified in Points dd, e and g Clause 1 Article 57 of Land Law

- Conversion of crops mechanism on paddy land against regulations and law; unregistered use of land for other purposes requiring registration as per the law

Thus, the land user must use the land in accordance with the purpose stated in the Certificate or the decisions on land allocation, land lease, or permission to change the land use purpose of the state agency. Violations may result in administrative fines and land confiscation.

2. Regulations on land recovery for improper use

Article 64 of Land Law 2013 stipulates cases of land recovery due to violations of the land law as follow:

"Land is not used for the purposes for which land has been allocated, leased, or land use rights have been recognized by the State and the land users, after having been sanctioned administratively for using land for improper purposes, still continue committing the violation"

Thus, those who use land for improper purposes, have been administratively sanctioned but continue to violate, will have their land recovered by the State.

Article 66 of Decree 43/2014/ND-CP stipulates the order and procedures for land recovery as follows:

Step 1: Make a record of administrative violations as a basis for the decision on land recovery.

For land recovery due to violation of law, when the statute of limitations for sanctioning administrative violations expires under the law on handling of administrative violations, competent sanctioning persons shall make records of administrative violations as a basis for land recovery.

Step 2: Field inspection and verification(if necessary)

Natural resources and environment agencies shall conduct field inspection and verification when necessary and propose People’s Committees of the same level to decide on land recovery.

Step 3: Notice of land acquisition.

When households and individuals commit violations, the district-level People's Committees (districts, urban districts, towns, provincial cities, centrally run cities) are responsible for:

- Notify the land recovery to land users and publish it on the websites of provincial- level and district-level People’s Committees;

- Direct the handling of the residual value of the investments on land or land-attached assets (if any) in accordance with law.

Step 4: Conduct land recovery.

Step 5: Coercive land acquisition (if any).

Organize the enforcement of the decision on land recovery if the land owner fails to implement the decision on land recovery.

Step 6: Update cadastral information, withdraw the LURC.

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