Are individuals who are not directly engaged in agricultural production allowed to buy paddy land in Vietnam?

Are individuals who are not directly engaged in agricultural production allowed to buy paddy land in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 191 of the Law on Land in 2013 stipulating cases in which acquisition or donation of land use rights is not allowed as follows:

Cases in which acquisition or donation of land use rights is not allowed

1. Organizations, households, individuals, communities, religious institutions, overseas Vietnamese and foreign-invested enterprises may not receive transfer or donation of land use rights in case the transfer or donation of land use rights is prohibited by law.

2. Economic organizations may not acquừe the rights to use paddy land, protection forest land or special-use forest land from households or individuals, except the case of change in land use purpose in accordance with the land use master plan and plans approved by competent state agencies.

3. Households and individuals not directly engaged in agricultural production may not receive the transfer or donation of paddy land use rights.

4. Households and individuals may not receive the transfer or donation of residential land use rights and agricultural land use rights with regard to the land located in the areas of protection forests, strictly protected zones and ecological rehabilitation zones in special-use forests if they do not live in such protection forests or special-use forests.

As regulations above, individuals who are not directly engaged in agricultural production are allowed to buy paddy land in Vietnam (are not allowed to receive the transfer or donation of paddy land use rights).

Are individuals who are not directly engaged in agricultural production allowed to buy paddy land in Vietnam? - image from internet

What are bases to determine households which are directly engaged in agricultural production in Vietnam?

The bases for determining households and individuals that are directly engaged in agricultural production is stipulated under Clause 3 Article 3 of Circular 33/2017/TT-BTNMT as follows:

The determination of households and individuals that are directly engaged in agricultural production

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3. Bases for determining households that are directly engaged in agricultural production

a) Currently using agricultural land assigned, leased, or recognized by the State; acquired through conversion, transfer, inheritance, donation, or capital contribution with land use rights; or using agricultural land that has not been recognized by the State.

b) Have at least one household member who is not eligible for regular wages; retired, physically unable to work, or receiving social assistance benefits.

c) Have regular income from agricultural production on the specified land area mentioned in Point a of this Clause, even if there is no regular income due to natural disasters, environmental calamities, fires, or epidemics.

d) In cases where agricultural land is allocated to households according to the regulations in Article 54 of the Land Law, and the household registers to receive transfer or donation of land use rights for paddy cultivation, only the criteria mentioned in Point b of this Clause are considered.

Therefore, the determination of households that are directly engaged in agricultural production is based on the following criteria:

- Currently using agricultural land assigned, leased, or recognized by the State.

- Currently using agricultural land acquired through conversion, transfer, inheritance, donation, or capital contribution with land use rights.

- Currently using agricultural land that has not been recognized by the State.

- Have at least one household member who is not eligible for regular wages; retired, physically unable to work, or receiving social assistance benefits.

- Have regular income from agricultural production on the specified land area, even if there is no regular income due to natural disasters, environmental calamities, fires, or epidemics.

Who has the power to confirm households which are directly engaged in agricultural production in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 3a of the Decree 43/2014/ND-CP (amended by Clause 2 Article 2 of the Decree 01/2017/ND-CP and Clause 2 Article 5 of the Decree 10/2023/ND-CP) stipulating the verification of stable income(s) from agricultural production of a household or individual engaged directly in agricultural production shall be subject to Clause 30, Article 3 of the Law on Land in 2013 as follows:

The verification of stable income(s) from agricultural production of a household or individual engaged directly in agricultural production shall be subject to Clause 30, Article 3 of the Land Law.

People's Committee of a commune, ward or town (hereinafter referred to as the communal People’s Committee) shall be responsible for verifying the stable income(s) of a household or individuals from agricultural production in the following manner upon the procedure for land allocation, registration of acquisition of land use right through transfer or donation, issuance of certificates of land use right with or without ownership of house and properties attached to land, or compensation and support consequential to the government’s expropriation of land:

1. People's Committee of the ward at which the permanent address of the household or individuals directly engaged in agricultural production is registered shall verify their stable income(s) from agricultural production.

2. If the members of the household or the individuals using a land parcel have their permanent addresses registered at different places, the People’s Committees of the wards at which permanent addresses are registered shall verify the stable income(s) of such household or individuals who directly engage in agricultural production after receiving a written confirmation of the use of agricultural land from the People’s Committee of the ward where the land parcel exists.

As regulations above, the power to confirm households which are directly engaged in agricultural production in Vietnam is as follows:

(1) The commune-level People's Committee at the place of permanent residence registration confirms if the household is registered for permanent residence in the same location as the land.

(2) In cases where the household's place of permanent residence and the location of the land are in two different commune-level administrative units, the commune-level People's Committee at the place where the household is registered for permanent residence confirms after receiving a written confirmation regarding the use of agricultural land from the commune-level People's Committee at the location of the land.

Note: The content of this article is based on the Law on Land in 2013 and the guiding documents for the Law on Land in 2013. Currently, the Law on Land in 2024 has been passed by the National Assembly and will take effect from January 1, 2025. When the Law on Land in 2024 takes effect, the Law on Land in 2013 will no longer be in effect.

Best regards!