If I don't cultivate rice land for more than 1 year, will it be recovered in Vietnam?

If I don't cultivate rice land for more than 1 year, will it be recovered in Vietnam?

Clause 1, Article 64 of the 2013 Land Law provides for cases of land expropriation due to violations of the land law include:

a/ 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;

b/ Land users intentionally damage land;

c/ Land was allocated or leased to wrong subjects or ultra vires;

d/ Land that is ineligible for transfer or donation as prescribed in this Law is transfeưed or donated;

e/ Land that is allocated by the State for management is encroached or occupied;

f/ Land that is ineligible for transfer of land use rights as prescribed by this Law is encroached or occupied due to the irresponsibility of land users;

g/ Land users who fail to fulfill obligations to the State and have been administratively sanctioned for such violation but do not comply;

h/ Land for annual crops that is not used for 12 consecutive months; land for perennial plants that is not used for 18 consecutive months; land for afforestation that is not used for 24 consecutive months;

i/ Land that is allocated or leased for implementing investment projects is not used within 12 consecutive months, or the land use schedule is 24 months late compared with the schedule stated in the project documents since the hand-over in the field. In case of not putting the land into use, the land use term may be extended 24 months and the investors shall pay a sum of money equivalent to the total land use levy or land rental for the delayed period. If the investors still fail to put the land into use when the extended time is over, the State shall recover the land without compensation for land and land-attached assets, except due to force majeure.

According to this Article, rice land is considered land for annual crops, if you do not use it within 12 consecutive months, it will be recovered in Vietnam.

Which agency has competence to recover land from violating households, individuals in Vietnam?

In Article 66 of the 2013 Land Law, there are provisions on competence to recover land as follows:

1. Provincial-level People’s Committee may decide on land expropriation in the following cases:

a/ Recovery of land from organizations, religious institutions, overseas Vietnamese, foreign organizations with diplomatic functions, and foreign-invested enterprises, excluding the case prescribed at Point b, Clause 2 of this Article;

b/ Recovery of agricultural land which is part of the public land funds of communes, wards or townships.

2. District-level People’s Committees may decide on land expropriation in the following cases:

a/ Recovery of land from households, individuals and communities;

b/ Recovery of land from overseas Vietnamese who are allowed to own houses in Vietnam.

3. In case both subjects prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article exist in one expropriated area, the provincial-level People’s Committee shall decide on the land expropriation or authorize district-level People’s Committees to decide on the land expropriation.

Thus, the district-level People's Committee will have the authority to recover rice cultivation land of violating households and individuals in Vietnam.

Best Regards!