Is unused agricultural land subject to expropriation in Vietnam? Who has the authority to expropriate unused agricultural land in Vietnam?
What types of land are included in the category of agricultural land in Vietnam?
Based on Article 9 of the Land Law 2024 which stipulates land classification:
Article 9. Land classification
- Based on the purpose of use, land is classified into agricultural land, non-agricultural land, and unused land.
- The category of agricultural land includes the following types:
a) Annual crop land, including rice cultivation land and other annual crop land;
b) Perennial crop land;
c) Forestry land, including special-use forest land, protection forest land, production forest land;
d) Aquaculture land;
dd) Concentrated livestock land;
e) Salt land;
g) Other agricultural land.
- The group of non-agricultural land includes the following types:
a) Residential land, including homestead land in rural and urban areas;
b) Land for construction of office headquarters;
c) Land used for national defense and security purposes (hereinafter referred to as defense and security land);
d) Land for construction of public service works, including land for cultural, social, health, education and training, physical training and sports, science and technology, environment, meteorological and hydrological, diplomatic works, and others or land for construction of headquarters of other public service providers;
dd) Non-agricultural production and business land, including industrial zone land, industrial cluster land; commercial land; non-agricultural production establishment land; land used for mineral activities;
[...]
Thus, the category of agricultural land includes the following types of land:
- Annual crop land, including rice cultivation land and other annual crop land
- Perennial crop land
- Forestry land, including special-use forest land, protection forest land, production forest land
- Aquaculture land
- Concentrated livestock land
- Salt land
- Other agricultural land
Is unused agricultural land subject to expropriation in Vietnam? Who has the authority to expropriate unused agricultural land? (Image from Internet)
Is unused agricultural land subject to expropriation in Vietnam?
Based on Clause 7, Article 81 of the Land Law 2024 which stipulates cases of land expropriation due to legal violations on land:
Article 81. Cases of land expropriation due to legal violations on land
[...]
- Annual crop land, aquaculture land not used for 12 consecutive months, perennial crop land not used for 18 consecutive months, afforestation land not used for 24 consecutive months, and have been administratively fined but not utilized within the timeframe specified in the administrative penalty decision;
[...]
According to the regulation, agricultural land not used for the following periods and having been administratively fined without utilization within the timeframe specified in the administrative penalty decision shall be subject to State expropriation due to legal violations on land:
- Annual crop land: 12 consecutive months
- Perennial crop land: 18 consecutive months
- Aquaculture land: 12 consecutive months
- Afforestation land: 24 consecutive months
Thus, land users who do not use the land continuously for the specified periods for each type of land will have it expropriated by the State due to legal violations on land.
Who has the authority to expropriate unused agricultural land in Vietnam?
Based on Article 83 of the Land Law 2024 which stipulates the authority to expropriate land and handle cases of expropriation of land and assets attached to the land as public assets:
Article 83. Authority to expropriate land and handle cases of land and assets on land as public assets
- The provincial People's Committee decides to expropriate land for domestic organizations, religious organizations, affiliated religious organizations, overseas Vietnamese, foreign organizations having diplomatic functions, and foreign-invested economic organizations as stipulated in Articles 81 and 82 of this Law.
- The district-level People's Committee decides to expropriate land in the following cases:
a) expropriation of land as stipulated in Articles 78 and 79 of this Law regardless of land users, organizations, and individuals managing and possessing the land;
b) expropriation of land for households, individuals, community as stipulated in Articles 81 and 82 of this Law.
- In cases where the right to use land and assets on land is public property and subject to land expropriation according to this Law, there is no requirement to rearrange and handle public assets under regulations on management and use of public property.
According to the above regulations, the entities with authority to expropriate unused agricultural land in Vietnam are as follows:
- The provincial People's Committee decides to expropriate land for the following entities:
+ Domestic organizations
+ Religious organizations
+ Affiliated religious organizations
+ Overseas Vietnamese
+ Foreign organizations with diplomatic functions
+ Foreign-invested economic organizations
- The district-level People's Committee decides to expropriate land for households, individuals, community
