Fines for violations involving land destruction in Vietnam from October 4, 2024

Fines for violations involving land destruction in Vietnam from October 4, 2024 (Image from the Internet)

On October 4, 2024, the Government of Vietnam issued Decree 123/2024/ND-CP which stipulates land-related administrative sanctions in Vietnam.

Fines for violations involving land destruction in Vietnam from October 4, 2024

Article 14 of Decree 123/2024/ND-CP stipulates fines for violations involving land destruction in Vietnam from October 4, 2024, as follows:

(1) Acts that degrade land quality in the following cases: reducing or losing the thickness of the cultivable layer; altering the surface layer of agricultural land with materials, waste, or soil mixed with sand, gravel, rocks, or soil of a different composition; causing erosion, washing away agricultural land which leads to losing or reducing the usability of defined land will incur penalties as follows:

- A fine from 2,000,000 VND to 5,000,000 VND for land area under 0.05 hectares;

- A fine from 5,000,000 VND to 10,000,000 VND for land area from 0.05 hectares to less than 0.1 hectares;

- A fine from 10,000,000 VND to 30,000,000 VND for land area from 0.1 hectares to less than 0.5 hectares;

- A fine from 30,000,000 VND to 50,000,000 VND for land area from 0.5 hectares to less than 1 hectare;

- A fine from 50,000,000 VND to 100,000,000 VND for land area of 1 hectare or more.

(2) Acts that deform the terrain in the following cases: changing the slope of the land surface; lowering the land surface; filling land with water specialized in usage (except irrigation lakes) or raising or lowering the surface of agricultural land, aquaculture land, which leads to losing or reducing the usability of the land according to the defined purpose (except for cases of changing the structure of crops and livestock on rice cultivation land to rice cultivation combined with aquaculture, constructing works directly serving agricultural production on rice cultivation land, transforming agricultural land into terraced fields and other land reclamation forms suitable with the land use purpose allocated, rented, recognized land use rights, or suitable with investment projects approved or accepted by competent People's Committee authority) shall incur the following penalties:

- A fine from 5,000,000 VND to 10,000,000 VND for land area under 0.05 hectares;

- A fine from 10,000,000 VND to 20,000,000 VND for land area from 0.05 hectares to less than 0.1 hectares;

- A fine from 20,000,000 VND to 50,000,000 VND for land area from 0.1 hectares to less than 0.5 hectares;

- A fine from 50,000,000 VND to 100,000,000 VND for land area from 0.5 hectares to less than 1 hectare;

- A fine from 100,000,000 VND to 200,000,000 VND for land area of 1 hectare or more.

(3) Acts causing land pollution will have penalties enforced according to the law on administrative penalties in the field of environmental protection.

(4) For violations that render it infeasible to restore the original state of the land before the violation as prescribed, the fine will be double the corresponding fines specified in (1) and (2), but not exceeding 500,000,000 VND for individuals, and not exceeding 1,000,000,000 VND for organizations.

Note: The fines mentioned above apply only to individuals. If a violation is committed by an organization, the fine will be double the amount for individuals.

For violations stipulated in (1) and (2), besides being fined, the violator is also required to restore the original state of the land before the violation, unless it is practically unfeasible. The provincial People's Committee, based on the actual situation of the locality, shall stipulate cases of infeasibility and the degree of restoration of the original state of the land in Vietnam .

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