What is unused land? What types of land are unused land in Vietnam?

What is unused land? What types of land are unused land in Vietnam? (Internet image)

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. What is unused land?

According to Article 10 of the Land Law 2013, regulations on land classification include: Agricultural land; non-agricultural land; Unused land.

In particular, according to Clause 3, Article 10 of the Land Law 2013 and Circular 27/2018/TT-BTNMT, Unused land, including land of types for which land use purposes have not been determined yet by Land Law 2013 (such as to grow crops, raise livestock or to build houses, works for public purposes, production, business, services...).

Regarding unused land management stipulated in Article 164 of the Land Law 2013 guided in Decree 43/2014/ND-CP:

- Unused land includes unused flatland, unused hilly and mountainous land and rocky mountains with no forests.

- Annually, commune-level People’s Committees shall report on the management and exploitation of unused land areas to district-level People’s Committees.

2. What types of land are unused land?

According to Circular 27/2018/TT-BTNMT, unused land group includes: Unused flat land, unused hilly land, rocky mountains without forests. Specifically:

- Unused flat land: Is unused land in flat areas in plains, valleys, and plateaus.

- Unused hilly land: Is unused land on sloping land in hilly and mountainous areas.

- Rocky mountains without forests: Unused land in the form of rocky mountains on which there are no forests.

Thus, based on the above regulations, unused land is land whose use purpose has not been determined, including: Unused flat land, unused hilly land, and rocky mountains without forests.

3. What cases are eligible to put unused land to use in Vietnam?

According to Article 165 of the Land Law 2013, putting unused land into use will be based on planning and land use plans approved by competent state agencies. People's Committees at all levels have plans to invest, reclaim, restore, and improve land to put unused land to use.

The State encourages organizations, households, and individuals to invest in putting unused land to use according to land use planning and plans approved by competent state agencies.

For land areas planned to be used for agricultural purposes, priority will be given to households and individuals directly engaged in agricultural production, forestry, aquaculture, and salt production in localities that have not been allocated land or lack production land.

4. Measures to put unused land to use under approved land use plans in Vietnam

Article 59 of Decree 43/2014/ND-CP stipulates measures to put unused land to use under approved land use plans as follows:

- The State shall adopt policies on infrastructure investment in border, island, deep- lying, remote and highland areas, areas having much land but sparsely inhabited, and areas with difficult natural conditions in order to put unused land to use; and to exempt or reduce land use levy or land rental for cases of allocation or lease of unused land for use.

- Provincial-level People’s Committees shall use revenues collected from the change of land under wet rice cultivation into land used for other purposes and other lawful funding sources for the reclamation, rehabilitation and use of unused land.

Nguyen Ngoc Que Anh

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