VCCI: It is required to evaluate parts of the proposed Land Law's contents and provisions (amended)

DNHN - According to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), many elements and clauses in the draft Land Law must be reviewed in light of their compliance with the Law on Real Estate Business and the Law on Housing. The aforementioned recommendation was produced after the VCCI responded to the Ministry of Justice's call for comments and appraisals on the proposed Land Law (amended) and after receiving views from entrepreneurs.

According to the draft, "foreign persons" are not regarded as land users; they cannot be assigned or leased property, be recognized by the State, or have their land use rights transferred to them by the State; nor can they sublease land in industrial parks, industrial clusters, or hi-tech parks. 

Meanwhile, the Law on Housing 2014 states that foreign individuals are permitted to own homes in Vietnam by "buying, renting, receiving, gifting, and inheriting commercial housing, including condominiums and apartments, and separate houses in housing construction investment projects, except in areas ensuring national defence and security following Government regulations." 

According to Clause 2, Article 14 of the Legislation on Real Estate Business 2014, "foreign persons may rent all types of real estate for their personal use; may buy, rent, or lease-purchase properties by the terms of the housing law." The purchase and sale of houses and construction works must also be associated with land use rights, according to Clause 1, Article 19 of the Law on Real Estate Business.

Thus, under the terms of the Law on Real Estate Business 2014 and the Law on Housing 2014, foreigners are permitted to own houses, which contradicts the substance of the proposed Land Law that is being assessed and authorized. receive feedback This appears to conflict with the rules in Clause 1, Article 19 of the Real Estate Business Law 2014, which say that "the acquisition and sale of residences and construction works must be coupled with land use rights."

Furthermore, if a foreigner sells a residence to a Vietnamese, the buyer will be able to choose whether or not to accept the land use right. The general rights of Vietnamese customers will not be protected if the draft is not followed.

Following that, the Draft Law states that "after obtaining a certificate, land users may exercise the rights to sell, lease, sub-lease, give, mortgage, or contribute land use rights as capital..." Meanwhile, the existing Law on Housing and the Law on Real Estate Business necessitate a certificate only if the real estate investor trades in real estate in the form of accessible sales. 

Future transactions of purchasing and selling properties, as well as the transfer of contracts for future purchases and sales of houses, do not require a certificate. As a result, there are unreasonable and VCCI also proposed to readjust this regulation to ensure law consistency.

The following content has been removed from the draft Land Law (amended) for cases of the land lease with one-time payment: "Economic organizations, overseas Vietnamese, foreign-invested enterprises use the land to implement land investment projects to build public works for business purposes; land for implementation of investment projects on housing for lease" in the case where the State leases the land with one-time rental payment for the entire lease period. This indicates that the State will only lease the land with an annual payment.

According to Article 198 of the draft Property Law (amended), economic entities that use leased land with yearly rental payments may only "sell or lease assets related to the land and their rights to land." lease land in the land lease contract when all requirements are satisfied. As a result, this rule is inconsistent with the requirements of the Law on Real Estate Business 2014, which govern the prerequisites for future properties to be placed into operation.

Real estate project investors have the right to sell, rent, lease-purchase dwellings and future building works under the Real Estate Business Law. Documents on land use rights, project dossiers, and construction drawing designs that have already been approved by competent authorities are required for future real estate to be put into business; obtain a construction permit, if one is required; and have papers on the acceptance of the completion of the corresponding technical infrastructure construction according to the project schedule. In the case of a prospective residential building or mixed-use structure, there must be a record of approval and completion of the project's foundation. 

Meanwhile, the proposed Land Law (amended) states that investors may only sell or lease assets tied to land if the property is lawfully constituted. Completed comprehensive construction planning and investment projects have been authorized and accepted, except in circumstances where compliance with effective court judgments, decisions, or findings of competent state bodies in charge of inspection and examination is necessary. Paid in advance compensation and site clearance without subtracting any payable land rent.

Conditions for transferring land use rights in the implementation of construction investment projects in urban and residential regions; investment projects to create infrastructure for transfer or lease in the draft Land Law (amended) must also be re-researched. 

The draft specifies the requirements for the transfer of land use rights linked with the transfer or lease of the complete infrastructure construction investment project. However, the Real Estate Business Law of 2014 merely specifies the circumstances for transferring all or part of a real estate project. That is the issue of mismatch between these two laws, which may pose challenges in execution.

As a result, VCCI advised that the drafting agency evaluate and revise the regulations to maintain legal system consistency. 

PV (t/h)