Circular No. 02/1999/TT-BXD guides the management of unoccupied housing between individuals as stipulated in the Resolution on civil transactions regarding housing established before July 1, 1991, of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for managing unoccupied housing between individuals as prescribed in the Resolution on civil transactions regarding housing established before July 1, 1991 of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly

Pursuant to Resolution No. 58/1998/NQ-UBTVQH10 dated August 20, 1998 of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on civil transactions regarding housing established before July 1, 1991 (hereinafter referred to as Resolution No. 58/1998), the Ministry of Construction guides the management of unoccupied housing between individuals when implementing Resolution No. 58/1998 as follows:

I. SCOPE OF APPLICATION

1- Unoccupied housing within the scope of application of Resolution No. 58/1998 is housing currently under private ownership, but the person currently managing and using it is not the owner of the housing. Specifically:

a/ Housing left behind by the owner when moving to live in southern provinces before 1954;

b/ Housing left behind by the owner when migrating to the south after 1954;

c/ Housing left behind by the owner when moving to live in other localities or evacuating to other areas during wartime;

d/ Housing left behind by the owner when going to engage in revolutionary activities or participating in resistance;

e/ Housing left behind by the owner, but the owner has died or their whereabouts are unknown.

The following types of unoccupied housing also fall within the scope of application of Resolution No. 58/1998 and this Circular: unoccupied housing currently being used for purposes other than residential, but at the time of establishing civil transactions before July 1, 1991 was residential housing; unoccupied housing currently being used for residential purposes, but it cannot be determined from the time of establishing civil transactions before July 1, 1991 what purpose the housing was used for.

2- The following types of unoccupied housing do not fall within the scope of application of Resolution No. 58/1998 and this Circular:

a/ Unoccupied housing where the parties involved in the civil transaction regarding the housing are overseas Vietnamese residents, foreign organizations, or individuals;

b/ Unoccupied housing managed and used by the State during the implementation of housing policies through various periods;

c/ Unoccupied housing currently being used for residential purposes, but at the time of establishing civil transactions before July 1, 1991 was not residential housing.

II. ON THE DELEGATION OF MANAGEMENT OF UNOCCUPIED HOUSING.

Delegation of management of unoccupied housing includes lawful delegation of management and unlawful delegation of management.

1- Lawful delegation of management is the delegation by written agreement in accordance with the provisions of the law at the time of delegation by the owner established in the locality where the housing is located before the owner's absence.

Determination of lawful delegation of management of unoccupied housing is carried out according to Decrees No. 19/CP dated June 29, 1960, No. 24/CP dated February 13, 1961 of the Council of Ministers, Circular No. 61/TTg dated February 17, 1961 of the Prime Minister, Decision No. 111/CP dated April 14, 1977 of the Council of Ministers, and Circular No. 31/BXD dated October 18, 1977 of the Ministry of Construction. The Prime Minister, Decision No. 111/CP dated April 14, 1977 of the Council of Ministers and Circular No. 31/BXD dated October 18, 1977 of the Ministry of Construction.

Lawful delegation of management includes delegation of management with a term and delegation of management without a specified term.

2- Unlawful delegation of management is the delegation by the owner to another person to manage the owner's housing but does not comply with the provisions of the law on delegation of management of housing as mentioned above at the time of delegation.

Before the owner's absence, if the owner did not have a delegation or had an unlawful delegation, it shall be considered as having no lawful delegation of management.

III. ON THE PERSON MANAGING AND USING UNOCCUPIED HOUSING

1- Person managing unoccupied housing: In cases where the owner of the housing had a lawful delegation of management before the owner's absence, the person named in the power of attorney shall be considered as the person managing the unoccupied housing. The person managing the unoccupied housing has the right to manage the unoccupied housing according to the contents recorded in the power of attorney.

The person managing the unoccupied housing may reside directly in the unoccupied housing or may reside in another house.

2- Person using unoccupied housing: The person currently residing in the unoccupied housing is the user of that housing.

The person using the unoccupied housing may simultaneously be the manager (named in the power of attorney) or a relative of the housing manager (father, mother, wife, husband, child, grandchild, etc.) or may also be someone who has no kinship relationship with the housing owner or with the manager of the unoccupied housing (renter, guest, person entering the unoccupied housing due to the owner's absence without delegating anyone to manage it, etc.).

IV. ORGANIZATION OF MANAGEMENT OF UNOCCUPIED HOUSING

Unoccupied housing managed by individuals has gone through many periods, and now these types of housing have undergone many changes in terms of managers, users, as well as the technical condition of the housing. In many cases, it is impossible to determine who the owner is, where they are, whether they are alive or deceased. In many cases, the managers and users have illegally bought and transferred the housing multiple times. Most unoccupied housing has been repaired and renovated, changing its original structure and architecture. Many unoccupied houses have been demolished to build new houses on the old site...

To ensure the management of unoccupied housing in accordance with state policy, People's Committees at all levels need to implement the following regulations strictly:

1- Based on the results of the comprehensive statistics of the housing fund according to Directive No. 820/TTg dated October 3, 1997 of the Prime Minister, conduct a review and classify unoccupied housing into two categories:

a/ Unoccupied housing managed by individuals;

b/ Unoccupied housing managed and used by the State.

During the review process, localities need to create detailed lists of unoccupied housing down to each house number to serve the management and handling work according to Resolution No. 58/1998. During the classification process, it is not allowed to mix up or arbitrarily transfer unoccupied housing managed and used by the State to the category of unoccupied housing managed by individuals, causing loss of the State's housing fund.

2- The entire housing fund of unoccupied housing managed and used by the State is not within the scope of application of Resolution No. 58/1998, therefore, localities are not allowed to apply the provisions of Decree No. 25/1999/NĐ-CP dated April 19, 1999 of the Government to handle issues related to unoccupied housing managed and used by the State.

3- Establishing ownership rights over unoccupied housing managed by individuals must be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Decree No. 25/1999/NĐ-CP dated April 19, 1999 of the Government.

4. During the process of handling, if there appears a case where a participant in a civil transaction is a Vietnamese person residing abroad or a foreign individual or organization, localities shall compile a list to report to the Prime Minister while simultaneously sending it to the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Justice for consolidation.

The participants in the civil transactions referred to in this clause not only include owners, managers, and users but also other individuals who have rights and obligations with respect to the unoccupied dwelling.

5. When the ownership right over the unoccupied dwelling has not yet been established (as evidenced by the issuance of a certificate of ownership of the house and land use right), the status quo of the dwelling must be maintained. Any acts of buying, selling, transferring, renovating, or rebuilding the unoccupied dwelling shall be considered illegal, and People's Committees at all levels shall not accept applications for certificates of ownership of the house and land use right.

6. In the process of organizing management and addressing issues related to unoccupied dwellings, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities need to direct subordinate levels and sectors to comply with the provisions of Resolution No. 58/1998, Decree No. 25/1999/NĐ-CP of the Government, and this guiding circular. For issues that are problematic or exceed their authority, they must report to the Ministry of Construction for guidance or report to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision.