Decree No. 42/2024/ND-CP On Coastal Reclamation Activities

DECREE

On Coastal Reclamation Activities

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Pursuant to the Law on the Organization of the Government dated June 19, 2015; Pursuant to the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Law on Government Organization and the Law on Local Administration dated November 22, 2019;

Pursuant to the Land Law dated November 29 2013; Article 190 of the Land Law dated June 18 2001 2024;

Pursuant to the Vietnam Sea Law dated June 21, 2012;

Pursuant to the Law on Marine Resources, Environment, and Islands dated June 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the Planning Law dated November 24, 2017;

Pursuant to the Law on Public Investment dated June 13, 2019;

Pursuant to the Investment Law dated November 17, 2020;

Pursuant to the Construction Law dated June 18, 2014; and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Construction Law dated June 17, 2020; Adopted on June 17, 2020;

Pursuant to the Environmental Protection Law dated November 17, 2020;

At the proposal of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment; school;

The Government promulgates the Decree on Coastal Reclamation Activities.

 

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. This Decree stipulates coastal reclamation activities.

2. Coastal reclamation activities for national defense and security purposes are not within the scope of this Decree.

Article 2. Applicability

This Decree applies to agencies, organizations, and individuals related to coastal reclamation activities.

Article 3. Explanation of Terms

1. Coastal reclamation is the expansion of land area from the lowest average sea level line towards the sea within the Vietnamese territorial waters.

2. A coastal reclamation investment project, or a coastal reclamation component of an investment project, is a set of solutions and proposals related to the use of capital to carry out land filling, coastal reclamation, and construction of technical infrastructure according to planning to create land for economic and social development, disaster prevention, and adaptation to climate change.

3. Documents approving the implementation of investment projects with coastal reclamation activities include one or more of the following: investment decision, approval of investment intention, investment license, certificate of investment, certificate of investment registration, or other equivalent documents for coastal reclamation projects or investment projects with coastal reclamation components in accordance with laws on investment, public investment, and public-private partnership.

4. Port areas, water areas before port terminals, turning areas, anchorage areas, transshipment areas, typhoon shelters, pilot reception areas, quarantine zones, maritime channels, and other auxiliary construction water areas (as specified in point d, Clause 3, Article 190 of the 2024 Land Law) are areas that have been invested in and constructed with maritime transportation infrastructure.

Article 4. Content of Planning and Land Use Plans for Areas Identified for Coastal Reclamation

1. Areas identified for coastal reclamation must be clearly defined in terms of location, area, boundaries, and coordinates in accordance with laws on surveying and mapping. Determination of areas for coastal reclamation to be included in planning and land use plans must comply with the principles specified in point a, b, and d, Clause 2, Article 190 of the 2024 Land Law.

2. Provincial People's Committees shall identify and incorporate areas intended for coastal reclamation activities into land allocation and zoning plans according to functional zones and land types at the district administrative level in provincial land use plans, district land use plans, and district land use plans.

3. In cases where areas identified for coastal reclamation are already included in provincial planning or construction planning or urban planning (except for cases specified in Clause 5, Article 40 of the 2013 Land Law) but not yet included in district land use plans, the provincial People's Committee shall direct the inclusion of such areas in district land use plans and annual land use plans.

In cases where areas identified for coastal reclamation are not included in provincial planning, the provincial People's Committee shall direct the district People's Committee to establish, adjust, and supplement district land use plans and annual land use plans.

4. For investment projects with coastal reclamation activities that have obtained approval documents for implementation from competent state authorities in accordance with the law before the effective date of this Decree, the area identified for coastal reclamation will be aggregated into the total area of the administrative unit; after completion of coastal reclamation, the various types of land will be supplemented with land use indicators according to the purpose of use as stated in the investment project with coastal reclamation activities, and incorporated into the provincial plan and district land use plan that has been allocated.

5. When preparing and approving detailed construction planning for coastal reclamation investment projects or investment projects with coastal reclamation components, sufficient land must be reserved for the construction of public infrastructure, including access paths to the sea, as required by the provincial People's Committee to ensure citizens' and community's access to the sea.

The provincial People's Committee shall base its decisions on laws on construction planning and local conditions to determine specific land for constructing public infrastructure as stipulated in this clause, suitable for each coastal reclamation investment project or investment project with coastal reclamation components.

Article 5. Decision on investment orientation, approval of investment orientation, selection of investors for investment projects with land reclamation activities

1. The approval of investment orientation and decision on investment orientation for investment projects with land reclamation activities shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of laws on investment, public investment, and public-private partnership investment.

2. The selection of investors to implement investment projects with land reclamation activities using non-state budget capital shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of laws on investment, bidding, land, and public-private partnership investment.

3. Land reclamation activities within investment projects with land reclamation activities shall be established as separate land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects in accordance with the provisions of Article 6 of this Decree.

Article 6. Preparation, review, and approval of Feasibility Study Reports, project approval; preparation, review, and approval of construction design; construction and acceptance of construction works of land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects

1. Land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects with land reclamation activities are construction investment projects as prescribed by laws on construction.

2. The contents of the Feasibility Study Report for land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of laws on construction and this Decree; specifically, it must clearly define the location, area, boundaries, coordinates of the marine zone; land reclamation costs; progress of the land reclamation work (in full or in parts) and the progress of land use after completion of the land reclamation work.

Land reclamation costs include direct costs for conducting construction activities and construction works serving land reclamation activities according to detailed planning at a scale of 1/500 approved by competent state agencies, and other costs as prescribed by laws on construction.

3. The preparation, review, and approval of Feasibility Study Reports, project approval; preparation, review, and approval of construction designs, construction, and acceptance of construction works of land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of laws on construction and this Decree, specifically as follows:

a) The specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province shall review the Feasibility Study Report of land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects. In addition to the review content prescribed by laws on construction, the specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province shall review the content regarding the determination of the total investment value of land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects;

b) The specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province shall review the construction design after the basic design of construction works that must be reviewed at the specialized agency on construction according to the provisions of laws on construction;

c) For projects using public investment capital, the authority to approve projects and construction designs shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of laws on public investment and laws on construction. For projects using state capital outside public investment and other projects, the People's Committee of the province shall approve the projects; the investor shall approve the construction designs in accordance with the provisions of laws on construction;

d) The organization of construction and acceptance of components or construction works of land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of laws on construction.

4. The investor of land reclamation projects or land reclamation components of investment projects shall be responsible for requesting competent state agencies to issue maritime notifications in accordance with the provisions of laws on maritime affairs.

5. Land reclamation investment projects or land reclamation components of investment projects that have been approved by competent state agencies shall serve as the basis for competent state agencies to decide on allocating marine areas for land reclamation simultaneously with granting or leasing land.

Article 7. Allocation of land, leasing of land, allocation of sea areas for reclamation

1. For investment projects involving sea reclamation or investment projects with components for sea reclamation funded by public investment capital, the procedures for allocating land and leasing land shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Clause 3, Article 68 of Decree No. 43/2014/NĐ-CP dated May 15, 2014 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Land Law.

In cases where investment projects involve sea reclamation or investment projects with components for sea reclamation to develop land funds, after completion of sea reclamation and acceptance according to regulations, the investor of the sea reclamation project must hand over the entire reclaimed land area and any construction works (if any) to the competent state agency to allocate land and lease land to organizations and individuals for use in accordance with the laws on land.

2. For investment projects involving sea reclamation or investment projects with components for sea reclamation funded by state capital other than public investment and projects using other capital, the procedures for allocating land and leasing land shall be as follows:

a) In cases where land allocation and leasing are conducted through the auction of land use rights, they shall be carried out in accordance with the procedures stipulated in Clause 5, Article 68 of Decree No. 43/2014/NĐ-CP dated May 15, 2014 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Land Law and Clause 21, Article 1 of Decree No. 148/2020/NĐ-CP dated December 18, 2020 of the Government amending and supplementing some decrees detailing implementation of the Land Law;

b) In cases where land allocation and leasing are conducted for selecting investors through tendering as provided for by the law on bidding or in cases where investors are approved in accordance with Clause 3, Article 29 of the Investment Law 2020, such procedures shall be applied in accordance with the procedures for land allocation and leasing stipulated in Clause 3, Article 68 of Decree No. 43/2014/NĐ-CP dated May 15, 2014 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Land Law;

c) In cases where land allocation and leasing are not conducted through the auction of land use rights, they shall be carried out in accordance with the procedures stipulated in Clause 3, Article 68 of Decree No. 43/2014/NĐ-CP dated May 15, 2014 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Land Law.

3. The investor of an investment project involving sea reclamation or an investment project with components for sea reclamation must submit the application for land allocation and leasing along with the sea reclamation project or the sea reclamation component of the investment project that has been approved by the competent state authority.

The provincial People's Committee decides to allocate land and lease land simultaneously with allocating sea areas for sea reclamation. The investor of an investment project involving sea reclamation or an investment project with components for sea reclamation does not have to pay sea area usage fees to carry out sea reclamation activities.

4. Applications for land allocation and leasing simultaneously with allocating sea areas for sea reclamation; Decisions on land allocation simultaneously with allocating sea areas for sea reclamation; Decisions on land leasing simultaneously with allocating sea areas for sea reclamation shall be implemented in accordance with Model Nos. 01, 02, and 03 attached to this Decree.

5. The time point for determining when the land user must put the land into use shall be calculated from the date of notification of approval of the acceptance results for the entire or part of the reclaimed area completed according to the progress of the sea reclamation investment project or the sea reclamation component within the investment project.

Article 8. Acceptance of Completed Coastal Reclamation

1. The acceptance of completed coastal reclamation shall be carried out for the entire or part of the reclaimed area according to the progress of the coastal reclamation investment project or the coastal reclamation component of the approved investment project.

2. Inspection of the acceptance of completed coastal reclamation:

a) The specialized agency under the People's Committee of the province shall inspect the acceptance work of projects within the coastal reclamation investment project or the coastal reclamation component of the investment project. The procedures and formalities for inspecting the acceptance of completed coastal reclamation shall be implemented in accordance with the laws on construction;

b) The investor of the coastal reclamation investment project or the investment project with a coastal reclamation component shall submit a written request to the specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province to inspect the acceptance work for the entire or part of the reclaimed area according to the progress of the coastal reclamation investment project or the coastal reclamation component of the approved investment project;

c) Within sixty days from the date of receipt of the written request, the specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province shall carry out the inspection of the acceptance of completed coastal reclamation.

3. Based on the notification of approval of the results of the acceptance of completed coastal reclamation investment project or the coastal reclamation component in the investment project by the specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment shall be responsible for:

a) Determining and updating the lowest average low-water line along the coast in the reclamation area based on the current shoreline and topography at the time of determination and update; submitting to the People's Committee of the province for reporting to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to update data and publish in accordance with the provisions of the law;

b) Determining and updating the highest average tidal water level line, adjusting the coastal protection zone in the reclamation area based on the current shoreline and topography at the time of determination and update; submitting to the People's Committee of the province for decision to supplement and adjust in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Article 9. Determination of Land Use Fee and Rent

1. The specific land price for calculating the land use fee and rent shall be determined in accordance with the laws on land. In cases where the surplus method is applied to determine the specific land price, the total development cost estimate must include the coastal reclamation costs that have been approved by the competent state authority in accordance with Article 6 of this Decree; if the total development cost exceeds the total development revenue, the difference shall be included in the costs of the coastal reclamation investment project or the investment project with a coastal reclamation component.

2. Within a period not exceeding one hundred eighty days from the completion date of the coastal reclamation, the investor of the coastal reclamation investment project or the investment project with a coastal reclamation component must prepare a settlement report on coastal reclamation costs and submit it to the specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province for review.

Within a period not exceeding ninety days from the date of receiving all the settlement report documents from the investor of the coastal reclamation investment project or the investment project with a coastal reclamation component, the specialized agency on construction under the People's Committee of the province shall settle the coastal reclamation costs and submit them to the People's Committee of the province for approval.

3. The handling of the difference between the settled coastal reclamation costs and the coastal reclamation costs included in the total development costs when determining the specific land price in cases applying the surplus method (hereinafter referred to as the difference) shall be carried out as follows:

a) If the settled coastal reclamation costs are less than the coastal reclamation costs included in the total development costs, the investor must pay the difference;

b) If the settled coastal reclamation costs are greater than the coastal reclamation costs included in the total development costs, the difference shall be included in the costs of the coastal reclamation investment project or the investment project with a coastal reclamation component.

Article 10. Issuance of Land Use Right Certificate, House Ownership Certificate, and Certificates for Other Assets Attached to the Land

Clause 1. For the portion of land not within the area reclaimed from the sea, after the project investor has fulfilled their financial obligations regarding land, they shall be issued a Land Use Right Certificate, House Ownership Certificate, and Certificates for Other Assets Attached to the Land.

Clause 2. For the portion of land formed through reclamation activities, if the project investor of a sea reclamation investment project or a project with a sea reclamation component has fulfilled their financial obligations regarding land and received notification of approval for the completion inspection results of the reclamation work in accordance with Article 8 of this Decree, they shall be issued a Land Use Right Certificate, House Ownership Certificate, and Certificates for Other Assets Attached to the Land.

Article 11. Transitional Provisions

Point 1. Investment projects involving sea reclamation that have obtained a document approving the implementation of an investment project involving sea reclamation from a competent state agency and where the investor has submitted an application for allocation of a marine area prior to the effective date of this Decree but has yet to receive a resolution on the application file may choose to follow the procedures and formalities stipulated in Decree No. 11/2021/NĐ-CP dated February 10, 2021, of the Government on the allocation of certain marine areas for organizations and individuals to exploit and utilize marine resources, or the provisions of this Decree.

Point 2. Investment projects involving sea reclamation that have obtained a document approving the implementation of an investment project involving sea reclamation from a competent state agency and where the investor has been allocated a marine area to carry out reclamation in accordance with the law before the effective date of this Decree but has not yet been allocated land or leased land may continue to carry out reclamation according to the decision allocating the marine area without having to pay for the use of the marine area for the remaining period; they may request the provincial People's Committee to allocate land or lease land without going through a public auction for land use rights and implement the sea reclamation investment project or the sea reclamation component of the investment project in accordance with this Decree.

Point 3. Investment projects involving sea reclamation that have been decided by the National Assembly or the Prime Minister to approve the investment project in accordance with the law on public investment, deciding to approve the investment proposal while also approving the investor or deciding to approve the investment proposal and selecting the investor in accordance with the law on investment before April 1, 2024, the investor of the sea reclamation investment project or the investment project with a sea reclamation component may be allocated land or leased land without participating in a public auction for land use rights or a tender for a project using land to continue implementation.

Point 4. In cases where investment projects involving sea reclamation specified in Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article have had district planning or detailed planning approved by a competent state agency before the effective date of this Decree, they may continue to implement according to the approved planning but must have a plan ensuring citizens' and communities' access to the sea during the implementation of the sea reclamation investment project or the sea reclamation component of the investment project as required by the provincial People's Committee.

Article 12. Effectiveness and responsibility for implementation

1. This Decree takes effect from the date of issuance.

2. Amend and supplement some articles of Decree No. 11/2021/NĐ-CP dated February 10, 2021 of the Government on the transfer of certain marine areas to organizations and individuals for exploitation and utilization of marine resources as follows:

a) Repeal Clause 4 of Article 6;

b) Amend and supplement Point c, Clause 1 of Article 34 as follows:

“c) Using marine areas for cable car construction, floating and submerged structures, civilian construction, and other marine structures (Group 3): from VND 6,000,000 per hectare per year to VND 7,500,000 per hectare per year.”

3. The Minister, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, People's Committees of provinces, and related agencies shall be responsible for implementing this Decree.