DECREE NO. 60-CP ON THE RIGHT TO OWN HOUSING AND THE RIGHT TO USE RESIDENTIAL LAND IN URBAN AREAS

DECREE

RESOLUTION NO. 60-CP OF JULY 5, 1994 ON RIGHTS TO OWN HOUSING AND RIGHTS TO USE RESIDENTIAL LAND IN URBAN AREAS

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Government Organization dated September 30, 1992;
Pursuant to the Land Law dated July 14, 1993;
Pursuant to the Housing Ordinance dated March 26, 1991;
At the proposal of the Minister of Construction, the Minister of Finance, and the Director General of the Land Administration Bureau,

DECREE:

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. - The State recognizes and protects the lawful rights to own housing and to use residential land.

Housing and residential land within the scope of this Decree include:

1. Housing for one household or multiple households in the same building;

2. Residential land in the inner city, inner town, or town is land used for constructing housing, facilities serving residential needs, and any surrounding area, in accordance with the planning approved by competent state authorities.

Article 2. Housing is divided into three forms of ownership:

1. Housing owned by the State;

2. Housing owned by political and social organizations, economic organizations;

3. Housing privately owned.

Article 3. - All housing and residential land must be registered. Legal owners shall be issued certificates of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land.

Certificates of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land issued under this Decree replace all previous legal documents regarding ownership of housing and use of residential land issued before the promulgation of this Decree.

Article 4. - The State does not recognize claims to reclaim housing currently managed by the State due to past implementation of socialist transformation policies on housing and land.

The State does not recognize claims to reclaim residential land previously allocated to others by the State under the policies of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Chapter II
FORMS OF HOUSING OWNERSHIP

Article 5. - Housing owned by the State includes:

1. Housing established using state budget funds (central budget, local budget) or having origins from state budget funds;

2. Housing with other ownership origins that have been converted to state ownership according to the provisions of the law;

3. Housing mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article where a portion of the capital contribution comes from individuals or collectives through agreements or installment purchase contracts but has not yet been fully paid.

Article 6. - Housing owned by political and social organizations, economic organizations includes:

1. Housing established using funds raised by these organizations;

2. Housing legally donated to these organizations by individuals or entities.

Article 7. - Privately-owned housing is housing legally established by private individuals through construction, purchase, inheritance, or other lawful means.

Chapter III
REGISTRATION AND ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATES OF HOUSING OWNERSHIP AND RIGHTS TO USE RESIDENTIAL LAND

Article 8. - Housing and residential land must be registered with the People's Committee of the ward or town.

Article 9. - The person responsible for registering housing and residential land is the owner of the house. In other cases, the person currently using the housing is responsible for registration.

Article 10. - Certificates of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land in urban areas, inner towns, and towns are issued as follows:

1. If the homeowner has valid documents issued by competent authorities of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, or the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, then the homeowner will be issued a certificate of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land;

2. If the homeowner has valid documents issued by competent authorities under the old regime, if there is no dispute over the house and land and they were not transferred to others due to the implementation of policies by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, or the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, then the homeowner will be considered for issuance of a certificate of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land;

3. If the homeowner does not have or has valid documents before the issuance of this Decree:

a) If the homeowner completely lacks valid documents:

a1. If the housing and land conform to the plan, and there is no dispute, then the homeowner will be considered for issuance of a certificate of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land. The homeowner must pay the land use fee.

a2. If the housing was built on land not designated as residential land, then the homeowner will not be issued a certificate of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land. The homeowner must comply with orders to demolish the house and recover the land.

b) If the homeowner has valid documents regarding the right to use land but lacks valid documents for building the house, and the housing and land now conform to the plan and there is no dispute, then the homeowner will be considered for issuance of a certificate of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land.

c) If the homeowner built the house with a permit on land designated as residential land but lacks valid documents regarding the right to use land and there is no dispute, then the homeowner will be considered for issuance of a certificate of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land for that part of the house. The homeowner must pay the land use fee.

d) In all disputed cases, issuance of certificates of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land will only be considered after resolving the disputes according to the law.

Article 11. - The application for issuance of certificates of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land is specified as follows:

1. Application for issuance of certificates of ownership of housing and rights to use residential land.

2. Valid documents regarding housing and land including:

a) Decision on allocation of land and construction permit or confirmation of ownership of housing and rights to use land issued by competent state authorities for the case mentioned in Clause 1, Article 10 of this Decree.

b) Ownership certificate of housing and land or other valid documents for the case mentioned in Clause 2, Article 10 of this Decree.

c) For the case mentioned in Point a1, Clause 3, Article 10 of this Decree, opinions confirming that the applicant created the house and confirmation from the competent planning management authority are required.

d) For the case mentioned in Point b, Clause 3, Article 10 of this Decree, decisions on allocation of land and confirmation from the competent planning management authority are required.

đ) For the case mentioned in Point c, Clause 3, Article 10 of this Decree, a construction permit from the competent authority is required.

In the case where the applicant is not the owner of the documents mentioned in this clause, they must attach other valid documents such as: house purchase contracts, documents related to inheritance, division, or gift-giving. The applicant will be issued a certificate of ownership after fulfilling the obligations of the house owner and paying the stamp duty as prescribed by law.

Article 12. - The certificate of ownership of housing and right to use residential land in urban areas, town centers, and towns shall be issued by the People's Committee of the province or centrally governed city (hereinafter referred to as provincial level).

Article 13. - The real estate management and land administration agency assists the People's Committee at the provincial level in organizing the registration, examination, issuance of certificates, establishment of original files, and management of housing ownership and land use rights.

Article 14. - Within no more than sixty days from the date of receiving complete and valid documents, the People's Committee at the provincial level shall issue the certificate of ownership of housing and right to use residential land to the party concerned. If the certificate is not issued, the reason must be reported to the party concerned.

Article 15. - The certificate of ownership of housing and right to use residential land shall be made in two copies. One copy is issued to the owner and the other is kept at the issuing authority.

Article 16. - The issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and right to use residential land is regulated as follows:

1. For private housing, it shall be issued to the owner of the house.

2. For housing owned by political and social organizations, economic organizations, it shall be issued to those organizations.

3. For housing owned by the State, it shall be issued to the agencies or organizations entrusted with the management of that housing.

4. For shared housing among multiple owners, it shall be issued to each individual owner of the specific area of the housing.

The registration, use of common parts of houses, technical facilities, and residential land for multiple households must comply with the regulations on the management of shared housing issued by the Ministry of Construction and the General Department of Land Administration.

5. In cases where housing is jointly owned by multiple people, if there is no document dividing the house signed by all co-owners, the certificate shall record the names of all owners and be issued to each individual owner.

Article 17. - The house owner shall receive the certificate of ownership of housing and right to use residential land after paying the fee for issuing the certificate according to the regulations of the Ministry of Finance, Construction, and the General Department of Land Administration. For the cases stipulated in point a1, point c, Clause 3, Article 10 of this Decree, the certificate can only be issued after paying the land use fee as prescribed by the Ministry of Finance.

In cases where housing is permitted to change in scale or structure, upon completion of the changes, the owner must register the supplementary information with the issuing authority.

In cases of subdividing or consolidating residential land plots, permission must be sought, and the new owner shall be issued a certificate if it is a subdivision, or the old owner's certificate shall be canceled if it is a consolidation.

Chapter IV
OWNERSHIP OF HOUSING AND LEASED RESIDENTIAL LAND BY FOREIGN PERSONS SETTLING IN VIETNAM

Article 18. - Foreign individuals settling in Vietnam may own one house for themselves and their family members on leased residential land from the Vietnamese State during their settlement period in Vietnam, except in cases where international treaties to which Vietnam is a party, agreements with governments of other countries, or international organizations provide otherwise.

Article 19. - Foreign individuals settling in Vietnam shall be issued a certificate of ownership of housing if:

- They purchase housing from Vietnamese state enterprises specializing in housing sales;

- They construct housing according to the permit of the competent state authorities;

- They inherit housing according to Vietnamese law.

Purchasing housing, leasing residential land, constructing housing, and inheriting housing must comply with Vietnamese laws.

Article 20. - The application for issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and right to lease residential land includes:

1. Application for issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and right to lease residential land;

2. Documents from the Vietnamese State allowing settlement in Vietnam;

3. Building permit, or a house purchase contract certified by a Notary Public, or a legal inheritance document;

4. Lease agreement for land;

5. Extract of the cadastral map of the plot with the house, at a scale of 1/200.

The file must be prepared in Vietnamese and submitted to the People's Committee at the provincial level.

The certificate of ownership of housing and right to lease residential land shall be issued by the People's Committee at the provincial level.

Article 21. - The owner of housing who is a foreign individual settling in Vietnam has the right to use, sell, give as a gift, or leave as an inheritance the housing according to Vietnamese law and has the obligation to register the ownership of housing with the People's Committee at the provincial level; pay taxes and fees as prescribed by law.

Article 22. - In cases where a foreign individual terminates their settlement in Vietnam without exercising the rights stipulated in Article 21 of this Decree, ninety days after leaving Vietnam, the certificate of ownership of housing shall automatically become invalid, and the Vietnamese State shall exercise its management and use rights according to Vietnamese law.

Chapter V
SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES AND HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS

Article 23. - Disputes over ownership of housing and right to use residential land shall be resolved by the People's Court.

Article 24. - Unauthorized users of housing who violate the property rights of others regarding housing and right to use residential land, or engage in other acts violating laws on housing and land, shall be subject to administrative penalties or criminal prosecution depending on the severity of the violation.

Those who abuse their positions or powers for personal gain or other motives and falsify housing and land registration data or issue certificates of ownership of housing and right to use residential land contrary to the law shall be subject to disciplinary action or criminal prosecution depending on the severity of the violation.

In cases causing material damage, compensation must be provided.

Chapter VI
IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 25. - The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of agencies under the Government, Chairpersons of People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities are responsible for implementing this Decree.

Article 26. - The Minister of Construction, the Minister of Finance, and the Director of the General Department of Land Administration within the scope of their sectoral management functions shall be responsible for guiding and supervising the implementation of this Decree.

The Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities shall direct the People's Committees of districts, counties, towns, and real estate management agencies to implement this Decree.

Article 27. - The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities, and housing owners shall be responsible for implementing this Decree.