Decree No. 85/1999/ND-CP Amends and supplements some articles of the Provision on the transfer of agricultural land to households and individuals for long-term stable use for agricultural production purposes, and adds the provision on the transfer of land for salt-making to households and individuals for long-term stable use.

DECREE OF THE GOVERNMENT

Amending and supplementing some articles of the Provision on the transfer of agricultural land to households and individuals for long-term stable use for agricultural production purposes,and supplementing the transfer of salt-making land to households and individuals for long-term stable use.In accordance with the proposal of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Minister of Fisheries, and the Director General of the Land Administration General Department,

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THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Government Organization Law dated September 30, 1992;

Pursuant to the Land Law dated July 14, 1993 and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Land Law dated December 2, 1998;

Amend and supplement some articles of the Provision on the transfer of agricultural land to households and individuals for long-term stable use for agricultural production purposes issued together with Decree No. 64/CP dated September 27, 1993 of the Government, and supplement the transfer of salt-making land to households and individuals for long-term stable use.      

DECREE:

Article 1Article 1. Households and individuals directly engaged in agricultural labor, aquaculture, and salt-making, whose main source of income is derived from such activities, upon confirmation by the People's Committee of the commune, ward, or town, shall be granted land within the limit for long-term stable use for agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making without payment for land use.

1. Economic organizations conducting foreign exchange trading agency activities; economic organizations conducting foreign currency receipt and payment service provision activities; economic organizations conducting border country currency exchange agency activities.

Households and individuals who have been granted agricultural land according to Decree No. 64/CP dated September 27, 1993 of the Government shall continue to use it for long-term stable purposes and shall be issued a certificate of land use rights.

All unallocated agricultural land and salt-making land shall be transferred to households and individuals for long-term stable use for agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making, except for land already allocated to organizations and land used for communal benefits of the commune.

Agricultural land transferred to households and individuals for agricultural production purposes includes annual crop land, perennial crop land, and aquaculture land. These types of land include family economic land, gardens, intensive cultivation land, rotational farming land, barren mountainous land, and degraded land determined for agricultural production and aquaculture.

4. State Bank Branch in Border Province is the State Bank Branch in provinces sharing borders with China, Laos, and Cambodia.

Salt-making land transferred to households and individuals for salt production purposes includes salt marshes and land planned for salt production.

For those types of land that cannot be transferred to households and individuals, they shall be leased to organizations and households and individuals with needs for use in agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making.

Article 4.

4. Clause 2 of Article 5 is amended and supplemented as follows:

1. The term for transferring agricultural land for annual crops, aquaculture, and salt-making is 20 years; for perennial crops, it is 50 years.

When the term expires, if households and individuals wish to continue using the land and comply with the laws on land, they may be granted the land for continued use.

2. The term for transferring land is calculated as follows:

a) For land transferred to households and individuals before October 15, 1993, the term is uniformly calculated from October 15, 1993;

b) For land transferred to households and individuals after October 15, 1993, the term is calculated from the date of transfer.

Article 5. The land limit for each household in each locality is defined as follows:

4. Article 5 is amended and supplemented as follows:

1. For agricultural land for annual crops, aquaculture, and salt-making:

a) Provinces: Ca Mau, Bac Lieu, Kien Giang, Soc Trang, Can Tho, An Giang, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh, Dong Thap, Tien Giang, Long An, Ben Tre, Tay Ninh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, and Ho Chi Minh City, not exceeding 3 hectares for each type of land;

b) Other provinces and centrally-administered cities, not exceeding 2 hectares for each type of land.

2. For agricultural land for perennial crops:

a) Plain communes, not exceeding 10 hectares;

b) Midland and mountainous communes, not exceeding 30 hectares.

3. For vacant mountainous land, tidal land, sea surface, reclaimed land, and land reclaimed from the sea, the land limit for households and individuals using these lands is decided by the provincial People's Committee based on the local land fund and their production capacity, ensuring the implementation of policies encouraging and creating favorable conditions for using these lands for agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making.

4. Households using multiple types of land for annual crops, perennial crops, aquaculture, salt-making, and vacant mountainous, tidal, sea surface, reclaimed, and sea-reclaimed lands shall have separate land usage limits for each type of land as stipulated in points 1, 2, and 3 of this clause.

Article 8.

5. Article 8 is amended and supplemented as follows:

1. Based on the local land fund, the People's Committee of the commune, ward, or town leases land to the following subjects for use in agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making:

a) Retired state officials, civil servants, workers, soldiers, and police officers living in the locality,

b) Households and individuals who are farmers living in the locality and have already used up their land limit for agricultural land and salt-making land,

c) Households and individuals who are not farmers living in the locality,

d) If the subjects specified in points a, b, and c of this clause are unable to lease land, it may be leased to organizations, households, and individuals in other localities for use in agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making.

2. The term for leasing agricultural land for use in agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making is 20 years.

3. Rent for land is collected annually or may be prepaid for up to five years. The rent collected must be deposited into the budget and can only be used for investment in building technical infrastructure for the commune, ward, or town.

Article 12. Transfer of land and issuance of certificates of land use rights:

6. Article 12 is amended and supplemented as follows:

1. For agricultural land and salt-making land:

a) If the provincial People's Committee has issued regulations and directives to grant land to households and individuals for long-term stable use, consistent with the State's regulations at that time, then certificates of land use rights shall be issued to them;

b) If land has not yet been granted to households and individuals, the People's Committee of the commune, ward, or town shall develop a plan to request the People's Committee of the district, city, or province to grant and issue certificates of land use rights to them.

b) In case the land has not yet been transferred to households or individuals, the People's Committee of the commune, ward, or town shall establish a plan to propose to the People's Committee of the district, town, or provincial city to transfer the land and issue certificates of land use rights to them.

The area of agricultural land and salt-making land, after deducting land for public interest needs, shall be averaged per agricultural, fishery, and salt-making population of communes, wards, and towns to be allocated to households and individuals by the People's Committee of districts, provincial cities, and centrally-run cities.

2.In places where, during the implementation of previous land policies, the People's Committees at all levels have guided farmers to negotiate and adjust land among themselves and such adjustments have stabilized, the People's Committee of districts, provincial cities, and centrally-run cities shall base on the current situation to allocate and issue certificates of land use rights to them.

For households with land areas exceeding the quota, the provisions set out in Clause 7, Article 1 of this Decree shall apply.

7. Article 13 is amended and supplemented as follows:

"Article 13. Regarding land exceeding the quota for households:

1.Households currently using agricultural land and salt-making land that exceed the quota, which was allocated or reclaimed, transformed, or legally transferred from others before January 1, 1999 (the date when the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Land Law took effect), shall continue to use such land and must pay additional taxes on the excess area according to the law.

The duration of use for the excess land area of households shall be one-third of the allocation period for each type of land as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 1 of this Decree. After this period, they must switch to leasing the land.

For households with land exceeding the quota after January 1, 1999, households and individuals must switch to leasing the excess land area..

2.Land exceeding the quota due to illegal occupation shall, depending on specific circumstances, be proposed by the People's Committee of communes, wards, and towns to the People's Committee of districts, provincial cities, and centrally-run cities for recovery or conversion to leasing."

8. Article 15 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

Reduce land transfer tax by 50% (fifty percent) for the following subjects:

1.Land for public interest needs of communes, wards, and towns shall be managed and utilized by the People's Committee of communes, wards, and towns.

2.The management and utilization of land for public interest needs of communes, wards, and towns shall be regulated as follows:

a)To construct or compensate for land used for communal construction projects of communes, wards, and towns approved by competent state agencies, without using it for other purposes.

b)In cases where it has not been used for the purposes specified in point a of this clause, the People's Committee of communes, wards, and towns may lease it to households and individuals for agricultural production, aquaculture, and salt-making. Revenue from such leasing shall be deposited into the budget and can only be used for public interest needs of communes, wards, and towns as prescribed by law.

3.The lease term for communal land for cases leased before January 1, 1999 shall be implemented according to the signed lease contracts, while for leases of communal land after January 1, 1999, the lease term shall not exceed five years."

Article 2The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, and Chairmen of the People's Committees of centrally-run provinces and cities are responsible for implementing this Decree.

Article 3This Decree takes effect fifteen days from the date of signature. Previous regulations contrary to this Decree are abolished./.