Decree No. 95/2005/NĐ-CP On Issuing Certificates of Ownership of Housing and Construction Works

DECREE OF THE GOVERNMENT

Regarding the issuance of ownership certificates for residential houses,

construction works

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Based on the Civil Code dated October 28, 1995;

Pursuant to the Construction Law dated November 26, 2003;

Based on Resolution No. 06/2004/NQ-CP dated May 19, 2004 of the Government on certain measures to develop a healthy real estate market;

At the proposal of the Minister of Construction,

DECREE:

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of application

This Decree stipulates the issuance of ownership certificates for residential houses and construction works, except for the following types of residential houses and construction works:

1. Temporary houses; residential houses and construction works under the ownership of the entire people (except construction works under the ownership of the entire people of enterprises that have been allocated capital by the State for management);

2. Residential houses and construction works which have been decided or notified for demolition or have been decided to recover land by competent state agencies;

3. Residential houses and construction works located within areas prohibited from construction or encroaching upon boundaries protecting technical infrastructure, historical and cultural sites ranked;

4. Residential houses and construction works for which the Government of Vietnam and governments of other countries, or international organizations have other commitments.

Article 2. Applicability

This Decree applies to organizations and individuals within the country; overseas Vietnamese; foreign organizations and individuals having residential houses and construction works legally established in Vietnam according to the provisions of the law.

Article 3. Ownership certificate for residential houses and construction works

1. The ownership certificate for residential houses and construction works issued in accordance with this Decree serves as a legal basis for the State to protect the ownership rights of subjects and for owners to exercise their rights and fulfill their obligations as prescribed by law.

2. In cases where a construction work has mixed purposes of use (for residence and other purposes) owned by one owner, an ownership certificate for the construction work shall be issued to that owner.

3. In cases where a construction work has mixed purposes of use (for residence and other purposes) owned by multiple owners but cannot be divided into separate uses, an ownership certificate for the construction work shall be issued. The competent authority issuing the certificate must record the full names of all owners in the certificate and issue a copy to each owner.

In cases where the construction work specified in this clause can be divided into separate uses for each owner based on their purpose of use, an ownership certificate for residential houses or an ownership certificate for construction works shall be issued to each owner accordingly.

4. The model of the ownership certificate for residential houses and the ownership certificate for construction works is attached to this Decree. The ownership certificate for residential houses or the ownership certificate for construction works shall be issued to the owner the original and one copy to be kept at the issuing agency.

5. The ownership certificate for residential houses and the ownership certificate for construction works shall be issued by the Ministry of Construction and uniformly used throughout the country.

Article 4. Issuing authority

1. Provincial People's Committees (hereinafter referred to as provincial-level People's Committees) shall issue ownership certificates for residential houses and construction works to organizations (including domestic organizations and foreign organizations).

Provincial-level People's Committees may delegate the Department of Construction to issue ownership certificates for residential houses and construction works to organizations.

2. District-level People's Committees (hereinafter referred to as district-level People's Committees) shall issue ownership certificates for residential houses and construction works to individuals (including domestic individuals, overseas Vietnamese, and foreign individuals).

Article 5. Recording the name of the owner on the certificate

1. In cases where a residential house or construction work belongs to one organization, the name of that organization shall be recorded.

2. In cases where a residential house or construction work belongs to one individual, the full name of that person shall be recorded.

3. In cases where a residential house or construction work belongs to a unified joint ownership, the full names of all owners shall be recorded.

4. In cases where a residential house or construction work belongs to a joint ownership with separate shares, the name of each owner for their respective share shall be recorded and a certificate shall be issued to each owner.

5. In cases where a residential house or construction work belongs to a joint ownership of a married couple, the full names of both husband and wife shall be recorded. In cases where one spouse is an overseas Vietnamese or a foreigner who does not qualify for ownership of residential houses or construction works in Vietnam, only the full name of the spouse who is a domestic individual shall be recorded.

Article 6. Ownership certificate for residential houses and construction works losing legal validity

The ownership certificate for residential houses and construction works issued in accordance with this Decree shall lose legal validity in the following cases:

1. Residential houses and construction works are destroyed or demolished.

2. Residential houses and construction works are confiscated or purchased compulsorily according to the decision of a competent state agency.

3. Residential houses and construction works are built on land whose lease period has expired without being extended or converted to a long-term stable land allocation, except when such residential houses and construction works are transferred to another owner who continues to lease the land.

4. Residential houses and construction works have been issued ownership certificates but are subject to recovery decisions by competent state agencies due to improper issuance authority, incorrect recipient, or incorrect current status of the residential houses and construction works.

PART II
CONDITIONS AND PROCEDURES FOR ISSUING THE CERTIFICATE OF OWNERSHIP OF HOUSING AND CONSTRUCTION WORKS
CONSTRUCTION WORK

PART 1
CONDITIONS FOR ISSUING THE CERTIFICATE OF OWNERSHIP OF HOUSING AND CONSTRUCTION WORKS

DWELLINGS, RIGHTS TO OWNERSHIP OF CONSTRUCTION WORK

Article 7. Conditions applicable to individuals

Individuals within the country, overseas Vietnamese, and foreigners applying for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and construction works must meet the following conditions:

1. Being a Vietnamese citizen residing in Vietnam. For overseas Vietnamese, they must be eligible to own housing under Article 121 of the Land Law 2003 or be eligible to establish construction works in Vietnam according to the law. For foreigners, they must be eligible to establish housing or construction works in Vietnam according to the law.

2. Having housing or construction works legally established in Vietnam through investment construction, purchase, gift receipt, inheritance, exchange, or other forms of establishment as prescribed by law.

Article 8. Conditions applicable to organizations

Domestic organizations and foreign organizations applying for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and construction works must meet the following conditions:

1. Being an organization with full legal personality, established and operating in accordance with Vietnamese law.

2. Having housing or construction works legally established in Vietnam through investment construction, purchase, gift receipt, inheritance, exchange, or other forms of establishment as prescribed by law.

PART 2
APPLICATION DOCUMENTS FOR ISSUANCE OF THE CERTIFICATE OF OWNERSHIP OF HOUSING AND CONSTRUCTION WORKS

RIGHTS TO OWNERSHIP OF CONSTRUCTION WORK

Article 9. Documents applicable to domestic individuals

The application documents for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and construction works of domestic individuals include:

1. Application form for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and the certificate of ownership of construction works (according to the model guided by the Ministry of Construction).

2. A copy of one of the following documents:

a) Building permit for housing that requires a building permit according to the Construction Law;

b) Certificate of land use rights issued by the competent state agency according to the Land Law or listed in the land registration book or land registry for housing and construction works built before the Construction Law came into effect (July 1, 2003);

c) Contract for the sale of state-owned housing according to Decree No. 61/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government on the sale and business of housing or documents regarding the liquidation or valuation of state-owned housing before July 5, 1994;

d) Documents on the allocation of houses of sympathy, charity houses, and solidarity houses;

đ) Documents about real estate issued by the competent authority at different times but the real estate does not fall under the management and allocation by the State according to Resolution No. 23/2003/QH11 dated November 26, 2003 of the National Assembly Session XI "on real estate managed and allocated by the State during the implementation of land management policies and socialist transformation policies before July 1, 1991" and the owner has continuously used it from then until now;

e) Documents about purchase, gift receipt, exchange, or inheritance for cases where the applicant has one of the documents specified in points a, b, c, d, and đ of this clause but is not named in those documents;

g) Confirmation document of the People's Committee of commune, ward, town (hereinafter referred to as the People's Committee of commune) about housing and construction works without disputes over ownership and constructed before the planning for construction was implemented for cases where the applicant does not have any of the documents specified in points a, b, c, d, đ, and e of this clause.

3. Sketch drawings of housing and construction works as follows:

a) For housing, the sketch drawing must show the position on the land plot, the shape of the ground floor plan of the house. In case of multi-story houses, draw sketches of the shape of each floor plan and record the floor area of each floor. For apartments in apartment buildings, only draw the ground floor plan of the apartment, the floor with the requested apartment, and clearly indicate the location and area of the apartment.

For housing in housing projects or new urban area projects, the applicant uses the drawings provided by the project developers. If the housing does not belong to the projects specified in this point, the issuing authority shall conduct the survey and drawing, except in rural areas where the homeowner conducts the survey and drawing themselves and has the confirmation of the People's Committee of commune on the drawing;

b) For construction works, the sketch drawing must show the position on the land plot, the shape, and record the name of the construction work, area, and capacity of each component. In case of multi-story construction works, draw sketches of each floor plan and record the floor area of each floor. The sketch drawing of construction works must be carried out by organizations with legal personality for construction activities.

In cases where the sketch drawings of housing and construction works already exist in the documents specified in Clause 2 of this Article and there is no change in reality, there is no need to redraw them.

Article 10. Documents applicable to individuals who are overseas Vietnamese and foreigners

The application documents for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and the certificate of ownership of construction works of overseas Vietnamese and foreigners include:

1. Application form for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and the certificate of ownership of construction works (according to the model guided by the Ministry of Construction).

2. Copies of the following documents:

a) Documents proving that the individual falls under the category eligible to own housing under Article 121 of the Land Law 2003 or is eligible to establish housing and construction works legally in Vietnam according to the law;

b) For overseas Vietnamese, they must have a valid Vietnamese passport or a valid foreign passport. In case a valid foreign passport is used, it must be accompanied by a certificate of Vietnamese citizenship or a certificate of loss of Vietnamese citizenship or a certificate of citizen registration. For foreigners, they must have a valid foreign passport accompanied by a residence visa in Vietnam issued by the competent authority;

c) Purchase, gift, exchange contracts, inheritance documents of housing and construction works or other legal establishment documents according to the law, accompanied by documents proving ownership of housing and construction works and payment receipts for financial obligations according to the law.

3. The schematic drawing of residential houses and construction works as prescribed in Clause 3 of Article 9 of this Decree.

Article 11. Documents applicable to organizations

The application documents for issuing certificates of ownership of residential houses and construction works for domestic organizations and foreign organizations include:

1. Application form for the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing and the certificate of ownership of construction works (according to the model guided by the Ministry of Construction).

2. Copies of the following documents:

a) Business registration certificate or establishment decision of the organization or investment license for foreign-invested enterprises issued by competent authorities;

b) Decision on project approval or investment decision in accordance with the law or construction permit; in cases where construction permit is exempted according to the law, there must be a land use right certificate; in cases of buying, giving away, exchanging, or inheriting residential houses or construction works, there must be purchase contracts, gift contracts, exchange contracts, inheritance documents, and certificates of ownership of residential houses or construction works;

c) Receipts for payment of financial obligations as prescribed by law.

3. The schematic drawing of residential houses and construction works as prescribed in Clause 3 of Article 9 of this Decree.

PART 3
PROCEDURE FOR ISSUING CERTIFICATES OF OWNERSHIP OF RESIDENTIAL HOUSES AND CONSTRUCTION WORKS

Article 12. Procedure for issuing certificates for individuals

1. Domestic individuals, overseas Vietnamese, and foreigners submit applications for issuing certificates of ownership of residential houses or construction works (in the prescribed form) to the People's Committee of the commune where the residential house or construction work is located in rural areas; submit applications at the People's Committee of the district where the residential house or construction work is located in urban areas.

Upon receiving the application, the receiving agency is responsible for informing the specific time for measuring the residential house or inspecting the results of measuring the construction work and guiding the completion of the application dossier; the measurement team must compare copies in the dossier with original documents about the residential house or construction work together with the household; issue a receipt confirming the completion of the application dossier and schedule the time for delivering the certificate. The measurement team shall not request the applicant to submit any additional documents other than those specified in Articles 9 and 10 of this Decree.

2. In rural areas, when receiving the application dossier for issuing certificates, the People's Committee of the commune must compare copies in the dossier with original documents about the residential house or construction work and confirm on the schematic drawing of the residential house or construction work self-drawn by the owner. Within five working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier, the People's Committee of the commune must transfer the dossier to the People's Committee of the district.

3. Within thirty working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier, the People's Committee of the district must check the dossier, record the contents on the certificate, sign the certificate, and enter it into the register of ownership of residential houses and construction works. In case the conditions for issuing the certificate are not met, the People's Committee of the district must notify in writing so that the applicant can clearly understand the reasons.

4. Within five working days from the date of signing the certificate, the People's Committee of the district must notify the owner about the payment of financial obligations as prescribed by law. In rural areas, the People's Committee of the district transfers the notification to the People's Committee of the commune to deliver to the owner.

At the latest within sixty days from the date of receiving the notification about the payment of financial obligations as prescribed, the owner must pay the financial obligations to receive the certificate.

5. In urban areas, the delivery of certificates, collection of fees, and return of original documents about residential houses or construction works are carried out at the People's Committee of the district. In rural areas, the People's Committee of the district organizes the delivery of certificates, collection of financial obligations, and return of original documents about residential houses or construction works at the People's Committee of the commune where the residential house or construction work is located.

Before receiving the certificate, the owner must submit receipts for the payment of fees and return of original documents about residential houses or construction works to the People's Committee of the district for file storage and signature in the register of ownership of residential houses and construction works.

Quarterly, the People's Committee of the district must issue notifications to inform the People's Committee of the commune about the list of cases that have been issued certificates or do not meet the conditions for issuing certificates, including a detailed list of cases involving overseas Vietnamese or foreigners (if any) under the management of the People's Committee of the commune.

Article 13. Procedure for issuing certificates for organizations

1. Domestic organizations and foreign organizations submit the application dossier for issuing certificates as prescribed in Article 11 of this Decree to the Department of Construction. The Department of Construction is responsible for checking the dossier; if all required documents are complete, it issues a receipt for the dossier and schedules the time for delivering the certificate; if documents are incomplete, it guides the organization to submit complete documents as prescribed.

If it is necessary to measure residential houses or inspect the results of measuring construction works, within ten working days from the date of receiving the application dossier for issuing certificates, the Department of Construction must carry out the measurement of residential houses or inspection of the results of measuring construction works.

2. Within thirty days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier or the date of completing the measurement or inspection of the measurement results, the Department of Construction is responsible for checking the dossier, recording the contents on the certificate, and submitting it to the People's Committee of the province for signing the certificate or performing the signing of the certificate in case it is authorized to sign the certificate. In case the conditions for issuing the certificate are not met, the People's Committee of the province (for cases where the People's Committee signs the certificate) or the Department of Construction (for cases where the Department of Construction is authorized to sign the certificate) returns the dossier and notifies in writing so that the applicant can clearly understand the reasons.

3. Within ten working days from the date of receiving the dossier transferred by the Department of Construction, the People's Committee of the province reviews, signs the certificate, and returns it to the Department of Construction to deliver to the owner.

4. Within five working days from the date of signing the certificate or receiving the certificate signed by the Provincial People's Committee, the Department of Construction must register the ownership of housing and construction works in the registration book and issue a written notice to the organization requesting issuance of the certificate to pay financial obligations as prescribed by law.

5. Not later than sixty days from the date of receipt of the notice from the Department of Construction, the organization requesting issuance of the certificate shall pay financial obligations as prescribed by law.

6. Before receiving the certificate, the owner must submit the receipt for payment of fees and original documents regarding housing or construction works to the Department of Construction for file retention and sign the registration book for ownership of housing and construction works.

7. Quarterly, the Department of Construction must issue a notification to inform the People's Committee of the commune about the list of cases that have been issued certificates or are not eligible for issuance of certificates within its jurisdiction.

CHAPTER III
ISSUANCE AGAIN, RENEWAL AND CONFIRMATION OF CHANGES AFTER ISSUANCE OF THE OWNERSHIP CERTIFICATE FOR HOUSING,
RIGHTS TO OWNERSHIP OF CONSTRUCTION WORK

Article 14. In case of reissuance or renewal of the certificate

1. In case the certificate issued in accordance with this Decree is lost, the owner may request reissuance after having notified the People's Committee of the commune where the housing or construction work is located about the loss of the certificate, with confirmation from the police station where the loss occurred. For urban areas, it is necessary to publish information three times consecutively on mass media about the loss of the certificate, while in rural areas, a notice about the loss of the certificate must be posted at the People's Committee office for fifteen days.

2. In case the certificate issued in accordance with this Decree is damaged, torn, or has run out of space for recording changes, the owner may request renewal of the certificate.

Article 15. Documents for requesting reissuance or renewal of the certificate

1. Documents for requesting reissuance of the certificate include:

a) A request for reissuance of the certificate, clearly stating the reason for the loss and committing to full responsibility under the law for the declarations made;

b) Confirmation documents about the loss of the certificate and receipts confirming publication of the loss notice on mass media or posting the notice according to Clause 1, Article 14 of this Decree.

2. Documents for requesting renewal of the certificate include:

a) A request for renewal of the certificate, clearly stating the reason for requesting renewal;

b) The old certificate issued in accordance with this Decree.

Article 16. Procedures for reissuance and renewal of the certificate

1. The procedures for reissuance of the certificate are carried out as follows:

a) Thirty days after the last publication on mass media or after the fifteen-day period for posting the loss notice at the People's Committee office, the owner submits the documents specified in Clause 1, Article 15 of this Decree to the competent authority issuing the certificate. The authority receiving the documents must issue a receipt for the documents, clearly indicating the time for resolution;

b) Within fifteen working days from the date of submission of complete documents as prescribed, the competent authority issuing the certificate is responsible for reissuing the certificate to the owner and stamping "reissued" on the new certificate. The old certificate ceases to have legal validity.

2. The procedures for renewal of the certificate are carried out as follows:

a) The owner submits the documents for requesting renewal of the certificate as specified in Clause 2, Article 15 of this Decree to the competent authority issuing the certificate. The authority receiving the documents must issue a receipt for the documents, clearly indicating the time for resolution;

b) Within fifteen working days from the date of receipt of valid documents, the competent authority issuing the certificate will renew the certificate for the owner. The issuing authority must retrieve and cut the corner of the old certificate for file retention.

Article 17. Confirmation of changes after issuance of the certificate

1. In case the owner makes changes such as repairs or improvements that alter the area or classification of the housing or construction works after obtaining the certificate, the owner must submit a request for confirmation of the change along with the ownership certificate for housing or construction works to the Department of Construction or the District People's Committee for confirmation of the change in the certificate.

2. The procedure for confirming the change is carried out as follows:

a) Organizations submit the documents for requesting confirmation of the change as specified in Clause 1 of this Article to the Department of Construction. Individuals in urban areas submit the documents for requesting confirmation of the change to the District People's Committee; individuals in rural areas submit the documents for requesting confirmation of the change to the Commune People's Committee for transfer to the District People's Committee to confirm the change;

b) Within fifteen working days from the date of receipt of complete valid documents, the competent authority specified in Clause 1 of this Article must confirm the change in the certificate and return it to the owner. The authority receiving the documents must issue a receipt. The person receiving the certificate must sign the registration book for ownership of housing and construction works.

PART IV
SETTLEMENT OF COMPLAINTS AND VIOLATION HANDLING

Article 18. Violations in the field of issuance and use of the certificate

1. Fraud or forgery of documents to obtain the certificate of ownership of housing or construction works.

2. Intentionally falsifying documents to obtain the certificate of ownership of housing or construction works.

3. Corruption, harassment; delaying the issuance of the certificate of ownership of housing or construction works without legitimate reasons.

4. Destroying the certificate or engaging in fraud to obtain reissuance of the certificate.

5. Other violations causing damage to those with rights and interests related to the issuance and use of the certificate.

Article 19. Handling Violations

1. If the applicant engages in fraud or forgery of documents to obtain the certificate of ownership of housing or construction works, they shall be subject to administrative penalties or criminal prosecution as prescribed by law.

2. The head of the agency, civil servant, or employee who intentionally distorts records, engages in corruption, harassment, or delays issuance of certificates without legitimate reasons shall be subject to disciplinary action according to the provisions of the Civil Servant Ordinance, and if such actions constitute criminal offenses, they shall be held criminally responsible.

3. Any person violating the provisions of this Decree and causing damage to others shall compensate the damaged party in accordance with civil law regulations.

4. A person acquiring ownership rights to a dwelling or construction works through purchase, gift, exchange, inheritance, or other forms prescribed by law but fails to complete procedures for obtaining certificates as stipulated in this Decree shall be subject to penalties under the law.

Article 20. Resolution of complaints regarding the issuance of certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works

The resolution of complaints during the implementation of this Decree shall be carried out in accordance with the law on complaints and denunciations.

CHAPTER V
IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 21. Responsibilities of relevant Ministries and sectors

1. The Ministry of Construction shall be responsible for:

a) Guide, inspect, urge, and resolve issues arising during the implementation of this Decree; compile and propose to the Government to amend and supplement the provisions of this Decree;

b) Uniformly guide nationwide the storage and management of records related to ownership rights to dwellings and construction works.

2. Ministers, heads of agencies equivalent to ministries, and heads of government-affiliated agencies involved shall be responsible for implementing this Decree.

Article 22. Responsibilities of provincial People's Committees

1. Develop specific procedures for issuing certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works; assign specific tasks to affiliated agencies and direct the issuance of certificates according to the principle of simplifying administrative procedures as prescribed by this Decree.

2. Specifically determine the list of documents prescribed in Clause 2, Article 9 of this Decree.

3. Direct affiliated agencies to implement, inspect, and urge the execution of this Decree within their jurisdiction.

4. Organize a filing system at the Construction Departments and District People's Committees in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Construction.

5. Conduct annual reviews and report results and issues to the Ministry of Construction for resolution within their authority, or submit to the Prime Minister for resolution of matters within the Prime Minister's authority.

6. Regulations on funding for the initial issuance, reissuance, and replacement of certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works must be appropriate to local conditions, following the principles below:

a) For the initial issuance of certificates for ownership rights to dwellings to individuals, the amount paid shall not exceed VND 100,000 per certificate;

For the initial issuance of certificates for ownership rights to dwellings to organizations, the amount paid shall not exceed VND 500,000 per certificate;

b) For the initial issuance of certificates for ownership rights to construction works to both individuals and organizations, the amount paid shall not exceed VND 500,000 per certificate;

c) For the reissuance, replacement, and confirmation of changes on certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works, and other cases when issuing certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works, the amount paid shall not exceed VND 50,000 per certificate.

Article 23. Responsibilities of district People's Committees and commune People's Committees

1. The district People's Committee shall be responsible for:

a) Assigning specific tasks to affiliated agencies, ensuring adequate personnel and equipment to meet the needs for issuing certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works in accordance with assigned tasks and local realities;

b) Implementing the issuance of certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and construction works within their jurisdiction in accordance with this Decree and specific plans assigned by the provincial People's Committee.

2. The commune People's Committee shall be responsible for receiving, confirming, and transferring applications for certificates from domestic individuals, overseas Vietnamese, or foreigners as stipulated in Article 12 of this Decree.

Article 24. Effectiveness

This Decree takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette and replaces Decree No. 60/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government on ownership rights to dwellings and land use rights in urban areas. Previous regulations contrary to this Decree are hereby abolished.

Certificates for ownership rights to dwellings and land use rights issued in accordance with Decree No. 60/CP dated July 5, 1994 of the Government remain legally valid. In cases where owners wish to replace these certificates with those issued under this Decree, they must follow the procedures for replacing certificates as stipulated in Article 16 of this Decree./.