Proposal to exempt resettlement housing and land from registration fees.

In the draft Decree amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 140/2016/ND-CP on registration fees, the Ministry of Finance proposes exempting registration fees for certain types of houses and land.

According to the Ministry of Finance, Articles 83 and 86 of the 2013 Land Law stipulate: "When the State reclaims land, in addition to compensation as prescribed, land users are also considered for support by the State, including resettlement support in cases where residential land is reclaimed and relocation is required. If the compensation and support provided to those whose land is reclaimed are insufficient to purchase a minimum resettlement plot, the State will provide financial assistance to cover the cost of purchasing a minimum resettlement plot."

Illustrative image.

Decree No. 140/2016/ND-CP on registration fees stipulates exemption from registration fees for: “Houses and land that are compensated (including houses and land purchased with compensation and support money) when the State recovers houses and land according to the provisions of law.”

According to Circular No. 301/2016/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance, "The taxable value for land and housing in resettlement areas is the price of land and housing approved by the competent authority, after balancing and offsetting the compensation price between the land and housing in the area where the land and housing were confiscated and the price of land and housing in the resettlement area. Thus, the land and housing tax for resettlement areas is calculated only on the difference between the value of the land and housing in the resettlement area and the compensation value of the land and housing in the area where the land and housing were confiscated."

Therefore, to ensure consistency with the land law regulations on compensation and support when the state reclaims land and the land use tax law on exemption from land use tax for cases where houses and land are compensated, the Ministry of Finance proposes adding a regulation on exemption from land use tax for cases of resettlement houses and land.

In addition, Decree No. 140 stipulates that land allocated or leased for investment in infrastructure construction or housing construction for resale is exempt from registration fees. However, in these cases, when registering ownership or usage rights with the competent state agency for leasing or self-use, the organization or individual to whom the State has allocated or leased the land must pay registration fees.

In cases where organizations or individuals receive a transfer of ownership to continue investing in infrastructure construction or building houses for resale, they are exempt from paying registration fees (this exemption only applies when the organization or individual registers the right to use or own the property). At the same time, the regulations stipulate that organizations or individuals receiving the transfer of infrastructure or houses must pay registration fees when registering ownership or usage rights with the competent state agency.

Therefore, in this new draft Decree, the Ministry of Finance proposes removing the provision that "In cases where organizations or individuals receive the transfer of infrastructure or houses, they must pay registration fees when registering ownership or usage rights with competent state agencies."