Land valuation must take into account differential land rent at the time of acquisition.

(Baonghean)Overall, this revised draft of the Land Law has concretized the relevant provisions in the recent draft Constitution, and contains many new articles and ideas that institutionalize the Party and State's guidelines and policies on land.

For example, Articles 33 and 34 clearly define the role of land use planning and the system from the national level to the provincial and district levels... In particular, they have specified the planning and use of land for national defense, security, national interests, social interests, and economic and social development projects that require land acquisition.

Article 52, Clause h stipulates that land leased by the State for investment projects that are not implemented for 12 consecutive months or whose land use progress is slower than 24 months must be reclaimed. This provision was already included in Article 38 of the 2003 Land Law but was not implemented, leading to the situation of stalled projects, sometimes for decades without resolution. This amendment adds the provision that those whose land is reclaimed under this clause will not be reimbursed for land use fees, land taxes already paid, or assets attached to the land. This is absolutely necessary. The people strongly agree with this, as it prevents investors from creating fictitious or stalled projects to seize land; and responsible state agencies cannot use this as an excuse to avoid enforcement and eliminate "group interests." The people also propose a strict prohibition on the transfer of projects that are essentially land sales, as has happened recently. This draft also focuses on codifying subordinate legal documents (decrees, circulars) to ensure greater enforceability.

Article 69, which stipulates the conditions for compensation for land when the State reclaims land for use in national defense, security, public national interest, and economic development, codifies Article 8 of Decree 197/2004/ND-CP.

The people welcome this policy because these regulations are in line with current practices. The people suggest that the law needs more specific and detailed research to limit the number of subordinate legal documents, and that the phrase "The Government shall specify in detail in the articles of the law" should be removed.

The people are most concerned and worried about the recent decisions on land expropriation, regulations on land compensation prices, and resettlement of people whose land has been expropriated, which they consider unsatisfactory.

The draft Constitution stipulates that land is a special resource; the law needs to further specify that land is a special means of production for farmers, so that when it is reclaimed, consideration must be given to creating a new means of production for them so that they can quickly stabilize their lives.

Land valuation must take into account the differential land rent at the time of acquisition.

For example: Land used for agricultural production has low differential rent and low prices, but when it meets the conditions to contribute to the construction of industrial zones or new urban areas, the differential rent clearly increases, and the price must rise accordingly. This avoids a situation where land is only worth a few hundred thousand dong per square meter when it is reclaimed but then sells for tens of millions of dong.

The law also needs to specify at what level decisions to revoke land use rights can be signed and at what level (area) the land can be revoked. The public welcomes Article 55, which addresses the transfer, lease of land use rights, and capital contribution in the form of land use rights (at a reasonable price as above) from economic organizations, households, and individuals to implement projects where the State does not exercise the right to revoke the land use rights.

Nguyen Dinh Vo (Forestry Science and Technology Association)