Ho Chi Minh City Plans to Reduce Residential Land Limits in Multiple Districts and Counties

According to a new draft regulation, the residential land recognition limit for households and individuals using land before October 15, 1995, in Ho Chi Minh City will be reduced in several areas...

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment has recently sent a document to relevant units seeking opinions on a draft Decision by the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City. This decision concerns the limit for recognizing residential land for households and individuals using land before December 18, 1980, and from December 18, 1980, to before October 15, 1993, in the city, as stipulated in Clause 5, Article 141 of the 2024 Land Law.

According to the draft, the residential land recognition limit for households and individuals in districts 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, Go Vap, Binh Thanh, Phu Nhuan, Tan Binh, Tan Phu, Binh Tan, and Thu Duc City will not exceed 160 square meters per household.

In rural residential areas in the communes of Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi, Nha Be, and Can Gio districts, the limit is 250 square meters per household.

In townships and urban development planning areas in Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi, Nha Be, and Can Gio districts, the residential land recognition limit will not exceed 200 square meters per household.

Comparing with Decision No. 18/2016 (dated May 16, 2016) of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, which stipulates the residential land limit for households and individuals in districts 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, Go Vap, Binh Thanh, Phu Nhuan, Tan Binh, and Tan Phu as not exceeding 160 square meters per household.

Districts 2, 7, 9, 12, Binh Tan, Thu Duc, and townships of Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi, and Nha Be districts have a limit of 200 square meters per household.

Urban development planning areas have a limit of 250 square meters per household. Can Gio district and rural residential areas in the communes of Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi, and Nha Be districts have a limit of 300 square meters per household.

Thus, according to the new draft, the land limits are adjusted downward in many areas. Specifically, Thu Duc City (including the former districts 2, 9, and Thu Duc), districts 7, 12, and Binh Tan will see a reduction from 200 square meters to 160 square meters.

In Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi, Nha Be, and Can Gio districts: in township areas and urban planning areas, the limit will be reduced from 250 square meters to 200 square meters; rural residential areas will be reduced from 300 square meters to 250 square meters.

For the townships in the five suburban districts, the residential land limit remains unchanged at a maximum of 200 square meters.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment, residential land is the area used for building houses and life-supporting structures; gardens and ponds attached to the house within the same plot. The residential land limit is used by management agencies when recognizing land use rights and allocating land to residents. Each province and city has different residential land limits.

In addition, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment also proposed a unified recognition limit for residential land for the periods before December 18, 1980, and from December 18, 1980, to before October 15, 1993, to ensure continuity, uniformity, and suitability with the practical situation of land recognition in Ho Chi Minh City.

Explaining this change, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment stated that the demand for residential land for building houses in all areas across Ho Chi Minh City is very high, but the remaining unrecognized residential land fund is currently low.

Currently, the urbanization rate in districts 7, 12, Binh Tan, and Thu Duc City is rapid. The density and land fund for building houses in urban development planning areas in Binh Chanh, Hoc Mon, Cu Chi, Nha Be, and Can Gio districts are not inferior to, and even higher than, the township areas of these districts.

Meanwhile, the new Land Law stipulates that for cases using land before December 18, 1980, and from December 18, 1980, to before October 15, 1993, recognized as residential land, no land use fee is payable for the residential land within the limit.

Thus, setting a high residential land recognition limit and applying it across many administrative units could reduce state budget revenue from land use fees, in addition to the reasons mentioned above.