Agricultural land is being piloted for transfer to be developed into commercial housing projects.

The National Assembly has approved a pilot policy allowing investors to negotiate the acquisition of agricultural and non-agricultural land use rights for the development of commercial housing projects.

On the afternoon of November 30, with over 86.6% of deputies voting in favor, the National Assembly passed a Resolution on piloting the implementation of commercial housing projects through agreements to acquire land use rights or based on existing land use rights.

Currently, under the Housing Law 2014, investors are only permitted to develop commercial housing projects if they hold land use rights for residential land. However, from April 1, 2025, they will be allowed to negotiate the acquisition of land use rights for agricultural land and non-agricultural land (such as commercial and service land) that is not classified as residential land, as well as other types of land within the same land plot, for the purpose of developing commercial housing projects. This policy will be piloted for a period of five years.

In cases where a land area includes portions managed by state agencies or organizations that cannot be separated into an independent project, such portions may be included in the overall project land area. The State will then recover the land and allocate it to the investor without going through auction or bidding procedures.

The conditions for projects to qualify for this pilot policy require that the land plot be located in an urban area and be consistent with the district-level land use plan. Pilot projects must also ensure that the additional residential land area does not exceed 30% of the total increase during the planning period (compared to current land use), in accordance with the land allocation and zoning plan under the provincial master plan to 2030.

Provincial-level People’s Committees will be responsible for reviewing and granting approval for real estate businesses to acquire land use rights. At the same time, these enterprises must comply with all relevant regulations on land, housing, real estate business, and investment.

In cases where the land being transferred originates from land designated for national defense or security purposes, approval from the Ministry of National Defense or the Ministry of Public Security is required.

In the explanatory and feedback report submitted prior to the National Assembly’s approval, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly noted that some opinions suggested limiting the pilot to certain localities—specifically provinces and cities with high demand for commercial housing.

However, the Standing Committee stated that many small-scale commercial housing projects are currently facing obstacles. If the pilot policy were only implemented in selected localities, other areas would not be able to carry out commercial housing projects under the agreement-based mechanism. Therefore, implementing the pilot nationwide would ensure consistency and fairness among localities.

Anh Minh