The Untapped Potential of Untitled Land: Awaiting the Red Book Revolution

Easing Anxiety Over Red Book Procedures

The real estate market has witnessed a significant event with the Land Law 2024 coming into force from August 1, 2024. A notable change in the new law is the issuance of land use right certificates and ownership of assets attached to the land (“red books”) for undocumented land. This provision has caught the attention of local governments and citizens alike as it affects the interests of many families.

According to the 2024 Land Law, households and individuals who are using land without documents but are not in violation of land laws and are not cases of land allocated by an incompetent authority shall be granted a red book.

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Many years ago, Mr. Hoang Ngoc Binh’s family (Tu Son City, Bac Ninh Province) was allocated a plot of land by the village to build a house. At that time, the village directly sold the land to the households. However, the People’s Committee of the district had the authority to allocate the land. Since the land was allocated by an incompetent authority, Mr. Binh and many other households in the area have not been able to obtain a red book. As soon as he learned that his house was among those eligible for a red book for undocumented land, Mr. Binh went to the ward to inquire about the procedure. The ward land official said that while the regulations and mechanisms are in place, they are awaiting further specific guidance.

5 Cases of Undocumented Land That Will Be Granted a Red Book

Article 138 of the 2024 Land Law, effective from August 1, 2024, stipulates that a certificate of land use rights and ownership of assets attached to the land (red book) shall be granted to households and individuals using land without documents but not in violation of land laws and not in cases of land allocation by an incompetent authority.

The first three eligible cases are households and individuals who have been using the land since before December 18, 1980; from December 18, 1980, to before October 15, 1993; and from October 15, 1993, to July 1, 2014. The condition is that the land must be confirmed by the People’s Committee of the commune as free from disputes to be granted a red book.

Specifically, for land plots with houses, residential buildings, and constructions serving life purposes, if the total area of the land plot is equal to or larger than the prescribed limit, a red book shall be granted for an area equal to the recognized limit of residential land, and no land use levy shall be payable.

In the case where the area of land on which houses and constructions serving life purposes have been built exceeds the limit, a red book shall be granted for the actual area used. The land user must pay a land use fee for the area exceeding the recognized limit of residential land.

For land plots with houses and constructions serving life purposes, where the area is smaller than the recognized limit of residential land, a red book shall be granted for the entire land plot, and no land use fee shall be payable.

As for land plots used for production, business, non-agricultural, commercial, and service purposes, a red book shall be granted according to the actual area used, with a long-term duration.

The area of land exceeding the limit, if it is non-agricultural land that is not residential, shall be granted a red book for production, business, non-agricultural, commercial, and service purposes.

In the case of a land plot used by multiple households and individuals, a red book shall be granted based on the total limit of residential land of such households and individuals. If a household or individual uses multiple land plots with houses and constructions serving life purposes and is confirmed by the People’s Committee of the commune as stable before October 15, 1993, the limit shall be calculated for each land plot.

The fourth case is that of households and individuals who were allocated agricultural land but have been using it for residential or non-agricultural purposes before July 1, 2014, without documents. This provision only applies to landowners who are permanent residents in localities with difficult or very difficult socio-economic conditions and are confirmed by the People’s Committee of the commune as free from disputes.

The fifth case concerns households and individuals who have been stably using land for agricultural purposes and are confirmed by the People’s Committee of the commune as free from disputes. They shall be granted a red book in the form of the State allocating land without collecting land use fees for the area of land being used, provided it does not exceed the limit of agricultural land allocated to individuals. The remaining area of agricultural land (if any) must be converted to leased land from the State.

For households and individuals using land without documents who do not meet the above conditions for being granted a red book, they are temporarily allowed to use the land in its current state until the State retrieves it.

The Law stipulates that the State has the responsibility to grant red books to eligible applicants. The Government will detail the procedures for granting red books for undocumented land.

Awaiting Guidance on Procedures for First-Time Red Book Issuance

The issuance of red books for undocumented land cases is considered one of the important highlights of the 2024 Land Law. However, to effectively implement this provision, detailed guidance is needed, especially regarding the payment of taxes and fees, to ensure that citizens fulfill their rights and obligations correctly and fully. At present, localities are awaiting guidance on the procedures for red book issuance.

In August 2024, at the Land Registration Office of Tu Son City, people mainly came to complete old applications submitted before August 1. New applications, especially those related to the procedure for the first-time issuance of land use right certificates, have been temporarily halted. According to local sharing, the current challenge in the procedure for the first-time issuance of red books lies in the change of the authority responsible for granting red books to citizens.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Huy, an official of Dinh Bang Ward, Tu Son City, Bac Ninh Province, said that previously, the receiving agency was the Land Registration Office. After the Land Registration Office branch receives and evaluates the application, it transfers it to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment for evaluation and submission to the People’s Committee of the city for a decision. “However, according to the new Law and Decree 101, there is a change, meaning that the receiving and resolving agency is now the Department of Natural Resources and Environment at the district level, not the branch of the Land Registration Office. This has led to some changes in the administrative procedures currently issued by Bac Ninh province, and we are awaiting adjustments,” said Mr. Huy.

Mr. Nguyen Manh Cuong, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Tu Son City, Bac Ninh province, shared that while the Law has provided regulations, central and provincial agencies need to give more specific guidance. For example, the change in the department receiving applications from the Land Registration Office to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment at the district level means that the database of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment has not yet been transferred, causing difficulties in evaluating applications.

The provisions of the new Land Law and the Decrees have brought about many positive changes in red book issuance for citizens, such as granting red books for undocumented land that has existed for many years and reducing the time for first-time red book issuance to no more than 3 working days. Localities have expressed that they are awaiting specific guidance on implementation procedures to expedite the process of granting red books to citizens in a more efficient and convenient manner.