Decree 69/2009/ND-CP was issued on August 13 in response to the demand for administrative reform and simplification of key aspects of the land law, particularly in relation to the recovery of land for development.
By amending a number of provisions on land use planning, land rental rates, land reclamation, resettlement and compensation, Decree 69 allows investors to integrate previously separate procedures for investment, construction and land. It is hoped that this integration will reduce the time required for enterprises to complete these procedures, improving the overall efficiency of construction projects.
Where land is recovered by the State for development in the public interest or for purposes of national defence or security, the investor was previously responsible for obtaining the opinion of the all relevant authorities and the provincial People s Committee regarding the location of the land. Under Decree 69, investors will now submit all documents relating to their real estate investment project to one designated local authority, who will then obtain the opinions of other relevant authorities and the provincial People s Committee.
Promptly after the investment location has been confirmed, the provincial People s Committee will either issue a notice on land recovery or authorise the district People s Committee to issue such a notice. This is a significant improvement on the old law under which the notice was only issued after the overall plan had been approved.
Concurrently with issuance of this notice, the chairman of the concerned district People s Committee will be responsible for immediately establishing a committee to prepare a compensation, assistance and resettlement plan, as well as a plan for vocational training and change of occupation for displaced people.
By providing for the early establishment of a committee, which deals with the lengthy and complicated resettlement process, the Decree aims to prevent the delays which have plagued past construction projects.
Pursuant to Decree 69, the chairman of the provincial People s Committee may permit investors to carry out surveys of the project area as soon as the investment policy has been approved, while under the old law, investors had to wait for the approval of the land administration authority.
The key benefit of this reform is that it will give investors more time to prepare detailed construction plans, and compensation, assistance and resettlement plans, as well as complete the land recovery process.
Under Decree 69, within 30 days from the date of receipt of the valid investment documentation, the relevant authorities and the provincial People s Committee must issue (i) a written introduction of the investment location, and (ii) notices on land recovery and establishment of the council for compensation, assistance and resettlement. In line with the other amendments, the aim of this provision is to reduce the time needed to carry out a project.
With respect to an investment project using land which does not fall into the category of land to be recovered by the State, Decree 69 streamlines this procedure by introducing a system under which, after being introduced to the location, the investors and land use rights holders can directly negotiate with each other for the purpose of reaching agreements on assignments, leases or capital contributions in the form of land use rights. VNS