The Party Central Committee has just issued a resolution demanding sweeping changes to the real estate market, applying progressive tax rates on those with large areas of land or properties with an aim to ward off speculation and develop the real estate market in a healthy manner.

Resolution 18-NQ/TW of June 16 issued by the fifth plenum of the Party Central Party required that higher tax rates be imposed on those people using large areas of land or owning multiple real estate properties, those speculating on land, failing to put land to use as scheduled, or leaving land idle.

 

The Party Central Committee urged relevant bodies to build laws and policies on land tax with reference to international norms but suitable to the domestic market development and conditions and with a feasible roadmap.

 

A fully-fledged legal corridor for the real estate market must be established, with the land use rights to be strongly commercialized. There must be policies to develop the market for land use rights, especially the market for farmland leasing, according to the resolution.

 

While stressing the need to apply higher taxes in such a way to prevent speculation on real estate, the Party Central Committee also demanded preferential land taxes and fees for poverty-stricken areas and for poor and policy people including ethnic groups.

 

The Party stated that people’s land use rights are protected by law, but reiterated that the land use rights are not the rights to ownership. Still, specific rules must be issued to protect the legitimate rights of land users and to prevent land-related corruption and inappropriate retraction of people’s land use rights.

 

According to the resolution, land can only be redeemed after schemes on compensation, support and resettlement are approved. For certain specific cases, resettlement must be done before land is retracted to ensure that the affected people have a decent living place with equal or better conditions than their old places.

 

The scheme for reconciliation and negotiation between the people and enterprises must be ensured when the latter seek to have land for housing or urban development.

 

The Party Central Committee required that amendments to the 2013 Land Law and some related laws be completed in 2023. By 2030, a synchronous legal system must be completed to prevent the wastefulness of land and to settle all land disputes that have been protracted due to historical reasons.