Ordinance on rights and obligations of foreign organizations and individuals renting land in Vietnam 1994

ORDINANCE

ON THE RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF FOREIGN ORGANISATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO LEASE LAND IN VIETNAM

Proceeding from Article 17, Article 18 and Article 91 of the 1992 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam;Proceeding from Article 80 of the Land Law;  This Ordinance stipulates the rights and obligations of the foreign organisations and individuals who lease land in Vietnam.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

The foreign organisation and individuals eligible to lease land from the Vietnamese Government under this Ordinance are:

1- Diplomatic representations, consulates, and other foreign missions with a diplomatic function;

2- Representative offices of United Nations agencies in Vietnam, inter-governmental offices and organisations, and representative offices of inter-governmental organisations;

3- Foreign organisations and individuals investing in Vietnam in accordance with the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam.

Article 2

The leasing of land must be based on the international treaties which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has signed or acceded to, on the investment licence, on the purpose of land use and the maturity period as prescribed by Vietnamese law.

Article 3

The foreign organisations and individuals who lease land in Vietnam must comply with the relevant stipulations of Vietnamese law on the management and use of land; their legitimate rights and interests shall be protected by the Vietnamese State when these rights and interests are violated by others; if they make any breach of the lease-hold, they will be dealt with in accordance with Vietnamese law.

In case the international treaties which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has signed or acceded to stipulate differently from the stipulations of this Ordinance, such international treaties shall prevail.

Article 4

Foreign organisations and individuals in Vietnam shall lease land by contract.

The contents and procedure of making a lease contract are stipulated by the Vietnamese Government.

Article 5

In case the Vietnamese Government retrieves ahead of time the land which has been leased to foreign organisations and individuals as mentioned at Points 2 and 3, Article 1 of this Ordinance, for national interests or for defense and security purpose, the foreign organisations and individuals concerned shall be compensated for damage a stipulated by Vietnamese law, except when the retrieval is made on account of the violation of Vietnamese law on the management and use of land by foreign organisations and individuals.

Chapter II

THE RIGHTS OF FOREIGN ORGANISATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO LEASE LAND IN VIETNAM

Article 6

The foreign organisations who lease land from the Vietnamese Government as stipulated at Points 1 and 2 Article 1 of this Ordinance, are entitled:

1- To use land in accordance with the time and purpose for which the land has been leased;

2- To build projects on the land leased in conformity with the licence granted by the authorized office of the Vietnamese State;

3- To own the projects they build on the land leased within the time specified. Ownership of the projects after the expiry of the land lease is stipulated in the lease contract;

4- To have their legitimate right of and use protected by the Vietnamese State.

5- To complain about and denounce any violations of their legitimate right to use land.

Apart from the above-mentioned rights, they are also entitled to other rights provided for by the international treaties signed between the Vietnamese Government and the Government of the sending country or by a lease contract that conforms to Vietnamese Law.

Article 7

The foreign organisations and individuals investing in Vietnam in accordance with the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam who lease land from the Vietnamese Government are entitled:

1- To enjoy the results of their investment on the land;

2- To use the value of the right to land use plus the property which they have invested in building on the land as collateral at the Bank of Vietnam within the time of the land lease as stipulated by Vietnamese law;

3- In case they are licensed to invest in building infrastructure facilities and to sub-lease them at export processing zones and industrial parks, they are entitled to sub-lease the land with such infrastructure facilities already built as stipulated by the Vietnamese Government;

4- To benefit from the public utilities for land protection and improvements;

5- The have their legitimate right land use protected by the Vietnamese State;

6- To complain about and denounce any violations of their legitimate right of land use;

7- To be given priority in continuing the lease land after the expiry of the lease contract if they so request.

Chapter III

THE OBLIGATIONS OF FOREIGN ORGANISATIONS  AND INDIVIDUALS WHO LEASE LAND IN VIETNAM

Article 8

The foreign organisations and individuals who lease land in Vietnam have the obligations:

1- To use land in accordance with the purpose set in the contract and other relevant stipulations;

2- To fulfil the financial obligations on the lease of land as stipulated by Vietnamese law;

3- To abide by the stipulations of Vietnamese law on construction and environmental protection, not to harm the interests of the Vietnamese State and of the neighbouring land users, and to accept the inspection of land use by the Vietnamese State's authorized office;

4- Not to do harm to the land or to degrade its value;

5- To return to the Vietnamese Government the part of land they do not use as stipulated by Vietnamese law and by mutual agreement between the Vietnamese Government and the lease-holder.

6- The representative offices of United Nations agencies in Vietnam, inter-governmental offices and organisations, representative offices of inter-governmental offices and organisations and the organisations and individuals investing in Vietnam in accordance with the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam who are approved by the Vietnamese Government to lease land, must abide by the Vietnamese Government's decision on land retrieval as stipulated at Article 26 of the Land Law and Article 5 of this Ordinance.

Article 9

Upon the expiry of the land lease, the lease-holder who wishes to continue using the land, must apply for extension of the leases to the Vietnamese Government.

The Government shall stipulate the procedure for extension of the land leases for the lease-holders on a case-by-case basis.

When a foreign-invested business is permitted by Vietnam's authorized level to extend its operation, the land leases shall be extended correspondingly.

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISION

Article 10

This Ordinance's stipulations also apply to investment projects undertaken by overseas Vietnamese in Vietnam, to foreign invested joint ventures in which the Vietnamese side offers the value of the right to land use as investment capital, and to foreign invested joint ventures which lease land in Vietnam.

Article 11

This Ordinance takes effect on January 1st, 1995.

All earlier stipulations which are contrary to this ordinance are now annulled.

Article 12

The Government shall make detailed provisions on the implementation of this Ordinance.

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