The government has set a target that by 2026 all national databases, including the land database, must be reviewed, standardized and fully connected to ensure smooth data sharing and integration for policy management, administrative reform and online public services.

A national land database creates a foundation for local governments to serve citizens more quickly and transparently. Complete and accurate data will allow commune authorities, who are the closest to the people, to process administrative procedures locally, cutting out intermediaries and saving time and costs.

The questions of many residents center on personal and land information that already exists in the system: “Why do I still need to submit a photocopy of my land-use right certificate?” 

This can be answered by looking at the challenges faced by communes and wards.

Communes lack full previous cadastral records

In Hanoi, the “90-day land data cleaning” campaign runs from September 1 to November 30, 2025. All land parcels will be reviewed, standardized, and assigned unified identification codes, ensuring alignment with population, household, and asset information.

A representative of Yen Bai Commune People’s Committee (Hanoi) said the commune has formed task forces and provided guidance down to each village. However, the process has not been without difficulties.

“Previous cadastral records are not fully held by the commune. Land sales and transfers were handled at branches of the Land Registration Office under the former Department of Natural Resources and Environment, so communes are not updated with changed data. Some parcels were transferred, but the commune People’s Committee had no knowledge,” the Yen Bai representative shared.

In addition to missing data, many mountainous-area communes still lack regularly updated cadastral maps, making land management even more challenging. When residents apply for new land certificates or land-use conversion, the commune must send files to the Land Registration Office for measurement and verification, then wait for feedback before proceeding.

“Hanoi’s land database maps are only provided to the Land Registration Office. Commune authorities are not updated, which delays procedures,” the representative said.

An economic affairs officer from a commune in Hanoi noted that communes, being the closest level of government to residents, should be empowered to handle procedures such as land division or updates on changes. Currently, however, they still have to send documents to the Land Registration Office for information.

According to the officer, transferring certain land registration functions to communes would resolve the “data disconnection” issue. Residents could complete all procedures - division, transfer, or new issuance - at the commune level more quickly and conveniently.

“Commune authorities are responsible for land management, but have no access to the necessary data. Even when disputes occur, they must handle the cases without updated records for reference,” the officer said.

Unified data-sharing

The transition to a two-tier local government system aims to simplify administrative procedures and better serve citizens. However, if the land database remains unconnected, digitalization efforts may get stuck in implementation.

Many residents wonder why authorities do not adopt digital solutions to clean land data, such as allowing residents to upload their land-use right certificates via OTT platforms or through local land management apps, instead of requiring photocopies, which are time-consuming and inconvenient.

Responding to VietNamNet, Mai Van Phan, Deputy Director General of the General Department of Land Management, explained that the main reason lies in data formed dispersively across periods.

Information on land-use right certificates has varied across legal frameworks. Depending on the version of the Land Law applied at different times, certificates might only list the landholder’s name without ID numbers, or in some cases, only the household head’s name. Over time, ID formats have changed, from 9-digit, 10-digit, and 12-digit ID cards to today’s citizen ID cards.

Additionally, some land transactions occurred informally without title transfers, resulting in discrepancies between actual land users and the names on official documents. Other contributing factors include poor record-keeping by state agencies during earlier periods and losses due to natural disasters such as floods.

To make land data “accurate, complete, clean, and live,” collaboration between government and citizens is essential for verification. Residents only need to provide copies of their land use right certificates and citizen ID cards upon request by local task forces, without notarization.

Hong Khanh