Amid recent challenges faced by residents due to sudden land price increases in various localities, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) has outlined principles for building a new land price framework.

According to Deputy Minister Le Minh Ngan, the process of developing a new land price list is being implemented in the spirit of the 12th Central Conference resolution, while aiming to comprehensively amend the Land Law.

The key principle is the state’s decisive role in determining land prices through a framework suited to practical conditions and local land management needs. This will be formalized in the revised Land Law in a thorough and systematic manner.

Ngan stressed that the land price framework is built on scientific and grounded valuation methods. However, the prices in the framework do not fully coincide with market prices. Instead, the price determination must be made based on both the land valuation results and factors serving the land management work at the local level, in order to ensure stability and operational efficiency.

“The land price framework cannot simply replicate market prices but must balance state management requirements, ensuring stability and supporting planning, land allocation, leasing, and reclamation,” Ngan said.

He said the ministry has issued multiple reminders to localities, urging that the land price framework be based on practical local management needs. However, some localities have implemented frameworks with excessively sharp increases, causing negative impacts and complicating management efforts.

The ministry urges provinces and cities to actively contribute to the draft revised Land Law, to be submitted to the government by late August for the National Assembly approval in October.

Provincial and communal people’s committee chairpersons hold authority to determine land prices

Nguyen Thi Minh Phuong from MAE stated that under the 2024 Land Law, provincial People’s Committees are authorized to develop, announce, and apply the land price framework starting January 1, 2026. The framework will be reviewed, adjusted, and supplemented annually to align with actual conditions.

Additionally, chairpersons of provincial and communal People’s Committees hold authority to determine specific land prices in individual cases, ensuring alignment with their assigned functions and duties.

Procedurally, the process for establishing the initial land price framework and annual updates is tightly regulated, comprising 16 steps. Adjustments to the framework under Clause 1, Article 257 of the Land Law involve 7 steps. Specific land pricing for particular areas, projects, or purposes follows a 12-step process.

Phuong noted that these detailed, rigorous steps ensure transparency, accuracy, and consistency in land pricing, aligning with state management needs and local realities.

Vu Diep