Foreign Ownership of real estate in Vietnam

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Since the first land laws of 1993 property sector in Vietnam is increasingly open to foreign individuals and organizations. Initially the 1992 Constitution of Socialist Republic of Vietnam, articles 17, states that “the land as belonging to the state fall under the ownership of the entire people”. So technically, no one can own land : foreigners or Vietnamese. However statute of the land is not the same as built property. Since this first law, proprietorship evolves, the 1993 Land Law was replaced by the 1998 Land Law and most recently by the 2003 Land Law. January 1 2009, the National Assembly approved the circular 13 allowing foreigners to buy flats and apartments in the country. At last, in August the Ministry of Construction proposed to authorize the purchase of homes by foreigners who have a visa to enter Vietnam for more than three months. To understand the foreign ownership in Vietnam we need to distinct the type of real estate concern by ownership. Vietnam Constitution and land laws distinct land ownership and house ownership. In an other side the Vietnam land law make a distinction about people, between locals, foreign people and overseas Vietnamese or “Viet Kieu” who have a special status compared to other foreign. We will see on a first time the current restrictions on foreigners owning land or apartments in Vietnam (I). In a second time we will talk about the particular status of “Viet Kieu” and the opportunities to circumvent ownership restrictions (II). I. Foreign property limits in Vietnam In Vietnam the land belong to the state, foreigners are not allowed to own land, but under specifics conditions called “land use rights” the state can give rights to use the land to individuals or collectives foreigners (A) . The ... ... middle of paper ... ...ign individual with a direct investment in Vietnam, or who holds a management position in a company currently operating in Vietnam”. In this case the person just need to obtain the certificate of a company to certify that it holds a management position. Regarding to the last declaration of Vietnamese ministry of construction we can expect that foreign ownership of legal estate in Vietnam will be more flexible. The ministry proposed that foreigner will be allow to buy houses no bigger than 500 square meters. He also talk about 70 years ownership period or the possibility of an extension after the expiration period. At last he plans to offer the opportunity for foreigners to own several houses. The current situation is temporary, in the coming few years we can expect to see legal developments in real estate legislation that could facilitate access to foreign ownership.

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