5 cases for construction of works are not permitted

A construction permit is the first required condition before starting construction of works, however, everybody should pay much attention to the cases for construction of works that are not permitted (residential houses or others).

1. Constructions without permits as required

Clause 1, Article 89, Law on Construction 2014 which is amended, supplemented by Clause 30, Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Construction Law 2020 prescribes as follows:

“1. Before starting construction of works, project owners shall obtain construction permits granted by competent state agencies in accordance with this Law, except the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article.”

Therefore, it is not allowed to start construction of work without construction permits except for the exempted cases.

2. Prohibited acts of construction on land

Clause 3, Article 12, Law on Construction 2014 prescribes the prohibited acts as follows:

- Constructing works in non-construction zones;

- Constructing works in encroachment upon the protection corridors of national defense, security, traffic or irrigation works, dykes, energy facilities, historical-cultural relic areas, and protection zones of other works prescribed by law;

- Constructing works in areas prone to landslide, a sweeping flood, or flash flood, except works built to overcome these phenomena

All the above acts shall be prohibited in construction works.

3. No construction of residential houses on agricultural land

Article 6, Land Law 2013 prescribes the land use principles as follows:

“Article 6. Land use principles

1. Compliance with land use master plans and plans, and use for proper purposes.

2.  Economy, effectiveness, environmental protection, and causing no harm to the legitimate interests of adjacent land users.

...”

Accordingly, one of the principles is the use for proper purposes. It means that houses are only allowed to build on residential land, not on other types of land, including agricultural land:

Therefore, types of agricultural land are not allowed to build houses, in particularly:

- Land for the cultivation of annual crops, including paddy land and land for the cultivation of other annual crops;

- Land for the cultivation of perennial trees;

- Land for production forests;

- Land for protection forests;

- Land for special-use forests;

- Land for aquaculture;

- Land for salt production;

- Other agricultural lands.

Note: Other agricultural lands which are permitted to build some works bringing into agricultural uses such as: 

- Building types for cultivation purposes, including farming not directly on the land.

- Used to build greenhouses, including farming not directly on the land.

- Land for planting and nursing seedlings and breeders, and land for growing flowers and ornamental plants.

4. No new construction in the land under planning is permitted

Article 49, Land Law 2013 which is amended and supplemented by Clause 1, Article 6, the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of Thirty-Seven Laws Related to the Planning Law is prescribed as follows:

“7. In case land use master plans have been publicized but annual district-level land use plans are not yet available, land users may continue using land and exercising the rights of land users as prescribed by law.

In case annual district-level land use plans are available, users of land subject to change of land use purposes or recovery under these land use plans may continue exercising the rights of land users but may not build new houses or other construction works or plant perennial trees; if wishing to repair or renovate existing houses or construction works, they shall apply for permission from competent state agencies in accordance with the law.”

Therefore, in case annual district-level use plans are available, users of land may not build new houses or other construction works or plant perennial trees.

Note: After 03 years from the date of announcement of district-level annual land use plans, if competent state agencies have neither issued land recovery decisions nor permitted land use purpose change under such plans without any modification or annulment of such plans or without the announcement of any modification or annulment of such plans, land users may apply for definite-term construction permits (Clause 33, Article 1, Law on Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Construction Law 2020).

5. No more construction for the cases of prohibiting the change of the current state of disputed property is permitted

Article 122, Civil Procedure Code prescribes prohibiting the change of the current state of a disputed property as follows:

“Prohibiting the change of the current state of a disputed property shall apply if during the settlement of a case there are grounds to believe that the person who possesses or keeps a disputed property is disassembling, assembling, expanding or otherwise changing the current state of such property.”

Accordingly, the cases of provisional urgent measures to prohibit the change of the current state of a disputed property are not permitted for more construction.  

Here are the cases which are not permitted for more construction. Accordingly, it is necessary to pay attention to the regulations that the constructions are on non-residential lands, without construction permits, and in the land under planning.