Talking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Lawyer Tran Tuan Anh - Director of Bright Legal Law Firm - said that the procedures and process for converting garden land (agricultural land) to residential land in 2026 are basically still implemented according to Article 121 and Article 227 of the 2024 Land Law. The most notable new point in 2026 lies in financial obligations, which is also great news for people.
Previously, according to the 2024 Land Law, land use fees when converting land use purposes from agricultural land to residential land were calculated by 100% of the difference between residential land prices and agricultural land prices according to the new land price list. With many localities adjusting the land price list to increase quite high, this amount of money becomes a very heavy burden, in some places up to billions of VND for a not too large land plot.
To remove difficulties, the National Assembly has passed Resolution No. 254/2025/QH15 (effective from January 1, 2026), specifically at point c, clause 2, Article 10, households and individuals when changing the land use purpose of agricultural land, garden land, pond in the same land plot with residential land to residential land, only have to pay 30% (for the area within the residential land allocation limit) or 50% (for the area exceeding the limit but not exceeding 1 time the limit) of the land use fee difference, instead of paying 100% as before (the part exceeding 1 time the limit still pays 100%).
Specific incentive levels and transitional handling methods are detailed in Decree 50/2026/ND-CP dated January 31, 2026, stipulating a number of articles of Resolution 254/2025/QH15.
However, Lawyer Tran Tuan Anh also noted this policy:
- Incentives only apply once to 1 land plot of a household or individual.
- Retrospective application according to Article 12 of Decree 50/2026/ND-CP: If households and individuals have been converted to land use purposes in the period from August 1, 2024 (the date the 2024 Land Law takes effect) to before January 1, 2026 but have not paid land use fees, they will be recalculated according to the new preferential rate; if they have paid 100%, they will be recalculated and the surplus amount will be refunded.
- Functional agencies will strictly control to avoid cases of taking advantage of policies to apply for incentives many times on different land plots; if detected, 100% will be recovered and additional late payment fees will be charged.
This is a fairly favorable time for people with real needs to carry out procedures to legally change land use purposes, instead of continuing to build illegally and then struggling to find ways to legalize it later," Lawyer Tran Tuan Anh recommended.
Lawyer Tran Tuan Anh also noted that the above analysis is a legal advice based on current legal regulations. The specific land use purpose conversion also depends on the origin, current status, planning, land allocation limit and legal documents of each land plot. Therefore, people need to check the conditions and carry out procedures at competent authorities before proceeding with land use purpose conversion.
