On the Government Information Portal, Mr. N.H.P in Phu Tho said that in early March 2025, he completed a dossier to change the purpose of using agricultural land to residential land (within the limit assigned by the state). Due to his ignorance, he did not declare the application for land use fee exemption (he is a person with meritorious services).
At the end of March 2025, Mr. P received a decision from the City People's Committee allowing the change of land use purpose.
By mid-April 2025, the tax authority issued a notice of the amount payable. He has paid all the taxes and has received a new red book.
Mr. P asked, can you now request the tax authority and the ward People's Committee to recalculate the reduced amount and refund the land use fee after the merger of the two-level government? In case he is not refunded for the land use fee he has paid, what regulations are based on?
Regarding this issue, the Phu Tho Provincial Tax Department has the following opinion:
Legal regulations on the order and procedures for implementing exemption and reduction of land use fees for meritorious people: Clause 1, Article 106 and Article 107 of Decree No. 131/2021/ND-CP dated December 30, 2021 of the Government detailing and measures to implement the Ordinance on preferential treatment for meritorious people for the revolution stipulate the following principles:
The exemption and reduction of land use fees prescribed in Articles 104 and 105 of this Decree shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Article 6 of the Ordinance and in accordance with the principles prescribed in the law on land use fee collection.
Point b, Clause 1, Section 1, Part III, Appendix I of Decree No. 151/2025/ND-CP dated June 12, 2025 of the Government regulating the determination of the authority of local authorities at 2 levels, decentralization and delegation in the field of land stipulates the procedures for implementation in cases where land users must pay land use fees and land rents calculated according to land prices in the land price list as follows:
Specialized agencies on agriculture and environment implement:
Preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies to determine cases of exemption from land use fees/land rents according to the provisions of law on land use fees and land rents (if any)".
Clause 3, Clause 5, Article 18 of Decree No. 103/2024/ND-CP dated July 30, 2024 of the Government regulating land use fees and land rents stipulates:
"Exemption from land use fees for residential land within the residential land allocation limit (including land allocation, change of land use purpose, issuance of Certificates to people who are using land) for households and people with meritorious services to the revolution who are exempted from land use fees according to the provisions of the law on people with meritorious services.
... 5. In cases where land use fees are exempted without having to carry out procedures to request land use fees exemptions and not having to carry out procedures to determine land prices and calculate exempted land use fees according to the provisions of Clause 3, Article 157 of the Land Law, when carrying out land allocation procedures; the competent land management agency is responsible for statistics and summarizing cases exempted from land use fees...".
Clause 4, Clause 6, Article 19 of Decree No. 103/2024/ND-CP stipulates:
"Reducing land use fees
Reduced land use fees for residential land within the residential land allocation limit (including land allocation, change of land use purpose, issuance of Certificates to people who are using land) for people with revolutionary contributions who are eligible for land use fees reduction according to the provisions of the law on people with meritorious contributions.
Based on the records and documents on land transferred by the state management agency on land according to the provisions of law, the tax authority calculates the amount of land use fee payable and the amount of land use fee reduced. The reduction in land use fees is carried out together with the calculation of land use fees payable according to the provisions of Article 20 of this Decree".
The procedure for calculating, collecting and paying land use fees is specified in Point b, Clause 2, Article 21 of Decree No. 103/2024/ND-CP.
Based on the above regulations, in case Mr. N.H.P has been granted permission by competent authorities to change the purpose of land use (converting agricultural land area to residential land within the state-allocated limit), has paid land use fees according to the notice of the tax authority and has been granted a Certificate of land use rights, now determined to be eligible for exemption or reduction of land use fees according to the provisions of the law on meritorious people, it is recommended that he contact the competent authority (commune People's Committee, land management agency, land registration office or one-stop department) for guidance and completion of procedures, records for exemption and reduction of land use fees according to the provisions of law.
Based on the dossier for exemption and reduction of land use fees and the Information Transfer Form ( information about the land user, land area, land location, land use purpose, land use origin) sent by the Land Registration Office or the competent land management agency or the one-stop department, the tax authority will determine the amount of land use fee payable, decide to reduce land use fees and handle the amount of land use fee paid according to the provisions of law.
