The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment received a petition from voters in Ninh Binh province with the content: "From July 1, 2025, operating a two-level local government model, however, the implementation of Decree No. 123/2024/ND-CP and Decree No. 151/2025/ND-CP of the Government still has many problems in practice. Currently, many authorities in the land sector have been decentralized to the Chairman of the People's Committee at the commune level, but the authority to handle administrative violations in the land sector has not been clearly regulated on:
Decentralize authority between the commune and district levels; apply remedial measures such as forcing the return of illegal profits (currently under the authority of the district level), causing difficulties for the commune level in handling violations, potentially causing a risk of backlog and prolongation, causing frustration among the people.
Request the Government to direct the early issuance of detailed and unified instructions on the scope and authority of sanctions for Chairmen of Commune People's Committees in the field of land; mechanisms for applying remedial measures in cases of exceeding authority".
The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has the following opinion: Clause 3, Article 3 of the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations stipulates: "3. The Chairman of the People's Committee at the commune level shall exercise the authority in handling administrative violations of the Chairman of the People's Committee at the district level, the Chief of the Commune-level Public Security shall exercise the authority in handling administrative violations of the Chief of the District-level Public Security according to the Government's decree on handling administrative violations in the fields of state management until there is a replacement Government regulation or a Government decree detailing the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations on the authority to handle administrative violations takes effect".
Article 21 of Decree 189/2025/ND-CP dated July 1, 2025 of the Government detailing the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations on the authority to sanction administrative violations stipulates: During the period when the Government has not issued a decree to amend, supplement, replace or abolish regulations on the authority to sanction administrative violations in decrees on handling administrative violations in the fields of state management, the determination of the authority to sanction administrative violations of the positions shall be carried out as follows:
For the position with the authority to sanction administrative violations as prescribed in the decree on sanctioning administrative violations in the fields of state management without changing the name and tasks, powers or having a change of name but not changing the tasks and powers, the name and authority to sanction administrative violations of that position shall be applied according to the corresponding names and powers prescribed in this Decree until the Government's regulations replace it.
For the position with the authority to sanction administrative violations as prescribed in the decree on sanctioning administrative violations in the fields of state management that have changed tasks and powers, the position receiving those tasks and powers has the authority to sanction. The name and authority to sanction administrative violations shall be applied according to the corresponding names and authority prescribed in this Decree until a Government regulation is in place.
For positions that have not been regulated in the decree on sanctioning administrative violations in the fields of state management but are regulated in this Decree on the authority to sanction administrative violations, the authority to sanction administrative violations shall be exercised within the scope of the sector, field, and management area as prescribed in this Decree until the Government has a replacement regulation.
Based on the above regulations, the authority to sanction administrative violations of the Chairman of the District People's Committee as prescribed in Decree No. 123/2024/ND-CP dated October 4, 2024 of the Government regulating administrative sanctions in the field of land has been decentralized to the Chairman of the Commune People's Committee to implement the sanctions from July 1, 2025.
Currently, implementing the Plan to amend and supplement Decree No. 123/2024/ND-CP dated October 4, 2024 of the Government, along with Decision No. 1688/QD-TTg dated August 6, 2025 of the Prime Minister on the plan to implement the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations (time to submit to the Government in the first quarter of 2026), the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has issued Decision No. 3502/QD-BNNMT dated August 28, 2025 on the Plan to implement Decision No. 1688/QD-TTg dated August 6, 2025 of the Prime Minister and is reviewing difficulties and obstacles in the process of implementing Decree No. 123/2024/ND-CP dated October 4, 2024 of the Government, to propose and supplement relevant laws, laws on land and other relevant administrative violations.
