The three most prominent contents include reducing land use fees when changing land use purposes, deploying electronic identification codes for real estate and expanding the area of exemption from construction permits for individual houses.
The first notable change starting from January 1, 2026 is financial policy when converting agricultural land, garden land or pond land to residential land. Previously, according to current regulations, households and individuals had to pay the entire difference between residential land prices and agricultural land prices according to the local land price list.
In the context of many provinces and cities adjusting up the land price list, the amount to be paid in cases of land use purpose conversion is often at a high level, putting significant pressure on people.
According to the new mechanism issued to remove difficulties in the process of implementing the Land Law, the collection level has been adjusted in the direction of a significant reduction. For areas within the residential land allocation limit, people only need to pay 30% of the difference between residential land prices and agricultural land prices.
The area exceeding the limit but not exceeding the limit once will apply a collection rate of 50%. Only areas exceeding this threshold must fulfill financial obligations at 100% of the difference. This change is assessed as helping to significantly reduce costs for land users, while still ensuring the principle of state land financial management.
Not only applicable to cases arising after the law takes effect, the transitional regulation is also designed to protect the rights of those who have completed previous financial obligations. Cases that have been allowed to change land use purposes from August 1, 2024 to before January 1, 2026 may request tax authorities to consider recalculating land use fees according to the new method.
If the collection level after calculation is lower than the amount already paid, the difference can be reimbursed or offset against other financial obligations. This regulation contributes to handling inadequacies arising during the transitional period of the law.
In parallel with land policies, from March 1, 2026, each real estate will be attached with a separate electronic identification code. This is an important content in the Decree on the construction and management of information systems, databases on housing and the real estate market.
The identification aims to create a unified data system, helping to standardize asset information, serve state management as well as enhance market transparency.
When each house, apartment or real estate product has its own identification code, management agencies can accurately monitor legal status, transaction history and ownership fluctuations. This is expected to limit inconsistent information, reduce the risk of fraud and contribute to controlling speculation and price inflation.
In addition, identification data also creates a platform for building property tax or transfer tax policies based on actual ownership information.
Another important change related to the construction sector will take effect from July 1, 2026. The revised Construction Law expands the cases of exemption from construction permits, in which it is noteworthy that detached houses under 7 floors, with a total floor area of less than 500m2 and not belonging to areas requiring special architectural management. The new regulation helps reduce administrative procedures, creating convenience for people when building houses.
For projects that still need to apply for permits, the dossier processing time is oriented to be shortened, expected to be no more than 7 days from the time of receiving complete and valid dossiers. At the same time, management principles are also adjusted in the direction of centralized control by state agencies, limiting the situation of overlapping inspections throughout the project life cycle.
Overall, policies effective from 2026 show a strong reform trend in land management and construction. Reducing financial obligations, promoting data digitization and simplifying administrative procedures are expected to bring practical benefits to people, while contributing to stabilizing and transparentizing the real estate market.
