Pursuant to Point b, Clause 1, Article 220 of the 2024 Land Law, it is stipulated as follows:
Article 220. Separating land plots, merging land plots
1. The separation and consolidation of land plots must ensure the following principles and conditions:
a) The land plot has been granted one of the following certificates: Certificate of land use rights, Certificate of house ownership rights and land use rights, Certificate of land use rights, house ownership rights and other assets attached to land, Certificate of land use rights, ownership rights of assets attached to land;
b) Land plot is still within land use term;
c) The land is not in dispute, not seized to ensure enforcement of judgments, and not subject to temporary emergency measures by competent state agencies. In case the land is in dispute but the scope of the disputed area and boundary can be determined, the remaining uncontested area and boundary of that land plot may be divided into plots of land and consolidated;
d) The separation and consolidation of land plots must ensure access; be connected to existing public transport routes; ensure water supply, drainage and other necessary needs in a reasonable manner. In case the land user reserves a part of the area of a residential land plot or a land plot with residential land and other land in the same land plot for a walkway, when implementing the division or merger of land plots, it is not necessary to change the land use purpose for the land area for that walkway.
Accordingly, one of the principles and conditions for land division or consolidation is that the land plot is still within the land use term.
Thus, a plot of land with an expired land use term cannot be divided or merged.
