Procedures for Buying and Selling Land Without a Certificate and Things You Should Know in the US

Procedures for Buying and Selling Land Without a Certificate and Things You Should Know in the US One of the conditions for transferring land ownership or gifting land is that the land must have a Land Use Right Certificate (commonly called the "Red Book"). However, in reality, purchasing land without a Red Book is quite common. If people have already bought such land, is there any way to transfer the ownership, or must they return the land?

Note: The term “buying and selling land” is commonly used by many people, but under land law, buying and selling land is the transfer of land use rights.

Depending on the time of the land use rights transfer, the handling of cases without a Certificate will differ.
Procedures for Buying and Selling Land Without a Certificate and Things You Should Know in the US

Transfer from August 1, 2024, onwards

According to Clause 1, Article 45 of the 2024 Land Law, land users are only allowed to transfer their land use rights if they meet all of the following conditions:

• Possess a Land Use Right Certificate, except in cases of inheritance, conversion of agricultural land when consolidating land plots, gifting land use rights to the State or community, and cases specified in Clause 7, Article 124, and Point a, Clause 4, Article 127 of this Law.

• The land is not under dispute.

• The land use rights are not subject to enforcement for judgment execution.

• The land use term is still valid.

• The land use rights are not under any temporary emergency measures as prescribed by law.

Therefore, if the land does not have a Land Use Right Certificate, the owner cannot legally transfer the land use rights. If the parties have already carried out the transfer in practice (one side delivers the land, the other pays the money — although such transfer is invalid), two cases may occur:

Case 1: One or both parties no longer want to proceed with the transfer, then one party returns the land and the other returns the money. If there is a dispute, mediation or court proceedings can be initiated.

Case 2: If both parties still want to complete the transfer, the original owner must be issued a Land Use Right Certificate (if eligible). Once the certificate is issued, the parties can proceed with the official ownership transfer procedures.

For detailed instructions, see: Guidelines on Land Use Right Certificate Transfer Procedures 2020.

Procedures for Purchasing Land Without a Land Use Right Certificate

Transfer before August 1, 2024

For cases where land use rights were transferred before August 1, 2024, but the official transfer procedures have not been completed, the current land user will be issued a new Land Use Right Certificate if eligible, without needing to perform ownership transfer procedures. This is clearly regulated in Clause 1, Article 42 of Decree 101/2024/ND-CP, which states:

"1. The following land use cases where land use rights were transferred not in compliance with the law but with signatures of relevant parties and no certificate has been issued, and which do not fall under the cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article, shall proceed with land registration and first-time issuance of Land Use Right Certificates and ownership of assets attached to the land under the Land Law and this Decree without performing land use right transfer procedures. The receiving agency shall not require the land user to submit transfer contracts or documents as prescribed, except for inheritance cases as stipulated in Point d, Clause 1, Article 28 of this Decree:

a) Use of land transferred before July 1, 2014, without land use right documents as specified in Article 137 of the Land Law;

b) Use of land transferred before August 1, 2024, with land use right documents as specified in Article 137 of the Land Law;

c) Use of land transferred from heirs as prescribed in Clause 4, Article 45 of the Land Law."
Procedures for Buying and Selling Land Without a Certificate and Things You Should Know in the US

Note: If the transfer occurred before August 1, 2024, the following regulations must be noted:

• Transfers before July 1, 2014, without land use right documents as per Article 137 of the Land Law;

• Transfers before August 1, 2024, with land use right documents as per Article 137 of the Land Law;

• Transfers from heirs as regulated in Clause 4, Article 45 of the Land Law.

Conclusion

Purchasing land without a Land Use Right Certificate from August 1, 2024, onward is not legal, except in two specific cases. If purchased before August 1, 2024, the buyer can follow the procedures for first-time issuance of a Land Use Right Certificate if eligible. In case of disputes, resolution depends on the specific circumstances and may be handled under land dispute procedures or contractual disputes concerning the transfer of land use rights.
Procedures for Buying and Selling Land Without a Certificate and Things You Should Know in the US

The above are some important notes for those who purchase land without a Land Use Right Certificate. For any further questions or problems, please contact 19006192 to receive detailed support and advice from LuatVietnam.