Legal flaws emerge in HCM City’s land subdivision regulations

HoREA has welcomed Decision No. 67/2026/QD-UBND, dated 28 August 2026, by the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee. This decision sets out the legal conditions for splitting and merging land parcels and establishes minimum area requirements across the HCM city. By safeguarding landholders' legal entitlements, the framework enables individuals and households to subdivide or consolidate plots to meet their genuine housing and operational needs.

However, just three weeks into its enforcement, regulatory gaps have surfaced. HoREA argued that prompt amendments are required to refine the rules for mixed-use land holdings, particularly parcels containing a mix of residential land, agricultural land, orchards, and ponds, to ensure the policy remains practical and workable for citizens.

Legal scope needs coverage for mixed-use land

According to HoREA, all land parcels currently in use are categorized and registered with specific parcel numbers under the national land administration registry. Furthermore, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is rolling out unique land parcel identification numbers as part of a broader push to digitize the national database under the principle of ensuring data is "accurate, complete, clean, and live."

The national registry currently classifies land into four primary categories: purely residential land; agricultural land; non-agricultural land; and mixed-use land (parcels containing both residential and other land types).

Under Article 220, Clause 1 of the Land Law 2024, Item c, Clause 2, Article 10 of National Assembly Resolution No. 254/2025/QH15, and Article 3, Clause 1 of Decision 67/2026/QD-UBND, holders of purely residential, agricultural, and mixed-use land are explicitly permitted to subdivide or consolidate their holdings.

In contrast, non-agricultural land intended for commercial, service, or industrial use falls under investment and sectoral laws rather than Decision 67. To eliminate ambiguity, HoREA recommends inserting a dedicated Clause 3 into Article 4 of Decision 67 to explicitly cover mixed-use land parcels, ensuring the municipal regulation comprehensively encompasses all eligible land transactions across the city.

Synchronising land subdivision with purpose conversion

Under current statutory principles, any newly formed or remaining plot following a subdivision must satisfy the minimum area requirements set out in Decision 67. Given the diverse financial capabilities and practical needs of property owners, applications frequently combine requests to subdivide land with requests to convert part, or all, of a mixed-use plot into residential land. In many instances, a portion of the newly subdivided plot remains classified as agricultural land.

To address this, HoREA proposes empowering Commune-level People’s Committees to evaluate applications on a case-by-case basis. Local authorities should be authorized to approve partial or full land-use conversions to residential status simultaneously alongside subdivision procedures, reinstating a mechanism previously permitted under Decision 33/2014/QD-UBND.

In reality, numerous land parcels located within existing urban and residential zones, including core city districts, are classified as mixed-use plots containing gardens, ponds, or agricultural land. While the residential section with existing housing may already hold a Certificate of Land Use Rights and Property Ownership (Red/Pink Book), the remaining area is often registered as agricultural land for short-term or perennial crops, despite long ceasing to serve any agricultural function.

Allowing land conversion requests to be processed concurrently with subdivision applications is therefore vital to resolving administrative bottlenecks and matching spatial reality on the ground.