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Illegal land reclassifications causing loss of state revenues

The government is losing revenues from fees charged for the reclassification of land due to inadequate procedures, according to the National Land Management Authority (NLMA).

NLMA President Mr Kham-ouan Boupha said recently that the reclassification of land without approval from authorities has resulted in the loss of agricultural and forest areas.

He said many people in many regions violate land laws by not receiving approval from the relevant authorities or not paying fees when reclassifying their land plots.

Under Article 62 of the land law, any individual or entity violating regulations or laws regarding the reclassification of land may have their land rights revoked and any existing project contract may be nullified. Guilty parties must also pay the due fees.

Mr Kham-ouan said the problem occurred because many people do not respect the law, as well as due to inadequate classification and allocation of land plots. Therefore there is a need to strengthen land management at the provincial and district levels to address the problem.

According to Article 14 of the land law, land can be reclassified if there is a need to use the land for a purpose that does not cause adverse environmental or social impacts.

Under Article 70 of the forestry law, reclassification of forested land can only proceed if it results in benefits to the nation and livelihoods of Lao people.

Reclassifications must be made in allocated areas in line with the country's socio-economic development requirements, and those owning land rights also need to pay various fees for any reclassification. If temporary reclassification of land is granted for a mining project, the developers must ensure the land area is regenerated with vegetation upon completion of the project.

Mr Kham-ouan said district authorities have the right to approve the reclassification of a plot of land less than 3 hectares in size, while provincial officials are authorised to approve reclassifications of land plots up to 100 hectares in size.

The reclassification of land plots between 100 and 10,000 hectares must be approved by the NLMA, while any plot larger than that requires approval from the government.

The fee for changing agricultural land into commercial land is 30,000 kip per sq m in urban areas, 20,000 kip in suburban areas and 15,000 kip in rural areas.

The fee for reclassifying agriculture land as residential land is 300 kip per sq m in urban areas, 200 kip in suburban areas and 100 kip in rural areas.

Fees for the reclassification of forested land are 40,000 kip per sq m in urban areas, 35,000 kip in suburban areas and 30,000 kip in rural areas.

 

 

By Somsack Pongkhao
(Latest Update August 25, 2010)