Socialist Republic of Vietnam

HA NOI — A new regulation exempting millions of farmers from paying land-use tax until 2010 was adopted before the 11th National Assembly closed its third sitting on Tuesday.

The regulation – written by the Finance Ministry – exempts all northern farmers owning two hectares of cultivated land and all southern farmers owning three hectares of cultivated land from the tax.

Farmers holding more than two or three hectares will have their land-use liability reduced to 50 per cent.

Figures show that only a few subsistence households will have to pay the 50 per cent tax. The regulation applies to both households and members of co-operatives.

It won 91 per cent approval from assembly members.

The assembly also approved a five-year trial programme that will provide vocational training for drug addicts identified as possible recidivists or those in need of a job.

Up to three years of vocational training will be compulsory for those addicts deemed to be at a high risk of but others can voluntarily join the programme.

A report by the assembly’s Social Affairs Committee says the compulsory vocational training for rehabilitated addicts at high risk of returning to drug abuse will not prolong compulsory detoxification.

Rather, it will support those who have been rehabilitated rejoin the community and prevent them from re-addiction. The number of recidivists among those who have been rehabilitated is a "shocking" 90 per cent.

Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An said the programme would start in August in HCM City as well as other major cities and provinces.

Later, closing the sitting, the chairman said that although Viet Nam had undergone remarkable socio-economic development during the past two years in the face of global uncertainty and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, the economy still lacked a competitive edge and was growing too slowly.

Economic renovation had tended to stagnate, foreign investment showed signs of shrinking and many social problems had yet to be eliminated.

The assembly passed eight laws at its eight-week sitting, covering NA
supervisory role; national border; Statistics, Accounting; changes to the Value Added Tax, special consumption tax, corporate income tax and the State Bank of Viet Nam.

Deputies also discussed drafts of nine changed, or new laws, at this, its first session of the year. These were: representative election for people’s council; organisation of people’s council and people’s committee; criminal procedures; land; State-owned enterprises; co-ops; aqua culture; emulation and reward; and construction.

Its chairman said the agenda for the next sitting will also be very busy with a heavy emphasis on reviewing the Government’s socio-economic programme for the year; setting tasks for 2004 and estimating and allocating funds from the State Budget.

For the first time, the national legislature would decide the allocation of money for ministries and central agencies in accordance with the revised State Budget Law. Nine drafts would also be finalised.

Tax breaks

Exemptions for farmers began two years ago as the Viet Nam Government started to exempt poor households from land-use tax and reduce the tax liability to 50 per cent of those who specialise in rice and coffee cultivation in 2001.

The purpose of the exemptions was to alleviate poverty and promote agricultural development.

Last year, households that had not previously enjoyed a reduction in their land-use tax had their rate cut by 50 per cent.

The cost of the exemptions and reductions was VND1.3trillion (US$84 million).

It is estimated that about 4.2 million of 9.4 million hectares of agricultural land have benefited from the policy.

The National Assembly’s ratification of the new regulation means that just 310,000 hectares of Viet Nam’s cultivated land will attract the land-use tax and this will raise only about VND75 billion each year. — VNS