Law on Urban Planning of Vietnam 2009 – Law No. 30/2009/QH12

LAW 
ON URBAN PLANNING

(No. 30/2009/QH12)

Pursuant to the 1992 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, which was amended and supplemented under Resolution No. 51/2001/QH10;
The National Assembly promulgates the Law on Urban Planning.

Chapter I 

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Law provides urban planning activities including elaborating, evaluating, approving and adjusting urban planning; organizing the implementation of urban planning and managing urban development according to approved urban planning.

Article 2. Subjects of application

This Law applies to domestic and foreign organizations and individuals directly involved in or related to urban planning activities in Vietnamese territory.

Article 3. Interpretation of terms

In this Law. the terms below are construed as follows:

1. Urban center is an area with a dense population mainly engaged in non-agricultural economic activities, which is a political, administrative, economic, cultural or specialized center playing the role of promoting the socio­economic development of a country, a territorial region or a locality, and consists of inner city and suburbs, for a city; inner town and outskirts, for a town; and townships.

2. New urban center is an urban center expected to be formed in the future in line with the orientation of the master plan on the national system of urban centers, which is invested and constructed to step by step reach the criteria of urban centers as prescribed by law.

3. New urban quarter is an area within an urban center which is newly built with complete technical and social infrastructure and houses.

4. Urban planning is the organization of the space, architecture, urban landscape and system of technical and social infrastructure facilities and houses in order to create an appropriate living environment for people living in an urban center, which is expressed on an urban plan.

5. Planning tasks are requirements on study and organization of implementation approved by competent authorities as a basis for making an urban plan.

6. Urban plan is a document reflecting the contents of urban planning, including drawings, mock-ups, explanations and regulations on management according to urban planning.

7. General planning is the organization of the space and system of technical and social infrastructure facilities and houses for an urban center suitable to its socio-economic development, ensuring defense, security and sustainable development.

8. Zoning planning is the division and determination of functions and norms on the use of planned urban land of land areas, networks of social and technical infrastructure facilities within an urban area in order to concretize a general plan.

9. Detailed planning is the division and determination of norms on the use of planned urban land, requirements on management of architecture and landscape of each lot of land: arrangement of technical and social infrastnicture facilities in order to concretize a zoning plan or general plan.

10. Urban planning period is a specified period used as a basis for forecasting and calculating econo-technical norms for the making of an urban plan.

11. Validity period of urban planning is a specified period counting from the time when an urban plan is approved to the time it is adjusted or cancelled under a decision.

12. Urban architecture is a combination of objects in an urban center, including architectural, technical, art and advertisement works whose existence, image and shape dominate or directly affect urban landscape.

13. Urban space is a space covering urban architectural objects, trees and water surface in an urban center directly affecting urban landscape.

14. Urban landscape is a specific space with various observation directions in an urban center, such as the space in front of an architectural complex, a square, a street, a pavement, a footpath, a park, a greenery, a tree garden, a flower garden, a hill, a mountain, a hillock, an island, an islet, a natural land slope, a coastal strip, lake surface, river surface, a canal or a trench in an urban center and public-utility space in an urban center.

15. Norms on the use of planned urban land are norms for spatial and architectural development management which are specified for an area or a lot of land, including construction density, land use co-efficient and maximum and minimum construction heights of works.

16. Planning certificate is a document granted by a competent agency certifying the data and information relating to an area or a lot of land according to the approved urban plan.

17. Planning license is a document granted by a competent agency to an investor for use as a basis for making detailed planning or formulating work construction investment projects.

18. Framework technical infrastructure is a system of main technical infrastructure facilities of an urban center, including trunk roads, energy transmission lines, water supply lines, water drainage lines, information and telecom­munications lines and key technical works.

19. Underground space is a space under the ground planned for the construction of urban underground works.

Article 4. Classification and levels of administration of urban centers

1. Urban centers are classified into 6 grades, including special grade and grades I, II, III, IV and V, according to the following basic criteria:

a/ Location, function, role, structure and socio-economic development level of urban center;

b/ Population size;

c/ Population density;

d/ Non-agricultural labor proportion;

e/ Infrastructure development level.

2. The determination of urban administrative management levels is prescribed as follows:

a/ A city directly under the central government (centrally run city) must be an urban center of special grade or grade I;

b/ Provincial city must be an urban center of grade I. II or III;

c/ Town must be an urban center or grade III or IV;

d/ Township must be an urban center of grade IV or V.

3. The Government shall specify the classification and administrative management levels of urban centers as suitable to each period of socio-economic development.

Article 5. Principle of compliance with urban planning

Organizations and individuals shall comply with approved urban planning and the regulation on management of urban planning and architecture when implementing programs and plans on investment in urban construction and development, specialized plans within urban centers, urban land use plans, managing the implementation of construction investment projects in urban centers, managing urban space, architecture and landscape or carrying out other activities related to urban planning.

Article 6. Requirements on urban planning

1. To concretize the orientation of the master plan on the national system of urban centers and related regional plans; to comply with the objectives of the strategy and master plan on socio-economic development, defense and security; to ensure consistency with branch development plans within urban centers; to ensure publicity and transparency and harmonious combination of the interests of the nation, communities and individuals.

2. To make scientific forecasts, meet practical requirements and be in line with the urban development trend; to observe urban planning regulations and other related ones.

3. To protect the environment, prevent catastrophes affecting the community, improve landscape, conserve cultural and historical relics and local traits through strategic environmental assessment in the course of urban planning.

4. To rationally exploit and utilize natural resources, restrict the use of agricultural land, economically and efficiently use urban land in order to create resources for urban development, economic growth, assurance of social welfare, defense and security and sustainable development.

5. To ensure synchronism in architectural space, system of urban social and technical infrastructure and underground space; to harmoniously develop different areas in urban centers.

6. To meet the needs for houses, health, educational, cultural, sports and trade facilities, parks, trees, water surface and other social infrastructure facilities.

7. To meet the needs for technical infrastructure including systems of roads, energy supply, public lighting, water supply and drainage, waste treatment, information and communication, and other technical infrastructure facilities; ensure smooth connection of technical infrastructure systems within urban centers and compatibility with regional, national and international technical infrastructure facilities.

Article 7. Order of elaboration, evaluation and approval of urban planning

The elaboration, evaluation and approval of urban planning must follow the following order:

1. Elaboration of urban planning tasks;

2. Evaluation and approval of urban planning tasks;

3. Formulation of urban plans;

4. Evaluation and approval of urban plans.

Article 8. Rights and responsibilities of agencies, organizations and individuals in commenting on and supervising urban planning activities

1. Domestic organizations and individuals have the right to comment on and supervise urban planning activities.

2. Organizations and individuals have the duty to comment on issues related to their operations in urban planning activities.

3. Agencies and organizations responsible for urban planning activities shall create conditions for commenting on and supervising urban planning activities.

4. Comments of organizations and individuals on urban planning activities must be summed up, studied and publicized.

Article 9. Archive and preservation of urban plan dossiers

1. Approved urban plan dossiers shall be archived under the archive law.

2. Urban planning management agencies and land management agencies at all levels shall preserve urban plan dossiers and supply documents of urban plan dossiers to agencies, organizations and individuals in accordance with law.

Article 10. Conditions on consultancy organizations and individuals involved in urban planning

1. Urban planning consultancy organizations must have the legal person status; and meet all conditions on quantity and professional capacity of individuals involved in urban planning, management capacity and technical conditions relevant to performed jobs.

2. Individuals involved in urban planning must possess practicing certificates granted by competent agencies or organizations and capabilities relevant to performed jobs.

3. Foreign consultancy organizations and individuals involved in urban planning in Vietnam must, in addition to fully meeting the conditions stated in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, be accredited by competent Vietnamese agencies.

4. The Government shall specify conditions and capabilities of consultancy organizations and individuals involved in urban planning; and the competence and order for the grant of practicing certificates.

Article 11. Selection of consultancy organizations for urban planning

1. Urban planning must be conducted by consultancy organizations, which shall be selected through designation or competition.

2. The Government shall specify the forms of designation and competition to select urban planning consultancy organizations.

Article 12. Funds for urban planning and realization of urban planning

1. The funds for urban planning and realization of urban planning include:

a/ State budget fund for the elaboration and realization of general planning, zoning planning and detailed planning not belonging to investment projects on the construction of works for business purposes;

b/ Funds of organizations and individuals for urban planning under investment projects on the construction of works for business purposes.

2. The State encourages domestic and foreign organizations and individuals to finance urban planning.

3. State budget funds for urban planning and realization of urban planning shall be used for the following jobs:

a/ Conducting topographical and geological surveys to serve urban planning;

b/ Elaborating, evaluating and approving urban planning;

c/ Managing urban planning operations;

d/ Publishing and disclosing urban planning;

e/ Placing boundary markers on the field according to urban planning;

f/ Elaborating regulations on management of urban planning and architecture;

g/ Other jobs related to urban planning and realization of urban planning.

4. The Government shall specify the use of funds for urban planning and realization of urban planning.

Article 13. Contents of state management of urban planning

1. Formulating, and directing the materialization of, urban development orientations and strategies.

2. Promulgating, and organizing the implementation of, legal documents on management of urban planning activities.

3. Issuing regulations and standards on urban planning, and regulations on management of urban planning and architecture.

4. Managing urban planning activities.

5. Propagating, disseminating and educating in the law and information on urban planning.

6. Organizing and managing the training and retraining of human resources, research and application of sciences and technologies in urban planning activities.

7. Conducting international cooperation in urban planning activities.

8. Examining, inspecting and settling complaints and denunciations and handling violations in urban planning activities.

Article 14. State management responsibilities for urban planning

1. The Government shall perform the unified state management of urban planning nationwide.

2. The Ministry of Construction shall take responsibility to the Government for performing the state management of urban planning; assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with state agencies in, performing the state management of urban planning.

3. Ministries and ministerial-level agencies shall, within the ambit of their tasks and powers and according to the assignment of the Government, coordinate with the Ministry of Construction in performing the state management of urban planning.

4. The People’s Committees at all levels shall perform the state management of urban planning in localities as decentralized by the Government.

Article 15. Inspection of urban planning

1. The construction inspectorate shall perform the function of inspecting urban planning.

2. The urban planning inspectorate has tasks and powers under the inspection law.

Article 16. Prohibited acts

1. Failing to perform the responsibility to organize urban planning.

2. Selecting incapable consultancy organizations for urban planning.

3. Elaborating, evaluating, approving and adjusting urban planning in violation of this Law.

4. Illegally intervening in urban planning activities.

5. Granting planning licenses in violation of this Law,

6. Granting planning certificates in areas without approved urban planning.

7. Refusing to provide information, except for information classified as state secret; providing wrong information on urban planning.

8. Deliberately violating approved urban planning.

9. Destroying urban space, architecture and landscape.

10. Place boundary markers in wrong places; destroying and displacing urban planning boudary markers.

11. Obstructing and causing difficulties to urban planning and the realization of urban planning.

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