How to check if the red book, pink book is a true document ?

Hi DMS Attorney in Vietnam! Could you advise me about red book, pink book in Vietnam ? Before paying a deposit to buy a piece of land or a residential house, how to check, identify and verify if the red book, pink book given by the seller to the buyer is the true document (not a fake one), belongs to the owner whose name is written on such red book, pink book ?

Hi!

Red books and pink books are popularly used by people in Vietnam, based on the color of each paper. A red book refers to a Certificate of land use rights (its cover is red) while a pink book refers to a Certificate of house ownership and residential land use rights (its cover is pink). Before buying a piece of land or a house, the buyer may check, verify information as below:

Check information about land, house with cadastral civil servants in communes, wards and townships:

Communes, wards and townships shall have civil servants performing cadastral work in accordance with the Law on cadres and civil servants.

Cadastral civil servants in communes, wards and townships shall assist commune-level People’s Committees in local land management (Clauses 1, 2 Article 25 Law on Land 45/2013/QH13 dated 11/29/2013).

Check information publicized by District-level People’s Committees about district-level master plans, plans on land use:

District-level People’s Committees shall publicize district-level master plans, plans on land use at their head offices and on their websites and the contents of district-level master plans, plans on land use involving communes, wards and townships at the head offices of commune-level People’s Committees (Point c Clause 2 Article 48 Law on Land No. 45/2013/QH13  dated 11/29/2013).

Check information about land, house at the land registration office:

Land registration offices are public non-business units of provincial-level Natural Resources and Environment Departments established or reorganized by provincial-level People’s Committees on the basis of consolidating existing land use rights registration offices of provincial-level Natural Resources and Environment Departments and district-level Natural Resources and Environment Divisions in localities; have the legal person status, own working offices and seals and may open accounts for their operation in accordance with law.

Land registration offices have the functions of registering land and other assets affixed to land; compiling, managing, updating and uniformly revising cadastral dossier and land databases; making land statistics and inventory; providing land information to organizations and individuals at their request under regulations (Point a Clause 1 Article 5 Decree No. 43/2014/NĐ-CP dated 05/15/2014).

Carry out the notarization, authentication of the contract on transfer of land, house: 

Contracts on transfer, donation, mortgage or contribution of land use rights as capital or the rights to use land and assets affixed to land must be notarized or authenticated, except the case of real estate business prescribed at Point b of this Clause (Point a Clause 3 Article 167 Law on Land No. 45/2013/QH13 dated 11/29/2013).

Therefore, you may refer to the above provisions of law and apply to your specific situation.

Related topics:

Conditions for transferring all or a portion of a real estate project in Vietnam

May an overseas Vietnamese acquire houses associated with land use rights in Vietnam ?

Term of land allocation or land lease to FDI enterprises in Vietnam

Land use rights as in-kind capital contribution in Vietnam

Forms of land use applicable to a foreign invested company in Vietnam

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Phone: 0914 165 703 or email: dmslawfirm@gmail.com

How to check if the red book, pink book is a true document ?