On the morning of 14/7, during the 4th session of the Nghe An Provincial People's Council, Hoang Quoc Viet, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment, addressed questions concerning land administration.

Trinh Van Nha, Secretary of the Dai Dong Commune Party Committee and a People's Council representative, reported that many constituents complain about having their applications for land use rights certificates returned multiple times by officials at commune, ward, or Land Registration Office branches. Conversely, applications submitted through consulting firms or service providers—often referred to as "brokers"—are processed more swiftly.

Representative Trinh Van Nha posed a question. Photo: Duc Hung

Nha noted that Nghe An province currently has approximately 10,000 pending applications and stated that the Department's report did not specify the number of overdue cases. He requested clarification on the situation and solutions to address it.

In response, Hoang Quoc Viet attributed the disparity in processing times—slow for citizens and fast for services—primarily to preparation methods. Consulting firms, he explained, are professional in their application preparation, understanding regulations and submitting complete documentation, which results in fewer errors. These firms charge fees for their services, allowing them to invest time, closely follow procedures, and ensure compliance. In contrast, applications from citizens often lack necessary components, leading to rejections by authorities.

"This also causes public resentment," Viet said, adding that the Department of Agriculture and Environment has been monitoring the situation. Future directives will focus on improving the capacity of staff at commune, ward, and office levels to reduce application rejections.

Officials at Hung Nguyen Nam Commune Public Administration Service Center processing land-related applications for citizens, July 2026. Photo: Duc Hung

Viet stated that from 1/7/2025 to 30/6/2026, 20 Land Registration Office branches received over 187,000 applications for various services, including issuance, changes, mortgages, and guarantees. Of these, over 3,000 applications, about 2%, were rejected.

The system processes approximately 1,200 applications daily, with resolution times ranging from one day to a maximum of 25 days as per regulations. Currently, about 10,000 applications across the province are still being processed, which Viet confirmed are within the stipulated timeframe.

Regarding overdue applications, the Director reported that over 2,600 cases, about 1,5%, experienced delays. Processing times are recorded to the minute by the public service system, meaning even very short delays are counted as overdue.

Hoang Quoc Viet, Director of Nghe An Provincial Department of Agriculture and Environment (right), answering questions on the morning of 14/7. Photo: Duc Hung

According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment's report, from 1/7/2025 to present, the province received approximately 187,000 land applications from households and individuals. Nearly 94% have been resolved, with about 9,600 currently being processed within the deadline.

For first-time land use rights certificate issuances, the rate for residential land reached about 95%, agricultural land 91%, and forestry land about 86%. However, approximately 40,000 cases across the province remain unresolved, primarily due to issues with documents, land origin, or violations.

Specialized agencies explain that the backlog and prolonged processing stem from various objective and subjective factors. Cadastral data from different periods is inconsistent or even lost, complicating land origin verification. Real-world changes, such as land consolidation and exchange, road construction, or landslides, also alter boundaries.

Additionally, some legal regulations have not kept pace with reality, while many pending applications are complex and lack proper documentation. At the local level, staff are still being consolidated, their capacity to handle complex cases is limited, and some housing projects have not fulfilled their legal obligations. Inconsistent information technology infrastructure in some areas also affects application processing progress.

The Nghe An Provincial People's Council session took place from 13 to 14/7.

Duc Hung