The People's Ownership of Land Regime in Vietnam – History of Formation and Development

Land ownership remains a pivotal and complex issue in Vietnam’s legal and economic discourse. Unlike many other global jurisdictions, Vietnam maintains a unique "all-people ownership" regime, in which the State acts as the representative owner and uniform manager. This article examines the historical formation and evolution of this regime from the feudal era to the present day, aiming to evaluate its compatibility with a socialist-oriented market economy and international integration. Using a historical-legal analysis, the research explores how the supreme ownership of the feudal State and traditional community practices provided the foundation for contemporary land policies. The study tracks the transition through various constitutional milestones, highlighting the shift from a semi-colonial feudal economy to the absolute affirmation of universal ownership in the 1980 Constitution. It further analyses the "breakthrough" in the 1992 and 2013 Constitutions, which effectively operationalised "land use rights" as a specialised property right, allowing land to participate in market transactions through transfer, mortgage, and inheritance. The findings suggest that the current regime, rather than being a hindrance, offers a robust framework for balancing economic development with national sovereignty. The article concludes that the focus of future reforms should not be on diversifying ownership forms, but on enhancing transparency and facilitating land accumulation to meet the strategic goals of the 2021–2030 socio-economic development period.