Several notable new regulations on construction

The 2025 Construction Law has 8 chapters and 95 articles, replacing the 2014 Construction Law (amended and supplemented from 2016 to 2025). The new law will take effect from July 1, 2026, including many notable new points such as exemption from construction permits for many projects, management of construction order, construction contracts, etc.

A house under construction for a household in Gia Kiem commune, Dong Nai province. Illustrative photo: D.P.

In particular, the 2025 Construction Law allows the exemption of permits for certain construction projects, effective from January 1, 2026, and amends, supplements, and repeals several articles, clauses, and points of laws related to construction activities.

New regulations draw attention

Building upon Article 5 of the 2014 Construction Law (amended and supplemented from 2016 to 2025) which stipulates the application of technical standards and regulations in construction investment activities, this time, Article 7 of the 2025 Construction Law provides more comprehensive regulations on technical standards and regulations applying science, technology, and digital transformation in construction activities. In particular, Article 13 of the 2025 Construction Law is dedicated to cases of force majeure and fundamental changes of circumstances in construction activities, providing a basis for dispute resolution. This provision has been highly appreciated and considered by the construction industry and legal experts.

Lawyer Nguyen Thi Hong, from the Dong Nai Provincial Bar Association, stated: The 2014 Construction Law (amended and supplemented from 2016 to 2025) does not specifically and clearly define force majeure cases and fundamental changes of circumstances in construction activities. Therefore, in recent times, when disputes over rights and obligations arose, the parties relied on subordinate legal documents governing construction activities and on civil law to resolve the issues.

The 2025 Construction Law clearly defines force majeure events in construction activities such as: natural disasters, environmental catastrophes; fires, epidemics; states of emergency relating to national security, social order and safety, national defense; strikes, work stoppages, embargoes, blockades, among others. This is very favorable for parties in negotiating and resolving disputes when force majeure events arise or fundamental changes of circumstances in construction activities.

Article 47 of the 2025 Construction Law stipulates that the management of construction order must be carried out from the time of receiving the notices of construction commencement, until the project is inspected, handed over, and put into operation and use, in order to detect, prevent, and promptly handle violations when they occur. The People's Committee at the commune level is fully responsible for managing construction order in its area according to the decentralization of the People's Committee at the provincial level.

Which types of construction projects are exempt from building permits?

For most construction projects, investors must obtain a construction permit before commencing work, such as a new construction permit or a permit for repair, renovation, or relocation of a structure. However, Clause 2, Article 43 of the 2025 Construction Law stipulates eight groups of cases in which investors are not required to secure a construction permit before commencing construction, such as:

The group of construction works classified as state secrets, emergency and urgent construction works; works under special public investment projects; works under investment works implemented under special investment procedures; temporary construction projects as prescribed by this Law; and construction works located in areas of land used for national defense and security purposes in accordance with land legislation. Also included are groups of works under public investment projects for which investment decisions are made by the Prime Minister; the heads of central agencies of political organizations; the Supreme People’s Procuracy; the Supreme People’s Court; the State Audit Office; the Office of the State President; the Office of the National Assembly; ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies attached to the Government; central agencies of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and socio-political organizations; and chairpersons of People’s Committees at all levels.”

Ha Anh Tan, Deputy Director of Thanh Thang Consulting, Design and Construction Co., Ltd. (Long Khanh Ward, Dong Nai Province) shared: Among the 8 groups of construction projects for which the investors are not required to obtain a construction permit before starting construction, there is a group comprising Grade IV construction works, and individual residential buildings of fewer than 7 floors, with a total construction floor area of ​​less than 500m2, that are not located in any of the following areas: functional areas, urban development areas identified in the city's general plan; functional zones, rural residential areas, and urban development areas identified in provincial or municipal master plans, the master for of economic zones, or national tourism zones; construction areas identified in communal master plans; and areas where architectural management regulations are already in place.

Ha Anh Tan also stated: For this group of works, before commencing construction, the investor only needs to send a notice of construction commencement, along with a dossier corresponding to that required for a construction permit application (excluding the application form for the construction permit), to the competent state authority for construction management in the locality where the works are to be built, in accordance with the decentralization prescribed by the provincial People’s Committee, for management purpose.

      By Doan Phu – Translated by Quoc Dung, Thu Ha