Sending comments to the 3rd session, the 15th National Assembly, voters of Hai Duong province proposed to have mechanisms and policies to support attracting investment in building housing for workers in industrial parks; continue to have policies to support people and businesses after COVID-19; direct the work of anti-corruption.

Regarding this issue, the Ministry of Construction replied to voters in Hai Duong province as follows:

Regarding mechanisms and policies to support attracting investment in building housing for workers in industrial parks:

Taking care of housing for people, including housing for workers in industrial zones, has always been concerned by the Party and State and identified as a key task in the country's socio-economic development.

Accordingly, in order to develop housing for workers in industrial zones, the housing law has provided preferential policies to reduce housing costs, creating favorable conditions for low-income, housing difficulties have the opportunity to access social housing, specifically: (i) Exemption from land use levy; (ii) 20% of the total residential land area within the scope of the social housing investment project for investment in the construction of commercial housing; (iii) 50% reduction of value added tax and corporate income tax; (iv) supporting investment in technical infrastructure inside and outside the project; (v) low-interest concessional loans; (vi) The cost of buying or renting housing for workers is calculated as a reasonable cost in the production cost when calculating corporate income tax…

Workers in industrial parks belong to 10 groups of beneficiaries of social housing policies according to Article 49 of the Housing Law, in addition to housing projects for industrial parks’ workers, they are also a group of beneficiaries who are low-income people in urban areas and supported to buy houses.

With the above preferential policies, up to now, in the whole country, 276 social housing projects have been completed in urban areas with a total area of more than 7.3 million m2. In which, for social housing for workers in industrial zones, 122 projects have been completed, with a total area of about 2.7 million m2 of floor space.

The results of social housing development, although some remarkable results have been achieved, have not yet met the set requirements (with the number of completed worker houses of 2.7 million m2 (meeting about more than 340,000 workers) will only reach about 40% of the target of housing workers in industrial zones by 2020). Most of the remaining workers currently do not have a stable place to live, are living in hostels built by the people themselves with the rental price of about 2 to 5 million VND for 4 - 6 people, but poor quality, not guaranteed security, safety, not full facilities...

To solve some issues and problems in the development of social housing, the Ministry of Construction has studied and submitted to the Government for promulgation Decree No. 49/2021/ND-CP dated April 1, 2021 amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 100/2015/ND-CP on development and management of social housing, which has amended more specific regulations on order and procedures, documents proving the buyer, rent, rent-purchase social housing.

However, in order to ensure uniformity of legal regulations, some problems in the development of workers' houses must continue to be revised in the Housing Law and related laws, so the Ministry of Construction has also study, complete the dossier and report to the Government on the amendment of the Law on Housing 2014

According to the law-making program of the National Assembly, the revised Housing Law is expected to be commented on at the 5th Session and passed at the 6th Session in 2023 (Document No. 906/TB-TTKQH dated April 21st 2022 by the Secretary General of the National Assembly).

Two support packages to promote the development of social housing and worker housing

To support people and businesses to develop social housing to recover soon after the COVID-19 epidemic, the Ministry of Construction has coordinated with relevant ministries and branches to submit to the Government for promulgation Resolution No. 11/NQ- CP dated January 30, 2022 on the Socio-economic Recovery and Development Program and the implementation of Resolution No. 43/2022/QH15 of the National Assembly on fiscal and monetary policies to support the program of socio-economic recovery and development.

One of the important goals of Resolution No. 11/NQ-CP is to ensure the social security and life (including housing) of the people, especially the workers, the poor, the disadvantaged, subjects severely affected by the epidemic; national target program for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas in the 2021-2030 period.

That said, related to the construction industry, there are 2 support packages to promote the development of demand and supply of social housing, housing for industrial park workers and renovating and rebuilding old apartments, detail:

(1) Preferential loans through the Bank for Social Policies for individuals and households to purchase, rent-purchase social housing, housing for workers; new construction or renovation or repair of houses according to the policy on social housing. The maximum total loan capital is 15,000 billion VND;

(2) Loans with interest rate support of 2%/year for 2 years from 2022-2023 through the commercial banking system to build social housing, houses for workers to buy, rent and lease-purchase, and renovate old apartments.

At the same time, to ensure the implementation of Resolution No. 11/NQ-CP dated January 30, 2022 in accordance with the law, the Government has directed ministries, central agencies and localities to strengthen inspection and supervision, to step up the prevention and fight against negativity, corruption and wastefulness, to prevent negative acts, corruption, and policy profiteering; requesting the State Audit to organize an annual audit of the implementation of the Program, ensuring fast, effective, public, transparent, anti-negative, corruption, group interests, and report to National Assembly at the last session of 2022, 2023 and the middle session of 2024 (Section IV.17 Resolution No. 11/NQ-CP).