Dec. 5 – The Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee has submitted a proposal that calls for the land tax re-evaluations of the city's districts starting January 1st.

The city has decided to increase land use taxes due to improved infrastructure. Thanh Nien News reports that property valuations in some districts of the city will more than double next year under a new land valuation system.

If the proposed value system is approved, charges will span from VND110,000 per square meter to VND81 million per square meter.

The highest land valuation will be given to Dong Khoi, Nguyen Hue and Le Loi streets at VND81 million per square meter, a 20 percent increase from the previous VND67.5 million a square meter. Streets found in District 2 will see the highest increase at more than double the current rate.

Huynh Cong Hung, deputy head of the Economic and Budget Committee, told Thanh Nien News that said the increase was reasonable since a lot of money had been invested in the district’s infrastructure this year.

More infrastructure projects are slated for the coming years namely Phu My Bridge that should connect Districts 2 and 7 by the end of the year. There is also the arterial roads to the Thu Thiem Bridge, which opened early this year to connect Binh Thanh District and District 2, will be completed by 2009.

District 7 and Binh Thanh District land value will also rise by as much as 50 to 100 percent also due to improved infrastructure. As for inner-city districts, land valuations will only increase by 30 to 50 percent.

Those living the districts of Go Vap, Tan Phu, Binh Thanh, Binh Chanh, Cu Chi and Nha Be will be charged the lowest increase in land values, by less than 10 percent.