Hai Phong, Da Nang must meet the average income higher than the whole country

Politburo member and National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man has just signed a Resolution on urban classification. The Resolution takes effect from January 1, 2026.

According to the resolution, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are special-class urban areas; Hai Phong, Hue, Da Nang and Can Tho continue to be identified as type 1 urban areas.

The Resolution determines urban classification as the basis for organizing, managing, and developing the national, regional, and provincial urban system; managing urban administrative units and evaluating the implementation of planning.

The classification is carried out on the basis of urban planning, ensuring green, smart development trends, adapting to climate change and sustainability at each stage of socio-economic development.

Special-class urban areas are identified as national and international complex centers, with specific roles and conditions for socio-economic development.

The Resolution does not set a mechanism for re-evaluation and reclassification of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City because this is a group of urban areas with its own characteristics, not applying the same criteria as other urban areas.

For type 1 urban areas, the resolution changes from the scoring method to the "achieving or not achieving" mechanism, requiring full compliance with mandatory standards. The population size was increased from 2.5 million people.

Type 1 urban areas must have an average income per capita higher than the national average, a GRDP growth rate not lower than GDP, be among the localities attracting the most investment and not receive additional balances from the central budget.

For type 2 urban areas, the resolution continues to apply the scoring method, with the requirement of achieving a minimum of 75/100 points and no shortage in any group of criteria.

Type 2 urban areas must have a population of 500,000 or more people, a minimum density of 1,500 people/km2, a non-agricultural labor rate of 95%, and at the same time meet new criteria on wastewater treatment, waste classification at source, cable undergrounding, use of renewable energy and online public services throughout the process.

The Resolution also separates the criteria for urban governance into independent assessment groups, in which the level of satisfaction of people, quality of public services, traffic safety and fire prevention and fighting are important bases for classification.

According to the new regulations, urban areas can only be upgraded when affiliated urban areas meet the corresponding standards, in order to overcome the uneven development situation between central urban areas and satellite areas.

Type 3 urban areas are sub-regional central urban areas under provinces and cities, with the role, position, and function of a comprehensive or specialized center of the sub-region.

The Resolution maintains the assessment method based on scores but tightens standards for both urban areas and affiliated commune-level administrative units, adds detailed criteria on social infrastructure, urban environment, flood prevention drainage, order management and people's satisfaction level.

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