Changes in administrative unit classification criteria after the merger

(Chinhphu.vn) - After the 2025 administrative unit (ADU) merger and arrangement, the scale of the area and population of many localities have changed fundamentally, far exceeding the old classification standards. The Ministry of Home Affairs said it has developed and completed a draft Government Decree regulating the classification of administrative units.

Building a set of criteria for classifying administrative units suitable for the practice after merging and rearranging administrative units - Illustration photo

This is a necessary step to implement the 2013 Constitution (amended), the Law on Organization of Local Government No. 72/2025/QH15, and at the same time overcome shortcomings in current regulations to suit the reality after the arrangement of administrative units (ADUs) in 2025.

Big changes after the arrangement

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs , after the merger and rearrangement of administrative units, the country has 34 provincial-level administrative units (06 cities and 28 provinces) and 3,321 commune-level administrative units (2,621 communes, 687 wards, 13 special zones). The number and scale of provincial-level administrative units and commune-level administrative units have fluctuated significantly compared to before the rearrangement (before June 2025).

At the provincial level, 29 provincial administrative units have been reduced. The average natural area of ​​each province and city is 9,743 km², an increase of 85.3% compared to before. Of which, Lam Dong province currently has the largest area in the country with 24,243.13 km², far surpassing Nghe An - the previous largest province.

The average population size at the provincial level also increased by 85.3%, reaching more than 3.3 million people. Ho Chi Minh City is the locality with the largest population, with more than 14.6 million people, an increase of nearly 4.7 million compared to before the arrangement.

Besides, the formation of "special economic zones" is a completely new type of administrative unit, beyond the scope of Resolution No. 1211/2016/UBTVQH13.

These changes make the system of criteria, scales and classification thresholds according to Resolution 1211 no longer suitable. If they continue to be applied, they will distort the assessment of the position, role and development level of each locality, directly affecting policy making and resource allocation and organization of the government apparatus.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the practical implementation of regulations on classification of administrative units in Resolution No. 1211/2025/UBTVQH15 (amended and supplemented in Resolution No. 27/2022/UBTVQH15) in the past time has revealed a number of shortcomings and limitations.

Firstly , the classification criteria system is still biased, mainly focusing on area, population and number of affiliated units, accounting for more than half of the total score. Meanwhile, indicators reflecting governance capacity, digital transformation level, administrative procedure reform or labor productivity improvement have not received due attention. This leads to the situation where localities with large populations and areas are often ranked highly, while small but dynamic localities with strong reforms find it difficult to improve their classification.

Second, according to the provisions of Resolution No. 1211/2016/UBTVQH13, the Prime Minister decides to recognize the provincial classification, the Minister of Home Affairs decides with the district level, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee decides with the commune level; at the same time, the People's Committees at all levels are required to prepare documents to submit to the People's Council of the same level for approval before sending to the competent authority and then must go through the appraisal step of the central council, leading to a multi-layered process, taking a lot of time and money and not clearly demonstrating the spirit of decentralization and delegation of power.

Third, Resolution No. 1211/2016/UBTVQH13 only regulates the classification of administrative units in cases of establishment, merger, division, and boundary adjustment without establishing a mandatory mechanism for periodic review, leading to a situation where many localities "are classified and then left there", keeping the same type for decades despite major fluctuations in population, socio-economy, and governance capacity, causing the classification results to no longer accurately reflect the current situation, reducing the value of use in policy making, resource allocation, and not creating motivation for local authorities to reform and innovate.

Affirming the urgency, the Ministry of Home Affairs emphasized that the new Decree will be an important legal corridor for localities to classify administrative units, thereby planning socio-economic development policies, attracting investment, improving the quality and living conditions in administrative units and building the organizational apparatus, regimes and policies for local government officials and civil servants suitable for each type of administrative unit.

Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are special administrative units.

The Ministry of Home Affairs said that the Draft Decree basically inherits the system of administrative unit types that has been built and applied stably for a long time, accordingly, except for Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City which are special administrative units identified in the Law on Organization of Local Government, the remaining administrative units are divided into 3 types (type I, type II, type III), implemented by the scoring method (under 60 points to achieve type III, from 60 to 75 points to achieve type II, over 75 points to achieve type I).

However, the content of urban classification for each type of administrative unit is adjusted to suit the viewpoint, principles and practical context.

Specifically, for centrally-run cities: Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are special administrative units, centrally-run cities are type I administrative units.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, cities such as Hue, Hai Phong, Da Nang, and Can Tho have met all the highest criteria regarding population, area, socio-economics, infrastructure, finance, and governance. The regulation that these cities are of course Type I ensures stability, transparency, and reduces procedures, while creating a legal basis for specific policies appropriate to the role of these cities.

Add the "dynamic" element

For provinces, the Draft Decree stipulates that provinces are divided into 3 types (types I, II, III) based on the total score of 5 groups of standards, specifically: Population size standard: maximum 20 points, minimum 10 points; Natural area standard: maximum 20 points, minimum 10 points; Number of affiliated administrative units standard: maximum 10 points, minimum 6 points; Socio-economic conditions standard (including 11 component criteria): maximum 40 points, minimum 18 points; Specific factor standard: maximum 10 points, minimum 0 points.

In which, the component criteria include: Balance of state budget revenue and expenditure; Proportion of industry, construction and services; Economic growth rate; Proportion of non-agricultural labor; Labor productivity growth rate; Average income per capita; Proportion of people participating in social insurance; Proportion of poor households according to multidimensional poverty standards; Proportion of rural population using clean water that meets standards; Proportion of households with Internet connection; Proportion of administrative procedure records processed through online public services throughout the process.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the addition of “dynamic” indicators helps to classify not only population size and area but also assess management capacity, digital transformation, and administrative reform - factors that increasingly determine the quality of local development.

For communes, the Draft Decree stipulates that communes are divided into 3 types (types I, II, III) based on the total score of 04 groups of standards, specifically: Population size standard: maximum 25 points, minimum 15 points; Natural area standard: maximum 25 points, minimum 15 points; Socio-economic conditions standard (including 7 component criteria): maximum 40 points, minimum 21 points; Specific factor standard: maximum 10 points, minimum 0 points.

For wards, the Draft Decree stipulates that wards are divided into 3 types (types I, II, III) based on the total score of 4 groups of standards similar to those for communes, but with adjustments to the maximum and minimum levels of each criterion and standard to suit the specific characteristics of population size, natural area and socio-economic development level of the ward.

For special zones, the Draft Decree stipulates that for special zones classified as urban areas, the ward classification standards shall apply, and for other cases, the commune classification standards shall apply; at the same time, the score for the special zone's specific factors shall be 10 points (maximum).

In addition, the draft Decree stipulates priority points for administrative units with outstanding scale (provinces and communes with natural areas of 300% or more of the prescribed standards; wards with population sizes of 300% or more of the prescribed standards); administrative units in particularly difficult areas or administrative units identified as having a central position and role in the socio-economic development of the province/city or inter-commune and ward areas. The provision of priority points (maximum 10 points) is a mechanism to ensure that administrative units with outstanding and important characteristics are given attention and allocated resources for investment, development and management.

Thu Giang

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/thay-doi-tieu-chi-phan-loai-don-vi-hanh-chinh-sau-dot-sap-nhap-102250913121859841.htm