Vietnam Ban quản trị: Who Elects It, Term and Duties

Short answer. The building conference elects the Ban quản trị (management board). A board is compulsory in a multi-owner building of 20 apartments or more. The term is three years from the recognition decision of the commune-level People's Committee, with re-election at the annual conference of the final year. This guide rests on Housing Law No. 27/2023/QH15 (in force since 1 August 2024) and the Regulation on the management and use of apartment buildings issued with Circular No. 05/2024/TT-BXD (consolidated text No. 21/VBHN-BXD).

When a board is mandatory

• 20 apartments or more, and several owners: mandatory (art. 146(2)). The threshold counts apartments, not floors, residents or floor area.
• Fewer than 20 apartments, or a single-owner building: optional. Owners and users decide together whether to form one (art. 146(1)).

In a multi-owner building the board has a seal and a bank account to operate (art. 146(3)); for the board's tax position, ask the tax authority. Its own convening rules, meeting conditions and voting method are set in the board's operating rules approved by the building conference, not in the statute.

Who can sit on it

The board consists of representatives of the owners; users where an owner does not attend; and the developer's representative where the developer still owns area in the building, unless the developer sends no one (art. 146(2)). The law encourages people with experience in construction, architecture, finance, law and fire safety to take part.

The number of members and the detailed candidate conditions follow the Regulation. Read it before drawing up a slate; this guide does not list them all.

Who elects it, and how

The building conference nominates, elects, removes and dismisses board members (art. 145(3)(a)). Points to remember:

• Attendance. An annual conference needs at least 30% of the representatives of owners of handed-over apartments (or a lower figure if the first conference decided so). If the same conference also replaces the chair or deputy chair, dismisses the whole board and elects a new one, or replaces another member, it needs at least 50% (Regulation art. 17(2)). Attendance is counted in people, not in area.
• Counting the vote. Voting rights follow privately owned area: 1 m² is one vote, fractions of a square meter are not counted, and decisions pass by a majority of the votes of those attending (Regulation art. 18(3)).
• Recognition. After the election the board must be recognised; under the current Regulation the commune-level People's Committee decides.
• Replacing an ordinary member. A member who is neither chair nor deputy can be replaced by written consultation: the board proposes a replacement, and if at least 50% of the representatives of owners of handed-over apartments agree (or fewer, if the first conference set a lower figure), the person is recognised (Regulation art. 26(3)(b)). This is the only case where the Regulation allows written opinions instead of a meeting.
• Deadline after a dismissal. At most 60 days from the day the dismissal arises (Regulation art. 16(4)).

Term, and what happens at the end

The board serves three years from the recognition decision of the commune-level People's Committee and is re-elected at the annual conference of the final year (Regulation art. 19(3)). Put the date in a calendar: the operating-service contract runs for at most the board's term (Regulation art. 29(1)).

If the board ceases to function and no new board has yet been recognised, the commune-level People's Committee where the building stands carries out the board's responsibilities until a new board is recognised (art. 148(5), Housing Law). A building does not fall into a legal vacuum, but it should not stay in that position long.

What the board does

Articles 147 and 148 of the Housing Law set out the board's rights and duties in full. These are the core tasks we checked against the text, seen as day-to-day work:

• Hire and oversee the operating unit. The service contract is signed with the board; the operating unit answers under that contract even for work it subcontracts (art. 149(2)). A building with a lift must have a qualified operating unit.
• Report to the annual conference. The board's activity report and its yearly income and expenditure are approved by the conference (Regulation art. 17(1)(a)). The conference can set up an inspection team or hire a specialist firm to check the board's books, and can dismiss members for financial violations (Regulation art. 17(7)).
• Ask for an extraordinary conference when it wants to replace the operating unit or adjust the operating service price (Regulation art. 16(1)(d)).
• Manage the maintenance fund. Once recognised, the board opens an account, asks the developer to hand over the 2% maintenance fund, and spends it only for its purpose, with invoices and vouchers and a report to the conference. See the 2% maintenance fund: who holds it and what it pays for.
• Work under rules the conference approves. The board's operating rules, its financial rules and the remuneration of its members are approved or decided by the building conference (art. 145(3)(b)). Board remuneration is a separate item, not part of the operating service price (art. 151(2)).

Ban quản trị is not ban quản lý

The two terms differ by one word and name two different parties. The Ban quản trị is the owners' organ, elected by the conference, and the party that signs the contract with the operating unit. Ban quản lý, in everyday speech, is the operating unit's on-site team. The Housing Law's own term for that party is đơn vị quản lý vận hành (operating unit).

Checklist: forming or re-electing a board

This is practical preparation, not a substitute for the Regulation.

1. Establish whether the building is multi-owner with 20 apartments or more; if not, ask owners and users whether they want a board.
2. List the owners, their privately owned area (from the ownership certificate, or from the sale contract or handover minutes where there is no certificate yet) and the people using the apartments.
3. Identify the type of conference (first, annual or extraordinary) and its minimum attendance. See the building conference: convening, voting, minutes.
4. Put the election or dismissal on the agenda and send the notice.
5. After the conference, draw up minutes signed by the chairing members and the secretary, then complete the recognition file as the Regulation requires.
6. Record the recognition date so you know when the three-year term ends.

What Unitify does

Unitify does not replace the conference and does not recognise a board. A management company or board can use it for the work around the meeting:

• Announcements to residents about the session in the resident app. This supports the official notice; it does not replace it.
• Surveys and polls between conferences, for example to sound out opinion on candidates or on the agenda. A survey result helps preparation; it is not a conference decision.
• Billing and invoices line by line (operating fee per m², parking, water, board remuneration and so on), with an invoice and voucher trail so the board has figures for the annual conference.
• Resident requests and reports sent straight to the operating unit.

See the page for Unitify in Vietnam and resident voting. The free plan has no limit on users or buildings.

Book a demo to see how Unitify supports a Ban quản trị and an operating unit.