Rural land ownership reform in China’s property law

Abstract

With regard to rural land ownership, there exist many problems, such as absence of the subject of right, ambiguity of the definition of right quality, and imperfection of the taking system. To perfect the rural land ownership system in China, we should continuously take villagers’ groups and villages as the subject of collective ownership and affirm the right of the members of collective organizations. In order to promote the development of the rural economy and realize the value of land, the contractual management right should be deemed as a property right and allowed to be transferred. The transferability of collective land ownership should be gradually established and the process of taking should be further normalized. Meanwhile, the farmers must receive sufficient compensation. The house site usage right is a special form of right of usufruct. To follow the principle that property should be made best use of, the house site usage right should also be transferable.