Implementing the policy of farmland for agricultural use, Yilan farmhouse application eligibility is limited to direct agricultural producers.
By Yang Wen-chuan, Director of the Yilan Department of Agriculture
Yilan County's approach to implementing the policy of keeping farmland in agricultural use, and its thinking on reviewing the qualifications of applicants to build farmhouses
In recent years, the large number of luxury farmhouses being built has turned them into speculative market commodities, improper use of farmland has intensified, and farmland has been lost in large quantities. The cultivation rights and housing rights of actual farmers have been clearly infringed, and the sustainable development of Yilan's agriculture is also at risk.
The legislative intent of existing regulations - farmland for agricultural use, farmhouses for agricultural use - cannot be implemented because the wording of the legal provisions leaves room for ambiguity and because the current responsibilities for approval and management are dispersed. Therefore, the issuance of farmhouse construction qualifications and building permits has been suspended and the review taken back by the county government, with the aim of establishing an "institutional management mechanism with clear rules and matching responsibilities."
We believe that with regard to the qualifications of applicants to build farmhouses, applicants should provide proof of "the need for housing arising from directly engaging in agricultural production on that farmland.
According to Article 3 of the "Agricultural Development Act," agricultural land is land that can accommodate farmhouses inseparable from agricultural operations.
According to Article 18 of the "Agricultural Development Act" and Article 2 of the "Regulations for the Construction of Farmhouses on Agricultural Land," the applicant to build a farmhouse must be a farmer.
According to Article 3 of the Agricultural Development Act, a farmer means a natural person directly engaged in agricultural production.
According to Article 18 of the Agricultural Development Act, a farmer who has acquired agricultural land and who has no farmhouse for personal use and needs to build one may build a farmhouse on his or her own agricultural land.
The supporting documents that an applicant to build a farmhouse must provide to show a housing need arising from directly engaging in agricultural production on that farmland are as follows: (choose one of the two below)
1. Proof One (both conditions must be met)
1. Supporting documents showing that the applicant has directly engaged in agricultural work on that farmland for two consecutive years, reaching 120 days or more each year.
This supporting document is a certificate signed and guaranteed by three residents living near that farmland, or other documents that can serve as proof. This document is reviewed and determined by the review panel.
2. Supporting documents showing that the applicant directly engages in agricultural production.
This supporting document is a verifiable agricultural product sales channel, website, or sales location, or other documents that can serve as proof. This document is reviewed and determined by the review panel.
2. Proof Two
Supporting documents showing two or more years of farmers' insurance.
We believe that only through such review content is there a chance to ensure that genuine farmers can be effectively served when applying for necessary farmhouses, while fake farmhouses applied for by fake farmers can be effectively blocked. To ensure this goal, our review panel will consider opening up civic participation during review, as in the review of various land development cases.
Draft of the "Yilan County Regulations Governing the Qualifications of Farmhouse Construction Applicants and the Review of Farmhouse Construction" (starting at page 32)