Beijing will require all individuals or vendors with online businesses to register and pay taxes on their transactions as of August. The only exception is for people who sell or swap personal goods without making a profit.

The Beijing News reports that profit-making e-commerce enterprises must follow the new regulation to register for licenses and publicize basic information about their business. Meanwhile, websites that provide related trade services are responsible for checking the licenses and background information of these online shops.

The paper quotes the department leader of the Beijing Administration for Industry and Commerce, Wang Jing as saying that the regulation aims to promote the standardized development of internet commerce and to better protect consumers' interests.

But some service providers complain that online shops are more flexible than traditional ones, so it's hard to judge whether a shop is making profits or swapping personal goods. This makes the regulation difficult to implement.

Lawyers suggest public sectors identify whether such shops are repeatedly selling goods in the same category or doing wholesale. If they are, they could be judged as a profit-making business.