The E-commerce Law of the People’s Republic of China, recently adopted at the Fifth Session of the Standing Committee of the 13th National People’s Congress, will enter into force on January 1, 2019. This landmark law was enacted after four reviews and three issuances for public comments over the past five years.

Article 10 of the E-Commerce Law clearly states that E-commerce operators, including individuals, must register as market entities and complete taxation registration. According to the finalized version of this law, registration is the basic standard, and non-registration is an exception that includes “individuals engaged in occasional small transactions” according to the third draft for comments. Under the E-commerce Law, E-commerce operators are subject to taxation.  Meanwhile, the state also grants favorable taxation policies to e-commerce operators to protect small businesses, to promote market competition and to improve renovation capabilities.

In terms of the determination of a platform’s liability, the draft E-commerce Law was amended from “joint and several liability” to “additional liability” and finally to “applicable liability” as a compromise. The enactment of the E-Commerce Law reflects the approach of the comprehensive e-commerce era, which will soon develop into a more stable and mature state with the end of the current irregular and abnormal “wild west” atmosphere. More and more companies, particularly e-commerce platform operators, will be expected to take responsibility for creating a healthier ecology for the e-commerce industry.  

(Source: TMTPost.com)