The Chinese authorities have tightened their control on internet use so that anyone who wants to set up a website will have to visit the regulators in person, and produce identity documents.
The government says the intention is to tackle online pornography but internet activists see it as increased censorship.
A number of websites are now being registered overseas in an attempt to avoid controls.
China has more than 380 million internet users, the world's biggest online population, the BBC reports.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Tuesday lifted a freeze introduced in December on registration for new individual websites.
