THE owners of unlicensed taxis face having their vehicles permanently confiscated under a new management regulation to be introduced in August.

In a bid to crack down on the illegal trade, the ruling was approved by the Shanghai People’s Congress yesterday.

It gives police the power to seize “cloned taxis” — vehicles that look identical to genuine cabs but operate on falsified papers — as soon as they are identified. A fine between 10,000 yuan (US$1,605) to 50,000 will also be levied.