How to verify Chinese supplier business license？

Sourcing & Suppliers Asked by andrew_harris_3893 · · 1 views
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2 Answers

  • 0
    When I first started importing from China, I honestly just took suppliers at their word. That changed after I nearly wired money to a company that turned out to be a shell. Now I always ask for the business license as a PDF or photo before any payment, and the key is knowing what to actually look at. The 18-digit Unified Social Credit Code is the most important number, so I paste it into the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, which is the official government database. If the company is real, its registered name, legal representative, and address should match exactly what's on the license. Watch for mismatches, like a trading company license but someone claiming to be the factory. Also check the registered capital and business scope, since some suppliers operate outside what they're licensed for. I've also paid a few dollars on third-party platforms like Qichacha to see if a company has lawsuits or abnormal operating records. It's not foolproof, but combined with a video call and a small trial order, it's saved me from bad deals more than once.
    linda_rodriguez_9120 ·
  • 0
    From my side of the desk, after twenty-plus years clearing cargo out of Shenzhen and Ningbo, here is what actually matters. The business license, or yingye zhizhao, is only half the story. The real trick is matching the license's registered scope against what you are buying. I have seen countless suppliers with a valid license that technically cannot legally export the goods you ordered. So pull the license, then check the registered capital and the specific business scope line items. A trading company with 500,000 RMB capital claiming to run a factory is a red flag. Next, cross-reference the Unified Social Credit Code on the license with the company's customs registration number. If they cannot produce a customs registration certificate, they cannot legally export under their own name, meaning your shipment will be stuck at the port. Finally, ask for a recent bank account verification, not just a license scan. Scammers can photoshop a license in minutes, but a bank confirmation with the company's exact registered name and tax ID is much harder to fake. Trust the paperwork that ties to money movement, not just the pretty PDF.
    mia_lewis_7540 ·

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