The licence issued by the market regulator, showing the company’s registered Chinese name, its 18-character unified social credit code, legal representative, registered capital and business scope.
Only the Chinese name is registered. An English trading name on a website or a PI is not, and a court will look for the party by its Chinese name and code. You can check both on the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System (gsxt.gov.cn).
Put the registered Chinese name and the code in the contract, and make sure the same name appears on the seal and as the beneficiary of your payments. A mismatch among the three is the first sign that you may be dealing with a trading company or an intermediary.
Three names for one supplier
A common situation: the website says one English name, the PI is issued by a company with a different Chinese name, the seal on the contract shows a third, and payment goes to a Hong Kong account. Each piece looks ordinary on its own. Together they mean you may not know which company owes you the goods, and a claim in China needs a defendant identified by its registered Chinese name and code.
The licence also tells you things the sales team will not. A business scope limited to trading, a registered address in an office tower, or a company set up only months ago are reasons to ask where the production line is before you pay for molds. What the licence cannot show is whether the company has lost court cases or failed to pay judgments; that needs a separate check of court and enforcement records.
How to name the supplier
At the head of the contract:
“Supplier: [registered Chinese name] ([English name], for reference only), unified social credit code [18 characters], registered address [ ], legal representative [ ].”
Then compare the seal and the beneficiary name on the PI against the Chinese name, character by character.
Related terms
- Company seal and contract seal (公章, 合同专用章)
- Legal representative (法定代表人)
- T/T (telegraphic transfer)
- All twelve terms
Read next
- Is Your Chinese Supplier a Real Factory or a Trading Company? How to Check Before You Pay
- Verify a Chinese Supplier's Court Records: The Enforcement Search Matters More Than the Lawsuits
- Chinese Supplier Background Check: Who You Are Paying, From the Official Registers
Sources
- National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, gsxt.gov.cn ↗
- Translations are mine and unofficial.
Holding a PI and about to pay?
Send us the PI and a line about your product. We reply in writing with the contract you need, the fixed fee and the delivery time.