How to Read a Chinese Supplier's Business License and Export Rights

2026-09-21 10:45:32

You found a supplier. They sent a colorful PDF of their business license, and it looks official. So you stop checking.

That is the moment most import problems begin.

The license does not prove the supplier is a factory, and in many cases it does not even prove they can export. Two lines on that document decide both. If you learn to read them, you filter out a large share of risky suppliers before a single dollar moves.

What the business license actually shows

A Chinese business license carries a few fields that matter far more than the company name or the logo on the letterhead.

• 1.Unified Social Credit Code: An 18-character ID unique to the entity; it is the anchor for every official check.

• 2.Legal Representative: The person legally responsible. A mismatch between this name and the person you chat with on WhatsApp is worth a pause.

• 3.Registered Capital: Shows how much the owners committed, not how much sits in the bank. A low figure on a claimed large plant is a soft warning sign.

• 4.Date of Establishment: Should match the supplier’s claimed experience. A one-year-old entity claiming twenty years of export is a contradiction.

• 5.Business Scope: Lists the activities the company is legally allowed to do.

• 6.Registered Address: Tells you where the company is officially located.

Of these, business scope and registered address do most of the verification work.

Why "business scope" decides export rights

In China, a company can only do what its business scope lists.

If the scope includes goods import and export or technology import and export, the company holds import-export operating rights and can declare and ship goods in its own name.

If those phrases are absent, the company is not legally set up to export. It would have to ship through a trading agent or a freight forwarder acting as the exporter of record.

This matters because a supplier without export rights is not necessarily a fraud. Many small manufacturers legally produce goods but rely on a trading partner to handle customs.

The risk is that you think you are contracting the maker, while the entity that actually handles your goods and your money is someone else you never vetted. For an importer, that gap is where deposits disappear.

How to confirm the license is real

Do not trust the PDF alone.

China has a public registry: the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System at gsxt.gov.cn. Search the Unified Social Credit Code. The official record should match the name, legal representative, scope, and address on the PDF.

Also check the administrative penalties and business exception list sections. A company flagged as abnormal, or one whose license was revoked, should not receive your deposit.

Quick tip to separate factory vs trader: A real manufacturer’s scope reads like a factory: production of X, processing of X, sales of X, goods import and export. A trading company’s scope reads like an office: wholesale, retail, import and export of goods, technology. The word production or manufacturing is the line that separates a maker from a middleman.

Address and capital: two silent red flags

The registered address tells you where the company legally sits.

A factory should sit in an industrial zone with a gate, warehouses, and truck access. If the registered address is a shared serviced office, a residential apartment, or a co-working desk, you are very likely looking at a trading or shell entity, not a production floor.

Registered capital is softer, but useful: a “factory” with 100,000 RMB of registered capital and a claimed 200-worker plant is inconsistent. Capital can be inflated or nominal, so treat it as one signal among several, not proof.

Comparison: what each entity type looks like on paper

Checklist before you release a deposit

• 1.Pull the license and record the Unified Social Credit Code.

• 2.Confirm the scope includes production/manufacturing and goods import-export.

• 3.Verify the code on gsxt.gov.cn against the PDF document.

• 4.Check for business exception records or administrative penalties.

• 5.Match the registered address to an industrial zone on the map.

• 6.Confirm the legal representative name matches the person negotiating with you.

FAQ

Can a supplier without export rights still ship my goods?Yes, through a freight forwarder or trading agent who acts as exporter of record. The risk is you are contracting one entity but relying on another you never vetted.

Is a business license enough to prove a factory is real?No. It proves the entity exists and what it may legally do. Pair it with a live video walk and a map check of the address.

What if the supplier refuses to share the license?Treat that as a stop sign. Sharing a public document is normal and expected in China.

Does a high registered capital mean the supplier is safe?Not by itself. Capital can be nominal. Use it together with scope, address, and a video factory walk.

Conclusion

The business license is the cheapest verification you will ever run, and it answers the two questions that decide your risk: can they make it, and can they legally ship it.

Spend ten minutes on gsxt.gov.cn before every deposit. When the checks line up, you negotiate from facts instead of hope.

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