How to read a Chinese business licence and check the Unified Social Credit Code (2026)
Short answer: a Chinese business licence (营业执照) shows the company's 18-character Unified Social Credit Code (统一社会信用代码), its Chinese legal name, type, legal representative, business scope, registered capital, date of establishment, address and registration authority. Search the code on the official register at gsxt.gov.cn and check that every field matches, that the status is 存续 or 在业 (active), and that the same name appears on your contract, invoices and bank details. Registered capital is the amount promised, not paid: under the 2024 Company Law, shareholders of a limited liability company must pay it within five years.
What does each field on a Chinese business licence mean?
Each field is a registered fact you can check against the official record. The table shows a company licence; other entity types use slightly different labels.
| Chinese | English | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| 统一社会信用代码 | Unified Social Credit Code (USCC) | 18 characters. Must return the same company on gsxt.gov.cn. |
| 名称 | Name | The Chinese name is the only legal name. English names are chosen by the company and are not on the licence. |
| 类型 | Type | For example 有限责任公司 (limited liability company) or 股份有限公司 (company limited by shares). A 个体工商户 (individual business) licence shows an operator (经营者) instead of a legal representative. |
| 法定代表人 | Legal representative | The person who acts for the company by law. A partnership shows 执行事务合伙人 (managing partner). |
| 经营范围 | Business scope | What the company is registered to do. Does it cover what it is selling you? |
| 注册资本 | Registered capital | The amount shareholders have subscribed, not paid. See below. |
| 成立日期 | Date of establishment | By law, the date the licence was first issued. A very recent date on a supplier claiming 20 years' experience needs explaining. |
| 住所 | Domicile (registered address) | Office tower or industrial zone? Does it match where you were told the factory is? |
| 营业期限 | Business term | Only on licences issued before 1 September 2022. It is still shown on the register. |
| 登记机关 | Registration authority | The local market regulator's seal, with the date this licence was issued. |
| 二维码 | QR code | Scanning it should open the company's official public record. |
The licence has an original (正本) and copies (副本) with equal legal effect, and the licence must be displayed prominently at the company's premises.
How is the 18-character Unified Social Credit Code structured?
Try it: paste any code into our free Chinese company code checker. It flags mistyped or invented codes, individual businesses posing as companies, and where the code was issued.
The code has five parts, set by the national standard GB 32100-2015, and uses digits and capital letters except I, O, Z, S and V.
| Position | Meaning | Common values |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Registration authority | 9 = market regulation (formerly industry and commerce); 1 = institutional establishment bodies; 5 = civil affairs; Y = other |
| 2 | Entity type | Under 9: 1 = enterprise, 2 = individual business, 3 = farmers' cooperative |
| 3–8 | Administrative division code of the registering authority | For example 440300 = Shenzhen |
| 9–17 | Organisation code | For older companies, the same as their former organisation code certificate |
| 18 | Check character | Calculated from the first 17, so a mistyped code usually fails |
So a supplier company will almost always have a code starting 91. A code starting 92 is an individual business, a sole trader with no limited liability. A code that passes the check is only well formed; only the register shows that the company exists.
How do you look up a Chinese company on gsxt.gov.cn?
The National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System (国家企业信用信息公示系统, gsxt.gov.cn) is the free official register for mainland companies.
- Search by code: enter the 18-character USCC, or the exact Chinese name. Searching by an English name does not work.
- Pass the check: complete the puzzle that appears before results load.
- Open the right record: results use fuzzy matching, so confirm the code and the name character by character.
- Compare every field: status, legal representative, address, scope, capital and establishment date against the licence you were sent.
- Read the rest of the record: shareholders and capital contributions, annual reports (年报), administrative penalties, the abnormal operations list (经营异常名录) and the serious violations list (严重违法失信名单).
Limits for foreign users: the site is in Chinese only, is often slow or unstable from outside mainland China, and the puzzle can fail repeatedly. Financial data in annual reports is usually not made public. Hong Kong companies are not on it at all. A matching record proves the company exists, not that the person emailing you works for it.
What do 存续, 在业, 吊销 and 注销 mean?
The registration status (登记状态) tells you whether the company can legally trade.
| Status | English | What it means for a buyer |
|---|---|---|
| 存续, 在业, 开业 | Subsisting, in business, open | Active. The normal status. |
| 迁出 | Moved out | Transferred to another registration authority. Search again for the current record. |
| 歇业 | Suspended (dormant) | The company has filed to stop trading for up to three years, under rules in force since March 2022. |
| 吊销 | Licence revoked | A penalty. The company has lost its licence and must not trade, even if it has not yet been wound up. |
| 注销 | Deregistered | The company no longer exists. Do not contract with it. |
The abnormal operations list is separate from status. An active company can still be listed, for example for not filing an annual report by 30 June or not being found at its address.
What does the business scope (经营范围) tell you?
The scope tells you what the company is registered to do, and is the quickest test of whether a supplier is a factory. Since March 2022 scope is registered as general items (一般项目) and items needing a permit (许可项目), in standard wording. Production words (生产, 制造, 加工) suggest a manufacturer; only sales and trade words (销售, 批发, 贸易, 货物进出口) suggest a trading company. For permit items, such as some food, medical or pressure equipment, ask for the separate permit and check it with the issuing body.
What is the difference between registered capital and paid-in capital?
Registered capital (注册资本) is what shareholders have subscribed; paid-in capital (实缴资本) is what they have actually paid. Licences have not shown paid-in capital since 1 March 2014, so a licence alone never tells you how much money went in.
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Company Law in force | Revised law adopted 29 December 2023, in force 1 July 2024 |
| Limited liability companies set up from 1 July 2024 | Shareholders must pay their subscribed capital in full within five years of establishment (Article 47) |
| Companies limited by shares | Promoters must pay in full before the company is established (Article 98) |
| Limited liability companies set up before 30 June 2024 | If more than five years would remain after 1 July 2027, the payment period must be cut to five years by 30 June 2027, so in practice full payment by 30 June 2032 (State Council provisions of 1 July 2024) |
| Publication | Subscribed and paid-in amounts, method and dates must be published on gsxt.gov.cn, with changes posted within 20 working days (Article 40 and the State Council provisions) |
| Unpaid capital and creditors | If the company cannot pay its debts, the company or a creditor with a due claim can demand early payment of unpaid capital (Article 54) |
For a buyer, the useful figure is paid-in capital on the register. RMB 10 million subscribed and nothing paid is a promise, not a balance sheet.
How do you spot a fake or borrowed Chinese business licence?
Most fakes are real licences used by the wrong people, or real licences that have been edited. Look for mismatches.
- Code and name do not match the register: often one character of the name changed, or a different code.
- Status is not active: a revoked or deregistered company still sending quotes.
- QR code leads elsewhere: or scans to a different company.
- Bank account in another name: a personal account, a Hong Kong or offshore company, or a "sister company". Ask for any account change on a letter bearing the company seal, and confirm it by phone using a number you already have.
- Invoice in another name: a Chinese VAT invoice (发票) shows the seller's name and taxpayer number, which for a company is normally the USCC. It can be checked on the national VAT invoice verification platform (全国增值税发票查验平台, inv-veri.chinatax.gov.cn).
- Scope does not cover the goods: especially for items that need a permit.
- Contact person not connected: the person you deal with cannot be linked to the company by its official phone, email domain or address.
How can Thornfield help?
Thornfield Resources is a London company (Companies House 17162127) that works in English and Mandarin. Our supplier checks read the licence and the full gsxt.gov.cn record in Chinese, check court and enforcement records and confirm the bank account name: an Express Check costs £175 and a Full Supplier Check £450. For wider questions we offer China advisory at £250. We are paid only by clients. We are not a law firm or accountant; legal and tax opinions go to licensed professionals. Contact us with the company's code.
Common questions
Is the Unified Social Credit Code the same as the tax number?
For companies, in practice yes. Under the "one licence, one code" reform that began on 1 October 2015, the USCC replaced separate registration numbers, and it is entered in the taxpayer number field on invoices.
Can I verify a Chinese business licence in English?
Not on the official register, which is in Chinese only. You can use browser translation to read it, but search using the code or the exact Chinese name, or ask a Mandarin speaker to run the search.
Do Chinese business licences expire?
Licences issued since 1 September 2022 no longer print a business term. Many companies have an unlimited term, and any term that applies is still shown on the register.
Why can't I find a Hong Kong company on gsxt.gov.cn?
Hong Kong companies are registered with the Hong Kong Companies Registry and have no mainland USCC. Search the Hong Kong register instead, and ask which mainland company actually makes the goods.
Is a high registered capital a sign of a strong company?
No. It is the amount shareholders promised to pay. Check the paid-in figure on the register and the company's court and enforcement records instead.
What does 吊销，未注销 mean?
The licence has been revoked but the company has not been deregistered. It must not trade, and it is a serious warning sign for any supplier.
Sources
- Company Law of the People's Republic of China (中华人民共和国公司法), revised 29 December 2023 (in force 1 July 2024)
- gov.cn: State Council provisions on registered capital registration under the Company Law (1 July 2024)
- Reed Smith: PRC Company Law overhaul, key changes and takeaways (January 2024)
- SMBC China report: SAMR notice 市监注发[2022]71号 on the new business licence format (July 2022)
- National Business Daily: new licences no longer record paid-in capital (3 March 2014)
- State Council: Regulations on the Registration and Administration of Market Entities (市场主体登记管理条例) (August 2021, in force 1 March 2022)
- Shenzhen Statistics Bureau: statistical survey scheme with USCC coding rules (December 2020)
- python-stdnum: China Unified Social Credit Code format
- Hicom Asia: How to check a Chinese company with NECIPS (May 2026, verified October 2026)
- Cyberspace Administration of China (Xinhua): "one licence, one code" from 1 October 2015 (September 2015)
- State Taxation Administration: Announcement 2017 No. 16 on issuing VAT invoices (19 May 2017)
- State Taxation Administration: Announcement 2024 No. 11 on fully digitised e-invoices (12 November 2024)
- China Justice Observer: A Chinese company asks you to pay to its bank account outside China (October 2022)