How to check a supplier's background and business license?

By Yaurapulse

Published 2026-08-29 Updated 2026-08-29

A supplier's Alibaba profile is self-reported, which means it proves very little. The first hard, verifiable layer of trust comes from the business license and the public records behind it. If a supplier hesitates to share these, you already have your answer. A competent company's identity is not a secret, and anyone doing real business is happy to stand behind its registered name.

Checking a background is not a matter of trusting your gut. It is a small set of concrete steps, and once you run them a few times they take minutes. Here is the process, from the first request to the final cross-check.

Step 1: Ask for the Basics, All at Once

Begin by asking the supplier for its full registered identity in one clear request. You want the:

legal registered Chinese company name,
unified social credit code,
registered address,
invoice entity,
bank beneficiary, and
a clear copy of the business license.

Ask for these together rather than one at a time. Legitimate suppliers hand them over without drama. A supplier who stalls, sends a blurred photo, or offers a signed sales agreement instead of the license has already told you something worth hearing.

Step 2: Verify the Credit Code on the Official Database

China has a national public registry for every business, the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System at gsxt.gov.cn. Every registered company carries an 18-digit unified social credit code, and you can look it up with that number or the company name.

Run the search and check the record against what the supplier told you. Does the company exist? Is it active, or has it been flagged or shut down? Does the registered date match what the salesperson claimed about being in business for years? Is the registered capital and the company's stated size plausible? If you catch a mismatch here, you have saved yourself a lot of trouble. This one public database is the closest thing to an objective fitness check you will get without visiting China.

Step 3: Read the Business Scope Like a Detective

The business license is not just proof a company exists. Inside it, the section called "Business Scope" (经营范围) is the single most useful field, because it is hard to fake and directly reveals what the company is legally allowed to do.

A factory's business scope must include words meaning "manufacture or produce," like 生产, 加工, or 制造. A trading company's scope will not contain them; it is built around sales and trade. If the supplier's scope has no manufacturing language, you know you are dealing with a trader, whatever its marketing says.

Since the scope is in Chinese, use a reliable Chinese-speaking friend to review it, or hire a translator for a few dollars on an online freelancing marketplace. Do not let a supplier "interpret" its own license for you in a way that conveniently sounds like a factory.

Step 4: Cross-Check Every Name on Every Document

Scams and misrepresentations collapse when names do not line up. Collect the company names from each document you receive and demand consistency:

the company on the quotation,
the company on the purchase order,
the company on the invoice,
the company on the test report,
the company on the business license, and
the company that receives your payment.

These should form a coherent picture. If a supplier sells you a product with company A's quote, company B's bank account for payment, and a business license for company C, that gap is a warning you must get explained in writing before any money moves.

Step 5: Use the Document Tests to Tell Factory From Trader

Several document-based tests settle the factory-versus-trading-company question without an on-site visit:

The VAT invoice test. China gives export tax drawbacks to factories, and claiming that drawback requires a 17% VAT invoice, which only a factory can issue. Ask the supplier to issue one. If they refuse or hesitate, they are likely a trader or a very small-scale plant. If they agree, ask for a clear picture of a previously issued invoice and check that the company name on it matches the business license. A name match means the issuing entity is a factory.
The factory audit report test. If a supplier claims to supply major global retailers, ask for its factory audit report. Check the company name on the report against the business license. A mismatch means the report belongs to a different entity, likely a real factory their trader simply visits.
The ISO 9001 test. Not every factory holds ISO 9001, but most companies with it are factories, because a pure trader has little reason to hold it. Treat this as supporting evidence, not proof, since some specialized traders carry it too.

Step 6: Understand the Traps in the Address

Do not make the mistake of concluding a false address means a fake supplier. In China it is common for a factory's office and its workshop to sit in different places, sometimes different cities, and many workshops are rented and moved every few years without the registered address being updated. A mismatch between the office you visit and the registered address is normal, not suspicious by itself.

What matters instead is whether the names line up on the documents and whether the official record supports the company's claims. Use the address as context, not as a verdict.

Step 7: Remember the License Proves Existence, Not Quality

Keep one caveat in mind at the end of every check. A clean business license and a verified registration prove the company is real and claims what it does. They do not prove the product quality, the timeliness, or the honesty of every employee. A registered, verifiable company can still ship goods that do not match a sample, miss deadlines, or argue a dispute.

So treat the background check as your floor: it eliminates the fakes and the obvious mismatches. Then keep the rest of your discipline, ordering samples, running a trial order, inspecting before shipping, and paying on the platform through trade assurance.

FAQ

Why does my background check matter more than the Alibaba profile?

Because profiles are self-reported and easily gamed. The business license and the official public registry are the first objective, verifiable layer of trust. A clean check eliminates the fakes.

How do I verify a Chinese business license online?

Use the 18-digit unified social credit code or the company name to look up the business on China's National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System at gsxt.gov.cn, and confirm the company exists, is active, and matches its claims.

What should I look for in the Business Scope?

Whether it includes manufacturing terms like 生产, 加工, or 制造. A factory must have these in its scope; a trading company will not. This is the clearest on-paper way to tell the two apart.

How do I prove a supplier is actually a factory?

Combine the business scope check with the VAT invoice test (only a factory issues the 17% VAT invoice needed for export drawback) and the factory audit report, and confirm the company name on each matches the business license.

Do I trust a supplier after the license checks pass?

A license check is the floor, not the ceiling. It proves the company is real. You still need samples, a trial order, pre-shipment inspection, and protected on-platform payment to manage quality and risk.

Bottom Line

Checking a supplier's background and business license is a concrete, repeatable process: request the full identity, verify the unified social credit code on the official GSXT registry, read the business scope, and cross-check that every name on every document, the quote, invoice, payment, and license, lines up. Use the VAT and factory audit document tests to settle whether you are actually dealing with a factory.

But remember what a clean check proves and what it does not. It proves the company is real, active, and consistent in its identity. It does not deliver quality for you. Finish the job with samples, trial orders, inspection, and protected payment, and you will have turned a piece of paper into a genuinely safe supplier relationship.