How to Verify a Chinese Supplier Before Buying Machinery

Buying a production line or an industrial machine from China usually means paying a large deposit to a company you have never visited. The checks below help you confirm who you are dealing with before money moves. They are written for machinery buyers in the Middle East and North Africa, but most apply to any capital equipment purchase.

Step 1: Check the business licence and Unified Social Credit Code

Every registered Chinese company has a Unified Social Credit Code (统一社会信用代码). According to China Justice Observer, it is an 18-character code of letters and numbers, printed on the business licence and on the company seal.

Ask the supplier for a clear photo or scan of its business licence (营业执照). Then check it yourself on the official registry: the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System (国家企业信用信息公示系统) at www.gsxt.gov.cn, run by the State Administration for Market Regulation.

What to confirm on the registry:

• Legal Chinese name. The English name on a website or proforma invoice is not a legal name. Search the exact Chinese name or the code. China Justice Observer notes that if you cannot find the company, either it does not exist or the name you typed is not its current legal name.
• Status. The registry shows statuses such as existence, revocation, deregistration, suspension and liquidation. China Justice Observer points out that every status other than existence is abnormal.
• Business scope (经营范围). Does it include manufacturing of the type of machine you are buying, or only sales and trading?
• Registered address. Compare it with the factory address the supplier gives you.
• Legal representative and establishment date. Note them, and compare them with the person and company that will sign your contract.
• Abnormal operations listing. According to QCC KYC, the registry publishes "abnormal operations" listings for companies that miss filings or cannot be reached at their registered address, as well as administrative penalties.

The site is in Chinese, uses Chinese verification steps and can be slow or unreachable from outside mainland China. If you do not read Chinese, ask a Chinese-speaking colleague or your sourcing agent to run the search and send you screenshots, and then check the code yourself.

The most important rule: the company on the licence, the company on the contract and the company on the bank account must be the same entity. A request to pay a different company, or a personal account, is a serious warning sign.

Step 2: Factory or trading company?

Many suppliers on B2B platforms describe themselves as manufacturers. For machinery this matters, because the builder controls quality, lead time, spare parts and after-sales support.

A trading company is not automatically a problem. It can combine machines from several makers or handle export paperwork. What you need is honesty about the structure, and a contract that makes someone clearly responsible for the machine's performance.

Step 3: Run a live video factory tour

A live tour, not a recorded video, is the fastest way to filter out suppliers who cannot show what they claim. Use this checklist and agree the time in advance.

• Start at the factory gate or sign, then walk in without cuts.
• Ask to see the business licence displayed in the office, and compare it with the scan you received.
• Ask to see your machine model, or the same model being built for another customer, at the assembly stage.
• Ask them to point the camera at the nameplate of a finished machine and read the model and serial number.
• See the machining area (lathes, CNC centres, welding), not only the final assembly hall.
• Ask where key components come from: motors, PLC and control panel, hydraulics, bearings. Note the brands.
• Ask to see the testing area and a test record from a recent machine.
• Ask to see the warehouse for spare parts.
• Ask who the engineer responsible for your project is, and speak to that person on the call.
• Record the call, with their agreement, for your file.

If the supplier refuses a live tour, keeps moving the date or will only show a showroom, treat that as information.

Step 4: Ask for reference machines and customers in your region

A supplier that has installed similar machines in your region should be able to give you references. Ask for:

• The country and city of recent installations of the same or a similar model.
• A contact at the buyer's company, with permission to call.
• Photos or videos of the machine running at the customer's site, with the nameplate visible.

When you call a reference, ask practical questions: did the machine arrive on the agreed date, did installation and commissioning go as planned, how fast did spare parts arrive, and would they buy from this supplier again. One honest reference in your own region is worth more than a long list of logos.

Step 5: Sample or factory acceptance test (FAT)

For a single machine you can sometimes test a sample product: send your raw material and ask the supplier to run it and send the output. For a production line, the standard tool is a factory acceptance test: the machine is assembled and run at the supplier's site before it is packed, against criteria agreed in the contract.

A useful FAT plan defines:

• The materials and product sizes to be run.
• The output, quality and speed criteria to measure.
• How long the test runs.
• Safety checks, including guards, emergency stops and electrical panel.
• Which documents must be ready: manuals, drawings, electrical diagrams, spare parts list, certificates.
• Who attends: you, your inspector or your sourcing agent, in person or by live video.

Link the FAT to payment, and do not let the machine be packed until the FAT report is signed. Our guide to pre-shipment inspection for machinery explains what an inspector checks at this stage.

Step 6: Contract clauses that protect the buyer

A proforma invoice is not a contract. For machinery, put these points in writing:

• Parties. The legal Chinese name and Unified Social Credit Code of the seller, matching the registry.
• Technical annex. Full specifications, component brands, voltage and frequency for your site, output capacity and layout drawing.
• FAT criteria and the right to reject or require repair if the machine fails.
• Documents to be delivered: manuals, drawings, certificates and anything your importing country requires. For Saudi Arabia, see our guide to the SABER certificate for machinery.
• Delivery term. Name the Incoterms rule and version, for example FOB or CIF, as published by the International Chamber of Commerce.
• Lead time and what happens if it is missed.
• Installation and commissioning. Whether engineers travel, who pays for travel, and what training is included.
• Warranty and spare parts. Period, what is covered, and how fast parts are supplied.
• Dispute resolution. Governing law, venue and the language that prevails.

Step 7: Payment terms that protect the buyer

The International Trade Administration notes that cash in advance is the least attractive option for a buyer, because the goods may not be sent after payment. With a letter of credit, no payment obligation arises until the goods have been shipped as promised and the documents match.

For machinery, a common structure is a deposit to start production and the balance after a passed FAT or inspection, or against shipping documents under a letter of credit. The exact split is a commercial decision. What matters is that the larger payment depends on something you can verify, and that every payment goes to the company named in the contract.

Red flags when verifying a Chinese supplier

Where We-World fits

We-World is a sourcing and export company in China serving buyers in the Middle East and North Africa. We work in Arabic, English and Chinese, shortlist manufacturers, confirm specifications in writing, check goods before shipment and arrange shipping and export documents. You can see the categories we source on our production lines and machines page, and our guide on importing machinery from China covers the full process.

Next step

If you already have a shortlist of Chinese suppliers and want help shortlisting manufacturers and confirming specifications in writing before you pay a deposit, contact us with the machine type and the supplier details you have.