A low-value order can still be an expensive mistake if the supplier disappears after payment: cross-border recovery may cost more than the claim. Before sending a deposit or the balance, confirm who is selling, who is speaking for that company, where the money will go, and what evidence you will receive before the next payment. Treat an unexplained mismatch as a reason to pause, not as proof of fraud.
Verify the Chinese registered entity independently; call a previously verified contact if payment instructions change; and keep your first payment small enough that a failed order will not force an uneconomic recovery case. If the supplier will not permit these checks, do not pay yet.
Six points where buyers should stop and check
| What you see | What to verify | Decision before payment |
|---|---|---|
| The sales contact uses a familiar brand name, but the invoice names another entity | Ask for the seller's Chinese registered name and Unified Social Credit Code; check them on the official registry and ask how the two entities are related. | Do not assume a brand, group company or trading name is your contract party. |
| A new bank account appears late in the deal | Call a contact number verified before the change. Confirm the account holder, bank and account details through a separate channel. | Hold payment until the change is independently confirmed. An email thread alone can be compromised. |
| The beneficiary is a person or a different company | Request the commercial reason, supporting documents and a clear written allocation of who owes delivery or repayment. | Obtain advice before paying a third party; a written explanation alone does not remove the risk. |
| The invoice describes different goods, quantities or specifications | Compare the invoice line by line with the agreed order and ask for a corrected document before paying. | Do not fund an order whose paper trail does not describe what you are buying. |
| The seller demands full payment urgently for a first order | Ask why staged payment, a trial order or independent inspection is refused. | Reduce the amount at risk or wait. Urgency is a signal to verify, not a diagnosis of fraud. |
| Photos, certificates or a video call are offered instead of verifiable facts | Check the company record, the person’s authority, production capacity and the agreed goods through independent channels where the order justifies it. | Do not treat attractive documents or a company registration alone as proof that goods exist or will be delivered. |
Identify both the company and the person
Ask for the business licence and search the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System using the Chinese name or the 18-character Unified Social Credit Code. Compare the result with the purchase order and invoice. The registry can show identity, operating status and public adverse records; it does not certify that the individual messaging you works there or that the company has your goods. For the full entity and account checklist, read how to verify a Chinese supplier before you pay.
Contact the company through a channel you found independently, such as a number on its established website or a prior verified record, and ask it to confirm the salesperson, order, and receiving account. A video call can help, but ask the contact to show the business premises or goods relevant to your order if the sums warrant it. Preserve the message trail and the number you used. If the invoice gives an NRA account at a Chinese bank, see how to identify the non-resident account holder.
Control the amount that can be lost
- Start with a trial order. Keep the first exposure within an amount your business can absorb. Passing one trial does not justify removing controls on the next order.
- Link instalments to evidence. Specify what triggers each payment: an agreed milestone, inspection result or shipping document. Check independently where practical. Do not assume a document alone proves the goods conform or will arrive.
- Keep product terms measurable. Record specifications, quantity, delivery deadline, inspection method, what happens after a failed inspection, and which legal entity must refund. Preserve samples and dated inspection records.
- Set a second approval for changed payment details. Finance should never rely solely on an emailed replacement invoice or a message from the same chat account that requested the change.
No arrangement eliminates counterparty risk. The objective is to identify a mismatch before money moves and to limit a possible loss to a commercially tolerable amount.
When the value is too small to litigate
Compare the order value with likely legal fees, translation, evidence work, enforcement expense and management time before paying. If a claim would be uneconomic, prevention matters more: smaller pilots, payment milestones and an internal rule that no unverified account receives funds. If a seller refuses these conditions, walking away may be cheaper than trying to recover a modest deposit later.
If you have already paid
If you suspect an account-substitution incident, contact your bank immediately to ask about a recall or trace, preserve the original and changed instructions, and speak to the genuine supplier through an independently verified channel. If the supplier simply fails to deliver, preserve the contract and communications and assess breach, asset position and recovery economics before alleging fraud. See the first steps when a supplier stops replying and our China debt recovery guide.
Sources and further reading
- State Administration for Market Regulation — official enterprise publicity system and adverse-information categories (Chinese).
- Ministry of Commerce economic office alert — an account-change impersonation example and advice to verify changed bank details by a separate effective channel (Chinese).
- Related: verify the registered supplier · payment risk before shipping to a Chinese buyer · supplier dispute options.
This article is general information for foreign companies, not legal advice on any specific matter. Rules and practice change; please take advice on your facts.
