How to Use GSXT to Check a Chinese Company: An English Buyer’s Guide

You've found a promising Chinese supplier. They sent you a polished brochure, a professional English email, and a competitive price. Now what? GSXT — China's official company registry — is the first place every overseas buyer should check before sending money or signing a contract. Yet most buyers either don't know it exists or give up the moment they see the Chinese interface.

GSXT (国家企业信用信息公示系统) is China's official national business credit and registration database, managed by the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR)¹. It lets overseas buyers verify a Chinese supplier's registered name, Unified Social Credit Code, legal representative, registered address, business scope, company status, and selected regulatory records — all for free, directly from the Chinese government.

GSXT won't tell you whether a supplier will ship on time, pass your quality inspection, or actually own a factory. But it is the essential first layer of verification — the baseline that every other check builds on. Let's walk through exactly how to use it, field by field.

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What Is GSXT and What Can It Verify?

Most overseas buyers have never heard of GSXT, and the suppliers they're vetting are quietly relieved about that. If you want to verify a Chinese company's official registration identity — not complete a full due-diligence audit — this is your starting point.

GSXT (国家企业信用信息公示系统, the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System) is a free, government-operated platform managed by China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR). You can access it at gsxt.gov.cn. Fair warning: the site blocks overseas IP addresses, so you will need a VPN to access it from outside China.

Once you're in, here is what GSXT can actually show you — and what each field really means for a buyer:

Registered Company Name (企业名称)

GSXT confirms whether the full Chinese company name your supplier gave you matches the official government record. This matters more than it sounds. Suppliers occasionally share a slightly different name on documents — whether by accident or by design. GSXT requires the full Chinese name or the Unified Social Credit Code (USCC) to search. An English trade name alone will not work.

Unified Social Credit Code — USCC (统一社会信用代码)

This is China's 18-character business identity number. Think of it as a company's national ID card². You can cross-reference it against the supplier's business licence, contracts, proforma invoices, payment details, and any other commercial document. If the codes don't match across documents, that's a conversation you need to have immediately.

Registration Status (企业登记状态)

Common statuses include:

• 存续 / 在营 / 开业 / 在册 — Active and legally registered
• 注销 — Voluntarily deregistered
• 吊销 — Licence revoked by regulators
• 迁出 — Transferred jurisdiction
• 歇业 — Suspended operations
• 清算 — In liquidation

An active status is the minimum you want to see. It does not, however, mean the supplier is reliable, capable, or even currently operating.

Legal Representative (法定代表人)

GSXT shows the officially registered legal representative. Cross-check this name against the business licence, any contracts you're asked to sign, and whoever is signing your supplier's correspondence. Discrepancies deserve an explanation.

Date of Establishment (成立日期)

Older registration doesn't automatically mean better supplier. I've seen five-year-old companies with excellent track records and fifteen-year-old ones that clearly hadn't exported anything in years. Use the establishment date as context, not as a quality signal.

Company Type (企业类型)

Tells you the basic legal structure: limited liability company (有限责任公司), joint-stock company (股份有限公司), sole proprietorship (个人独资企业), and so on. Useful for understanding the legal framework you're working within.

Registered Capital (注册资本)

GSXT shows the registered capital figure. Here's the important caveat: registered capital in China is not necessarily paid-in capital³. A company can register with RMB 50 million on paper and have far less actually in the bank. Treat this number as background context, not as a financial strength guarantee.

Registering Authority (登记机关)

This tells you which local government department registered and regulates the business. It confirms the jurisdiction.

Registered Address (注册地址)

Compare this against the address on the business licence, contracts, invoices, and whatever address the supplier claims as their factory or office. If the registered address is a small residential district and the supplier claims to run a large factory, you should ask questions.

Business Scope (经营范围)

This is the officially registered description of what the company is allowed to do — manufacturing, trading, import/export, e-commerce, logistics, and so on. A registered business scope that covers your product category is necessary but not sufficient. A company can add business scope items relatively easily⁴. Scope does not prove actual capability.

Administrative Licences and Regulatory Records (行政许可及监管信息)

Depending on the company, GSXT may also display administrative licences, administrative penalties, the abnormal operations list (经营异常名录), and the serious violation and dishonesty list (严重违法失信信息). These are the red flags section. Pay close attention here.

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What Information Do You Need Before Searching GSXT?

You've opened the GSXT website (VPN running, patience loaded). Now what do you type in?

You need either the supplier's full Chinese company name (中文全称) or their 18-digit Unified Social Credit Code (统一社会信用代码). GSXT is a domestic Chinese platform with no English interface and no English search capability. An English trade name, a brand name, or a partial company name will not return reliable results — or any results at all.

Here's why this matters in practice. A supplier might introduce themselves in English as "Bright Star Industrial Co." That name is useless for a GSXT search. What you actually need is something like "深圳市光星工业有限公司" — the full, officially registered Chinese name — or the 18-character code like 91440300MA5XXXXXXX.

Where to Get This Information

Ask your supplier directly for:

1. A copy of their business licence (营业执照) — The full Chinese name and USCC are printed on it.
2. Their 18-digit USCC — Any legitimate supplier will provide this without hesitation. Reluctance is itself a signal.
3. Their Chinese company name in writing — Even if your contact doesn't speak Chinese, the registered name should be on every official document.

Quick tip: If a supplier is slow to share their business licence or USCC with a potential buyer making a serious inquiry, that hesitation tells you something. Legitimate businesses don't hide their registration details.

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How Do You Search for a Chinese Company on GSXT in English?

Let's walk through the actual steps. I'll be honest — this process is not designed with overseas buyers in mind. The interface is entirely in Chinese. But it's navigable once you know what you're looking for.

To search GSXT: open gsxt.gov.cn via VPN, paste the supplier's full Chinese company name or 18-digit USCC into the search bar, complete the CAPTCHA or slider verification, select the correct company from the results list, and review the detailed registration record.

Step-by-Step Walkthrough

1. Connect your VPN — Set your exit node to a mainland China location. GSXT blocks overseas IP addresses. This is non-negotiable.

2. Navigate to https://www.gsxt.gov.cn/ — You should see the national platform homepage, not a provincial redirect.

3. Locate the search bar — It sits prominently at the top of the page. The placeholder text will be in Chinese.

4. Paste the full Chinese company name or 18-digit USCC — Do not type an English name here. Copy the Chinese text directly from the business licence your supplier shared.

5. Complete the verification challenge — GSXT may display an image-click CAPTCHA asking you to select objects in a specified order. Follow the on-screen prompt and click Confirm. This is standard anti-bot protection.

6. Review the results list — If multiple companies appear with similar names, check the USCC and registered province to identify the correct entity.

7. Click through to the full record — The detail page shows registration status, legal representative, registered address, business scope, and any regulatory flags.

Note: The screenshots above come from an actual GSXT search session. CAPTCHA styles and provincial result-page layouts may change, but the verification sequence remains the same.

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Which GSXT Fields Matter Most to Overseas Buyers?

Not all fields carry equal weight. Here's where to focus your attention — and what to look for in each.

The highest-priority GSXT fields for overseas buyers are: registration status, the abnormal operations list, the serious violation and dishonesty list, business scope, registered address, legal representative, USCC, and annual report filings. Red flags in any of these fields warrant immediate follow-up before proceeding.

Registration Status — The Minimum Viable Check

An active status (存续/在营/开业) is your baseline. If the status is anything else — revoked, deregistered, abnormal — stop and investigate before going further.

Abnormal Operations List (经营异常名录) and Serious Violation List (严重违法失信信息)

These are the real red-flag sections. Companies land on these lists for reasons including:

• Failure to file annual reports on time
• Unverifiable registered address (inspectors couldn't find the company at the listed address)
• Regulatory violations or administrative penalties
• Court-enforced dishonesty (failing to comply with court judgments)

A company on the serious violation list has, in most cases, demonstrated a deteriorating financial situation, a lack of integrity, or both. Walk away unless you have an extremely compelling reason and independent verification to the contrary.

Annual Reports (年度报告)

Chinese companies are legally required to file annual reports through GSXT⁵. You can check whether reports have been filed consistently. Missing annual reports are often what put companies on the abnormal operations list in the first place.

Business Scope (经营范围) — Read Carefully

Look for whether the scope includes:

Keywords	What It Suggests
生产、制造	Manufacturing/production registered
进出口	Import/export registered
贸易、销售	Trading and sales
批发、零售	Wholesale and retail
物流、供应链	Logistics and supply chain

Business scope registration is a necessary starting point. It is not proof of capability.

Registered Address vs. Claimed Factory Address

If your supplier says they operate a factory in Dongguan but their registered address is a residential building in Shenzhen, that's worth questioning. Not necessarily disqualifying — companies sometimes register addresses separately from operations⁶ — but it needs explanation.

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What Do the Different Chinese Company Statuses Mean?

Chinese company statuses are not always self-explanatory, especially when translated from official bureaucratic Chinese. Here's a plain-language breakdown.

Chinese company statuses on GSXT fall into two broad categories: active (the company is legally registered and operating or able to operate) and problematic (the company has been suspended, penalised, deregistered, or flagged). The key active status is 存续; the most serious negative statuses are 吊销 (revoked) and the serious violation list.

Full Status Reference Table

Chinese Status	Pinyin	Plain English Meaning
存续	Cúnxù	Active — legally registered and ongoing
在营	Zàiyíng	In operation — actively trading
开业	Kāiyè	Open for business
在册	Zàicè	On the register — registered and current
歇业	Xiēyè	Temporarily suspended operations
清算	Qīngsuàn	In liquidation — winding down assets
吊销	Diàoxiāo	Licence revoked — regulatory penalty, serious
注销	Zhùxiāo	Voluntarily deregistered — company dissolved
迁出	Qiānchū	Transferred to another jurisdiction
经营异常	Jīngyíng yìcháng	Abnormal operations — flagged by regulators
严重违法失信	Yánzhòng wéifǎ shīxìn	Serious violation and dishonesty — do not proceed without independent verification

The statuses to treat as immediate red flags are 吊销, 注销 (if the supplier claims to be active), 经营异常, and 严重违法失信. A company with a revoked licence is legally not supposed to be conducting business⁷. A company on the serious violation list has regulatory and integrity problems on record.

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How Should Buyers Match GSXT Data Against Supplier Documents?

GSXT is most powerful when you cross-reference it against every document the supplier has given you. Here's a systematic approach.

Cross-reference the GSXT record against: the business licence, contracts and proforma invoices, bank payment details, Alibaba or 1688 store registration, product certificates and test reports, and customs/export documents. Every document should show consistent company names and USCC. Inconsistencies require explanation before any payment.

Document-by-Document Checklist

1. Business Licence (营业执照)

The Chinese company name and USCC on the business licence must match the GSXT record exactly. This is the most basic check. If they don't match, you have a problem.

2. Contracts and Proforma Invoices

The seller name on your contract or PI should match the registered Chinese company name. For English names, request the customs registration certificate (海关注册登记证) — this is the officially recognised document that maps a Chinese company's Chinese name to its English name. It's the only document that creates a verified, one-to-one link between the two.

3. Bank Payment Details

The bank account beneficiary name should correspond directly to the supplier's registered Chinese company name and the English name on their customs registration certificate. If you're being asked to pay an individual, a third party, or a company with a different name, stop completely and investigate.

This is one of the most common fraud vectors in China sourcing⁸. Always verify bank details independently — call the supplier's main number (not a number from the email asking for payment) to confirm.

4. Alibaba or 1688 Store

Alibaba and 1688 both show the operating entity behind each store⁹. The business entity listed in the store should match the business licence. If the store entity and the business licence don't align, ask why before placing any order.

5. Certificates and Test Reports

Product certificates (CE, RoHS, FDA, etc.) and third-party test reports should carry the company's Chinese and English name. Cross-check both against the GSXT record and the customs registration certificate. A certificate issued to a different company name is not your supplier's certificate.

6. Export Documents and Customs Registration

Customs declaration documents and the customs registration certificate should show consistent Chinese and English company names. Mismatches here can create serious problems at the port of destination — and sometimes indicate that the company exporting goods is not the company you contracted with.

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Can GSXT Tell Whether a Supplier Is a Factory or Trading Company?

This is one of the most common questions I hear from buyers, and GSXT gives only a partial answer.

**GSXT's business scope section may include keywords like 生产 (production) or 制造 (manufacturing), which indicate the company has registered manufacturing activities. However, registered business scope does not

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