# Does a Chinese company have a VAT number or tax ID? | Confirm Supplier

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Confirm Supplier guide (CNAL Consulting, Spain). Chinese companies do not have a separate VAT number. They have a single 18 character Unified Social Credit Code (USCC) that works as registration and tax identifier at once.

## Why there is no separate VAT number

In most of Europe a company carries a registration number and a VAT number as two separate things. China worked in a comparable way until 2015, when a company carried three identifiers: business licence number, organisation code and tax registration number. The three certificates in one reform (三证合一) merged them into the USCC, which since October 2015 identifies the company before the business registry, the tax authority and customs.

## What to ask for

The USCC (统一社会信用代码, Unified Social Credit Code). A valid code always meets these conditions:

- Exactly 18 characters.
- A mix of digits and capital letters.
- Never contains the letters I, O, Z, S or V.
- For most suppliers it starts with 91 (entities registered with the business registry).

A 15 digit number with no letters is the old pre-2015 registration number. It still helps trace the company, but ask for the current one.

## Where it appears

- Business licence (营业执照): printed next to the Chinese legal name. Primary source; ask for a legible colour copy.
- Official Chinese invoice (发票, fapiao): carries the issuer's USCC. On export transactions a commercial invoice is normal rather than a fapiao.
- Contract and proforma: should appear next to the full legal name.
- Public GSXT record: where you confirm the code exists and who it belongs to.

## Why VIES will not help

VIES only contains traders registered in EU member states. China is not one. A Chinese supplier cannot be validated there, and the absence of a result says nothing about legitimacy. The functional equivalent for China is GSXT, the public company registry, which returns legal name, status, legal representative and registered capital.

## What this means on your side

Buying from a Chinese supplier is an import, not an intra-community acquisition. Import VAT is handled through the customs declaration rather than the reverse charge mechanism used inside the EU. The USCC does not go into a European validator; it is an identifying detail of the issuer that travels with the commercial invoice and shipping documentation.

This guide is informational and is not tax advice. The exact accounting and customs treatment depends on the transaction, the agreed Incoterm and your own tax position, and differs between jurisdictions. Confirm it with an accountant or customs broker.

## How to check the code is real

Search the code on GSXT (gsxt.gov.cn). The result should return exactly one company. Then compare:

1. The Chinese legal name must match the licence character for character. The English trading name does not count: it is not registered.
2. The registration status must be active. A deregistered company or one in liquidation should not be collecting deposits.
3. The bank account holder must be that same company. This is the check that prevents the most fraud.

## The three mistakes we see most

- Accepting the code without looking it up: a well formed USCC can be real and belong to a different company.
- Treating the English name as identity: English names are not registered in China and two unrelated companies can use the same one.
- Confusing a trading company's code with the factory's: it changes who is liable if the order goes wrong.

## Quick questions

- Is the USCC the same as a VAT number? It performs that role inside the Chinese system, but it is not an EU VAT number: it cannot be validated in VIES and does not replace import formalities.
- Does it work for Hong Kong? No. Hong Kong has its own registration system and identifier, with a different format and issuing body.
- Is it normal for a supplier to refuse to share it? No. It is public information printed on the licence and published in the official registry.
- Can it be checked without reading Chinese? Yes, with a browser translator. GSXT is Chinese only and has an anti bot control, but searching by code is workable. It will not return litigation history, ownership structure or confirmation that the factory physically exists.

Related guides: What is the USCC (https://confirmsupplier.com/en/resources/what-is-the-uscc/) · How to verify a Chinese company step by step (https://confirmsupplier.com/en/resources/how-to-verify-a-chinese-company/)

A €500,000 order. A €250 report. China Simple Confirmation Report: €250 + VAT. China Due Diligence Report: €900 + VAT.

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