Opinions, knowledge and resources from China Checkup's expert contributors
The China CCC certificate is a document issued to suppliers whose products are licensed to use the CCC mark.
This article gives an introduction to the use of this mark, which is commonly seen on products in both China and overseas, how and why the certificate is issued, and by whom.
Compulsory for many products in China, the CCC mark is not only applicable to Chinese manufacturers, but also to overseas companies wishing to export to China.
The abbreviation CCC stands for “China Compulsory Certification” and the CCC mark looks like this:
The China CCC certificate is a document issued to companies which hold a license to display this logo on their certified products.
The certificate is typically prepared on a standard template with a blue background and comes in two languages – Chinese and English.
Below is an example of a typical China CCC certificate:
A China CCC certificate contains the following details:
The China CCC certificate can be issued by certification bodies accredited by CNCA (the Certification and Accreditation Administration). At the time of preparing this article there were 22 such accredited bodies.
Different certification bodies are accredited for certifying different types of products.
The certification body issuing the most amount of certificates is CQC (the China Quality Certification Center) and they are also accredited for the broadest scope. It is very common to see their certificates.
Other accredited CCC certification bodies tend to be more industry-specific, such as the CCCAP (China Certification Centre For Automotive Products) and CCCF (China Certification Center for Fire Products).
More information about CCC certification can be viewed on the official CCC website.
The China CCC certificate is required for many different products both made in China and imported from overseas. Manufacturers and importers require the certificate to sell their products in mainland China.
A good example of a company which uses the CCC mark is Apple. As you can see from the image below, iPhones sold in Mainland China display the CCC mark.
The scope of products subject to compulsory certification includes items covered under the following 20 categories:
Similar to the commonly-seen CE certification mark used in Europe, the purpose of the China CCC certification is to ensure the compliance of these important products to their relevant Chinese product standards.
The program aims to protect consumers’ personal safety and national security and to enhance product quality management.
Verifying whether the details on a China CCC certificate are consistent with official records is an important task to ensure that an organization and/or a product is genuinely certified to use the CCC mark.
The CCC accreditation body CNCA provides an online database where checks can be carried out, but you may find that their service, although in English, is quite difficult to use.
For a more effective and efficient service, China Checkup offers certificate verification service for a China CCC Certificate. Focus on more important tasks and let the experts manage this key verification.
This list of Chinese AMR websites includes links to the AMR branch website for each province/administrative region in China.
In case you're wondering, the acronym "AMR" stands for "Administration for Market Regulation", which is a newly-launched Chinese government agency created by the merger of many previous agencies, including the AIC and AQSIQ.
This super regulator is now responsible for a wide range of regulatory matters in Mainland China, so if you need to get in touch with them you should find this list of Chinese AMR websites useful.
The China AEO Certificate is a document held by companies in China engaged in import and export activities.
Issued by China Customs, the certificate specifies the company's enterprise classification, which determines their level of inspections and more.
Requesting and verifying a supplier's China AEO certificate can be a sensible measure to understand if they are registered with China Customs as an "Authorized Economic Operator" and to check their AEO type.
Did you know that China province abbreviations can be made using both Chinese and English languages?
Not only can all provinces in China be abbreviated to a two-letter code, but there is also a single Chinese character used to represent each.
This article introduces these methods as well as providing a full list of each China province abbreviation, from Anhui to Zhejiang.
Matt Slater
Author
Hi there, I'm Matt, the Founder & CEO of China Checkup. Originally from the UK, I am now based in Brisbane, Australia.
Frustrated by the scarcity of concise, high-quality and timely information about Chinese companies, I setup China Checkup whilst living in Shanghai in 2013.
My team are proud that China Checkup's company verification reports have now helped thousands of clients from all corners of the world to do business in China more safely.