Opinions, knowledge and resources from China Checkup's expert contributors
Chinese lab accreditation is managed by different accreditation bodies depending on whether the laboratory is located in Mainland China, Hong Kong or Taiwan.
When you are importing products from China, requesting test reports to demonstrate that the product meets necessary standards can often be critical, and it is important for compliance purposes that these test reports are issued by accredited labs.
In this article we introduce the different bodies responsible for managing Chinese lab accreditation and show you where you can search for a Chinese lab.
Last year we ran a simple experiment on our website to find out whether or not our audience trust Alibaba suppliers.
Thousands of visitors to our blog received the automated message from our live chat software "Just a quick question, do you feel that you can trust an Alibaba supplier?".
The 109 replies we received gave us some fascinating insights into the difficulties buyers face when deciding if they can trust Alibaba suppliers or not.
Did you know that there are 7 different regions of China which are often cited in official sources when describing China's geography, climate, economy and governance?
Each of these regions are comprised of several Chinese provinces which are in close proximity and share certain geographical and cultural similarities.
Keep reading to view a map and learn more about the 7 regions of China.
We often come across China company English names which we feel are misleading.
They are misleading for a number of reasons - some accidental, some deliberate, some cynical - but the root cause is that companies from Mainland China are registered in the Chinese language, not in English.
Here we give some background on China company English names and introduce the 5 ways in which we find they can be misleading.
China Customs Enterprise Classification is a system used by China Customs to grade companies which engage in foreign trade.
Following a long implementation phase, a new classification system was confirmed in May 2018. It had been updated primarily to reflect China's broader implementation of a nationwide social credit system in recent years..
Under the new China Customs Enterprise Classification system, companies are no longer ranked AA, A, B, C or D - there are now 4 different categories which are introduced in this article.
If you're travelling to meet or dealing with a Chinese company it is worth bearing in mind that there are several different types of Chinese currency.
Depending on whether your business is in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan you could well need to be looking at 4 different exchange rates.
Here we introduce each of the 4 Chinese currency currently in use in "Greater China" - the Renminbi, Hong Kong Dollar, Macau Pataca & New Taiwan Dollar.
If you've dealt with Chinese companies in recent years there is a good chance you will have come across the term "Unified Social Credit Code".
This unique 18-digit number is issued to all companies and organizations in Mainland China and serves a variety of purposes.
In this article we provide practical information about the Unified Social Credit Code and explain how you can find each Chinese company's number.
Viewing information declared on a Chinese annual return is a useful method to learn more about a company from China.
As in other countries, Chinese companies are required to make an annual return to the tax authorities to report their business performance and financials, alongside other key details.
In this article we look at what information from a Chinese annual return is made publicly available by the authorities.
Since establishing the first China Free Trade Zone in Shanghai in 2013, Chinese authorities have moved swiftly to establish a further 10 zones, with even more planned.
Although the Shanghai Free Trade Zone is now fairly well known among foreign companies, awareness of the other zones is still relatively low.
This article gives an overview of the 11 China Free Trade Zones currently in operation and outlines where they are located.
As the end of the calendar year approaches a lot of companies in China are busy making preparations for the end of the Chinese financial year.
Whilst you are getting ready to celebrate the new year, spare a thought for the overworked Chinese accountants, because the financial year in Mainland China follows the calendar year and ends on 31 December.
But is that also the case for businesses in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau? Is there a unified Chinese Financial Year?
China Abnormal Business Operations is a status given to Chinese companies by the Administration of Industry and Commerce.
As the name indicates it is issued when the company's operations are irregular and they are not meeting their reporting duties.
The presence of abnormal business operations status may indicate that a Chinese company is experiencing financial difficulties or is poorly managed.
As a foreigner, when you read Chinese business names in English you naturally assume that the name you are reading is the name of the company.
In Mainland China and Taiwan, and this can be difficult to comprehend, the only official Chinese business names are those written in Chinese characters, which means the English names are usually just translations.
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