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The Company’s Business License is one of the most important steps in establishing a new corporation or starting a business in Mainland China. Starting in 2015, the new Chinese business license, “Three-in-One” combines the Old business license Code, the organization certificate code, and the Tax Registration certificate into One Social Credit Code.
Official Company’s name in the Business License
According to Company law in China, the Official company’s name should be in Simplified Chinese.
Chinese characters are the only pictographic characters still in use in the world, but the most common Chinese characters are only 800 characters. To some extent, Chinese is a language based on a pictographic-ideographic system, whose pronunciation and spelling are not linked, resulting in great difficulty for people from other countries to name the Chinese company.
That’s why it is very difficult to name a new company name because there are almost 80 million registered companies in Mainland China. Hence, if you begin to set up a Chinese company, you should understand how to choose the correct Chinese Name for prename approval.
In China, the official name of a company consists of four parts: administrative region, designation name, industry characteristics, and organizational form. Firstly, the administrative region name includes different provinces or cities where you register the company. Secondly, the designation name includes two or more Chinese characters. Thirdly, the industrial characteristic includes the name of the products, businesses, or industries such as trade, culture, technology, advertising, etc. Fourthly, the organizational form includes the limited company, liability limited company, RO, etc.
For example, the Chinese company’s Business License is like below:
Chinese: 上海xxx进出口有限公司
English: Shanghai上海（State/Provine/City） XXX ( Chinese company name) 进出口 Import & Export 有限公司 Co., Ltd. (Corporation Type)
China Company’s Business Scope
If you decide to set up a company in China, you should be careful about the Company’s business scope. That means the Chinese company’s business scope lists the services that it is legally permitted to provide according to its business registration type. Hence, a company can not offer any special services or products which are not specifically described in its business scope.
Different from other countries, there is a concept called “Company Business Scope ” in China which is specially approved by the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) where the Company is located. The Business Scope is particular in the Business License and also shall be stipulated in the bylaw of the Company.
You can see a China company’s business scope by viewing its business license. For example, the main scope of business of Import & Export company is: “To do the importation & Exportation business of goods and technology.” Meanwhile, a Real Trading company needs an Import & Export License. It should be noted that even if the Chinese company’s name is a Trading company if they don’t have an Import & Export certificate, they are not engaged in the import-export business.
Tips: Please read this article: How to set up a Trading Company in China? – Import & Export
Business License Structure in China
China New Business License
- Social Credit Code: This is the 18 digital unified social credit code of the company.
- Registration number： This is the official registration number of the company in SAMR.
- Official company name: This is the registered company’s name in Simplified Chinese Language according to the Company Law.
- Type of Enterprise: This is the type of corporation in which the company is incorporated. (WFOE, LLC, JV, RO, LTD, etc.)
- Legal representative: The legal representative is the only person who is entitled to sign legally binding documents for the company and is responsible for any action of the company.
- Business Scope: This is the list of business activities that the corporation will be able to carry out in China.
- Registered capital: The registered capital is divided into Pay-in capital and Subscribed capital. It has to be paid within a certain time limit (20-30 years).
- Date of establishment: This is the date the business license was issued.
- Expiry Date: This is the operation of the company’s expiry date.
- registered Address: Every company requires a real address as the registered address. Once the Lease contract expired without renewal, the company will be blacklisted in the SMAR.
- QR Code: This is the Company’s QR Code linked to the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System.
Please read the China Business License in 2024.
Conclusion:
If you need to verify the True or False through a third party, GWBMA provides the professional verification report in the English version. Besides the Business License, our Licensed Attorney can also verify the certificate and license including Chinese ID Card, Trademark, Copyright, Patent Certificate, ICP License, Import & Export License, Medical License, Food/Wine License, Travel & Tourism License, etc.
