Short answer: Ask for the supplier's business licence and cross-check its 18-digit Unified Social Credit Code (USCC) on China's National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System at gsxt.gov.cn. A real factory's registered business scope contains manufacturing wording (生产 / 制造, production / manufacture), not only sales and trade (销售 / 贸易); its ISO 9001:2015 scope names bicycle manufacture; and its own name appears as shipper on past export declarations. Then take a live, unscripted video walk showing welding jigs, the paint line, wheel building and torque-controlled assembly, and check that the bank beneficiary name matches the registered company name exactly.
Does it matter whether the supplier is a factory or a trader?
It matters, and not because traders are dishonest. A trading company cannot change a frame geometry, cannot put your inspector on the line, and cannot absorb a warranty claim. Since your brand carries the liability under EN ISO 4210, OEM or ODM work requires knowing which entity welds the frames. The checks below establish which company manufactures, which exports and which you pay: three roles that can legitimately differ.
How do I verify a Chinese business licence and the USCC?
Every registered Chinese company holds a business licence (营业执照) showing the Chinese company name, the 18-character Unified Social Credit Code, legal representative, registered capital, establishment date, address and business scope. The English name on a website or exhibition booth has no legal standing. Enter the USCC on gsxt.gov.cn, the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System run by SAMR — free, official, Chinese-language only. Confirm the Chinese name matches the licence character for character, the status reads 存续 or 在业 (in operation, not 注销 / cancelled), and the company is absent from the 经营异常名录, the abnormal business operations list.
What business-scope wording separates a manufacturer from a trader?
This one field is the fastest test. A manufacturer's scope contains 制造, 生产 or 加工 — manufacture, production, processing — attached to 自行车 (bicycle) or 自行车零部件 (bicycle parts). A pure trader's scope contains only 销售 (sales), 贸易 (trade), 批发 (wholesale) and 货物进出口 (import and export). Many real factories also register trading, so trade wording proves nothing while the absence of production wording proves a great deal. Factories also sit in industrial parks; traders sit in office towers.
Who is the exporter of record on the customs paperwork?
Any company exporting from China is registered with China Customs as a consignor of import and export goods. Ask for one redacted export declaration (报关单) or bill of lading from the last twelve months; bicycles clear under HS 8712.00 and e-bikes under HS 8711.60. The shipper name should match the manufacturer on the licence. A mismatch is not automatically wrong — many factories export through an affiliated trading arm for VAT-rebate reasons — but it must be explained and backed by that affiliate's licence. A supplier with no export document in their own name is, in practice, a trader.
How do I check that an ISO 9001:2015 certificate is real?
A valid certificate carries a number, the issuing body, an accreditation mark (CNAS, UKAS, ANAB), validity dates and a scope statement. Verify the number in the issuing body's directory and on IAF CertSearch, the International Accreditation Forum's database of accredited certifications. Then read the scope: manufacture of bicycles and components is what you want; trading of bicycles and sporting goods tells you what the company really does, and the site address should be the plant, not the sales office. Apply the same logic to test reports — EN ISO 4210, EN ISO 8098 for children's bicycles, EN 15194 for EPAC e-bikes, CPSC 16 CFR 1512 for the US, plus UL 2849, UL 2271 and UN 38.3 for batteries — each naming the manufacturer as client.
| Check | Where to verify | Real factory | Red flag |
| Licence, 18-digit USCC | gsxt.gov.cn | Chinese name matches exactly, status in operation | English name only, cancelled status |
| Business scope | Same record | 制造 / 生产 of bicycles or parts | Only 销售 / 贸易 / 批发 |
| Export registration | Declaration or B/L, HS 8712.00 / 8711.60 | Shipper is the maker or a named affiliate | No export document in own name |
| ISO 9001:2015 | Certifier directory, IAF CertSearch | Scope covers bicycle manufacture at the plant | Scope says trading, number not found |
| Test reports | Issuing laboratory | EN ISO 4210 / EN 15194 / CPSC 16 CFR 1512 in the factory's name | Issued to a third party |
| Scale | Credit record | Social-insurance headcount fits claimed output | Hundreds claimed, few insured |
| Bank beneficiary | Invoice vs licence | Identical to registered company name | Personal or offshore account |
What should a live factory video actually show?
Insist on a live call, not a file: you direct the camera, they walk. A real plant shows the chain in twenty minutes — tube cutting and bending, welding jigs with a frame fixtured in one, phosphating tanks, the paint line and its ovens, wheel building with lacing and truing, and final assembly with torque-controlled drivers and logged torque values. If they claim in-house testing, ask to see the EN ISO 4210 fatigue rigs running, not covered. Ask for the local time on a phone screen and one unbroken walk from the welding bay to the office.
What do capital, registration year and headcount reveal?
The credit record shows registered capital, establishment year and, most usefully, the number of employees enrolled in social insurance (社保参保人数) — a figure that is hard to inflate. A company claiming several hundred workers while insuring six is an office with a good photographer. Under the PRC Company Law amended on 1 July 2024, subscribed capital must be paid up within five years, so a large declared figure is no longer free. Last, the one-minute check: the bank beneficiary name on the proforma invoice must match the registered company name exactly. A personal account or offshore entity introduced late in a negotiation is the classic wrapper for payment interception.
Frequently asked questions
Can I verify a Chinese bicycle factory without speaking Chinese?
Yes, though not entirely alone. The gsxt.gov.cn record, the licence and the customs declaration are in Chinese, so you need a Chinese reader for about half an hour. Everything else works in English: IAF CertSearch, report verification and the video walk.
Is checking a company on gsxt.gov.cn free?
Yes. The National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System is the official government registry and charges nothing for a basic company record. Commercial credit reports add English translation, litigation history and shareholding structure, and are worth ordering before a first large order.
What if the factory exports under a different company name?
That is common and often legitimate: many manufacturers use an affiliated trading company for export licensing and VAT rebate. Ask for the affiliate's licence and USCC, confirm shared ownership or a written agency agreement, and name both entities in your contract. A third name appearing only on the bank details is never acceptable.
Does a verified supplier badge on a B2B marketplace prove a factory exists?
No. Those badges confirm that a company paid for a listing and passed the platform's checks, which usually verify the legal entity rather than production capability. Many badged accounts belong to traders, so run the licence, scope and video checks yourself.
Do I still need third-party inspection if the factory is verified?
Yes. Verification tells you who the company is; inspection tells you what they built. For bicycles, use a pre-production sample check, an inline check at roughly 30 percent of assembly, and a pre-shipment inspection at 80 percent packed.
Start from a verified base
Source of Bikes has exported from Guangzhou for more than 15 years to over 50 countries, and every partner factory in our network passes these checks before a unit ships. To start from a verified supply chain rather than build one, read our importer guide.
