Open a Chinese bank account as an importer

No published figure yet. The authority does not publish this cost in a form we could verify and quote, so this guide covers the procedure only: what to bring, in what order, and where it goes wrong. We will add the figures the moment there is a source for them.

In order

1. Confirm the company is registered — Have the business licence and company seal in hand before approaching any bank.
2. Choose a branch that handles foreign businesses — Ask your registration agent or accountant which branch in your city has done this before.
3. Assemble originals and copies — Bring the licence, both seals, identity documents for the legal representative and signatory, the authorisation document if needed, and proof of address.
4. Attend the branch with the signatory — The person who will sign on the account must be present in person.
5. Complete the forms on site — Follow the corporate account officer's instructions on wording and sealing.
6. Answer the purpose questions plainly — Describe the importing business consistently with your documents and do not overstate activity.
7. Keep the application reference — Use it to follow up and to respond to any request for extra documents.
8. Confirm foreign currency and payment arrangements — Ask the bank in writing what is needed to receive and send importer payments, and test with a small transaction first.

Opening a bank account in China as an importer is a sequence of small approvals, and each one depends on the one before it. The bank is not the first stop. This guide sets out the order to do things in and the documents to carry, without quoting any figure, because none could be verified against a source for this topic. It is not legal, tax or immigration advice.

Before you go to a bank

Your company has to exist on paper before any bank will discuss an account. That means the business licence and the company seal are already in your hands. If you are still waiting on registration, stop here; the bank steps below cannot start. Decide who will be the account signatory and make sure that person can attend in person. Banks want to see the signatory at the counter, not a colleague with a letter. Ask your registration agent or your accountant which bank branch in your city handles foreign-invested or import businesses. Branch staff vary in what they will accept, and a branch that has done it before saves you repeat visits.

Documents to assemble

Bring originals and keep a set of copies. Expect to be asked for the business licence, the company seal and the legal representative’s seal, the legal representative’s identity document, and the signatory’s identity document. If the legal representative is not the person opening the account, bring the authorisation document the bank asks for, stamped with the company seal. Bring proof of where the company operates: the lease or the registration address document. Bring your import-related paperwork if you have it, since some branches ask what the account will be used for. Carry more than you think you need. A missing stamp or a document without a seal is the most common reason a visit ends without an application.

At the branch

Go in person with the signatory and the documents. Tell the counter staff you are opening a corporate account for an importing business, and ask to speak to the officer who handles corporate accounts. The officer will go through the documents one by one and may ask you to fill in forms on site. Fill them in the way the officer tells you; small wording differences matter to the reviewer. You will be asked about the account’s purpose and expected activity. Answer plainly and consistently with your documents. Do not overstate volumes or describe business you cannot document. Expect the application to be reviewed after you leave the branch, not approved at the counter. Ask the officer what the next contact will be and who will make it.

After you apply

Keep the receipt or reference the branch gives you. You will need it if you have to follow up. Respond quickly to any request for extra documents. A slow reply is treated as an incomplete application. When the account is open, confirm with the bank what is needed to receive foreign currency and to make payments abroad, since those are separate arrangements from the account itself. Ask for this in writing if you can. Do not assume the account is ready to receive importer payments until the bank confirms it. Test with a small transaction before you rely on it for a supplier payment.

Confirm before you act

Fees and processing times change. This page was checked on 2026-11-09; confirm the current rule with the authority named in each source above before you rely on a deadline.

Last checked 2026-11-09, next review 2027-05-08. Every figure above names its source and the date it was read. This page is a guide, not legal, tax or immigration advice — confirm with the authority before acting on a deadline.

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