The proforma invoice, read properly. Fix it before the deposit moves.

1. What this document actually is

A proforma invoice (PI) records a seller’s proposed terms in invoice form. It names the parties, goods, price, delivery terms and payment schedule. It is not proof of payment, shipment or customs clearance.

The proforma invoice is often where the entity name first appears in writing, so test it now. When all 106 Chinese manufacturers on a US regulator’s list were searched by English name, 42.5% returned nothing at all. The full search-outcome study explains why an English name is not enough.

Read the terms as an order you may have to accept. Are the goods, dates and payment steps clear? Ask a lawyer whether the PI will bind each party under the law that applies.

Related: comparing quotations before you pick one · what belongs in the purchase order that confirms it.

2. The header, the entity that will owe you the goods

The header names the seller. Use three checks to link that name to the party in your order:

1. Get the registered Chinese name behind the English header. An English name may not identify one registered entity. Use the Chinese registered name and 18-character code from the business licence, then link those identifiers to the English header in writing.
2. Ask for the 18-character Unified Social Credit Code and validate its structure in your browser, free and instant. Then run the scope text through the free in-browser read for scope wording only. The read does not confirm factory capability, and nothing is uploaded. Then have the live registration record read: active status, and a registered scope that plausibly covers what you are buying.
3. Compare the header against everyone else in the deal. The PI entity, contract seller, shipper on the bill of lading and payment beneficiary may differ. Require each difference and the stated relationship in writing before the deposit.

3. The goods: write down what you agreed

Write down what you agreed to buy. Give the buyer, seller and inspector the same spec version and pass/fail rules.

• Description that identifies the product: model, material, grade, colour standard, applicable spec sheet by version number. “Bluetooth speaker, black” leaves performance and material requirements unstated.
• Quantity and unit: pieces, sets, cartons, and tolerance if the industry ships over/under.
• The trade term with a named place: FOB Ningbo and EXW factory gate are different prices and different risk transfers; a PI that says only “FOB” has not finished pricing the deal.
• Delivery date or lead time: agree a calendar date or a duration with a clear start event. Record dependencies such as deposit receipt and sample approval.
• Validity: if the PI carries an expiry date, reconfirm the price and terms after that date. Do not assume they still stand.

Compare the commercial invoice and packing list with the agreed PI and written amendments. These documents state shipment details; they do not independently prove that the goods were shipped or meet the specification.

A short trading name may not identify one company

A shortened trading name can return several candidates or none. Request the full Chinese registered name and credit code before treating a search result as the seller.

The archived batch compares full and shortened names for 45 manufacturers through Tianyancha. Its raw metadata records 21 August 2026 UTC. The archive is labelled 22 August; the exact query time was not retained.

Only four of 44 usable core-name searches returned one candidate. One of the 45 companies had no usable core-name variant. Five searches reached the 5,000-result display ceiling; their uncapped counts were not established.

A search result does not prove who owns a bank account. Match the PI seller to the contract and company code. If the payee differs, ask why and get proof of its role before the deposit.

Ask for a revised PI carrying the full Chinese registered name and credit code, or a written link to those identifiers. Keep the revision with the agreed order.

4. Confirm the bank details independently

Fraudulent emails can copy a supplier’s invoice format and replace its bank details. Confirm new or changed instructions using contact details you already trust.

1. Identify the account holder and its role. An account under a different company, a personal name, or a third-country entity is a question that has to be answered in writing before anything else happens. How to check the beneficiary against the contracting seller.
2. Verify bank details through a second channel: a phone or video call to a number you already had, not one from the same email that carried the details.
3. Treat any mid-deal change of account as unverified until re-confirmed through that second channel, no matter how routine the explanation sounds. The payment check walks the whole discipline.

5. The check before the deposit, in order

Use this sequence and keep the supporting documents with your approval:

1. Header entity identified — registered Chinese name obtained, code validated, record read, relationship to any other entities in the deal stated in writing.
2. Payee identity and its relationship to the seller documented, with payment instructions independently confirmed.
3. Every specification line concrete enough that a stranger could rule on it.
4. Trade term named with a place; delivery date or lead-time start agreed; validity current.
5. Payment schedule matches what was negotiated, and each release trigger names the evidence you must review. A bill of lading is not proof of product quality.

This page describes ordinary documentary practice. It is not legal advice, and nothing here is a judgement about any particular seller. Need the entity on a proforma invoice checked from the China side?

6. Each field, and what it can be checked against

Use the table to compare each field with a record or agreed spec. The PI alone does not prove its own claims.

Company records can change. In the 264-company change study, 54.9% had a change in the measured twelve months. That is not a fraud rate. On a long order, decide what to check again before the next payment.