Paying a Chinese supplier: what to check before the deposit and before the balance

If you are ordering goods that must be ready before Chinese New Year or in time for spring, you will probably pay the deposit in the autumn. That is when money easily goes to the wrong place: a rush, a new proforma, a message from the "supplier" saying the account has changed for an audit.

This guide is about the payment itself. How to check that a supplier is a real company is covered separately in how to verify a Chinese supplier. Here we go in order: what your bank needs, how to pay, what to check before the deposit, what to check before the balance, and what to do if something goes wrong.

What your bank needs, country by country

Paying a foreign supplier for goods is a current transaction in all three countries below. You do not need special permission, but expect your bank to ask what the payment is for and to see the document behind it. Each country words that differently.

Macedonia. Article 6 of the Law on Foreign Exchange Operations says current transactions between residents and non-residents are free. Since 5 October 2025, banks follow new NBRM instructions for payments abroad (Official Gazette 105/25). Point 12 lets your bank ask for additional information and documents about the specific payment. Have the proforma or contract ready and ask your bank for its document list in writing.

Serbia. Article 3 of the Law on Foreign Exchange Operations says current payments are executed freely. Under section 8 of the NBS decision on foreign payment transactions, you give the bank the payment order, the funds and the document behind the payment. You and your bank can agree in writing that you will not submit that document with each order, but you must still keep it for ten years and show it on request. Article 4 adds a timing point: an advance for goods not imported within a year of payment is treated as a commercial credit. That does not ban advances; if production slips badly, talk to your bank about reporting.

Albania. Bank of Albania Regulation 70 (2009), Article 7 and Appendix 1.I, lists what you provide for a goods payment: a signed request stating the nature and purpose of the transaction, a declaration that the documents have not already been used for a transfer for the same goods and value, and the proforma invoice and/or contract, which also states the payment method. Kosovo has its own central bank and rules, which this guide does not cover.

Paying in yuan. Bank of China Srbija advertises RMB accounts and trade finance for companies in Serbia. That shows one route exists in Serbia, not that every bank offers it or will accept your company. There is no public confirmation of corporate CNY payments at Macedonian or Albanian banks, which is not the same as saying they are unavailable. If a supplier asks for yuan, get your bank's answer in writing before you sign the proforma.

Payment details: one sheet before every payment

Before the deposit, write one sheet with the payment details and compare it with the proforma. When the balance is due, compare the new instructions with the same sheet.

Stopanska Banka's page explains the options: SHA means each party covers its own bank's fees, OUR means the sender bears all costs, BEN means the beneficiary bears them. BKT notes that even when the sender pays all charges, correspondent banks may add fees in some cases. Ask your bank about this and agree with the supplier in advance who covers any shortfall.

How to pay: four routes

Bank transfer. The US International Trade Administration says paying in advance is the least attractive option for the buyer. A transfer receipt proves you paid, not that the goods will be right. ICC explains that an advance can be partial or the full amount. No rule fixes the percentage; it is negotiated. Agree what the balance pays for: finished goods, an inspection, shipping documents.

Alibaba Trade Assurance. Alibaba's guide says the protection applies when you order and pay on Alibaba.com, and tells buyers never to pay outside the platform. If a salesperson asks you to pay their own account "to save time", you lose the platform's protection. More on the differences in 1688 vs Alibaba vs Yiwu.

1688. A separate platform with its own agreements; the 1688 Global Supply Center agreement, for example, requires the buyer to be a registered member. WorldFirst, which launched Cross-border Pay 1688 together with 1688.com, says the service supports transactions in CNH only and lists reasons the option may not appear at checkout, including a seller that does not accept it and a 1688 account not linked to an Alipay account registered in mainland China. Whether a company registered in Macedonia, Serbia or Albania can open such an account is for the provider to confirm.

Letter of credit. Under UCP 600, banks deal with documents, not with goods. The bank pays when the documents comply. If quality matters, require an inspection document in the credit from someone you trust.

One more point: Incoterms (FOB, EXW, CIF) set who arranges transport and where risk passes. ICC states they do not deal with the time, place, method or currency of payment. Write the payment terms separately in the contract. See Incoterms: FOB, EXW, CIF.

Before the deposit: checklist

• The supplier's business licence is checked and its unified social credit code (统一社会信用代码) searched in China's official enterprise registry.
• The beneficiary name matches the company on the licence and proforma.
• The account belongs to a company, not a private person.
• The proforma states specification, quantity, packing and production time.
• The balance is tied to a written condition, not "when it is ready".
• Your bank has the documents it asks for.
• You know who will see the goods in China before the balance.

China's registry (GSXT) is searched by company name, unified social credit code or registration number. It tells you the company exists. It does not tell you that the account on the proforma is theirs or what the goods will be like. Those are three separate checks.

A real factory always sends a live video the same day. If a supplier refuses a video call from production but wants a deposit, stop.

Before the balance: checklist

The balance is the last thing you control. Once it is paid, your only leverage is the next order.

• Finished goods are checked against the sample and specification.
• Quantity and cartons are counted.
• You have photos of the goods themselves, not just a warehouse.
• The payment instructions match your deposit sheet.
• If anything changed, you confirmed it by phone or video.

A factory check significantly reduces the risk of fraud, unsuitable goods and deviations from the agreed specifications. That is why someone should see the goods before you pay the balance. Four employed agents work in China, in English and Chinese. In our warehouse in China we collect goods from several suppliers and check them, and we document every check with photos and video. See quality checks in China.

Throughout the whole process, including while in customs, the goods belong to the client. They are never Transcont's goods.

The supplier changed bank details: protocol

The National Bank of Serbia warned on 14 December 2021 that Serbian companies had sent payments meant for foreign partners to fraudsters' accounts after receiving false payment instructions through hacked email. It also pointed out that for international payments the bank does not check whether the account number on the order belongs to the named beneficiary. Its advice: check payment details by phone or video call, especially when they change. The FBI's IC3 report for 2025 records 24,768 business email compromise complaints with reported losses of $3,046,598,558. Those are US complaints only; the NBS warning shows the same trick reaching companies in the region.

If you receive new bank details:

1. Do not pay and do not reply in the same email thread.
2. Call the supplier on a number you already had. Europol advises against using the contact details in the message requesting the change.
3. Ask for a letter on company letterhead explaining the change, and check the new account is in the same company's name.
4. Compare the sender's address letter by letter with older emails.
5. If anything does not match, hold the payment.

Stop signals: a new bank country, a personal account instead of a company, urgency ("pay today or lose the price"), a request to pay outside the platform, refusal to confirm by phone. None of these alone proves fraud, but each is a reason to pause.

If the money has already gone

INTERPOL advises alerting your bank to the fraudulent transaction immediately so it can try to recall the funds, and reporting it to local police as soon as possible. It also suggests considering a civil lawyer in the country where the receiving bank is.

1. Call your bank straight away and ask it to try to recall the payment.
2. Report it to the police.
3. Keep every message, proforma and payment order.
4. Tell the real supplier through a contact you already had.
5. Make no further payments until it is resolved.

Recovery is not guaranteed. The faster you act, the better.

Next step

If you are planning a deposit before Chinese New Year 2027, start with supplier verification and tie the balance to a goods check. How goods checks work in China is explained in quality checks in China.

Before you pay, send us the proforma, the supplier's name and the city it is in through the contact form. The team will tell you what can be checked on the ground in China for that order.