Chinese Company Stamps Guide: How to Verify & Spot Forged Seals

In Western business, contracts are bound by the signatures of authorized executives. If a director signs a contract, the company is bound.

In mainland China, this rule does not apply. A hand-written signature by a sales representative, manager, or even the general manager carries little legal authority under Chinese Contract Law unless it is accompanied by the company's official physical stamp, known as a "Chop" (章 or 印章). If a dispute arises and your contract only has a manager's signature without a registered chop, the supplier can claim in court that the representative acted without corporate authorization, leaving you with zero legal recourse.

1. The Hierarchy of Chinese Company Chops

Chinese companies do not use a single stamp for everything. They hold a set of specialized seals. To secure your B2B agreements, you must verify that the supplier stamped your document with the correct type of chop:

2. The Anatomy of a Legally Valid Chinese Chop

An authentic Chinese corporate chop must meet strict government regulations. If the chop stamped on your Proforma Invoice or Sales Contract does not meet these criteria, you are likely dealing with a fake seal purchased on the black market to execute a transaction scam. You can review our Proforma Invoice (PI) Payment Risk Check Guide to learn how to secure the entire billing workflow.

• The Corporate Name: The name on the stamp must match their official registered Chinese name on their business license. The characters must be written in Simplified Chinese (not Traditional, Pinyin, or English) and must curve along the top edge of the circle. You can use our China Business License Lookup & Translation Guide to verify the correct Chinese name characters.
• The Five-Pointed Star: A standard corporate chop must have a small five-pointed star centered inside the circle. (Note: Foreign-invested enterprises or representative offices may have slightly different layouts, but standard manufacturers have the star).
• The 13-Digit Registration Code: Since 2015, all official chops must carry a unique 13-digit code along the bottom curve. This is the "Seal Registry Code" (印章备案防伪码), which is filed with the local Public Security Bureau (PSB, 公安局).

3. Visual Clues to Detect Forged Seals

Scammers frequently paste digital images of stamps onto PDF contracts or use cheap rubber toys to ink documents. Review these visual checkpoints carefully:

1. Look at the Font and Alignment: Chinese stamps use a specific typeface called Song Ti (宋体). The letters are clean, with subtle serifs. The characters must be arranged symmetrically. If the characters are written in standard Arial, MicroSoft YaHei, or look unevenly spaced, the chop is fake.
2. Inspect the Inking Texture: Real physical stamps are applied using oily red ink pads. When stamped onto paper, the ink coverage is slightly uneven due to the texture of the paper fibers. You will notice tiny white spots, light border bleed, and variations in ink density. Digital copies pasted via Photoshop are perfectly solid red with sharp, clean lines.
3. The "Layering" Rule: An official stamp should be applied after the document is printed and signed. This means the red ink of the stamp must lie on top of the black printed text and handwritten signatures. If you zoom in on a PDF and see that the black text of the contract or signature is layered on top of the red stamp, the document was forged digitally in a PDF editor.
4. Ink Impression Bleed: If you demand a scanned copy of a signed contract, ask for a photo of the backside of the paper. Real physical ink pads bleed slightly through standard paper. A fake digital overlay leaves no impression on the reverse side.

4. Digital Contract Alternatives: Tencent Sign & Fadada

As China shifts to digital governance, many exporters use electronic signatures. Under the Electronic Signature Law of the People's Republic of China, a digital contract is legally binding only if it is issued through a government-approved certification authority.

If a supplier wants to sign digitally, do not accept simple DocuSign or Adobe Sign links unless they can prove the signer's identity is verified via China's official corporate system. The most common platforms in China are:

• Tencent Sign (腾讯电子签)
• Fadada (法大大)
• e-Sign (esign / 易签)

These platforms integrate with the National Enterprise Credit database. To sign, the supplier's Legal Representative must verify their identity using facial recognition matched against their Chinese ID card and the company's official business registration. This eliminates sales agent fraud.