Company · Bank account · Business support
Country Manager, China
Zhou Lin
Companies and accounts in China
Shanghai
Team
Xu Ming · Company registration in China
He Jing · Bank accounts in China
6 months to get started
If a company has not started operating within 6 months of registration without good reason, the registrar may revoke its licence. Don’t register “just in case”: first the address, an accountant and the first contracts.
Company · Bank account · Business support
Business in China: bank account and your own company
There are different ways to work with China: pay suppliers from an NRA account with a Chinese bank, or open your own company if sales, a warehouse and a team are inside the country. We choose one of four banks, register a 100% foreign-owned company and build the payment route. We start with an honest question: do you need a company in China?
- from €2,880
- Company registration in mainland China — package
- 4 banks
- OCBC, HSBC, Standard Chartered and Chouzhou — an NRA account; HSBC and Standard Chartered expect a group company in China
- 3–4 weeks
- Usual time to open an NRA account; tokens take about 2 more weeks
- 25%
- Standard corporate income tax rate in China
Format finder
What do you need to work with China?
For purchasing, you usually don’t need your own company in China. Four questions show where to start and why.
01Who do you sell to?
02Do you need a warehouse, production or employees in China?
03How do you pay suppliers?
04Where is your company now?
Answer the questions — we will show what fits and why.
NRA account
An account at a Chinese bank for your foreign company — no legal entity in China needed
Hong Kong
A company for trade between China and the world
Company in China
Sales with fapiao, a warehouse and a team inside China
UAE account
Pay suppliers from your UAE company’s account — no new structures
Fits
NRA account
An account at a Chinese bank for your foreign company — no legal entity in China needed
3–4 weeks
plus ~2 weeks for tokens
3 of 4
banks — no trip needed
no WFOE
no company of your own needed
Why
- To pay suppliers, you don’t need your own company in China — an NRA account is enough.
- For regular settlements in yuan, add an NRA account at a Chinese bank.
- OCBC in Shenzhen doesn’t require a link to Asia but expects turnover from USD 1 million a month.
- NRA accounts are opened for UAE companies too — no legal entity in China needed.
- A Hong Kong company gets an NRA account based on its documents: the CI, BR, an NNC1 or NAR1 no older than a year, and the articles.
Fits
Hong Kong
A company for trade between China and the world
from €1,308
registration and first year
3–7 days
registration
8.25%
on the first HK$2 million
Why
- Buying in China and selling to other countries is a typical job for a Hong Kong company.
- For trade with China, the company is usually set up in Hong Kong: 3–7 days, with the address included in the package.
An NRA account is opened for a foreign company — so first you need the company itself, for example in Hong Kong or the UAE.
Fits
Company in China
Sales with fapiao, a warehouse and a team inside China
from €2,880
registration
3–7 days
once documents are complete
5 years
to pay in capital
Why
- A fapiao — the official tax invoice in China — can only be issued by a company in China: neither an NRA account nor a Hong Kong company gives you that.
- A warehouse, production and employees in China mean a local legal entity: work permits for foreigners are obtained by a local employer.
Fits
UAE account
Pay suppliers from your UAE company’s account — no new structures
in yuan
many UAE banks pay
AED, USD, EUR
main currencies
2–8 weeks
if you don’t have an account yet
Why
- For one-off purchases, a UAE account is enough: many banks there send payments in yuan.
- Your company and operating account are already in the UAE — start with them.
Make the first payment to a new supplier a small one: it will show how the money travels through the chain of banks.
China
What we do in China
Team
Who handles your matters in China
Project Manager
Xu Ming
Company registration in China
Shanghai
Project Manager
He Jing
Bank accounts in China
Shanghai
How business with China works
For purchasing and settling with suppliers, you usually don’t need your own company in China — an NRA account or a Hong Kong company is enough. A 100% foreign-owned company is justified when the money is earned inside China.
Purchasing needs an account, domestic sales need a company
If you pay Chinese suppliers regularly, an NRA account will do. If you sell to Chinese clients with fapiao, hire people or run a warehouse, you need your own company.
An account for a UAE company
An NRA account can be opened for a UAE company — no legal entity in China is needed. OCBC in Shenzhen doesn’t require a link to Asia but expects turnover from USD 1 million a month. For one-off purchases a UAE account is enough: many banks there send payments in yuan.
A company comes with obligations
A real registered address, registered capital paid in within 5 years, a local accountant and monthly returns — even nil ones. The annual report is due by 30 June.
The usual route
We review the task and compare NRA, Hong Kong and the UAE. If you need an account, we choose the bank and prepare the package. If you need a company, we find an address, prepare the founder’s documents and register it in 3–7 days once the full document set is ready.
Expert tip
Make the first payment to a new supplier a small one: it shows how the money travels through the chain of banks and costs less than a return. Write the payee name exactly as it appears at their bank — and the same way in the contract and invoice.
Kermen TserenkeevaSenior Lawyer · Company registrationTimeline
How long it takes: your own company in China or an NRA account
The stages and their timing match the company registration page and are based on our experience. An NRA account is opened for your company abroad — with no legal entity in China.
Your own company — up to the bank account
≈ 7–13 weeks
The solid part of each bar is the stage’s minimum duration, the hatched part runs to the maximum; the stages follow one another. The bank takes from 3–4 weeks, and the legal representative is usually expected at a meeting. From the UAE, consular legalisation replaces the apostille, which takes longer.
012345678910111213
weeks
Reviewing your case
model, city, negative list — 2–5 days
Address and name
an address suited to the district and business scope — 1–2 weeks
Founder’s documents
notary, apostille, translation — 1–3 weeks
Registration with SAMR
3–7 days once the documents are complete
Seals and tax registration
1–2 weeks; returns from the first month
Company accounts
basic yuan account and foreign currency account — from 3–4 weeks
For comparison: NRA account
no company in China: 3–4 weeks plus ~2 weeks for tokens
Maintenance
What you’ll have to keep in order: your own company or just an account
A company in China reports every month or quarter, even with no revenue. An NRA account involves no reporting in China — only the bank’s fees and terms. Fees are based on our experience as of October 2026; deadlines follow PRC law.
Ongoing
from €1,440 a year
Registered address only; accountant, taxes and contributions are extra
Fixed costs
- Registered address — one that qualifies for registration in the districtfrom €1,440/yr
- Local accountant: returns, fapiao, annual reconciliation
- Bank fees — for example, an outgoing foreign currency transfer at Chouzhou, within China or abroad1%, CNY 50–1,000
Reporting
- VAT and corporate income tax prepayments — within 15 days after the month or quarter, even with zero revenue
- Annual corporate income tax reconciliation — by 31 May
- Annual report and investment report — by 30 June
- Registered capital — paid in within 5 years, with each contribution published within 20 working days
With employees
- Social insurance — registration within 30 days of the start of employment
- Payroll tax — by the 15th of the following month
- Housing fund and work permits for foreigners
A company that has not started operating within 6 months of registration without good reason puts its licence at risk: the registrar is entitled to revoke it. That is why we set up a company in China around real operations.
Reporting in China
Not required
Your company reports where it is registered — in the UAE, Hong Kong or another country
Bank fees
- HSBC: online bankingRMB 200/mo
- HSBC: outgoing payment0.1%, from RMB 100
- HSBC: incoming payment0.1%, from RMB 55
- Chouzhou: outgoing online from NRA0.2%, from RMB 50
Terms after opening
- OCBC — no deposit needed; HSBC — formally none either, but it may offer a deposit or a payment package
- Standard Chartered expects currency exchange of over USD 100,000 for a Hong Kong company, and a RMB 50,000 deposit for 3 months for a Chinese one
- Tokens: two at OCBC, HSBC and Chouzhou, one at Standard Chartered
To keep the account running
- OCBC: changing a director or shareholder is undesirable
- OCBC: transactions with individuals are undesirable
- Standard Chartered monitors transactions — additional requests are possible
HSBC and Chouzhou may restrict or close the account if funds come from a company the bank considers to be in breach of the law or compliance requirements. Write the payee name exactly as it appears at their bank — and the same way in the contract and invoice.
FAQ
Expert answers
Kermen Tserenkeeva — Company registration
Corporate income tax is 25%; for small enterprises with profit up to RMB 3 million — effectively 5% until the end of 2027. VAT under the general regime is 13%, 9% or 6%; small companies have a simplified regime. Dividends to a foreign shareholder are subject to 10% withholding tax, and under a tax treaty the rate may be lower.
Kermen Tserenkeeva · Company registrationWhere we work
Other countries
Not sure which country fits?
Next step
An NRA account or your own company in China?
Tell us where your company is registered, what you buy or sell in China and in what volumes. We’ll compare an NRA account, Hong Kong and a company in China by timeline, costs and obligations.
Kermen TserenkeevaSenior Lawyer · Company registration