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Avoiding scams: the staged-payment rule.

Q: How much deposit should I pay a Chinese supplier?

A deposit large enough to be taken seriously but small enough to lose without pain — commonly around 30% for a first order, with the balance due only after you have reviewed production photos, videos, or a third-party inspection report. Anyone demanding 100% before production from a first-time buyer is showing you a red flag, not a policy.

Q: Is it safe to pay a Chinese supplier by bank transfer?

Bank transfer is the standard rail — the risk is not the method but the structure around it. Verify that the receiving account name matches the supplier's business license, pay the company account never a personal one, and stage the payments so no single transfer exposes more than you can afford to lose. If a dispute opens, your remaining unpaid balance is your leverage.

Q: What if a supplier refuses staged payment?

Understand why before walking away: large established factories sometimes ask for different terms because their production slots are real. But if a supplier refuses any evidence-based staging — no inspection before balance, no photos, no video — treat it as a signal about how the relationship handles problems, and find another supplier. There are always more suppliers.

Almost every China sourcing horror story has the same ending: money sent, then silence. Almost every one of them also has the same beginning — one payment, 100% upfront, to an account nobody verified. Staged payment is the simple discipline that breaks this pattern.

Review your payment plan

Payment milestones written as a checklist next to inspection evidence — Your money should move one verified step at a time.

The rule in one sentence

Money follows evidence. Each payment buys a verified outcome — not a promise of one. If the next payment isn't attached to something you can see, check, or hold, it isn't the next payment yet.

What staging looks like on a small order

Deposit before production. A minority share — commonly around 30% on a first order — unlocks material purchase and the production slot. Before it moves: license verified, bank account name matched to the license (see the audit checklist).
Balance after evidence. The remainder releases only after you've seen the goods exist and match your spec: production photos, a live video of the packed cartons, or an inspection report from your own agent.
Nothing upfront for "registration," "customs clearance," or "warehouse fees." Requests for small-to-medium mystery fees between the deposit and the balance are a classic squeeze pattern — legitimate costs appear in a written quote, not mid-production surprises.

Why staging protects both sides

Staged payment is not distrust — it's what an experienced buyer looks like. The supplier keeps their cash flow for materials; you keep the unpaid balance as leverage. If quality slips, the conversation happens while the money still matters to both of you, not after your last transfer has landed and your messages stopped getting replies.

This is also why our own settlement structure works this way: service fees collected in stages, your goods money going to the supplier directly, and no order where you've paid everything before seeing anything.

Walk-away signals (payment edition)

100% before production, non-negotiable, from a first-time counterparty.
Bank account name differs from the business license — any excuse ("my accountant's account" is the common one).
Pressure to switch to personal wallets or informal apps mid-deal.
New fees invented after the deposit clears.
Refusal to let your inspector see goods before the balance.

One of these is a question. Two is a pattern. Three is your answer — the same arithmetic as the audit checklist.

Common questions

How much deposit should I pay a Chinese supplier?

Enough to be taken seriously, small enough to lose without pain — commonly around 30% on a first order, balance only after you've reviewed production evidence. Demands for 100% upfront from a first-time buyer are a red flag, not a policy.

Is it safe to pay a Chinese supplier by bank transfer?

The transfer itself is the standard rail — the structure around it is what keeps you safe. Match the account name to the license, pay company accounts only, and stage the amounts so your unpaid balance is always your leverage.

What if a supplier refuses staged payment?

Ask why first — large factories sometimes have real reasons for different terms. But refusal of any evidence-based staging (no inspection before balance, no photos) tells you how they'll handle problems later. There are always more suppliers.

Want a second pair of eyes on a payment request?

Send us the quote or the payment request before you transfer. We'll tell you what's standard, what's suspicious, and how to stage it — before your money moves.

Check a payment request