A company's registration status is the first thing to check. Some statuses mean the company can't legally trade.
Mainland China statuses
| Status | Meaning | Safe to trade? |
|---|
| 存续 / 在业 / 开业 | Exists / in operation / open | Normal |
| 迁入 / 迁出 | Moved into / out of a registration district | Usually administrative; confirm the new record |
| 停业 | Suspended business | No |
| 清算 | In liquidation | No |
| 注销 | Deregistered. The company has been dissolved and removed | No. The legal entity no longer exists |
| 吊销 | Business licence revoked, often as a penalty (for example for not filing annual reports) | No. It cannot operate legally |
| 撤销 | Registration revoked or annulled | No |
Hong Kong statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|
| 仍注册 (Live) | Registered and active |
| 已告解散 / 已解散 (Dissolved) | Dissolved; no longer exists |
Official lists that aren't statuses
| List | Meaning |
|---|
| 经营异常名录 (abnormal operations list) | The regulator listed the company, typically because it couldn't be reached at its registered address or didn't file an annual report. A serious warning for a new supplier. |
| 严重违法失信名单 (serious violations list) | Companies with serious illegal conduct, or that stayed on the abnormal list for 3+ years. |
| 失信被执行人 (dishonest judgment debtor) | See "Court and credit records". |
Canton Check treats any non-active status as an automatic fail (score capped at 20). Abnormal-operations listings appear under Red flags in the full report.
