First Order China Supplier Checklist: From Deposit to Delivery

Your first order with a new Chinese supplier is the one most likely to go sideways. Not because Chinese factories are unreliable, but because the relationship is new, your expectations haven’t been tested against their actual capabilities, and every assumption you’re making is untested.

The companies that run clean first orders aren’t lucky. They’re thorough. They check things in writing before they pay. They schedule inspections before they release the balance. And they know what documents to ask for.

This is the complete checklist, phase by phase.

Phase 1: Pre-Order

Don’t send a deposit until every item in this phase is done. This is the phase most buyers rush, and it’s where most problems start.

Supplier Verification

Confirm the factory is real and matches who you’ve been talking to. At minimum this means:

Checking their business license. Ask for a copy. Verify the registered company name matches what’s on your purchase order. The name on your purchase order needs to exactly match their registered legal entity name. This matters if you ever need to take legal action.

Confirm they’re the manufacturer. Ask for their factory address and cross-reference it against their Alibaba profile, business license address, and any trade records you can find. A factory in Dongguan shouldn’t have a business license registered to a residential address in Beijing.

Call them. A real factory picks up the phone during business hours. A voice or video call confirms you’re talking to a real organization. Ask to see the factory floor during a video call.

For orders above $10,000, consider a third-party factory audit. Companies like QIMA, SGS, and Bureau Veritas charge $200-400 for a one-day audit that verifies factory capacity, quality systems, and working conditions. Worth it for any significant first order.

Sample Approval

Never place a production order without approved samples. This is the rule that saves you from 80% of first-order problems.

Your approved sample should be signed and dated by both parties, with a copy held by each side. This is your quality benchmark. If the production goods don’t match the approved sample, you have documented grounds to reject them.

For electronics, test the sample under real use conditions. Run the battery through full charge cycles. Test wireless range. Drop-test if it’s a product that will get dropped. Test charging with different power adapters. Products that fail under reasonable use conditions will fail at scale.

If the sample needs changes, request revised samples. Don’t approve a “close enough” sample and hope production fixes it. It won’t.

Spec Sheet Sign-Off

A signed, dated spec sheet is different from your RFQ and your purchase order. It’s a bilateral document that defines the production standard.

The spec sheet should include: product dimensions and tolerances, materials and finishes, performance specifications, packaging specifications, barcode and labeling requirements, and any certification marks that need to appear on the product or packaging.

The factory signs it. You sign it. Both parties keep a copy. If production goods come in short on a spec, you point to this document.

Payment Terms in Writing

Confirm your payment terms are explicitly stated in the purchase order, not just understood from conversation. Standard first-order terms are 30% deposit before production, 70% balance before shipment, paid by T/T (bank wire).

Make sure the bank account on the purchase order matches the company on the purchase order. Wire fraud targeting importers is real. Verify the banking details by phone or video call before sending any wire. Do not trust banking details received only by email, especially if the email account looks different from previous correspondence.

Delivery Date in Writing

Get the production completion date and ship date in writing on the purchase order. “Around Q2” is not a delivery date. “Ship by May 15” is a delivery date.

If you have a hard deadline (retail launch, Amazon inventory window, trade show), state it explicitly and get written confirmation that they can meet it. Factories sometimes confirm dates they can’t actually hit because they don’t want to lose the order. A written commitment with penalty terms for late delivery changes the calculation.

Phase 2: Production

Once you’ve paid the deposit and production is underway, your job is to track it without being annoying and to schedule your inspection at the right time.

Confirm Production Start

Within a week of paying the deposit, confirm in writing that production has started. A responsible factory will provide a production schedule showing start date, completion date, and any major milestones.

If you don’t hear anything after paying the deposit, follow up. Silence after a deposit is not fine.

Midpoint Check for Long Production Runs

For production runs over 30 days or over 1,000 units, ask for a midpoint photo update. Assembly photos, first-off-line units, packaging photos. This isn’t micromanagement. It’s a sanity check that confirms they’re making the right product to the right spec before you get to final inspection.

Some factories push back on this. A legitimate factory will share midpoint photos without drama.

Schedule Your DPI (During Production Inspection)

For orders over $10,000, schedule a during-production inspection at 30-50% completion. This catches problems early, when there’s still time to fix them before the full run is committed.

A DPI for electronics typically checks: dimensions against spec sheet, component verification (are they using the specified battery, the specified chip), initial performance testing, and workmanship on partially assembled units.

Inspection companies charge $200-350 per man-day in China. One inspection day covers roughly 200-300 units for a standard electronics product. For a 500-unit order, one inspection day is usually enough.

Phase 3: Pre-Shipment

This is the most important phase. Nothing gets paid and nothing gets shipped until this is done.

Schedule Your PSI (Pre-Shipment Inspection)

A pre-shipment inspection happens when 100% of production is complete and 80%+ is packed. The inspector draws a random sample from the production lot using AQL (Acceptable Quality Level) sampling standards.

Standard electronics inspection uses AQL 2.5 for major defects and AQL 4.0 for minor defects. What this means in practice: for a 500-unit order, the inspector checks approximately 50 units. If more than 3 of those have major defects, the lot fails.

Failing a PSI is not the end of the world. It means you’ve caught the problem before you’ve paid for the goods. The factory has two choices: sort the lot and reinspect, or rework the defective units. Neither option is free for them, and that’s the point.

Review All Shipping Documents Before Releasing Payment

Before you send the balance payment, you need to see draft copies of every key document. Do not release payment first and review docs later.

The documents you need to review before payment:

Commercial invoice: Verify your company name, their company name, product description, HS code, declared value, and country of origin. Errors on the commercial invoice delay customs clearance.

Packing list: Line-by-line breakdown of carton contents, weights, and dimensions. Should match your purchase order exactly. Any discrepancy between the packing list and what’s actually in the boxes is a problem waiting to happen at customs.

Bill of lading (ocean freight) or air waybill (air freight): Draft copy. Confirm the consignee name is exactly right, the notify party is your customs broker, and the port of loading and destination port are correct.

Certificate of origin: Required for some tariff classifications, free trade agreement claims, or country-of-origin marking requirements. Get it even if you’re not sure you need it. It’s cheap and getting one retroactively is difficult.

FCC Declaration of Conformity: For electronics sold in the US market. The factory should provide this. Verify it matches your product model number and your company name if you’re the importer of record.

Phase 4: Payment Release

You’ve seen the PSI report. You’ve reviewed the draft documents. Now you send the balance. But two more checks first.

Inspection Passed

Confirm the PSI result in writing. If the inspection passed with conditions (some minor defects accepted at AQL level), confirm in writing that those conditions are acceptable to you before releasing payment. Don’t do this verbally.

If the inspection failed, don’t release payment. Start the rework conversation. The factory bears the cost of fixing quality failures, not you.

All Documents Correct

Every document should be in final form and match the draft versions you reviewed. If there are last-minute changes to the commercial invoice, packing list, or bill of lading, review them again before paying. Changed documents after the fact are a common source of customs problems.

Confirm your ISF (Importer Security Filing) has been submitted if you’re importing by ocean freight to the US. Your customs broker handles this, but confirm it’s done. ISF must be filed at least 24 hours before the container is loaded. Missing ISF triggers a $5,000 fine.

Phase 5: Receiving

The goods have arrived at your warehouse or fulfillment center. You’re not done yet.

Spot Check on Arrival

Before accepting delivery, pull a random sample of cartons and inspect the contents. You’re checking for:

Shipping damage. Document any damaged cartons with photos before signing the delivery receipt. If you sign a clean delivery receipt and then find damage later, you’ve given up your freight claim.

Count verification. Count at least 10% of cartons. Weight the rest if you can. Short shipments happen, and you want to catch them before the truck leaves.

Product condition. Open units from different cartons, not just the top carton of the first pallet. Check that the product matches your approved sample. Check packaging integrity.

Document Everything

If something is wrong at receiving, photos and written records are how you get it resolved. Take photos of damaged cartons, wrong products, missing items, and labeling errors. Send written notice to your supplier within 48 hours of discovering any discrepancy. The longer you wait, the harder your claim is to argue.

The 8 Documents Every Shipment Needs

Keep copies of all of these for every shipment. Your customs broker needs them. Your accountant needs them. And if you ever get selected for a CBP audit, you’ll need them.

1. Commercial invoice (shows declared value, product description, buyer and seller details)
2. Packing list (line-by-line carton contents, weights, dimensions)
3. Bill of lading or air waybill (proof of shipment and title transfer document)
4. FCC Declaration of Conformity or CE Declaration (for electronics)
5. Packing declaration for dangerous goods / UN38.3 battery test report if shipping lithium batteries
6. Certificate of Origin (for tariff preference claims or country-of-origin requirements)
7. ISF filing confirmation (ocean freight, US imports only)
8. CBP entry documents and duty payment confirmation from your customs broker

Keep these organized by shipment. A simple folder structure by PO number works. You want to be able to pull the complete document package for any shipment within five minutes.

What to Do When Something Goes Wrong

Something will go wrong on some order. Here’s how to handle the most common problems.

Quality failures at PSI: Don’t release payment. Require rework and reinspection. If the factory refuses, you’re in a dispute. Having a formal purchase order, signed spec sheet, and inspection report gives you strong documentation for your bank if you paid by letter of credit, or for any dispute resolution process.

Late production or shipment: Reference the delivery date in your purchase order. Ask for a written explanation and revised timeline in writing. If the delay causes you real losses (lost sales, expedited shipping costs to cover the gap), document those costs and request compensation. Whether you get it depends on your relationship and the terms you negotiated upfront.

Missing documents at customs: Your customs broker handles this. That’s what they’re for. If documents are incorrect, the factory usually needs to issue corrections. This takes 3-7 days and may result in your goods going into a customs exam queue, which means delay and potential exam fees.

Goods damaged in transit: File a freight claim immediately with your freight forwarder or carrier. You need the photos taken at receiving, the delivery receipt showing the damage notation, and the packing list showing what should have been in the damaged cartons.

Building the Relationship After the First Order

A clean first order is worth more than just the first shipment. It proves to the factory that you’re an organized buyer who knows the process, pays on time, and doesn’t create unnecessary problems. That reputation gets you better service on the next order.

After the first order, send a written review of how it went. What worked, what could improve. Factories rarely get direct feedback like this from buyers. The ones that want to grow a real relationship will take it seriously.

If you’re planning ongoing orders, discuss a framework agreement for pricing, lead time, and quality standards. Locking in terms for the next 12 months gives both sides certainty and gives you leverage to negotiate a better unit price on committed volume.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a customs broker for my first order? Yes, if you’re importing by sea or for a commercial shipment above the de minimis threshold ($800 for the US). A licensed customs broker handles your ISF filing, entry documents, and duty payment. Their fee is typically $150-350 per shipment for a standard commercial entry. Not using one for a first import is a good way to have your goods held in a customs exam.

What’s AQL and how do I tell my inspection company what standard to use? AQL stands for Acceptable Quality Level. It’s a statistical sampling standard that defines how many defects in a sample are acceptable before the lot fails. For consumer electronics, AQL 2.5 for major defects and AQL 4.0 for minor defects is standard. When you book an inspection, tell them the product type, quantity, and AQL levels. They’ll determine the sample size automatically.

What if I can’t afford a PSI on a small order? For orders under $3,000-4,000, the PSI cost can represent 5-10% of order value, which is hard to justify. In that case, ask the factory to send you 5-10 random production units via DHL before shipping the full order. You pay DHL, they pull from production, and you inspect them yourself. It’s not a substitute for a formal inspection but it’s better than nothing.

What’s the difference between a commercial invoice and a proforma invoice? A proforma invoice is issued before production, usually at the order confirmation stage. It’s the basis for your deposit payment. A commercial invoice is the final document issued at shipment that reflects actual goods shipped, actual quantities, and actual value. The commercial invoice is what your customs broker uses for entry. Keep both.

Should I use a letter of credit for my first order? Letters of credit are common for very large orders (above $50,000-100,000) or when both parties are unknown to each other and want the security of a bank intermediary. For most small-to-mid first orders, T/T (bank wire) with standard 30/70 terms is the norm. LC fees and paperwork add cost and complexity that most first-time importers don’t need. If you get to the point of ordering $100,000+ at a time from a supplier you’re unsure of, it’s worth talking to your bank.

How do I handle a supplier who won’t provide all the required documents? Specifically and in writing. List the documents you need, reference the purchase order, and set a clear deadline. If they refuse to provide FCC documentation, for example, they’re either misrepresenting their certification status or they don’t have one. Don’t accept substitutes (“we’ll send it after shipment”). Documents you don’t have before shipment are documents you may never see.