Your first payment to a Chinese supplier: a checklist

The first time you pay a Chinese supplier, the unfamiliar part is rarely the supplier. It is the money. Nigerian cards get declined at Chinese gateways, international wires sit in review, and most small suppliers will only accept Alipay. This checklist walks the whole first payment in order, so nothing surprises you.

Before you pay: confirm the deal

1. Agree the final price in RMB. Settle the unit price, the quantity, the total, and what the total includes. Is it the goods only, or does it include domestic shipping to your forwarder?
2. Agree the payment terms. Many suppliers ask for a deposit, commonly 30 percent, with the balance before shipping. For a first order, smaller is safer.
3. Get the recipient details. The Alipay account ID and the exact registered name. Confirm both, in the script the supplier uses. This is where most first payments go wrong, so read getting the recipient name right before you send anything.
4. Keep the conversation in writing. Confirm the figures in a WeChat message so there is a record of what was agreed.

Choose how the money moves

Your realistic options from Nigeria:

• Nigerian card on a Chinese gateway. Usually declined. Even when it works, expect holds and surcharges.
• Buying foreign currency and wiring to a Chinese bank. Only works if the supplier has a corporate bank account willing to receive an international wire, which most small suppliers do not. Slow and document-heavy.
• A trade-facilitation service. You fund a Nigerian company in Naira, and they settle the supplier's Alipay in RMB on your behalf. This is the route built for exactly this situation, and it is what most repeat importers use for orders that settle on Alipay.

Making the payment, step by step

1. Lock the rate. Enter the RMB amount your supplier needs. A good service shows the all-in Naira figure and locks the rate the moment you submit, so the cost does not move while you transfer.
2. Transfer the Naira. You are given a Nigerian bank account and a unique reference. Pay from any Nigerian banking app and put the reference in the narration so the payment is matched quickly.
3. Upload proof. Screenshot the successful transfer or save the bank receipt as a PDF, and upload it from your dashboard.
4. Confirm. Mark the payment as made. Your request moves to review, and the RMB is settled to the supplier's Alipay, typically within the same business day.
5. Save the receipt. When the request is complete you get a PDF receipt with the locked rate, the recipient details and a unique reference. File it. You will want it for your customs and tax records.

A few habits that pay off

• Start small. Make your very first settlement a small test, even if the order is large, and ask the supplier to confirm receipt before you send the balance.
• One reference per order. Keep each order's reference and receipt together so you can reconcile against your inventory later.
• Do not pay outside agreed channels. If a supplier suddenly asks you to pay a different account "just this once", stop and reconfirm. Account switches are a classic warning sign.

What this is, and what it is not

You are commissioning one specific payment, in RMB, on your behalf, for a clear fee in Naira. You are not opening an account or holding a balance. That is the whole shape of it.

When you are ready, you can make a request and follow exactly these steps. The first payment feels like the hard part. After one clean run, it becomes the most boring part of importing, which is exactly how it should feel.