A foreign company can sue a Chinese company in a mainland court without setting foot in China. It can file online, authorise a Chinese lawyer by video before a judge, attend hearings remotely in many courts, and, if it wins, enforce the judgment directly against the defendant's assets in China. The parts that take real time are the paperwork from abroad, the length of foreign-related proceedings, and the fact that each side usually bears its own lawyers' fees.
Clients usually ask first how long it will take and what it will cost. The better first question is what a win would actually be worth: whether the defendant has assets a court can reach, and whether they can be frozen early. A Chinese court judgment against a Chinese company is the most direct route to Chinese assets. That is its main advantage over suing at home, and it is why the procedural hurdles below are usually worth clearing.
Filing and authorising a lawyer from abroad
A foreign party who wants a lawyer to act in a Chinese court must instruct a lawyer licensed in the PRC. Traditionally that meant signing a power of attorney abroad and having it notarised and legalised, together with the company's certificate of incorporation and proof of the signatory's authority. Two developments have made this easier.
First, China joined the Apostille Convention with effect from 7 November 2023, so for most countries consular legalisation has been replaced by an apostille, which is faster and cheaper. Second, under the Supreme People's Court's rules on cross-border online filing, foreign parties, including foreign companies, can verify their identity online and ask a judge to witness the authorisation of a mainland lawyer by video. Where that is done, the power of attorney does not need to be notarised or authenticated. Availability and practice still vary between courts, so this should be checked with the court in question, but where it is available it can save two to three weeks.
Our view: even if you plan to use video witnessing, prepare an apostilled corporate certificate early. Courts will still want reliable proof that the claimant exists and that the person giving instructions is authorised, and waiting for documents is the most common avoidable delay in foreign-related cases.
Getting foreign evidence admitted
Many foreign claimants assume that every document created outside China must be notarised and legalised. Since the Supreme People's Court amended its evidence rules in 2019, that is no longer the case. Official documents issued abroad must be notarised in the country of origin or certified under an applicable treaty, and evidence concerning personal status, such as marriage or kinship, must be notarised and authenticated, now usually by apostille. Other documents, including contracts, invoices, emails and chat records, do not have to go through these formalities, although the other side can challenge their authenticity and the court will weigh them accordingly.
What every foreign-language document does need is a Chinese translation. Where the key evidence is an English contract or a long email chain, commission a careful translation early and agree terminology with your Chinese lawyer. If the translation is disputed, the court may appoint its own translator, and that is not where you want the meaning of a key clause decided.
Hearings, timing and appeals
Proceedings are conducted in Chinese. Under the Supreme People's Court's online litigation rules, many courts can hold hearings online with the parties' agreement, which means a company representative or witness abroad can often take part remotely. Your Chinese lawyer will attend on your behalf in any event.
The statutory time limits that apply to domestic cases do not apply to foreign-related cases, so there is no fixed deadline for a judgment. In our experience, a straightforward foreign-related commercial case in a busy commercial court commonly takes somewhere between six months and a year at first instance, with an appeal adding several more months; a case with complex evidence or service problems can take considerably longer. A party with no domicile in China has 30 days, rather than the usual 15, to appeal a first-instance judgment. The second-instance judgment is generally final and enforceable.
If you are the defendant rather than the claimant, expect service abroad to be the slowest part, although the 2023 amendments gave courts more ways to serve foreign parties, including through their subsidiaries or representative offices in China.
Costs, and the question of legal fees
Court fees are paid in advance by the claimant and are calculated on a sliding scale according to the amount claimed; the losing party normally bears them in the end. Lawyers' fees are different. As a general rule, each side bears its own lawyers' fees unless the contract provides that the breaching or losing party must pay them, or a specific law allows recovery.
This is where the contract stage matters. We regularly advise clients to include a clause that the party in breach bears the other party's reasonable costs of enforcement, including lawyers' fees, preservation security costs and notarisation fees. Chinese courts generally give effect to such clauses where the fees are reasonable and proven. Without one, a successful claim for a modest amount can leave the claimant out of pocket.
When a Chinese court is the right forum, and when it is not
A Chinese court makes the most sense when the defendant and its assets are in mainland China, the contract points to a Chinese court or has no dispute clause, and you want the option of freezing assets early. If the contract provides for arbitration, you generally cannot sue in court instead, and you should use the arbitration route. What we would not recommend is suing a Chinese company in your home court simply because it is familiar, if the only assets are in China: you will then need to have that judgment recognised in China, which adds time and uncertainty to the very step that matters most.
Frequently asked questions
- Can a foreign company sue a Chinese company in China? Yes. Foreign companies have the same procedural rights as Chinese parties, subject to reciprocity, and can file where the defendant is domiciled, where the contract was performed, or in another court with jurisdiction.
- Do I need to travel to China to sue? Usually not. Cases can be filed online, a mainland lawyer can be authorised by video before a judge in courts that offer it, and many hearings can be attended remotely.
- Does all foreign evidence need to be notarised? No. Official documents and personal-status evidence formed abroad do; contracts, emails and business records generally do not, though all foreign-language documents need a Chinese translation.
- Can I recover my lawyers' fees if I win? Only if the contract provides for it or a specific law allows it. Otherwise each side generally bears its own lawyers' fees, while court fees are usually borne by the losing party.
Related service: Claims Against Suppliers: Demand Letters, Arbitration & Litigation ↗
Start with what a win would be worth.
We can assess jurisdiction, the defendant's assets and your evidence, prepare the documents from abroad, and run the case in the Chinese court together with any preservation application.
Related Reading
- How to Freeze a Chinese Company's Assets Before You Sue: Property Preservation in China
- Chinese Supplier Breached the Contract: What Can a Foreign Buyer Do?
This article is general information about PRC civil procedure as of 28 September 2026 and does not constitute legal advice. Court practice on online filing, video witnessing and remote hearings varies, and timing depends on the court, the case and the parties.