Fapiao Explained: The Chinese Receipt That Matters

TL;DR – the 30-second version

A fapiao (invoice) is China’s official proof of purchase. You want one any time you might claim money back – work trips, client dinners, a phone top-up your company owes you for. These days almost all fapiaos are digital – a QR code, an app download, or a PDF in your email. Grab it before you pay and you are done.

The short answer: what is a fapiao?

A fapiao (pronounced fa-pee-ow) is a state-registered receipt. Each one has a serial number you can check on the national verification site, which is why companies and tax offices accept it over any other paper. If you want your money back from an employer in China, this piece of paperwork is the ticket.

What a fapiao actually is

Think of a receipt with a government serial number on it. When a business issues one, the sale is registered with the tax system – that is the whole trick. No fapiao, and for tax purposes the sale may as well never have happened.

You will mostly meet two kinds. The ordinary fapiao covers nearly everything you will ever buy. The special VAT kind exists so companies can reclaim tax – you will rarely touch it. And no, a till receipt is not a fapiao – it just says you paid, while a fapiao is registered with the tax bureau. The difference decides whether finance says yes, or “sorry, can you get a proper one?”

When you actually need one

• Work reimbursement. The big one. You buy flights, hotels, and client dinners on your own card, hand over the fapiao, and get paid back. In most companies here, no fapiao means no money back. No exceptions, no “but here is my bank statement”.
• Returns. Large stores ask for the original fapiao when you return goods, so keep the file until the window passes.
• Tax-related paperwork. Rent deductions and some visa cases want fapiaos as proof – a government request for a “certificate” often just means “fapiao”.

How to get one: the 2026 flow

Digital fapiaos basically won. After the national e-invoice platform went nationwide, most shops, hotels, and apps hand out e-fapiaos: ask, and you get a QR code or a PDF within minutes. Paper rolls still exist, but they are getting rare.

1. Restaurants and hotels: when you pay, say “fapiao, xiexie” (invoice, please). That is all it takes – it is what everyone here does.
2. Ride-hailing: open the DiDi app, go to the invoice section, tick the rides, and the e-fapiao lands in your email. Same for most flights and trains: buy with your passport, then grab the e-invoice in the airline app or the railway app 12306.
3. Top-ups and bills: phone credit, utilities, even rent on some platforms – the WeChat or Alipay mini-program has an invoice button, usually under “My” or “Bills”.
4. Paper only: the seller writes the date, the amount, and the name you want on it. Which brings us to the detail that trips everyone up.

The three things that trip up newcomers

1. The name on the invoice (taitou). For reimbursement, the fapiao must carry your company’s full registered name and tax number, letter-perfect. One character off and finance bounces it. Every company has this saved somewhere – get it from HR once and bookmark it.

2. Asking after paying. Street-level shops do not do retroactive invoices. A milk-tea stand we used for weeks never gave us one, because we asked the wrong way at the wrong moment. For anything over about 100 yuan, ask before you pay. Honest habit: keep a folder on your phone named “fapiao” and screenshot every e-invoice the day it arrives, labelled by date and amount. Reimbursement day stops being a scramble.

3. The “we can open a fapiao for you” spam. Somewhere in your first month, a message will offer to kaipiao (issue invoices) for a small commission. That is either a plain scam or tax fraud – buying or selling counterfeit fapiaos is a criminal offence in China, not a grey area. Delete the message, block the number.

Worth knowing: any fapiao can be checked. Paste its serial number into the state verification site (inv-veri.chinatax.gov.cn) and the details must match. It takes a minute, costs nothing, and has caught more than one “lost” invoice for us.

Quick answers

Q: Do I need a fapiao for every purchase? A: No. Only when you might claim the money back, or a shop asks for it on a return.

Q: Is a fapiao the same as a receipt? A: No. A receipt just shows you paid; a fapiao is registered with the tax system and carries a verifiable serial number.

Q: Can a foreigner get one? A: Yes. Passport, app, or email all work – being a foreigner does not matter.

Q: What if a shop says no fapiao? A: Registered businesses must issue one once you pay. Tiny stalls struggle with small amounts – so ask before paying.

Editorial review: EasternReset Team · Snapshot: 2026-09. Found an error? Tell us.