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China Chart of Accounts Reference (ASBE First-Level Account Codes)

Chinese statutory books use a prescribed first-level account list. When a foreign group rolls out SAP, Oracle or a local ERP in China, the finance team usually has to map these codes to the group chart of accounts. This table gives the common first-level codes with English names and mapping notes.

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Code	Account name	Class	Mapping note
1001	Cash on hand	Asset	Cash and cash equivalents
1002	Bank deposits	Asset	One sub-account per bank account
1012	Other monetary funds	Asset	Deposits held for bills and L/C margins
1101	Trading financial assets	Asset	Short-term investments
1121	Notes receivable	Asset	Bank acceptance and commercial bills
1122	Accounts receivable	Asset	Trade receivables, customer sub-ledger
1123	Prepayments	Asset	Advances to suppliers
1221	Other receivables	Asset	Deposits, staff advances
1231	Allowance for bad debts	Asset	Contra account
1401	Material procurement	Asset	Used in planned cost systems
1402	Materials in transit	Asset	Goods invoiced and not yet received
1403	Raw materials	Asset	Inventory raw materials
1405	Finished goods (stock goods)	Asset	Inventory finished goods
1408	Subcontracted processing materials	Asset	Material sent out for processing
1411	Turnover materials	Asset	Low value consumables and packaging
1471	Inventory valuation reserve	Asset	Contra account for write-downs
1601	Fixed assets	Asset	Cost, linked to asset register
1602	Accumulated depreciation	Asset	Contra account
1604	Construction in progress	Asset	Capitalised until commissioning
1701	Intangible assets	Asset	Software, land use rights, patents
2001	Short-term borrowings	Liability	Loans due within one year
2201	Notes payable	Liability	Bills issued to suppliers
2202	Accounts payable	Liability	Trade payables, supplier sub-ledger
2203	Receipts in advance	Liability	Customer deposits
2211	Payroll payable	Liability	Wages and social insurance accruals
2221	Taxes payable	Liability	VAT, income tax, surcharges via sub-accounts
2241	Other payables	Liability	Miscellaneous amounts owed
2501	Long-term borrowings	Liability	Loans due after one year
4001	Paid-in capital	Equity	Registered capital contributed
4002	Capital reserve	Equity	Share premium and similar
4101	Surplus reserve	Equity	Statutory reserve appropriation
4103	Current year profit	Equity	Year-end closing transfer
4104	Profit distribution	Equity	Retained earnings movement
5001	Production cost	Cost	Work in process cost pool
5101	Manufacturing overhead	Cost	Allocated to products at period end
6001	Main business revenue	P&L	Product sales revenue
6051	Other business revenue	P&L	Scrap sales, rental income
6401	Main business cost	P&L	Cost of goods sold
6402	Other business cost	P&L	Cost for other business revenue
6403	Taxes and surcharges	P&L	Urban maintenance, education surcharges
6601	Selling expenses	P&L	Sales and marketing costs
6602	Administrative expenses	P&L	G&A costs
6603	Financial expenses	P&L	Interest and FX differences
6801	Income tax expense	P&L	Current and deferred tax

Codes follow the standard first-level layout of the Enterprise Accounting Standards account list. Companies may add sub-accounts and some industries use extra codes. Verify against the chart your auditors and tax bureau expect before mapping.

Chart of accounts mapping review

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How to use the table

Search by account name or code to find the matching statutory account. Add the group account that each row maps to in your own spreadsheet after export. Notice the four-digit structure: the first digit groups assets, liabilities, equity, cost and profit and loss, and sub-accounts extend the code with further segments chosen by the company. Many Chinese ERPs also add auxiliary accounting dimensions such as customer, supplier, department and project that replace the long account strings western systems use.

How the structure differs from a western chart

Two points surprise group controllers. First, manufacturing cost is booked through 5001 production cost and 5101 manufacturing overhead before it moves to finished goods and cost of sales, which matches how Kingdee, Yonyou and Inspur cost modules close the period. Second, taxes payable under 2221 carries sub-accounts for input VAT, output VAT, VAT to be paid and income tax, so VAT does not use a single balance sheet account.

Assets 1xxx, liabilities 2xxx, equity 4xxx
Cost accounts 5xxx, income and expense 6xxx
Auxiliary dimensions replace many sub-account levels
Statutory books must remain in CNY and in Chinese

Mapping to IFRS or US GAAP group reporting

Keep the statutory chart in the local ledger and map each account to a group account in a mapping table. Do not rewrite the local chart to match the group, because the tax bureau and auditors expect the statutory layout. In SAP this is a local chart of accounts alongside the group chart, in Oracle a secondary ledger or a translation mapping.

Common mistakes

Teams often skip the allowance and reserve contra accounts when mapping, which breaks balance sheet totals. Others forget that FX differences sit in financial expenses 6603 in the local books but may need separate reporting at group level. Document each mapping decision with the reason and the date.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does China require a specific chart of accounts?

Companies follow the first-level account list issued with the Enterprise Accounting Standards and may add sub-accounts. Some sectors have their own standards. The statutory books and tax filings are expected to be consistent with this layout.

Can I use my group chart of accounts in China?

You can run a group chart in parallel, but the statutory ledger still needs to follow the Chinese structure for tax and audit. Most groups keep a local chart and use a mapping table for consolidation.

What is account 2221 used for?

2221 is taxes payable. VAT input, VAT output, VAT payable, corporate income tax and surcharges are held as sub-accounts below it. Bad sub-account design here causes most VAT reconciliation problems.

Do Chinese ERPs use auxiliary accounting?

Yes, systems like Kingdee and Yonyou use auxiliary dimensions such as customer, supplier, employee, department and project attached to an account, which keeps the account list short while still tracking detail.

If you are mapping a China chart to a group chart and want a second pair of eyes on the mapping table, Netray can review it against your trial balance.

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