r/alibaba
First-time buyer, is this a scam? Supplier says ship to China + EXW?
A first-time Alibaba buyer asks if a supplier's request to use EXW terms to a Chinese address and other red flags indicate a scam.
First time doing a larger order on Alibaba and I'm unsure what's normal. Trying to sanity-check before I commit.
The order: \~$3,985 for promotional gift sets (2 products, \~480 units). Supplier sent a proforma invoice that says DDP to my US address, all duties/customs included, no extra charges to me.
The problem: The actual order in the Alibaba app is set to EXW with the shipping address in Shenzhen, China — not my US address. The supplier told me I must set the address to China and use EXW "otherwise the platform imposes additional taxes/fees because the destination is the US," and quoted \~$158 in "excess tax."
Sample: I ordered a sample first. Supplier sent "proof," but the tracking (YTO Express) shows every scan inside Guangdong, ending "delivered to recipient: Warehouse" in Shenzhen. They also sent a UPS Ground label to my US address stuck on "Label Created" — allegedly arriving this week. He sent photos/videos of the products for quality review since the sample hasn't physically reached me yet.
Other red flags:
- Invoice company = "Shaanxi SilkWay Trading," but the order shows "Shaanxi Siyi Trading." When I asked, seller said they're the same entity — official name is Siyi because the SilkWay domain is taken, but the bank account stays under SilkWay.
- Payment routes to a Hong Kong Citibank account.
- Contact email is a Gmail address, not a company domain.
My questions:
- Is "set the address to China + EXW to avoid US taxes" ever legit, or is it a known scam structure?
- If I pay under EXW-to-China terms, does Trade Assurance still protect me if the goods never reach the US?
- The sample "delivered" to a Chinese warehouse — does that prove anything, or is borrowed/fake tracking common?
- Does the mismatched-company-name + HK-account explanation hold up, or is that a flag?
- What would you do — walk away, or is there a way to force DDP + my real address that actually holds up?
Screenshots attached. Appreciate any firsthand experience.