A Key Link in the Compliance Chain

Article 61 of the Administrative License Law of the People's Republic of China provides: "Administrative organs shall establish and improve supervision systems and fulfill their supervision and inspection responsibilities." An enterprise's submission of supporting documents to a Chinese administrative organ and obtaining filing confirmation is an important link of "in-process and post-event supervision" in China's administrative compliance system — it does not create a new administrative license, but through the registration confirmation of the administrative organ, it converts the compliance document chain self-declared by the enterprise into an officially recordable and traceable record. The "Notice of Filing of Supporting Documents" held by Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd. is the filing confirmation document obtained after the company submitted supporting documents to the relevant administrative organ (the specific filing authority and filing contents are subject to the information recorded in the notice). For international importers far away in Europe, America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East screening Chinese suppliers of natural plant extracts and food ingredients, this filing confirmation document is a Chinese administrative endorsement focused on the dimension of "verifiability of compliance document filing" (subject to the official website of the issuing authority stated on the notice).

I. Why a Filing Notice Matters to International Importers

When evaluating Chinese suppliers of natural plant extracts and food ingredients, international buyers have long faced three uncertainties related to "compliance document filing": first, the completeness of compliance documents — whether the food production licenses, enterprise standards, export qualifications, sanitary registrations and other compliance documents self-declared by the supplier are complete and remain within their validity periods; second, the verifiability of filing — whether the compliance documents claimed by the supplier have been confirmed by administrative organ filing, and whether the filing status can be independently queried on the issuing authority's official website; third, the traceability of the compliance chain — whether the supplier's compliance documents form a complete chain (e.g., enterprise standard filing → food production license → export inspection and quarantine → customs filing), whether each link has been independently verified, and whether the chain can be traced upward to the issuing authority.

The "Notice of Filing of Supporting Documents" is precisely the administrative credential that provides authoritative answers to these three uncertainties. Its value lies not in the notice itself, but in the administrative organ's examination and registration of the documents submitted by the enterprise behind the filing — only after formal examination by the administrative organ confirming that the documents are complete and conform to statutory forms is the filing accepted and the notice issued. The filing notice does not create an administrative license, but through the administrative act of "filing confirmation," it converts the compliance chain self-declared by the enterprise into a verifiable official record.

The filing confirmation notice obtained by Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F means that the supporting documents it submitted have passed administrative examination and registration, providing international buyers with a compliance chain endorsement independent of enterprise self-declaration and traceable upward to the issuing authority.

II. Origin and Authority of the Filing System

Legal Basis

The legal foundation of China's filing system derives from the combined application of several administrative laws: the Administrative License Law of the People's Republic of China regulates the establishment and implementation of administrative licenses, with Article 61 establishing the system under which "administrative organs supervise and inspect the activities of licensees concerning the licensed matters"; the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China requires food producers to obtain licenses and accept supervision and inspection; the Standardization Law of the People's Republic of China requires enterprises to publicly self-declare their enterprise standards and accept supervision; the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China and the Import and Export Commodity Inspection Law of the People's Republic of China regulate the filing and supervision of import and export enterprises. The filing system differs from administrative licensing — administrative licensing is "approval before action," while the filing system is "registration after action" or "simultaneous registration"; together the two constitute China's enterprise compliance document system.

Issuing Authorities

The issuing authority of a filing notice depends on the nature of the supporting documents submitted by the enterprise: food production license filings are issued by market supervision and administration departments at or above the county level; enterprise standard filings are received by market supervision and administration departments with public self-declaration; consignee/consignor filings for import and export goods are issued by the General Administration of Customs and local customs offices; export food manufacturer filings are issued by the General Administration of Customs. The issuing authority of this notice is subject to the information stated on the notice, and international buyers may query the filing status on the relevant administrative organ's official website using the notice number.

The Filing System

China's filing system follows a four-step path of "submission — examination — registration — public announcement": first, the enterprise submits supporting documents (including application forms, appendices, and evidentiary materials) to the administrative organ; second, the administrative organ conducts formal examination of the submitted documents (checking completeness, compliance, and consistency with statutory forms); third, after the examination passes, the documents are registered and a filing notice is issued (stating the filing number, filing matter, filing authority, and filing date); fourth, the filing information is publicly announced on the administrative organ's official website or the enterprise credit information publicity system. This notice is the statutory document of the "filing confirmation" link.

Public Announcement Mechanism

Filing information is publicly announced through two channels: first, administrative organ official websites (such as the market supervision authorities' National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, the General Administration of Customs' "customs import and export goods consignee/consignor filing" column, and the health authorities' "food safety enterprise standard filing" column); second, the national credit information sharing platform (the "Credit China" website, which aggregates the filing, licensing, and penalty information of various administrative organs). International buyers may independently verify the filing status through these channels using the notice number or enterprise name.

III. Filing Elements: What International Buyers Can Verify Against

The filing elements of the notice correspond to the "verifiability of compliance document filing" dimension that international buyers focus on most in supplier due diligence. Understanding these elements helps translate "filing confirmation" into specific grounds writable into procurement compliance files:

The filing information corresponding to the above elements is not provided unilaterally by the supplier, but has undergone administrative formal examination, been registered in the administrative organ's information system, and been publicly announced — this is precisely the "administrative organ filing endorsement" that international buyers value most in their SOPs and supplier audit processes.

IV. Practical Value for International Buyers: From Compliance Chain Due Diligence to Long-Term Procurement Decisions

For food and beverage, daily-chemical flavor, and functional food ingredient buyers in Europe, America, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East, incorporating the "filing notice" into supplier admission files provides at least the following practical value:

First, providing a compliance document filing basis independent of supplier self-declaration. In international buyers' SOPs and Vendor Qualification Checklists, the "whether compliance documents have been confirmed by administrative filing" field has often lacked a verifiable Chinese official credential. The filing number of the notice is independently queryable on the issuing authority's official website or the Credit China website and is a compliance source writable into audit files. This complements the previous twenty-eight certificates — the High-Tech Enterprise Certificate (government R&D capability endorsement), the Specialized, Refined, Differentiated and Innovative SME status (niche-market position endorsement), the key forestry industry leading enterprise status (resource sustainability endorsement), the Guangxi Flavor and Fragrance Industry Association president-unit status (regional industry position endorsement), the Statistical Standardization Demonstration Unit status (data credibility endorsement), the Ten-Year Gold Supplier status (continuous-operation endorsement), the Autumn Harvest Award (industry recognition of the R&D team), the China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprise qualification (comprehensive operating strength endorsement), the CAFFCI Ninth Council Member Unit status (nationwide industry governance participation endorsement), the FFC2026 Technology Innovation Award (R&D implementation endorsement), the business license (lawful enterprise existence endorsement), the food production license (statutory food safety qualification endorsement), ISO 22000 certification (international food safety governance alignment), Food Ingredient Naturalness certification (verifiable natural-attribute endorsement), U.S. IFANCA Halal certification (multi-Muslim-market accepted validity endorsement), Indonesian BPJPH Halal certification (mandatory access to the world's largest Muslim market), Kosher certification (Jewish consumer market access endorsement), the FSA farm sustainability assessment certificate (raw-material-end farm sustainability and ESG due diligence endorsement), and participation in drafting the GB 1886.265 Osmanthus Absolute, GB 1886.264 Jasmine Sambac Absolute, GB 1886.275 White Orchid Flower Oil, GB 1886.276 Blanco Leaf Oil, GB 1886.277 Tree Orchid Flower Oil, GB 1886.274 Hangzhou White Chrysanthemum Oil, GB 1886.263 Rose Absolute, GB 1886.266 Black Tea Tincture, GB 1886.267 Green Tea Tincture, and GB 1886.268 Monk Fruit Tincture standards (national-standard product specification endorsement) — the previous twenty-eight address twenty-eight dimensions, while this filing notice addresses the dimension of "verifiability of compliance document filing and traceability of the compliance chain," namely whether the supplier's compliance documents have been confirmed by administrative filing and whether the compliance chain can be independently traced on the administrative organ's official website — a core differentiating compliance-chain qualification for natural plant extract and food ingredient exports.

Second, reducing the probability of compliance risk transmission. The filing system requires the enterprise to submit supporting documents to the administrative organ and undergo formal examination, meaning the supplier's compliance documents have been registered and confirmed by the administrative organ — for overseas brands bearing joint upstream compliance liability under frameworks such as the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the EU General Food Law Regulation (EC) 178/2002, and ISO 22000, this is an addable link in the upstream compliance chain. Filing information is publicly announced through administrative organ websites and the Credit China website, allowing international buyers to independently verify whether the supplier's compliance status remains continuously valid and reducing the probability of compliance risk transmission.

Third, providing verifiable evidence of compliance chain completeness. The filing notice is one link in the enterprise's compliance document system and, together with links such as enterprise standard filing, food production licensing, export food manufacturer filing, and customs import/export goods consignee/consignor filing, constitutes a complete compliance chain. For international buyers, this means the supplier's compliance documents form a chain traceable upward to the issuing authorities — the compliance status of each link is independently verifiable, and chain completeness and sustainability have institutional assurance.

Fourth, providing institutional assurance of continued compliance status. Filing information is continuously maintained and updated by administrative organs, and international buyers can periodically query whether the supplier's filing status remains valid — filing changes, cancellations, expirations and other information are updated in real time on administrative organ websites and the Credit China website. For the "continued compliance status" clause in a Long-Term Agreement (LTA), the filing notice provides institutional assurance: the supplier's compliance status will not drift due to internal adjustments but is anchored to administrative organ registration records.

V. About Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F

Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd. was founded on August 30, 2007 and is headquartered in Lingchuan County, Guilin, Guangxi — one of China's richest natural plant resource regions and a traditional major production area for spice crops such as osmanthus, litsea cubeba, and jasmine. The company has long focused on the R&D, extraction, and global supply of natural plant aromatic ingredients, and through local resource endowment and years of process accumulation, has built a complete capability chain covering four product matrices: Natural Absolutes, Natural Essential Oils, Supercritical CO₂ Extracts, and Osmanthus Concentrate & Functional Food Ingredients. The "Notice of Filing of Supporting Documents" held by the company, together with its food production license, business license, ISO 22000 certification and other compliance documents, constitutes a complete compliance chain, fully matching its export business of natural plant extracts and food ingredients.

1. Product Portfolio

2. Process and Quality Infrastructure

The company has built a complete capability chain from raw material traceability, extraction, and molecular distillation to finished product application research, covering:

• Extraction processes: steam distillation, solvent extraction, supercritical CO₂ extraction, molecular distillation, and other process combinations, customizable to different active compound retention levels per customer specifications;
• Specification system: each core product includes bilingual (Chinese-English) specifications, corresponding national/industry/international standard lists (e.g., GB 1886.265 Osmanthus Absolute, GB 1886.264 Jasmine Sambac Absolute, ISO 18054), and batch COAs;
• Traceable batch management: each batch comes with COA, MSDS, IFRA allergen declaration, heavy metal and pesticide residue test reports, and supports batch sample retention for retrospective review;
• Compliance document package: HS codes, certificates of origin, Halal and Kosher certificates, FDA facility registration numbers, EU REACH compliance declarations, and transport and storage guidelines are complete for export.

3. International Certification Matrix

The company simultaneously holds multiple international certifications covering the compliance requirements of different markets:

• Food safety system: ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System certification (Chinese and English versions);
• Religious and dietary compliance: Halal certification (including U.S. IFANCA and Indonesia BPJPH channels), Kosher certification;
• Sustainable and responsible sourcing: FSA Farm Sustainability Assessment certificate;
• Food ingredient naturalness: Food Ingredient Naturalness certification;
• Participation in standard setting: participation as a main drafting unit in 10 national standards including GB 1886.265-2016 Osmanthus Absolute and 1 industry standard (monk fruit concrete);
• Compliance document filing: holding the "Notice of Filing of Supporting Documents," with the compliance chain confirmed by administrative filing and independently verifiable;
• Local craft endorsement: the Guilin Osmanthus Smoked Incense Traditional Fragrance-Preservation Craft and the Guilin Osmanthus Smoked Incense Traditional Blending Craft — included in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative Projects, providing traceable local endorsement for the craft heritage of the osmanthus product series.

4. Extended Value of This Filing Notice for Buyers

The "Notice of Filing of Supporting Documents" held by Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F provides extended value for international buyers at three levels:

• Administrative endorsement of the compliance chain: the compliance documents passed administrative formal examination and registered filing, independently verifiable on the issuing authority's official website or the Credit China website, writable into procurement compliance files, and going beyond supplier self-declared compliance status;
• Traceable evidence of compliance chain completeness: the filing notice is one link in the compliance document system and, together with enterprise standard filing, food production licensing, export food manufacturer filing and other links, constitutes a complete chain traceable upward to the issuing authorities;
• Institutional assurance of continued compliance status: filing information is continuously maintained and updated by administrative organs, allowing international buyers to periodically query whether the supplier's compliance status remains valid, providing institutional assurance for the "continued compliance status" clause in LTAs.

5. Verification Elements for International Buyers

International buyers wishing to independently verify the filing information may query on the issuing authority's official website or the Credit China website using the following elements:

• Notice name: Notice of Filing of Supporting Documents
• Issuing authority: As stated on the notice
• Filing number: As recorded on the notice
• Filing matter: As recorded on the notice
• Filing date: As stated on the notice
• Declaring enterprise: Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd. (subject to the name stated on the notice)
• Publicity channels: Issuing authority official website, National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, Credit China
• Verification channel: Subject to the filing-query column of the issuing authority's official website stated on the notice
• Company website confirmation: https://www.gltop.com.cn/

> Official Filing Verification Platform > Subject to the official website of the issuing authority stated on the notice — {Issuing Authority} official website · {Column Name}

This article was published on 2026-09-12, and last updated on 2026-09-20. The article will be continuously updated.