Freezing Bank Accounts in China Litigation

Banks freeze on a court notice — they do not freeze on a PDF from foreign counsel.

Account preservation is the most used commercial lock. You apply to the court with a claim, security, and as specific an account lead as you can (bank, branch, number, or at least the company’s open-account bank). The court issues an assist-execution notice to the bank. Joint accounts and payroll accounts create overbreadth fights. Investigating where the account is sits in batch-2 asset investigation. Do not call the bank ‘as the lawyer’ and expect a freeze.

The classification screen

4 questions before you choose the route.

This page identifies the right question and evidence. It does not determine the legal outcome on a reader’s facts.

Do you have an account lead?

Number or at least the bank.

Lead

Case or pre-suit?

Clock to file.

When

Security amount?

Often tied to the freeze.

Security

Payroll/third-party funds?

Overbreadth.

Scope

Working rule: Account preservation is the most used commercial lock. You apply to the court with a claim, security, and as specific an account lead as you can (bank, branch, number, or at least the company’s open-account bank).

What changes the answer

The signal ledger.

These facts move the question beyond a label and into a product, money-flow and control analysis.

Signal

Ask the operating question

Why it changes the route

Letter to the bank

Foreign firm letterhead.

Ignored.

Guess every Big Four bank

Spray-and-pray.

Court may refuse.

Freeze the LR’s personal card

Without a veil-pierce theory.

Wrong target.

Prepare before you escalate

Bring a compact evidence docket—not a pitch deck.

Give a compliance team or counsel the operating facts that reveal the perimeter.

01Account cluesInvoices, SWIFT, WeChat payee.

02Claim documentsContract, invoices.

03Security instrumentReady to lodge.

Common confusions

Questions people ask before they build.

Short answers for orientation. The right result can change with the service model and current rules.

Can I freeze Alipay/WeChat Pay?

Sometimes, with a court notice to the platform. Treat it as a lead plus preservation, not a self-help PIN.

How long does a freeze last?

The order states a period; renewal practice exists. Confirm the current order.

Primary authorities

Reviewed sources support orientation, not a fact-specific assessment.

PRC Civil Procedure Law (NPC)

Supreme People’s Court

Gov.cn

National laws database (NPC)