Why “Active” does not prove an API licence is valid
Guide · API 6D · API 609 · API Composite List
When we checked the API Composite List on 8 Nov 2026, 3 of the 41 API 609 licences held by Wenzhou companies were still shown as Active although their expiry date had passed. Read the expiry date and the scope of the registry entry, match the company to your quotation, and check again before you place the order.
What the registry showed
| Finding | Count | What it means for a buyer |
|---|---|---|
| API 609 licences listed for Wenzhou companies | 41 | Many factories in one cluster: a name on a list is not a shortlist. |
| Shown as Active although the expiry date had passed | 3 | The status flag lags the expiry date. Read the date yourself. |
| Expiring before 8 Feb 2027 | 7 | A licence valid at quotation can lapse before delivery. Ask for the renewal. |
| Still in force on 8 Feb 2027 | 31 | The usable set is smaller than the registry search suggests. |
| API 6D entries with no expiry date in the search export | 57 of 98 | Open each entry; a search result alone does not show the expiry. |
Source: API Composite List. Counts are of registry entries; no company is named here. Updated 9 Nov 2026.
How to verify an API licence in seven steps
- 01Get the number and the legal nameAsk the seller for the manufacturer’s legal company name and its API licence number, for example 6D-xxxx or 609-xxxx. A brand name or a trading company name is not enough.
- 02Search the API Composite ListLook up the licence number in the API Composite List published by the American Petroleum Institute, and open the full entry rather than reading the search result row.
- 03Match the company and the facilityThe company name and facility address in the entry must match the manufacturer in your quotation. A licence covers the licensed facility, not a group company or a trader that resells its valves.
- 04Read the expiry date, not only the statusCompare the expiry date with today and with your delivery date. Withdrawn, cancelled or suspended entries do not count, and an Active flag past the expiry date needs a renewal certificate.
- 05Check the scopeThe scope line lists the specification and the products covered. An API 6D licence for ball valves does not cover gate or check valves; an API 609 entry should cover the butterfly valve category you need.
- 06Treat certificate images as secondaryA certificate copy on a website or in a catalogue can be out of date. We have seen a factory website still showing an API certificate that the registry lists as cancelled years earlier.
- 07Check again before you orderRecord the date of your check. Re-check at purchase order and, for long lead times, before shipment.
What a licence does and does not prove
An API licence means the facility’s quality system has been audited by API and the manufacturer may apply the API Monogram to products within the licensed scope. It is not a test report for your valve. Ask separately for the pressure test record of each serial number, EN 10204 3.1 material certificates and any type-test certificate your specification requires, such as a fire test or a cryogenic test.
Other certificates, such as API 607 fire tests or ISO 15848 emission tests, are issued by third parties and are not in the API Composite List. Ask for the original certificate and check the issuing body, the valve type, size and class it covers.
How we use this check
Every factory on our panel is checked this way, by expiry date, and re-checked every quarter. Your quotation names the manufacturer and its licence number so you can repeat the check yourself.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I verify a Chinese valve manufacturer’s API licence?
- Ask for the manufacturer’s legal name and licence number, look the number up in the API Composite List, and check that the company, facility, scope and expiry date in the entry match your quotation. Do not rely on the status flag or on a certificate image alone.
- Does an Active status in the API registry mean the licence is valid?
- Not on its own. In our check of Wenzhou entries on 8 Nov 2026, 3 API 609 licences were shown as Active after their expiry date. Read the expiry date and ask for a renewal certificate if it has passed.
- Is an API 6D licence the same as API certification of my valve?
- No. The licence covers the manufacturer’s facility and quality system for the licensed scope. Each valve still needs its own test record and material certificates.
- Can a trading company hold an API 6D licence?
- An API licence is issued to the manufacturing facility. A trader or export agent can supply licensed valves, but the licence number it gives you should belong to the factory that makes them.
Standards cited
- API Spec 6D: Pipeline and piping valves: design, manufacture, testing and documentation of ball, gate, plug and check valves.
- API Std 609: Butterfly valves: Category A (concentric) and Category B (double and triple offset) for ASME Class 150 to 600.
- API Std 607: Fire test for quarter-turn valves with non-metallic seats: a type test of the design.
- ISO 15848-1: Fugitive emissions: measurement, test and qualification procedures for valve stem seals, with tightness classes from a type test.
- EN 10204: Types of inspection documents, including the 3.1 and 3.2 certificates.
More buyer guides
- BS 6364 vs ISO 28921
BS 6364 vs ISO 28921-1: what a cryogenic test proves
How BS 6364 and ISO 28921-1 differ: scope, test temperature, helium leak measurement, and type testing versus production testing. - Inspection before shipment
Valve inspection before shipment: the procedure to agree
The inspection sequence for an engineered valve order: ITP, EN 10204 3.1 certificates, NDE, API 598 or API 6D tests, FAT witness, packing and the MDR. - RFQ checklist
Valve RFQ checklist: the data a quotation needs
The 15 fields a valve RFQ needs, from valve type and pressure class to testing, actuation and destination, and why each one changes the quotation.