What is double filing?

Dual filing refers to ICP filing and public security filing. ICP filing is required by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, while public security filing is mandated by the Ministry of Public Security. These two filings correspond to different government departments. If your website's server is located in mainland China, both filings are mandatory. Many small and micro enterprise owners are aware only of ICP filing and are unaware of the public security filing requirement.

Why are both registrations required? ICP filing governs "whether the site can go live"—without it, your hosting provider will cut off access and the site becomes unreachable. Public Security filing governs "legal compliance after going live"—you must register with the public security authorities within 30 days of launch. Recent inspections have become stricter, especially for sites offering commercial services; failing to file carries significant risk of being flagged or penalized. Both filings are essential—you cannot skip either one.