Shell of medium size for the genus, adult size up to 10.1 mm (height of holotype: 9.6 mm); biconical. Suture slightly impressed and whorls slightly shouldered. Protoconch multispiral, consisting of 2.5 smooth whorls. Transition to teleoconch clearly visible. Teleoconch consisting of about 5 whorls, without any spiral or axial sculpture apart from the basal cords, which are clearly present on the last whorl. These cords ventrally range as far as the adapical edge of the columella. Outer lip thickened with a clearly present axial rim, bearing the continuations of the basal cords at the abapical end. Inner lip denticulate, with 9-11 denticles. Columellar callus clearly thickened. Parietal callus very thin, or absent. Columella denticulate, with 4-5 denticles, the abapical ones stronger. Siphonal canal short, open, slightly recurved. Protoconch beige. Teleoconch whorls off-white to beige, often off-white at the adapical side of the whorls and beige at the abapical side. On the body whorl this continues in a beige spiral band. The shell of some specimens shows a band of brown flecks just above the suture and few also show such bands at midwhorl. The shell is slightly translucent. Operculum and radula not studied.

This species is close to the swollen form of Mitrella nympha (Kiener, 1841), formerly called Mitrella venulata (Sowerby, 1844). Yet, Mitrella chinoi sp. nov. can easily be distinguished from this species by its more swollen apex, its denticles on the columella (smooth in M. nympha), the lower number of teleoconch whorls (6.5 -7 in M. nympha) and the different colour pattern (M. nympha has many morphs, mostly a brownish orange or white base colour, and a pattern of brown spots and/or thiny brown lines). The clearly denticulate columella is a feature also present in Mitrella moleculina (Duclos, 1840). The new species stands out from M. moleculina by its bigger size, its different protoconch, the opener canal and the completely different colour pattern (M. molecula has a typical pattern of white spots on a brownish orange background with a dark brown spiral band just below the suture).
Mitrella chinoi is most often labelled Sulcomitrella circumstriata (Schepman, 1911), a sympatric species. Sulcomitrella circumstriata is easily distinguishable by its spiral grooves, a feature typical of Sulcomitrella Kuroda, Habe & Oyama, 1971 and lacking in Mitrella chinoi. Therefore the new species should not be placed in Sulcomitrella but in Mitrella. It is closest to the Mitrella moleculina -group. Mitrella semiconvexa (Lamarck, 1822), a species only occurring in the Australian Province and belonging to the subgenus Dentimitrella Ludbrook, 1958, can immediately be distinguished by its much bigger size, different shell shape and completely different colour pattern. Poppe & Tagaro (2011) figured this species as Mitrella albofulvata Drivas & Jay, 1990, a species only known from Reunion and Mauritius. After studying the original description of Drivas & Jay (1990) and the holotype in the MNHN we come to the following conclusion: M. albofulvata is of the same size and has an equal number of teleoconch whorls and the same number of columellar teeth, but clearly differs in the presence of a subsutural spiral groove, a deep suture, only 2 protoconch whorls , 14 lirae inside the aperture and a completely different colour pattern. All these differences make clear that we are dealing with two separate species. Mitrella albofulvata remains only known from Mauritius and Reunion, and is most probably endemic to this region.

Distribution: Until now only known from Cebu Strait in the central Philippines. Type locality: Philippines, Bohol, Balicasag Island, 50-150 m deep.