VIES VAT Number Check: How to Validate EU VAT IDs

Quick answer: A VIES VAT number check confirms whether an EU business's VAT number is valid for cross-border trade. Use the European Commission's free VIES website: select the country, enter the number, and include your own VAT number to get a consultation number as proof. A valid number is required before you apply the reverse charge.

When you sell to a business in another EU country, the VAT treatment usually depends on one thing: whether the customer has a valid VAT number. If they do, you can generally invoice without VAT under the reverse charge or as an exempt intra-Community supply. If they do not, you may owe VAT yourself. This guide explains what VIES is, how to run a check step by step, how to read the results and keep proof, what to do with invalid numbers and what the check means for your invoices. It is general information, not tax advice.

What is VIES?

VIES, the VAT Information Exchange System, is an electronic system run by the European Commission that connects the national VAT registration databases of all EU member states and Northern Ireland (for goods). The public VIES VAT number validation service lets anyone check whether a VAT number is registered for intra-EU transactions.

VIES does not hold the data itself. It sends your query to the relevant national database and returns its answer. That is why the details shown, and the system's availability, vary by country.

Why does a VAT number check matter for invoices?

Under EU VAT rules, two common cross-border transactions depend on the customer being a taxable person with a valid VAT number:

• B2B services: under the general rule, the place of supply is the customer's country, and the customer accounts for VAT under the reverse charge. You invoice without VAT and note that the reverse charge applies.
• B2B goods shipped to another member state: the sale is an exempt intra-Community supply, and the customer declares an intra-Community acquisition.

Since the EU's 2020 "quick fixes," the customer's valid VAT number, communicated to the supplier, and a correct EC Sales List (recapitulative statement) are substantive conditions for the intra-Community supply exemption of goods. If the number is invalid and you invoice without VAT, a tax authority can assess the VAT on you. Our reverse charge invoice guide explains the full rules.

How to run a VIES VAT number check step by step

1. Get the full VAT number from the customer in writing, for example in the purchase order or onboarding form.
2. Open the VIES website on the European Commission's taxation and customs pages.
3. Select the member state from the drop-down list. The two-letter prefix is filled in for you.
4. Enter the number without the country prefix, spaces or punctuation.
5. Enter your own VAT number in the requester fields. This is optional but gives you a consultation number.
6. Submit and read the result: valid or invalid, plus name and address where the country provides them.
7. Save the proof: download or print the result page with the date, time and consultation number.
8. Record the check against the customer record and invoice in your bookkeeping.

What do VIES results mean?

Result	What it means	What to do
Valid, with name and address	The number is active for intra-EU trade and matches a registered business	Compare name and address with your customer; save proof; apply the reverse charge if the other conditions are met
Valid, no name or address	The number is active, but the member state does not share details	Keep other identity evidence, such as a business register extract
Invalid	The number is not registered, not active for cross-border trade, mistyped or cancelled	Do not apply the reverse charge yet; ask the customer to check
Service unavailable or member state unavailable	The national database is offline	Retry later; record the attempt

EU VAT number formats

Each country uses its own format. Checking the format first catches many typing errors before you query VIES. Common examples:

Country	Prefix	Format after prefix
Germany	DE	9 digits
France	FR	2 characters (digits or letters) and 9 digits
Netherlands	NL	9 digits, the letter B, 2 digits
Italy	IT	11 digits
Spain	ES	9 characters, with a letter at the start, end or both
Ireland	IE	8 or 9 characters, including one or two letters
Greece	EL	9 digits
Northern Ireland (goods)	XI	Same digits as the UK VAT number

For UK numbers with the GB prefix, use HMRC's Check a UK VAT number service instead of VIES. For general guidance on showing tax IDs, see tax ID on invoices.

Worked example: checking a new customer before invoicing

A Dutch marketing consultant (VAT number NL123456789B01, illustrative) wins a €4,500 project from a design studio in Lyon. The studio sends its VAT number, FR12345678901.

1. She enters the number in VIES under France, with her own VAT number as the requester.
2. VIES returns "valid" with the studio's name and Lyon address, plus a consultation number. She saves the PDF in the client folder.
3. She issues the invoice without Dutch VAT:

Description	Qty	Rate	Amount
Brand strategy workshop (2 days)	2	€1,200.00	€2,400.00
Campaign plan and messaging guide	1	€2,100.00	€2,100.00
Subtotal			€4,500.00
VAT 0% (reverse charge)			€0.00
Total due			€4,500.00

The invoice shows both VAT numbers and the note "Reverse charge: VAT to be accounted for by the recipient (Article 196, Directive 2006/112/EC)." She includes the sale in her Dutch VAT return and in her EC Sales List for the quarter. Had VIES said invalid, she would have charged Dutch VAT at 21% (€945) until the studio's registration was confirmed.

What should a cross-border B2B invoice include?

• Your VAT number and the customer's VAT number, with country prefixes.
• A reverse charge or exemption note in the wording your country accepts.
• The net amount and a VAT line showing 0% or no VAT.
• A unique sequential invoice number and the date of supply.
• Currency and payment details; for international transfers, see SWIFT code vs IBAN.

Our guide to invoicing international clients covers currency, payment terms and language, and the VAT invoice guide lists general VAT invoice fields. You can build the invoice in our free invoice generator by setting the VAT rate to 0% and adding the reverse charge note.

Common VIES and VAT number mistakes

• Not checking at all and relying on a number in an email signature.
• Checking once and never again, even though registrations can be cancelled.
• Not keeping proof of the check or skipping the consultation number.
• Using GR for Greece or including the prefix twice.
• Applying the reverse charge to consumers who do not have a VAT number.
• Forgetting the EC Sales List, which is a condition for the goods exemption in many cases.
• Using VIES for GB numbers, which it no longer covers.

How to build VAT number checks into your invoicing routine

A check only protects you if it happens consistently. A simple routine for small businesses:

1. At onboarding: ask every new business customer for their VAT number, legal name and address on a short form, and run the VIES check before the first invoice.
2. On the customer record: store the number, date of check and consultation number in your client list or bookkeeping software.
3. Before each large invoice or at least quarterly for repeat customers, run the check again.
4. At the end of each quarter: match your reverse charge invoices with your EC Sales List entries so every customer VAT number on the list has been validated.
5. Keep the evidence with the invoice for as long as your country requires VAT records to be kept; see how long to keep invoices for typical periods.

Businesses with many EU customers can automate the check through the free VIES web service, which most accounting and ERP systems can call. For sales to consumers, VIES is not needed: you charge VAT, often at the customer's country rate once you pass the EU-wide €10,000 threshold, and report it through the One Stop Shop. Current rates are in our EU VAT rates 2026 table.

Beyond VIES: other checks some countries offer

Some member states offer their own verification services alongside VIES. Germany's Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt), for example, provides a qualified confirmation request that checks the name and address as well as the number. These can help when VIES does not return company details. The EU is also moving towards more digital reporting under VAT in the Digital Age, which will make accurate VAT numbers on invoices even more important.

A VIES VAT number check takes a minute and protects you from VAT assessments on cross-border sales. Check every new EU business customer, save the consultation number, recheck regularly, and only then invoice under the reverse charge with both VAT numbers shown. Our invoice generator is free, needs no sign-up and builds a PDF invoice in your browser, with room for both VAT numbers and the reverse charge note.