Check an EU VAT number
Look a VAT number up in VIES, the European Commission’s official register, before you invoice a customer in another EU country. Free, and it takes a second.
Enter the number without the country code.
Answers come live from VIES, the European Commission’s official VAT register.
Why this matters when you invoice abroad
Reverse charge needs a valid number
Selling to a VAT registered business in another EU country, you normally invoice without VAT and the buyer accounts for it. That treatment depends on the buyer having a valid EU VAT number.
Check it, and keep the proof
If the number turns out to be invalid, the tax authority can come back to you for the VAT. Checking before you invoice, and noting the date you checked, is your documentation.
The number goes on the invoice
Both your own VAT number and the customer’s belong on a reverse charge invoice, together with a note that the reverse charge applies.
Questions about VAT numbers
What is VIES?
VIES is the European Commission’s VAT Information Exchange System. It asks each member state’s own tax registry whether a VAT number is valid for cross-border trade, so the answer comes from the country itself rather than from a copied list.
What is a Danish VAT number?
In Denmark your VAT number is DK followed by your 8 digit CVR number. So CVR 12345678 becomes DK12345678. Enter just the digits above and pick Denmark.
The number came back invalid. Is the company fake?
Not necessarily. VIES answers one narrow question: is this number registered for intra-EU trade right now. A real, trading company can be registered only domestically and still show as invalid here. Ask the customer to confirm the number before drawing any conclusion.
Do I have to check my customer’s VAT number?
If you invoice without VAT under the reverse charge rules, you need to be able to show the number was valid. Checking it and recording the date is the simple way to document that.
Why is Greece EL and not GR?
For VAT purposes Greece uses the code EL, even though its country code is GR everywhere else. Northern Ireland uses XI since Brexit. Both are handled above.
Is anything stored?
No. The number is passed to the official VIES service to get the answer and is not stored by SEJR.
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