Guides: VAT numbers and VIES
Practical guides on validating EU VAT numbers, VIES and the reverse charge.
How to check an EU VAT number
How do you validate the VAT number of an EU business customer? Learn how VIES works, what a valid result means, how to keep proof and how to automate checks.
What is VIES?
VIES is the EU's VAT Information Exchange System. Learn how VIES works, what data it returns, what a consultation number is and what its limitations are.
EU B2B reverse charge explained
When do you apply the reverse charge to a business customer in another EU country? Services vs goods, what goes on the invoice, the EC Sales List and why you must validate the VAT number.
VIES down: what now?
VIES returns MS_UNAVAILABLE or doesn't respond? Learn what the VIES error codes mean, how to check status per country and how to make your checkout resilient.
EU VAT number format by country
Overview of the VAT number format in all 27 EU member states and Northern Ireland: country code, number of digits and examples, plus common pitfalls.
Validate VAT numbers in your shop or checkout
How to add EU VAT number validation to your shop, checkout or invoicing: when to check, server-side via an API, handling outages and storing the result.