EU VAT number check
Paste a VAT number. We ask VIES, the EU's official register. Free, no account.
10 free checks per hour. The number is sent to VIES only; Kolibra stores nothing, and your recent checks stay in this browser.
In Kolibra
Every partner's VAT number is checked when you add them and again on every deal, with a timestamped VIES certificate filed on the deal.
What the answer means
VIES gives one of three answers. Only the first lets you invoice an intra-community supply at 0%.
Valid
The number is registered for intra-EU trade today. Keep the result (date, time, consultation number) with the invoice.
Not valid
Unknown, inactive or domestic-only. Ask the customer to confirm the number before invoicing. Do not apply the exemption.
No answer
The country's service is down. It is not a verdict on the number: try again later, before you invoice.
Why the check matters
Since 1 January 2020, your customer's valid VAT number is a condition of the 0% rate on an intra-community supply (Article 138 of the EU VAT Directive), not a formality. If the number turns out to be invalid, the tax authority can charge you the VAT you did not invoice.
Check before the first invoice and again when a deal comes back after a while: registrations get cancelled. Keep the proof of each check with the invoice, next to the transport documents that show the goods left the country.
VAT numbers country by country
The format of each country's number, what VIES returns for it, and whether its service answers right now.
ATAustria · UID-Nummer
- Format
- U + 8 digits
- Shape
- ATU12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
The national part starts with U: ATU12345678.
BEBelgium · BTW / TVA
- Format
- 10 digits, starting 0 or 1
- Shape
- BE0123456789
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
Write the leading 0: BE0123456789. Old 9-digit numbers take a 0 in front.
BGBulgaria · ДДС номер
- Format
- 9 or 10 digits
- Shape
- BG123456789
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
HRCroatia · PDV / OIB
- Format
- 11 digits
- Shape
- HR12345678901
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
CYCyprus · ΦΠΑ
- Format
- 8 digits + 1 letter
- Shape
- CY12345678X
- VIES returns
- Shown in your result
CZCzechia · DIČ
- Format
- 8, 9 or 10 digits
- Shape
- CZ12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
DKDenmark · CVR / SE
- Format
- 8 digits
- Shape
- DK12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
EEEstonia · KMKR
- Format
- 9 digits
- Shape
- EE123456789
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
FIFinland · ALV-numero
- Format
- 8 digits
- Shape
- FI12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
FRFrance · Numéro de TVA
- Format
- 2 characters + 9-digit SIREN
- Shape
- FR12345678901
- VIES returns
- Shown in your result
The two characters after FR are a key calculated from the 9-digit SIREN.
DEGermany · USt-IdNr.
- Format
- 9 digits
- Shape
- DE123456789
- VIES returns
- Validity only
Germany confirms validity only. The name and address are never shown through VIES.
ELGreece · ΑΦΜ
- Format
- 9 digits (prefix EL)
- Shape
- EL123456789
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
Greece is EL in VIES, not GR.
HUHungary · Közösségi adószám
- Format
- 8 digits
- Shape
- HU12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
IEIreland · VAT number
- Format
- 7 digits + 1 or 2 letters
- Shape
- IE1234567FA
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
ITItaly · Partita IVA
- Format
- 11 digits
- Shape
- IT12345678901
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
LVLatvia · PVN
- Format
- 11 digits
- Shape
- LV12345678901
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
LTLithuania · PVM kodas
- Format
- 9 or 12 digits
- Shape
- LT123456789
- VIES returns
- Shown in your result
LULuxembourg · Numéro TVA
- Format
- 8 digits
- Shape
- LU12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
MTMalta · VAT number
- Format
- 8 digits
- Shape
- MT12345678
- VIES returns
- Shown in your result
NLNetherlands · btw-id
- Format
- 9 digits + B + 2 digits
- Shape
- NL123456789B01
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
Ends with B and two digits, usually B01.
PLPoland · NIP
- Format
- 10 digits
- Shape
- PL1234567890
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
PTPortugal · NIF / NIPC
- Format
- 9 digits
- Shape
- PT123456789
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
RORomania · CIF
- Format
- 2 to 10 digits
- Shape
- RO1234567890
- VIES returns
- Shown in your result
SKSlovakia · IČ DPH
- Format
- 10 digits
- Shape
- SK1234567890
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
SISlovenia · DDV
- Format
- 8 digits
- Shape
- SI12345678
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
ESSpain · NIF / CIF
- Format
- 9 characters, first and last can be letters
- Shape
- ESX1234567X
- VIES returns
- Validity; confirms the name and address you enter
Spain does not show the name and address, but confirms the ones you enter.
SESweden · Momsregistreringsnummer
- Format
- 12 digits, ending 01
- Shape
- SE123456789001
- VIES returns
- Validity, name and address
12 digits, always ending in 01.
XINorthern Ireland · VAT number (goods)
- Format
- 9 or 12 digits
- Shape
- XI123456789
- VIES returns
- Shown in your result
Northern Ireland, for trade in goods only. GB numbers are not in VIES.
What VIES returns was measured with public company numbers in November 2026. Countries can change what they share.
Questions
Is this the official EU check?
Yes. The number is sent to VIES, the VAT Information Exchange System run by the European Commission, which asks the tax authority of the country concerned. The answer you see is VIES's answer.
Why is the company name empty for some countries?
Each country decides what it shares through VIES. Germany confirms only whether a number is valid; Spain does not show the name and address but confirms the ones you enter. The country list below shows what each country returns.
What is a consultation number?
A reference VIES issues for each check, proving that this number was checked at this date and time. By default the check is requested by Kolibra OÜ. Add your own EU VAT number and it is issued in your name, which is the stronger proof for your own tax file. Keep it with the invoice.
Can I check a UK VAT number?
Only Northern Ireland numbers for trade in goods (prefix XI). Since 2021, GB numbers are no longer in VIES and are checked with HMRC.
VIES is down. What now?
VIES only relays each country's own register, so when a country is not answering, nothing can confirm its numbers at that moment. The status line under the search field shows which countries answer right now. Try again later, before you invoice at 0%.
My customer says the number is valid, but VIES says it is not. Why?
Common reasons: a typo; a number registered for domestic VAT but not activated for intra-EU trade (in Spain, for example, a company must be entered in the ROI register); a registration so recent it is not in VIES yet; or a number that has been cancelled. Ask the customer to check with their tax office.
How long is a check valid?
A check proves the number was valid at that date and time. Check again before invoicing a customer you have not traded with for a while: registrations get cancelled. Keep the consultation number of each check with the invoice.
Can I have a German name and address confirmed?
Not through VIES: Germany shares neither. Ask the tax administration of your own country to confirm them. German businesses checking a foreign number can use the qualified confirmation of the Bundeszentralamt für Steuern (BZSt).
Do you store the numbers I check?
No. The number goes to VIES and the answer comes back to your screen. Nothing is saved, and no account is needed.