Check an EU VAT number (VIES)
Free tool · VIES checker
Check an EU VAT number (VIES)
Before invoicing without VAT to a company in another European Union country, you need to check that its VAT number is registered for intra-EU transactions. Enter the number, choose the country, and the checker queries VIES in real time, the European Commission system that connects the registers of the 27.
Selling to businesses in other EU countries? EHERO Woo VAT runs this check at your WooCommerce checkout and applies the exemption automatically. Discover EHERO Woo VAT
We don't store the numbers you check.
What the result tells you
Valid
The company is registered for intra-EU transactions in its country. If you sell goods to it from Spain, the supply is VAT-exempt and the company self-assesses the VAT in its own country.
Not valid
The number does not exist or is not enabled for intra-EU transactions. That sale must include VAT as if it were to a private individual.
Service unavailable
That country’s register is not responding at that moment. It does not mean the number is bad: try again later.
Some countries return the company’s name and address and others do not. If they appear, compare them with the order billing details: a valid number for another company is no use to you.
When you have to check it
Every time you are going to sell without VAT to a company in another EU country. The number must be valid on the date of the transaction, so it is advisable to check it at the time of the order and keep proof with the date and time. If the tax authority reviews that invoice, the first thing it will ask is how you knew the customer was a company with a valid VAT number.
In Spain, for your own number to appear as valid in VIES, you must be registered in the Register of Intra-Community Operators (ROI) using form 036. If your European customers tell you that your number “does not appear”, start there.
If it shows “not valid”
Charge the applicable VAT, as you would for a consumer: Spanish VAT or, if you have exceeded the €10,000 distance sales threshold, the customer’s country VAT. Notify the customer: it is often a typing error in the number or a company that has not yet requested intra-EU registration. If they later give you a valid number, you can correct the invoice.
Frequently asked questions
Is a tax ID the same as a VAT number?
No. The tax ID identifies the company in its country; the VAT number is the same number with the country prefix (ES, FR, DE…) and is only valid for intra-EU transactions if the company has registered for them. A correct Spanish tax ID may not be in VIES.
Does it work for UK numbers?
No: VIES covers the 27 European Union countries, and the UK is no longer one of them. British numbers are checked in HMRC’s own service. If you sell to UK businesses, EHERO Woo VAT validates them against HMRC in your own checkout.
Do you store the numbers I check?
No. The number is sent to the corresponding register for the query and is not stored anywhere.
If you sell with WooCommerce, EHERO Woo VAT performs this same check at checkout, removes VAT only when the number is valid, and stores the proof on the order. The table of rates for all countries is in EU VAT rates by country in 2026.
If what you need is to know which rate to charge rather than whether the number is valid, use the EU VAT calculator.