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EU VAT number check

Check an EU VAT number in VIES and see whether it is valid now, with the registered name and address where the country gives them. Or check a whole list.

With or without the country prefix, such as DE136695976 or ATU13585627. Spaces, dots and dashes are fine.

With it, VIES gives a consultation number you can keep as proof of the check. It goes to VIES with the check and is not kept.

Enter a VAT number and Klarbon asks the European Commission's VIES service whether it is valid now. You see the answer, the time VIES gave it and, where the member state provides them, the registered name and address. Typing errors are caught on your device first, so a wrong digit never costs a check. You can also check a whole list at once.

How do I check a VAT number?

  1. Enter the number as you have it, with or without the country prefix, spaces or dots. A number without its prefix takes the country you choose.
  2. Add your own VAT number if you want a consultation number, the proof that you checked.
  3. Read the answer. Valid, not valid, or no answer from the member state. Save a dated record if you need one for your files.

What can the answer be?

Answer Meaning
Valid The member state's database records the number as valid now. The name and address appear where that country gives them; Germany and Spain, for example, do not.
Not valid The database does not record the number as valid for trade with other EU countries. Ask your customer to confirm it. Some member states record a number in VIES only once the business has registered for intra-EU trade.
No answer The member state's service or VIES did not answer. Nothing is concluded, and the check is not counted.
Not a VAT number The format or the check digits are wrong, found on your device. Nothing was sent.

Every answer reflects the database at the moment you asked. VIES cannot confirm a number for a date in the past, only for today.

What is checked on my device?

The format of each member state's VAT number, as the Commission's table of structures gives it, and the check digits where the country publishes its own rule: Belgium, Croatia, Italy, Portugal, and Spain for personal tax numbers. Klarbon also cleans up what people paste: spaces, dots, dashes, a missing or doubled prefix, and GR for Greece.

What does VIES confirm, and what does it not?

VIES confirms that a VAT number was valid when you asked, as the member state recorded it. It does not confirm that the name or address on an invoice is right, and it is not tax advice. For German tax purposes, the qualified confirmation of a foreign VAT number with name and address comes from the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt), not from Klarbon or VIES.

How do I check a list of VAT numbers?

Choose A list and paste up to 500 numbers, one per line, or pick a CSV or Excel (XLSX) file. Klarbon reads the file on your device and finds the column with the numbers. Only the numbers are sent, 25 at a time. The answers appear in a table and download as CSV or Excel, your rows with the answer added.

Is my customer on Peppol too?

For each valid number, Is this customer on Peppol? opens the Peppol lookup with the number filled in, so you can see whether they can receive e-invoices. When you check an e-invoice, the button under the verdict checks the seller's and buyer's VAT numbers in VIES, sending only the numbers, never the file.

What happens to the numbers?

They go to Klarbon's servers, which ask VIES, and VIES asks the member state's tax administration. The numbers are not kept: no log, no record of which numbers were checked. Only a count of checks is stored for the daily limit. See what happens to your files.

Frequently asked questions

What is VIES?

The VAT Information Exchange System of the European Commission. It does not hold the numbers itself; it passes each check to the tax administration of the member state that issued the number and returns that database's answer. Northern Ireland's numbers are in it too.

Why does a valid number show as "no answer"?

Because the member state's own service did not answer VIES, or VIES was busy. National services are often down for maintenance at night and at weekends. "No answer" says nothing about the number, and Klarbon never shows it as not valid. Try again later; the check is not counted.

What is a consultation number?

When you enter your own VAT number, VIES gives each answer a consultation number. It shows that you checked that customer's number at that moment, which is useful in your records for intra-EU supplies. Save the dated record to keep it with the answer.

Which prefix do Greece and Northern Ireland use?

Greek VAT numbers start with EL, not GR; Klarbon reads GR as EL. Northern Ireland's numbers start with XI. Other UK VAT numbers have not been in VIES since 2021, so check those with HMRC.

Is a German Steuernummer a VAT number?

No. A German VAT number (USt-IdNr.) is DE followed by nine digits. The Steuernummer is a different, national number; Klarbon recognises it and says so instead of asking VIES.

What does Klarbon keep?

Nothing about the numbers. They go to VIES for the check, and the answer comes back to your screen. Klarbon logs no number and keeps no record of what you checked, only a count for the daily limit. A list file never leaves your device.

Is the check free?

Yes. You can check 100 numbers a day in VIES without an account and 500 a day signed in. Numbers that fail the format check, or get no answer from VIES, are not counted.

Sources

Updated 8 November 2026