EU VAT ID Validator

Validates EU VAT/USt-ID numbers using the official European Commission VIES API. Get instant verification with company name and address.

Features

• Validates VAT IDs from all 27 EU countries
• Returns company name and address (if available from VIES)
• Uses the official VIES API (100% accurate, real-time data)
• Handles various input formats (spaces, lowercase)
• Clean JSON output for easy integration

Use Cases

• E-Commerce: Validate VAT IDs at checkout for B2B transactions
• Invoice Processing: Automatically verify VAT numbers before invoicing
• KYC/Compliance: Verify business identities for compliance checks
• Accounting Automation: Enrich your accounting data with verified company info
• CRM Data Enrichment: Add verified company details to your CRM records

Input

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
vatId	string	Yes	EU VAT ID to validate (e.g., "DE123456789")

Supported Formats

All of these work:

• DE123456789 (standard)
• de123456789 (lowercase - auto-converted)
• DE 123 456 789 (with spaces - auto-cleaned)

Output

{
    "valid": true,
    "vatId": "DE123456789",
    "countryCode": "DE",
    "vatNumber": "123456789",
    "companyName": "Example GmbH",
    "companyAddress": "Musterstraße 1, 12345 Berlin",
    "requestDate": "2026-01-24",
    "error": null
}

Output Fields

Field	Type	Description
valid	boolean	Whether the VAT ID is valid
vatId	string	The cleaned VAT ID that was validated
countryCode	string	Two-letter country code (e.g., "DE")
vatNumber	string	The VAT number without country code
companyName	string/null	Company name (if available from VIES)
companyAddress	string/null	Company address (if available from VIES)
requestDate	string	Date of the validation request
error	string/null	Error message if validation failed

Supported Countries

All 27 EU member states:

Code	Country	Code	Country	Code	Country
AT	Austria	FI	Finland	MT	Malta
BE	Belgium	FR	France	NL	Netherlands
BG	Bulgaria	HR	Croatia	PL	Poland
CY	Cyprus	HU	Hungary	PT	Portugal
CZ	Czechia	IE	Ireland	RO	Romania
DE	Germany	IT	Italy	SE	Sweden
DK	Denmark	LT	Lithuania	SI	Slovenia
EE	Estonia	LU	Luxembourg	SK	Slovakia
EL	Greece	LV	Latvia
ES	Spain

Note: Greece uses "EL" (not "GR") as per EU standard.

Example Usage

Via Apify Console

1. Go to the Actor page
2. Enter a VAT ID (e.g., DE123456789)
3. Click "Start"
4. View results in the Dataset tab

Via API

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/YOUR_USERNAME~vat-id-validator/runs" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -d '{"vatId": "DE123456789"}'

Via JavaScript/Node.js

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_API_TOKEN' });

const run = await client.actor('YOUR_USERNAME/vat-id-validator').call({
    vatId: 'DE123456789'
});

const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items[0]);

Via Python

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_API_TOKEN")

run = client.actor("YOUR_USERNAME/vat-id-validator").call(
    run_input={"vatId": "DE123456789"}
)

items = client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).list_items().items
print(items[0])

Error Handling

The Actor handles errors gracefully and always returns a result:

{
    "valid": false,
    "vatId": "XX123456789",
    "countryCode": "XX",
    "vatNumber": "123456789",
    "companyName": null,
    "companyAddress": null,
    "requestDate": "2026-01-24T12:00:00.000Z",
    "error": "Invalid country code: XX. Must be an EU country."
}

Data Source

This Actor uses the official VIES (VAT Information Exchange System) API provided by the European Commission:

• Endpoint: https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/rest-api/check-vat-number
• Documentation: VIES FAQ

The data is real-time and comes directly from EU member states' tax authorities.

Limitations

• Only validates EU VAT IDs (UK VAT IDs are no longer supported since Brexit)
• Company name/address availability depends on what each country shares with VIES
• VIES API may have occasional downtime for maintenance

Support

If you have questions or need help, feel free to open an issue or contact the developer.

Changelog

v1.0.0 (2026-01-24)

• Initial release
• Support for all 27 EU countries
• Clean JSON output with company details