# EU VAT Validator - VIES Check & Company Data (`scrapesage/eu-vat-vies-validator`) Actor

Bulk-validate EU VAT numbers against the official VIES service (all 27 member states + Northern Ireland): valid/invalid status plus the registered company name and address where the country shares them. Local format pre-check, member-state availability, no API key.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/scrapesage/eu-vat-vies-validator.md
- **Developed by:** [Scrape Sage](https://apify.com/scrapesage) (community)
- **Categories:** Agents, Integrations, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $1.10 / 1,000 vat validateds

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## EU VAT Validator - VIES Check & Company Data

Bulk-validate **EU VAT numbers** against the **official VIES service** (European Commission) across all
**27 member states + Northern Ireland**, and get back the registered **company name and address** where
the country shares them. Paste a few or import thousands. No API key, no browser.

### What you get per VAT number

| Field | Meaning |
|---|---|
| `vat` / `country` / `vatNumber` | The normalized VAT, its country code and the number without prefix |
| `status` | `valid`, `invalid`, `malformed` or `unavailable` (member state offline) |
| `isValid` | Boolean - VIES confirmed the number is registered |
| `name` / `address` | Registered company name and address (where the member state publishes them) |
| `formatValid` | Did it match the country's VAT pattern (a local pre-check) |
| `memberStateAvailable` | Was that country's VIES node online this run |
| `userError` | VIES note (`VALID`, `INVALID`, `MS_UNAVAILABLE`...) |

### Input

```json
{ "vatNumbers": ["BE0417497106", "IE6388047V", "DE811907980"], "onlyValid": true }
```

- **VAT numbers** - one per line, with the country prefix (spaces/dots ignored). Or set a **default
  country** for un-prefixed numbers.
- **Import from a file** - paste a list, or link a public `.txt`/`.csv`, a Google Sheet/Drive link, or an
  Apify key-value-store record.
- **Only valid** - keep confirmed-valid rows only. **Output fields** - trim to the columns you need.

Leave everything empty and the run returns a small free sample so you can see the shape first.

### Reliability

Reads the official [VIES REST API](https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/) - keyless, no anti-bot.
A **local format pre-check** rejects obviously-malformed numbers without calling VIES (so they cost
nothing), and the actor reads VIES's own **per-country availability** each run. Malformed input, empty
runs and filtered rows all bill **$0**.

### Honest limits

- **Some member states do not return company name/address** even for a valid VAT (Germany and Spain
  withhold them by policy) - you still get the definitive valid/invalid result, with `name`/`address`
  null. That is the country's choice, not a scraping gap.
- **`status: "unavailable"` means that country's VIES node was temporarily offline** (VIES proxies to
  each national system). Re-run those numbers later - they are billed like any other row because a
  call was made, but the row tells you to retry. (Germany was offline at build time, for example.)
- **This validates EU VAT via VIES only** - it is not a UK VAT (HMRC) or a non-EU tax-ID checker.

### Pricing

**$0.002 per VAT number** on the FREE tier (tiered pricing lowers it with volume). Only saved rows are
billed; malformed numbers and empty runs cost nothing.

### Output views

- **VAT results** - VAT, status, validity, company name, address, country.

### Use with AI assistants (MCP)

Available through the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp) - an agent
can verify a customer's VAT before invoicing, enrich a lead list with company names, or batch-check
suppliers for tax compliance in one call.

### Agent-ready: autonomous payments (x402 & Skyfire)

This actor is **agent-ready** - AI agents can discover it, run it, and **pay for it autonomously**, with no Apify account and no human in the loop. It uses [pay-per-event](https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/publishing/monetize/pay-per-event) pricing and [limited permissions](https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/development/permissions), so it qualifies for Apify's agentic-payment standards:

- **[x402](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/x402)** - an open, HTTP-native payment protocol. Agents pay per run in USDC on the Base network directly through the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp) - no account, no API key.
- **[Skyfire](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/skyfire)** - agent-to-service payments for fully autonomous AI-agent workflows.

Building an AI agent, MCP tool, or autonomous data pipeline? This scraper is ready to plug in and pay as it goes.

# Actor input Schema

## `vatNumbers` (type: `array`):

EU VAT numbers to validate, one per line, with the country prefix - e.g. <code>BE0417497106</code>, <code>DE811907980</code>. Punctuation and spaces are ignored. <b>Leave empty and the run returns a small free sample.</b>

## `vatNumbersFromFile` (type: `string`):

Bulk-load VAT numbers. Either <b>paste the whole list</b> (one per line), or give <b>a single link</b> to a public <code>.txt</code>/<code>.csv</code>, a Google Sheet/Drive link, or an Apify key-value-store record. A file that cannot be read says so and charges nothing.

## `defaultCountry` (type: `string`):

If a VAT number has no country prefix, treat it as this country. Leave empty to require a prefix on every number.

## `onlyValid` (type: `boolean`):

Emit a row only for VAT numbers that VIES confirms as valid. Turn off to get a row for every input (valid, invalid, malformed and unavailable).

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Overall cap on saved results. You are only charged for results actually saved.

## `outputFields` (type: `array`):

Pick the fields you want and every record is trimmed to exactly those - handy for lean CSV/Sheets exports.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "vatNumbers": [
    "BE0417497106",
    "IE6388047V",
    "LU26375245"
  ],
  "onlyValid": false,
  "maxItems": 10000
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

Each VAT validation result - status, validity, company name and address - as a JSON item in the default dataset.

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "vatNumbers": [
        "BE0417497106",
        "IE6388047V",
        "LU26375245"
    ],
    "vatNumbersFromFile": ""
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("scrapesage/eu-vat-vies-validator").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "vatNumbers": [
        "BE0417497106",
        "IE6388047V",
        "LU26375245",
    ],
    "vatNumbersFromFile": "",
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("scrapesage/eu-vat-vies-validator").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "vatNumbers": [
    "BE0417497106",
    "IE6388047V",
    "LU26375245"
  ],
  "vatNumbersFromFile": ""
}' |
apify call scrapesage/eu-vat-vies-validator --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,scrapesage/eu-vat-vies-validator"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/lQqgb5Ar7EFtqkCWL/builds/GL83df39TK8k6Zsyd/openapi.json