Check a VAT number before you invoice or pay
Zero-rating a sale to an EU business, or paying a new supplier? Check their VAT number first. One call asks the European Commission's VIES system live, for $0.005.
Add it to Claude or Cursor free (30 seconds) See a live answer first
Why check a VAT number
- Before zero-rating an EU sale: the customer's VAT number should be valid on the day you invoice. Keep a record of the check.
- Before paying a new supplier: a VAT number that doesn't exist, or that belongs to a different company, is a common sign of invoice fraud.
- When onboarding a business customer: confirm the registered name and address match what they told you.
How to check
The EU VAT check ($0.005) takes the number with its country prefix (for example DE811569869 or IE6388047V) and asks VIES live. You get valid or not, and the registered name and address where the member state shares them. Northern Ireland XI numbers are included.
- Include the country prefix. Two letters, then the number, without spaces:
FR,DE,IEand so on. Greece usesEL. - Run the check. From Claude or Cursor (add it in 30 seconds) ask "Is the VAT number IE6388047V valid?", or call the endpoint from code.
- Compare the name. Check that the registered name matches the business on your invoice or contract.
Check more than the VAT number
See UK company lookup for the registered entity behind a website, its LEI and its domain age, and the IBAN check ($0.001) to catch a mistyped IBAN before you pay (it checks the format, not who owns the account).
From code
Pay per call with x402 or send an API key with prepaid credits; see x402 examples.
curl -i "https://aayatai.com/eu/vat?number=IE6388047V"Live example
Live VIES check of an Irish VAT number
Free, no sign-up: a real answer from our own health check for this input. Your own questions cost $0.005 a call, and the first 20 a day are free in Claude or Cursor.
https://aayatai.com/eu/vat?number=IE6388047V Ask your AI assistant
Once it's added, just ask in plain words. For example:
Is the VAT number IE6388047V valid, and who is it registered to?Get a free key and add it All tools and prices
Tools on this page
4 of these 4 are in the free trial (20 calls a day over MCP). Prices come straight from our live price list; failed calls are never charged.
| Tool | What it answers | Price per call |
|---|---|---|
| EU VAT | Check an EU VAT number live against the European Commission's VIES system: valid or not, and the registered company name and address where the member state shares them. | $0.005free to try |
| EU LEI | Look up legal entities in the global LEI register (GLEIF, 2.9M+ companies and funds worldwide): by LEI (with direct and ultimate parent companies), by name, or by national company number. | $0.005free to try |
| Check an IBAN before you pay | Validate an IBAN before you pay: check digits (mod-97), the right length for its country, SEPA membership, and the bank code, branch and account parts (UK: sort code and account number). | $0.001free to try |
| Company profile | Live company profile from its domain: everything in /company/techstack plus domain age and registrar, security headers, likely legal entities in the global LEI register, and UK Companies House matches (when enabled). | $0.03free to try |
Questions people ask
Where does the answer come from?
Live from the European Commission's VIES system, which asks the member state's own VAT database. We don't keep our own copy.
Why is the name or address missing?
Some member states don't share them through VIES, and sole traders' names are withheld as personal data. The valid / not valid answer is still returned.
What if VIES is down?
A member state's service is sometimes unavailable. You get an error and are not charged; try again later.
How much does it cost?
$0.005 per check, charged only when it succeeds. In Claude or Cursor the first 20 calls a day are free, with no sign-up.
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