VAT/NIP Verification (VIES)

In the Purchase Invoice and Sales Invoice cards, the action Verify VAT/NIP Number has been added in the Home tab. This action verifies whether the VAT/NIP number of a contractor based in the European Union is an active VAT number. The verification is performed on the European Union – VAT Number Validation (VIES) website.

Both cards also have a VIES Status Code field (in the Invoice Details section), which indicates the status of the last verification.

Examples and Scenarios

Scenario: Verifying a new EU customer's VAT number before issuing an invoice

Need: A salesperson is issuing the first sales invoice for a new customer in Germany. Before applying the 0% VAT rate (intra-community supply), they must confirm that the customer's VAT number is active in the VIES system.

Steps:

  1. Open the Sales Invoice for the German customer.
  2. On the ribbon in the Home tab, click Verify VAT/NIP Number.
  3. The system connects to the VIES database and checks the VAT number.
  4. Check the VIES Status Code field in the Invoice Details section.

Result: If the number is active, the VIES field shows a positive status — the salesperson can issue the invoice with 0% VAT. If the number is inactive, the employee contacts the customer for clarification.

Tip

Also verify VAT numbers on purchase invoices from EU vendors — this ensures proper VAT deduction on intra-community transactions.

Scenario: Periodic verification of contractor VAT status

Need: The accounting department wants to check once a month whether VAT numbers of key EU contractors are still active (e.g., due to risk of bankruptcy or VAT deregistration).

Steps:

  1. Open a purchase or sales invoice for the given contractor.
  2. Run the Verify VAT/NIP Number action.
  3. Check the updated VIES Status Code.

Result: Accounting has current information about contractors' VAT status. If an inactive number is detected, transactions can be suspended pending clarification.