Current VIES status
Query the EU VIES service for the supplied country code and VAT number.
VAT Check API
Validate an EU VAT number against VIES and keep the timestamp and request evidence.
The promise
A current official-source answer you can attach to a business event.
Responses include a check timestamp and explicit boundaries, so your application can distinguish a negative result from an unavailable source or missing identity.
POST /v1/vat/check
{ "country_code": "DE", "vat_number": "123456789" }
{
"valid": true,
"country_code": "DE",
"name": "Example GmbH",
"request_date": "2026-08-11",
"source_status": "available"
}What it checks
Useful signals with explicit boundaries.
Validate EU VAT numbers against VIES and receive the current status, business identity, query time and evidence for your transaction records.
Registered identity
Return the business name and address when the official response provides them.
Verification evidence
Record the request time and source status so the check can be tied to a transaction.
Where it fits
Built for real workflow events.
A VIES result reflects the source at query time. It is not a historical registry, tax opinion or guarantee that a transaction qualifies for a particular VAT treatment.
EU B2B onboarding
Call /v1/vat/check from this workflow and retain the returned evidence with the business event.
Checkout tax workflows
Call /v1/vat/check from this workflow and retain the returned evidence with the business event.
Periodic customer record revalidation
Call /v1/vat/check from this workflow and retain the returned evidence with the business event.
FAQ
VAT Check questions.
Need the request schema or complete response fields? Continue to the API reference.
What happens when VIES is unavailable?
LookTwice returns a 503 source-unavailable response and charges zero credits for the failed upstream request.
Does the response include the company name and address?
It includes those fields when VIES returns them. Some member-state responses may omit or redact identity fields.
Can I use the API as historical proof?
The API stores the query timestamp and evidence for your records, but VIES itself validates the number only at the time of the request.