France VAT number check
Check a French VAT ID in VIES. Distinguish the full FR number from a SIREN or SIRET, read the registration response, and keep a dated record.
SIREN, SIRET or French VAT ID?
A French company identifier is not automatically a complete VAT number. Ask the business for its full VAT ID rather than building one from a SIREN or SIRET.
- SIREN
- 9 digitsIdentifies the business. On its own, it is not the full VAT ID.
- SIRET
- 14 digitsThe SIREN plus 5 establishment digits. Do not paste all 14 into a VAT check.
- French VAT ID
- FR + key + SIRENService Public describes FR, a two-digit key and the nine-digit SIREN.
Invented structure example: FR 00 123456789 groups the prefix, key and SIREN for reading only. It is not a verified business or a valid registration. Do not calculate a key from this example.
France trades within and outside the EU
Keep each supplied VAT ID with its registration country when preparing a mixed list.
53.6%Intra-EU
46.4%Extra-EU
Share of total French goods-export value (%), not invoice counts or VAT rates. Intra-EU means destinations in other EU member states; extra-EU means destinations outside the EU. Eurostat / COMEXT, Figure 5, data extracted April 2026; rounded to one decimal place.
These national figures do not describe your supplier list or determine tax treatment. Choose the check from the actual registration supplied, not the business’s postal address: a business outside the EU can still hold an EU VAT ID. A non-EU tax ID alone is outside VIES coverage.
If the supplier sends only a SIRET
- Ask for the full VAT ID. Keep the SIRET as an establishment reference, separate from the VAT field.
- Check the supplied FR number in VIES. A plausible structure does not confirm intra-EU registration.
- Read the actual response. For an invalid result, confirm the number and registration with the business. A timeout leaves the check unresolved; it is not an invalid result. Save the input, date and response.
Sources and scope
Consulted 1 November 2026. French Service Public / DILA: intra-EU VAT number (page verified 3 March 2025) and SIREN and SIRET identifiers. Identification guidance, not an economic dataset.
Eurostat: intra-EU trade in goods and original workbook, Figure 5 (XLSX). Period: 2025; geography: France by intra/extra-EU destination. This is not an EU average or a worldwide series. The article schedules its next update for May 2027.
European Commission / Your Europe: VIES checks and responses. Registration questions belong with the business and its tax authority.
What VIES can return
- Valid: the VAT number is currently confirmed for intra-EU transactions.
- Invalid: VIES did not confirm the number as valid at the time of the check.
- Unavailable: VIES or the national VAT registry did not reply.
Before relying on the result
Match the VAT result with your customer's invoice details and keep your own evidence of the check. A valid VIES response is a useful record, but it is not a substitute for your compliance workflow or advice from a tax professional.
If France is unavailable in VIES, retry later before treating the VAT number as invalid. Member-state registry outages can look like a failed check even when the number itself is fine.