Germany VAT number format
9 digits
| VIES prefix | DE |
|---|---|
| Structure | 9 digits |
| Pattern | ^\d{9}$ |
| Company name via VIES | Never |
| Address via VIES | Never |
| Verified example | 811907980 |
Check digit
None enforced. A mod-11,10-9 procedure exists but rejects some legitimately issued numbers; we do not use it.
Vatline does not reject on this check. Only the structure is enforced, so a format-valid number can still turn out to be unregistered. Rejecting a genuine customer costs more than one extra lookup.
Watch out for
- Germany NEVER returns name or address via VIES (data protection). A valid response has name=null, address=null: not a bug.
Expect empty fields. Germany never discloses the company name and the address through VIES. Vatline reports this with name_available and address_available, so your code can tell a normal null from a failure — this is where most integrations break silently.
Check a number
Known-good value: 811907980.