Is an EORI Number the Same as a VAT Number?

No, an EORI number is not the same as a VAT number, even though in most EU countries one is built from the other. An EORI (Economic Operators Registration and Identification) number identifies your business to customs authorities when physical goods cross a border. A VAT (Value Added Tax) number identifies your business to tax authorities for collecting and remitting consumption tax. Different systems, different purposes, and often the same business needs both.

What Each Number Actually Does

An EORI number is a customs identifier. Every customs operation in the EU customs territory requires one, whether you’re filing an import declaration, an export declaration, or a transit document. The format is a two-letter country code followed by up to 15 alphanumeric characters. A business or person can hold only one valid EORI at a time, and that single number works across all EU member states.¹ The key word is goods. If nothing physical crosses a customs border, the customs authority has no reason to know you exist.

A VAT number is a tax identifier. Businesses that supply taxable goods or services, make cross-border EU acquisitions, or receive services where they’re liable for the VAT must register and get one.² Like EORI numbers, VAT numbers open with a two-letter country code, but the format after that varies significantly by country. Germany uses nine digits after the DE prefix. France uses two characters plus nine digits. Romania can run anywhere from two to ten digits.³ The number appears on invoices and lets trading partners verify your tax status before applying zero-rated treatment to cross-border sales inside the EU.

Why the Two Numbers Look So Similar

In most EU countries, a business’s EORI is built directly from its VAT number. The customs authority takes the country code, appends the VAT registration number, and that becomes the EORI. So a French business with VAT number FR12345678901 will typically receive EORI number FR12345678901. Same digits, different registrations.

The UK makes the pattern especially visible. A GB EORI number has 12 digits after the GB prefix, and if the business is VAT-registered, the first nine of those digits are the VAT number, padded with three zeros. A business with VAT number 123456789 receives EORI number GB123456789000.⁴ Germany is a notable exception: German EORI numbers are based on the customs number rather than the VAT number.

Despite the overlap in digits, the two remain legally separate registrations. Having a VAT number does not automatically give you an EORI, and you don’t need to be VAT-registered to get one.⁴ A small importer sitting below the VAT threshold still needs an EORI. A VAT-registered consultancy that never ships a physical product across a border has no use for one.

Which One You Need

The two purposes give three practical situations.

EORI Only

You need an EORI whenever physical goods cross a customs border: import declarations, export declarations, entry and exit summary declarations, temporary storage declarations.¹ A business bringing in raw materials but still under the VAT threshold sits here.

VAT Only

If your business sells only digital products or services and never ships physical goods across an international border, you’ll typically need a VAT number but no EORI. Software subscriptions, digital downloads, consulting. Nothing crosses a customs checkpoint, so customs has no reason to identify you.⁵

Both

Most businesses in physical cross-border trade need both. The VAT number goes on tax invoices and returns; the EORI goes on customs declarations. One number does not substitute for the other. Import VAT is typically due at the border, and clearing your goods with an EORI does not on its own get that VAT recovered. You’ll need the VAT registration to do that through your returns.

UK Businesses After Brexit

Before Brexit, a UK EORI worked for customs operations throughout the entire EU. Since January 1, 2021, the two systems operate independently, and a GB-prefix EORI is no longer valid for EU customs procedures.

A UK business that handles its own customs clearance in the EU now needs two EORI numbers: a GB EORI for UK customs and a separate EU EORI issued by a member state. The EU EORI comes from the customs authority of the member state where the business first carries out a customs operation.¹ If you only export from the UK and your buyer or freight forwarder handles EU-side clearance, the GB EORI alone may be enough.

Northern Ireland is a further wrinkle. Under the Windsor Framework, businesses moving goods involving Northern Ireland often need an XI-prefix EORI. This applies to shipments from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, from Northern Ireland to non-EU countries, and for any customs declaration made in Northern Ireland.⁶ A business that already holds an EU EORI does not need an additional XI number.

Checking a Trading Partner’s Numbers

Because the two identifiers live in separate systems, you validate them through separate tools, both free and both official. The VAT Information Exchange System (VIES) confirms whether a VAT number is valid and currently active.⁷ Applying zero-rate VAT treatment to an intra-EU sale requires a valid VAT number from the buyer, so this check is worth doing before the invoice goes out. For EORI numbers, the European Commission hosts a separate validation tool on its Taxation and Customs Union site that confirms validity and displays the registered business name and address. Running both checks before a first shipment takes minutes and heads off rejected declarations and questioned zero-rate treatment later.

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Taxation and Customs Union. Economic Operators Registration and Identification Number (EORI)
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Taxation and Customs Union. VAT Identification Numbers
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vero.fi. VAT Numbers Issued by Different EU Countries
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GOV.UK. Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) – Introduction
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European Commission. EORI Number – Access2Markets
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GOV.UK. Get an EORI Number – If You Move Goods to or from Northern Ireland
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European Commission. VIES VAT Number Validation