Description
Tax compliance is a full-time job. It shouldn’t be yours. VAT IT Tax Engine connects your WooCommerce store to the VAT IT compliance platform: every order gets the right tax at checkout, calculated in real time from the customer’s actual address.
Best for merchants selling into the US and internationally who want managed tax compliance from a global provider, not just a rate lookup.
A VAT IT account is required before you connect. Contact our team to get set up; once your account is ready, connecting your store takes minutes.
What’s included
- Real-time tax calculation. The right sales tax and VAT for every transaction, across jurisdictions, so your customers see accurate totals at checkout. US rates are resolved from the full address, down to state, county, city, and district level.
- B2B handling. Customer VAT numbers are picked up from your checkout and included in the calculation for correct business-customer treatment.
- Zero-friction setup. Connect through WooCommerce’s own secure authorization screen in one click. No API keys to copy and paste, and your checkout experience stays exactly the same.
- Your rules, your scope. US Addresses Only mode lets the engine handle US sales tax while your own WooCommerce settings apply elsewhere. Sandbox Mode lets you test everything against a sandbox account before going live.
- Safe rollout with Test Mode. List a few test customers and only they get engine-calculated tax, recorded as estimates rather than invoices. Every other customer checks out exactly as before, and order reporting is paused. Untick one box to go live for everyone.
Built for WooCommerce
No generic middleware. The plugin lives inside WooCommerce, works with both the block-based and classic checkout, and handles items, shipping, coupons, and whole-order discounts exactly as WooCommerce allocates them. Until you connect, it touches nothing; if you disconnect, it cleans up after itself and your store returns to its previous tax setup.
Backed by a compliance provider, not just software
VAT IT is a global tax compliance group serving businesses in over 100 countries. The Tax Engine is the same platform our compliance teams work with, which means the numbers at your checkout and the numbers in your filings come from one source.
How it works
- Contact VAT IT to set up your account. Our team configures your tax profile for the jurisdictions you sell into.
- Install the plugin and click Connect to VAT IT. You approve the connection on a standard WooCommerce authorization screen.
- At checkout, the plugin sends the cart and customer address to the VAT IT Tax Engine and applies the returned tax to the order.
Requirements
- WooCommerce (installed and active)
- A VAT IT account, set up with our team before you connect. Contact us.
External Services
This plugin connects to the VAT IT tax compliance platform (vatcompliance.com). It will not function without this connection.
- What it is used for: authorizing your store, calculating tax at checkout, and receiving orders as they are placed, for tax compliance reporting.
- What data is sent and when: your store URL and store name when you connect. At checkout, the customer’s billing/shipping address, name, email, VAT/tax number (if provided), and cart line items (products, quantities, prices) are sent to calculate tax. When an order is created, the order details are delivered to the platform via a WooCommerce webhook, signed with a per-store secret. No data is sent before you connect your store.
Terms of service and privacy policy: https://vatit.com/
Installation
- Contact VAT IT to set up your account first. Connecting requires a configured account.
- Install and activate WooCommerce.
- Install this plugin (search “VAT IT Tax Engine” in Plugins Add New, or upload the ZIP), then activate it.
- Open the VAT IT menu in your admin sidebar.
- Enter your Store Name, save, and click Connect to VAT IT.
- Approve the access request on the WooCommerce authorization screen.
- Done. Tax at checkout is now calculated by the VAT IT Tax Engine.
FAQ
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Do I need a VAT IT account?
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Yes, and it must be set up before you connect your store. The plugin is the connector; the VAT IT platform performs the calculation and compliance reporting. Contact our team to get started. Sandbox accounts are available for testing.
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How long does setup take?
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Once our team has set up your VAT IT account, connecting your store takes minutes: install the plugin, enter your store name, and click Connect to VAT IT. The connection is approved on a standard WooCommerce authorization screen. Account setup itself starts with a conversation with our team about the jurisdictions you sell into.
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What happens if I install the plugin without an account?
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Nothing. The plugin stays inactive and your store’s existing tax settings continue to apply until you connect a configured VAT IT account. Please don’t connect before our team has set up your account.
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Which countries and jurisdictions are supported?
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US sales tax is calculated at full address level (state, county, city, and district rates). International VAT coverage comes from the VAT IT platform. Speak to our team about the jurisdictions you sell into.
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Will it interfere with my store before I connect?
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No. Until you click Connect, the plugin does nothing: no data is sent anywhere and your existing tax settings are untouched. Disconnecting restores your store to its previous state.
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Does this work with the block-based (Gutenberg) checkout?
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Yes. Tax is calculated, displayed, and recorded on orders for both the block-based checkout and the classic (shortcode) checkout.
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How are discounts and coupons handled?
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Exactly as WooCommerce applies them. Whole-order coupons are allocated across line items by WooCommerce itself, and tax is calculated on what the customer actually pays. Coupon codes are included in the transaction record.
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How do I test on my live store before rolling out to all customers?
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Enable Test Mode in the settings and list your test customers’ email addresses. Only those customers get engine-calculated tax at checkout, recorded on the platform as estimates rather than invoices. All other customers check out exactly as if the plugin were not active, and no orders are reported while Test Mode is on. When you’re satisfied, untick Test Mode and the engine goes live for everyone.
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Can I use it for US sales tax only?
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Yes. Enable US Addresses Only in the settings. The engine then calculates tax only for orders shipping to the United States, and your own WooCommerce tax settings continue to apply for other destinations.
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Are customer VAT numbers supported?
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Yes. If your store collects VAT numbers (via popular VAT-number field plugins), the number is included in the calculation for correct B2B treatment. Developers can map custom fields with the
vatit_customer_tax_numberfilter. -
At checkout: the customer’s address, name, email, VAT number (if provided), and cart contents. That is what’s needed to calculate tax correctly. Orders are reported for compliance. Full details in the External Services section.
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How do I disconnect my store?
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Go to VAT IT Settings and click Disconnect. This revokes the connection token and removes the plugin’s webhook and placeholder tax rate.
Reviews
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Contributors & Developers
“VAT IT Tax Engine” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin.
Contributors
Translate “VAT IT Tax Engine” into your language.
Interested in development?
Browse the code, check out the SVN repository, or subscribe to the development log by RSS.
Changelog
1.1.4
- Declared compatibility with WooCommerce High-Performance Order Storage (HPOS) and the block-based cart/checkout.
- Minimum WordPress version raised to 6.5 so the WooCommerce requirement is enforced on activation.
1.1.3
- New Test Mode: list test customer emails and only they get engine-calculated tax, recorded as estimates (never invoices). All other customers check out untouched, and order reporting is paused until Test Mode is turned off.
1.1.2
- New “US Addresses Only” setting: when enabled, the engine calculates tax only for orders shipping to the United States; other destinations use WooCommerce’s own tax settings.
- VAT/tax numbers entered in a checkout field (added by VAT-number plugins) are now detected on first entry, not just from saved customer profiles.
1.1.1
- Fixed: shipping cost is now always included in the tax calculation request, so the checkout total matches the final order total. Previously the displayed tax could omit shipping tax that was then correctly charged on the order.
- The customer’s VAT/tax number (from common VAT-number plugins) is now included in the tax calculation when available; the vatit_customer_tax_number filter allows mapping custom fields.
- Webhooks created by older versions are renamed to “VAT IT Tax Engine Orders”.
1.1.0
- Internal identifiers renamed from the ck_ prefix to vatit_ (WordPress.org guideline compliance). Existing settings and connections are migrated automatically. No action needed.
- Uninstalling the plugin now removes all stored settings, the placeholder tax rate, and the plugin’s webhooks.
- Error logging is now opt-in only (silent on production sites by default).
1.0.4
- New Sandbox Mode setting: connect to the VAT IT sandbox environment with a sandbox account for testing. The environment is locked while connected; disconnect to switch.
- The plugin now targets the production VAT IT environment by default.
1.0.3
- The remaining webhook’s delivery URL is now migrated to the current integration API domain during upgrade.
1.0.2
- Duplicate webhooks are now also cleaned up automatically after a plugin update, keeping only the most recent registration.
- Webhook delivery and tax calculation now use the vatcompliance.com integration API domain.
1.0.1
- Duplicate webhooks from reinstalls/reconnects are now cleaned up automatically. Only the latest registration is kept.
- Webhook and placeholder tax rate are removed on disconnect.
- Removed the Sync and Job History admin pages.
1.0.0
- Initial release: OAuth connection flow, real-time tax calculation at checkout, order webhook reporting.