Title: Gatemi EU VAT Number Author: gatemi Published: September 13, 2026 Last modified: September 13, 2026 --- Search plugins ![](https://ps.w.org/gatemi-eu-vat-number/assets/banner-772x250.png?rev=3693497) ![](https://ps.w.org/gatemi-eu-vat-number/assets/icon-256x256.png?rev=3693497) # Gatemi EU VAT Number By [gatemi](https://profiles.wordpress.org/gatemi/) [Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/gatemi-eu-vat-number.1.0.0.zip) * [Details](https://wordpress.org/plugins/gatemi-eu-vat-number/#description) * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/gatemi-eu-vat-number/#reviews) * [Development](https://wordpress.org/plugins/gatemi-eu-vat-number/#developers) [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/gatemi-eu-vat-number/) ## Description A VAT number box in your checkout’s billing section, validated against the European Commission’s own VIES service, and the tax taken off for business customers in other member states. **A valid VAT number is not by itself an exemption**, and that is the thing plugins in this category get wrong. Reverse charge applies when the customer is a business** in another member state**, so all four of these have to hold before a penny comes off: 1. The number was actually checked and found **valid** — not merely typed. 2. Its country prefix **matches the billing country**. A German customer cannot claim an exemption with a French number. 3. The customer is **not in your own country**. Domestic business sales are still taxed everywhere reverse charge exists. 4. You have not switched the whole thing off. **An unreachable VIES is not a yes.** The service is down often, and on those afternoons the difference between charging tax you can refund later and giving away tax you will still owe is one decision. This plugin fails closed. **What is recorded is evidence, not an opinion.** The order keeps the number as it was checked, the verdict VIES gave, the moment it gave it, the name and address the service returned, and whether the tax actually came off. **The tax comes off through WooCommerce’s own exemption**, which is the seam the classic cart, the block cart, the Store API and every total read through. There is no tax rate this plugin has to know about, and no surface it has to be told about. #### What you get * A VAT number field in the checkout’s billing section, optional or required, called whatever you want to call it * Live validation against VIES, with the answer remembered for the checkout rather than asked again on every keystroke, and a timeout you choose * Reverse charge applied under all four rules above * The evidence recorded on the order * Everything that was checked, on the order screen — the number, the verdict, the moment, the name and address VIES returned, and whether the tax came off * Your own wording for the message shown when VIES cannot be reached * No database tables and no storefront JavaScript #### The full edition [Gatemi VAT Number for WooCommerce](https://gatemi.com/plugins/vat-number-for-woocommerce/) is a separate plugin, sold on gatemi.com, that sends your own VAT number to VIES as the requester — which is what makes the service return a consultation number with every check — and adds a test lookup that asks VIES for real from the settings screen. Both editions store their settings the same way and write the same order meta, so upgrading keeps everything. ### External services This plugin relies on one external service and contacts nothing else — in particular, it never contacts gatemi.com. **VIES (the VAT Information Exchange System)**, operated by the European Commission, is what a VAT number is checked against. Your server posts to https://ec.europa. eu/taxation_customs/vies/rest-api/check-vat-number. _What is sent, and when:_ one request each time a customer types a VAT number at your checkout, carrying that number and its country prefix — and nothing else. No name, address, email address, order or total is sent, and no request is made at all unless a number has been typed. Nothing is sent from a visitor’s browser; the request is made by your site. Service: [https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/](https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/) Terms of use: [https://commission.europa.eu/legal-notice_en](https://commission.europa.eu/legal-notice_en) Privacy policy: [https://commission.europa.eu/privacy-policy-websites-managed-european-commission_en](https://commission.europa.eu/privacy-policy-websites-managed-european-commission_en) ## Screenshots [⌊The VAT number field in the checkout's billing section — before a number is given, VAT is charged as normal.⌉⌊The VAT number field in the checkout's billing section— before a number is given, VAT is charged as normal.⌉[ The VAT number field in the checkout’s billing section — before a number is given, VAT is charged as normal. [⌊Reverse charge applied: the number checked against VIES, and the VAT removed from the same order.⌉⌊Reverse charge applied: the number checked against VIES, and the VAT removed from the same order.⌉[ Reverse charge applied: the number checked against VIES, and the VAT removed from the same order. [⌊What was checked, on the order — the number, the verdict, the moment, the name VIES returned, and whether the tax came off.⌉⌊What was checked, on the order — the number, the verdict, the moment, the name VIES returned, and whether the tax came off.⌉[ What was checked, on the order — the number, the verdict, the moment, the name VIES returned, and whether the tax came off. [⌊The settings screen.⌉⌊The settings screen.⌉[ The settings screen. ## FAQ ### Is this tax advice? No. It checks numbers and applies the rule you configure. What you owe and where you file it is between you and your accountant. ### What happens when VIES is down? The number is not confirmed and the tax is charged. You can refund tax you charged; you cannot easily collect tax you gave away. ### Does it work with the block checkout? The exemption goes through WooCommerce’s own `set_is_vat_exempt()`, so the totals are right in the classic cart, the block cart and the Store API alike. ### Will upgrading lose anything? No. The full edition reads the same settings and the same order meta, so every past order still reads and nothing needs setting up again. ## Reviews There are no reviews for this plugin. ## Contributors & Developers “Gatemi EU VAT Number” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin. Contributors * [ gatemi ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/gatemi/) [Translate “Gatemi EU VAT Number” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/gatemi-eu-vat-number) ### Interested in development? [Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/gatemi-eu-vat-number/), check out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/gatemi-eu-vat-number/), or subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/gatemi-eu-vat-number/) by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/gatemi-eu-vat-number/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss). ## Changelog #### 1.0.0 * First release. ## Meta * Version **1.0.0** * Last updated **2 days ago** * Active installations **Fewer than 10** * WordPress version ** 6.4 or higher ** * Tested up to **7.1** * PHP version ** 7.4 or higher ** * Tags * [eu vat](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/eu-vat/)[reverse charge](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/reverse-charge/) [vat](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/vat/)[vies](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/vies/) [woocommerce](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/woocommerce/) * [Advanced View](https://wordpress.org/plugins/gatemi-eu-vat-number/advanced/) ## Ratings No reviews have been submitted yet. [Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/gatemi-eu-vat-number/reviews/#new-post) [See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/gatemi-eu-vat-number/reviews/) ## Contributors * [ gatemi ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/gatemi/) ## Support Got something to say? Need help? [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/gatemi-eu-vat-number/)