What is an EU VAT number (numéro de TVA intracommunautaire)?

In practice, in France

The French number is made up of the country code FR, a two-character check key, and the business’s SIREN number. It is issued by the local business tax office (service des impôts des entreprises) to any taxable person who applies for one.

The costly point: an intra-EU supply is only exempt if the customer’s number is valid at the time of the transaction. A number that is correct in your records but has since been cancelled removes the exemption — and it is the French supplier, not the customer, who bears the reassessment. Verification is done against the EU’s VIES database, and the proof of that check needs to be kept.

A detail that surprises people: a business under the VAT exemption threshold can still need a number for its purchases of services, without thereby becoming liable for VAT.

In Odoo

The number is entered on the partner record, and Odoo can validate it against VIES.

Checking it once, when the account is created, is not enough. For a recurring European customer, it is the periodic check that offers protection — and its trace that serves as proof in a tax audit.

Common mistakes

• Trusting the number a customer provides without checking it.
• Validating it when the account is opened and never coming back to it.
• Confusing the EU VAT number with the SIRET number, which serves a different purpose.