Real-time VAT number validation is the core job of the EU/UK VAT Manager for WooCommerce, and it is included in the free version. Configure it at WPFactory > EU VAT (also reachable at WooCommerce > Settings > EU VAT) on the Validation sub-tab.
Validation options #
| Label | Option ID | Default | Free/Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Validate | alg_wc_eu_vat_validate |
Yes | Free |
| Validate at sign-up form | alg_wc_eu_vat_validate_sign_up_page |
Yes | Free |
| Validate in “My account” | alg_wc_eu_vat_validate_my_account |
No | Free |
| Message on not valid | alg_wc_eu_vat_not_valid_message |
EU VAT Number is not valid. | Free |
The “Message on not valid” field supports the %eu_vat_number% placeholder.
Validation method #
Under the Advanced group of the Validation sub-tab, First validation method (alg_wc_eu_vat_first_method) picks which technique the plugin tries first when contacting VIES:
- SOAP (default): calls the VIES SOAP web service.
- cURL: contacts VIES over cURL.
- Simple: uses a basic PHP request (
file_get_contents).
All three methods are available in the free version. This setting only chooses the first method to try: if it fails, the remaining methods are attempted automatically. Switching the method is the usual fix when a host has SOAP disabled.
VAT exemption #
Remove VAT for validated numbers (alg_wc_eu_vat_disable_for_valid, default Yes) is what actually exempts a validated B2B customer from VAT. It is free. For the rules that keep VAT in certain situations (different shipping country, store base country, selected countries), see Keep VAT instead of exempting.
Advanced input handling #
- Allow VAT number input without country code (
alg_wc_eu_vat_allow_without_country_code): the country is taken from the billing field. - Allow VAT number input with non-alphanumeric symbols (
alg_wc_eu_vat_allow_non_alphanumeric): tolerates spaces, dots and hyphens. - Skip VAT validation for selected countries (
alg_wc_eu_vat_advanced_skip_countries): treats numbers from listed countries as always valid. - Accept the VAT number if VIES is not available (
alg_wc_eu_vat_validate_vies_not_available): accepts the number on specific VIES outage error codes.
Advanced checks (Pro) #
Two extra checks are Pro: Check country by IP (alg_wc_eu_vat_check_ip_location_country) and Check company name (alg_wc_eu_vat_check_company_name). Check for matching billing country code (alg_wc_eu_vat_check_billing_country_code) is free.
Get more control #
Core VIES validation is free. EU/UK VAT Manager for WooCommerce Pro adds IP-based and company-name checks against VIES. See what Pro unlocks.
