The European Commission website allows individuals to discover which VAT numbers are valid however these only apply to countries within the EU. Unfortunately, Switzerland does is not part of the Union; however the country's VAT regulations comply with the EU principles. Important information you should know is that the standard VAT rate in Switzerland is 8% along with a 3.8% rate for accommodation. In terms of the rate for food, water, newspapers, medical products and agriculture, it has reduced to 2.5%. For future reference, if you would like to validate any VAT numbers for countries in the EU then simply follow these steps:
- This method is usually used for businesses that are importing or exporting goods and need to know if they have the correct VAT number for the correct state. So with this in mind you need to make sure you have the number and the member state in which you are dealing with.
- You should proceed to accessing the 'VEIS VAT number validation' page which is located on the European Commission website. A system has been implemented to allow you to check if the VAT number you have been given is valid for the state in question.
- On the web page you will be prompted to enter the member state and the VAT number. Once you have done that click 'verify'.
- After a few seconds the results will appear on your screen which will state if it is valid and will display the name and address of the trader you are dealing with.
