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Polish VAT Number Checker
Polish invoices almost always print the NIP with hyphens — 123-456-78-90 — and VIES will not take it in that shape. Stripping non-digits before validating is not a nicety for Poland; it is the difference between an integration that works and one that rejects most of the numbers real customers paste in.
Poland also issues a REGON for statistical purposes and a KRS number for the court register. Both appear on company documents alongside the NIP, and neither is a VAT number.
Checked live against VIES, the European Commission's VAT Information Exchange System. Not affiliated with the European Commission or the Poland tax authority.
Poland VAT number format
- Local name
- NIP (Numer Identyfikacji Podatkowej)
- Structure
- PL + 10 digits
- Valid example
- PL1234567890
- Standard rate
- 23% · reduced 8%, 5%
PL plus ten digits, with the tenth acting as a check digit. Hyphens and spaces are presentation only and must be removed before the call.
What usually goes wrong
Passing the number as it was pasted
The hyphenated form is what customers copy off an invoice, so a validator that does not normalise will fail on the majority of genuine Polish input.
Confusing the NIP with a REGON or KRS
A REGON is nine or fourteen digits and identifies the business for statistics; a KRS is the court-register entry. Both sit next to the NIP on Polish paperwork and neither resolves in VIES.
Treating a valid NIP as proof of VAT registration
Poland maintains a separate register of active VAT taxpayers, the so-called white list. A NIP can be correct and belong to a business that is not currently VAT-registered, which is precisely what a VIES lookup distinguishes.
Frequently asked questions
Why does a Polish NIP fail when I copy it from an invoice?
Almost always the hyphens. The printed form groups the digits for readability; the registry expects ten unbroken digits after the country code.
What is the difference between a NIP, a REGON and a KRS number?
The NIP is the tax identification number and the basis of the VAT number. The REGON is a statistical identifier issued by the central statistical office. The KRS is the National Court Register entry for the company. Only the NIP is used for VAT.
What is the Polish VAT rate?
The standard VAT rate is 23%, with reduced rates of 8% and 5% applying to categories such as some foodstuffs, medicines and books.
Validating Poland numbers from your own code instead of by hand? The Poland VAT validation API guide has the endpoint, the response shape and examples in four languages. To check a number from another country, go back to the VAT number checker.