The Italian VAT number (partita IVA) is an 11-digit code that the Agenzia delle Entrate assigns when a business declares that it has started an activity in Italy. It appears on invoices and in returns, and it cannot be transferred. A business abroad may need none, or may get one by one of three routes.
What is an Italian VAT number (partita IVA)?
Anyone who starts in Italy a commercial or agricultural activity, or an artistic or professional activity carried on habitually, must register for IVA (imposta sul valore aggiunto, value added tax), according to the Agenzia delle Entrate's guide to the general VAT rules.
The declaration of commencement (dichiarazione di inizio attività) is due within 30 days of starting the activity or of setting up a permanent establishment (Art. 35 D.P.R. 633/1972). The office issues or sends the certificato di attribuzione della partita IVA, the document that searchers call the VAT registration certificate.
The number must be shown in returns, on the website home page and on invoices and other commercial documents where required, and it cannot be transferred from one business to another (Art. 35; Agenzia delle Entrate, English page on VAT registration). Our tax advisory Italy page covers the wider tax work around it.
What does an Italian VAT number look like, and is it the same as the codice fiscale?
The number has 11 digits, according to the Agenzia delle Entrate. For intra-EU use, the European Commission's convention puts the country code in front, and each country has its own format. Only tax administrations may issue a VAT number, and the Commission warns against advance-fee offers. This guide does not explain how the 11 digits are built, because no primary source we read describes it.
For a company the partita IVA and the codice fiscale are the same digits, save exceptions, and for a sole trader they are two different codes (Registro delle Imprese). A VAT group (Gruppo IVA) invoices under one common number. How a founder abroad obtains a codice fiscale from abroad has a guide of its own.
To find a company's number, look at its invoices and website home page, at the visura camerale (the Register extract, section "Dati Anagrafici"), or at the certificate of assignment. This page does not discuss any number other than the one the Agenzia delle Entrate issues.
Does a business abroad need an Italian VAT number at all?
Often the first answer is no. When the supplier is a non-resident and the Italian customers are taxable persons established in Italy, the obligations "sono adempiuti dai cessionari o committenti" (Art. 17(2) D.P.R. 633/1972). The customer accounts for the VAT by reverse charge (inversione contabile).
According to the Agenzia delle Entrate, a foreign business is not obliged to register if its Italian customers are only Italian VAT-registered businesses. The duty arises once it also sells to consumers, or to bodies without a partita IVA.
An Italian permanent establishment (stabile organizzazione) or an Italian company changes the answer (Art. 17; Agenzia delle Entrate). The statute sets out these conditions. It does not say which side of the line a given business is on, and neither does this guide.
Which of the three routes gets a business abroad an Italian VAT number?
When a number is needed, the statute and the Agenzia describe four situations. Each card states its condition, not a recommendation.
A. A company formed in Italy
A company formed in Italy does not apply separately. It registers inside the Comunicazione Unica, one filing to the Register of Companies, the Agenzia, INPS and INAIL, and the filing carries the content of form AA7/10 (Agenzia delle Entrate, VAT general rules).
B. Direct identification on form ANR/3
A non-resident may identify itself directly if it is established in another EU member state or in a third country with a mutual-assistance instrument in indirect taxation (Art. 35-ter(5) D.P.R. 633/1972).
C. A resident tax representative
A tax representative (rappresentante fiscale) may act for any non-resident. The representative is jointly liable with the business for its VAT obligations, and the customer is told of the appointment before the transaction (Art. 17).
D. A permanent establishment in Italy
With a permanent establishment in Italy, the business leaves both non-resident routes. The reverse charge and representative rules do not apply to supplies made through it, and the establishment registers as a resident (Art. 17).
For a foreign company weighing these conditions, a VAT number for a foreign company in Italy is the page that sets out the next step.
- Are the Italian customers only businesses with a partita IVA?Reverse charge: the customer accounts for the VAT, no Italian number needed hereSales to consumers or to bodies without a partita IVA end this: go on
- Is a company being formed in Italy?Route A: registered inside the Comunicazione UnicaGo on
- Established in the EU or in a mutual-assistance country?Route B: direct identification on ANR/3 at PescaraGo on
- Any non-resident business?Route C: a resident tax representative, jointly liableNo Italian number through these routes
- Permanent establishment in Italy?It registers as a resident; the non-resident routes fall awayThe routes above apply
How does a company formed in Italy get its VAT number?
This is the route when a company is formed in Italy anyway. The number is not a separate application: it travels with the incorporation filing, and these are the stages.
Codice fiscale for each founder and director
Each founder and director abroad obtains a codice fiscale on form AA4/8 before the deed. Whether notaries accept the statute's fallback for a non-resident without a code is open, and our codice fiscale guide covers this step.
Open the PEC
Open the company's PEC (certified email) and register the director's personal PEC. The Register suspends a filing that lacks the company PEC, so this comes before the filing.
Sign the deed of incorporation
The deed is signed before the notary, in person or by videoconference. The notary files within 10 days of the deed (Art. 2330 of the Civil Code, cited here by article only).
File the Comunicazione Unica
The filing carries the AA7/10 content. If the company will trade within the EU, the "Operazioni Intracomunitarie" box is ticked, and inclusion in VIES is then immediate (Art. 35 D.P.R. 633/1972).
Register entry and agency answers
The Register enters the company within 10 days of protocol, or 5 days for an electronic filing (Art. 11(8) D.P.R. 581/1995). The chamber confirms receipt to the company PEC within 5 days, and each agency notifies its outcome within 7 days (Register guide to the filing).
Receive the number
The Register communicates the number that the Agenzia delle Entrate assigns electronically (Art. 35(8)), and the Agenzia issues the certificate of assignment.
Possible risk check
A new number can draw a risk check, a visit or a summons in person. The statute sets no term for it, and the section on the first months below explains what follows.
Our own practice is to count 48 hours from the signed deed, once the documents, the codice fiscale, the PEC and the registered office are in hand. That is practice, not a legal term, not a guarantee and not the time to a VAT number.
From the signed deed
48 hours from the signed deed, with documents, codice fiscale, PEC and registered office in hand: firm practice, not a legal term and not the time to a VAT number
- Signed deedBefore the notary
- The notary filesThrough the RegisterWithin 10 days (Art. 2330 c.c.)
- Register entryCompany enters the Register10 days from protocol, 5 for an electronic filing (Art. 11(8) D.P.R. 581/1995)
- Chamber receiptConfirmation to the company PECWithin 5 days
- Agency outcomeEach agency notifiesWithin 7 days
- Number communicatedAssigned by the Agenzia delle Entrate through the RegisterNo published time
How does a business abroad register directly (ANR/3) or through a tax representative?
A business without an Italian establishment has two routes of its own. Each is set out below with the steps the Agenzia delle Entrate publishes.
Route B: direct identification on ANR/3
- Obtain the certificate of VAT taxable status issued in the home state, and a copy of the declarant's identity document (Agenzia delle Entrate, how to file ANR/3). How long the certificate takes depends on the home state.
- File ANR/3 with the Centro operativo di Pescara only, before the first Italian transaction. Filing is in person, through a delegate or by registered post, and a posted form counts as filed on the day of dispatch.
- The Agenzia assigns a number marked as that of a non-resident identified in Italy (Art. 35-ter). The VIES option is included if it was ticked in the declaration.
- Changes and cessation are declared on ANR/3 within 30 days (Art. 35 D.P.R. 633/1972).
Route C: a tax representative
- The appointment must appear in a public deed, a registered private deed or a letter entered in a register (Agenzia delle Entrate, registering through a tax representative).
- The representative files AA7/10 at the Direzione Provinciale of its tax domicile, with its guarantee under the Agenzia's Provvedimento of 17 April 2025 (prot. 186368). This guide does not state the amount of that guarantee.
- For a non-EU/EEA business acting through a representative, inclusion in VIES follows only after the guarantee of Art. 35(7-quater), under the Provvedimento of 14 April 2025 (prot. 178713).
- The customer is told of the appointment before the transaction, and the representative answers jointly with the business (Art. 17).
No statutory term for assigning the number was found on either route, so this guide gives none.
Which documents does a non-resident produce?
The list depends on the route. This is what the Agenzia pages and the general rules name.
- The declarant's identity document, for Route B.
- The home-state certificate of VAT taxable status, for Route B.
- The appointment deed or the entered letter, for Route C.
- For Route A, the identity documents of the founders.
- For Route A with a corporate founder, its certificate of incorporation.
- For Route A with a corporate founder, the resolution and power of attorney of its representative.
- An Italian translation certified by the consulate or an official translator, and an apostille in Hague Convention states or else legalisation (Art. 33 D.P.R. 445/2000, the general rule).
- The ANR/3 page does not say whether the home-state certificate needs translation or an apostille.
Want the route checked against your facts?
The routes depend on where the business is established and who its customers are. Tell us the facts and we set out which conditions apply.
How do I check an Italian VAT number?
Two different services answer two different questions. The Agenzia delle Entrate's Verifica partita Iva is a statutory service (Art. 35-quater D.P.R. 633/1972) that shows the validity of a number assigned under Art. 35 or 35-ter, its activity status and the holder's name.
Whether the number may trade within the EU is checked only on the Controllo partite Iva comunitarie (Vies) service, as the Agenzia delle Entrate's checking page explains. The table puts the two side by side. To find a number without checking it, see the second section of this guide.
| Aspect | Verifica partita Iva | VIES |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | Agenzia delle Entrate | European Commission |
| What it shows | Validity, activity status and the holder's name | Whether the number is valid for intra-EU transactions, read from the national databases at the moment of the search |
| Intra-EU right | Not shown | Shown |
| Why it can say "invalid" | Not stated in the sources we read | The number does not exist, it is not activated for intra-EU transactions, or the registration is not yet finalised |
| Legal basis | Art. 35-quater D.P.R. 633/1972 | Commission service; the Italian inclusion is an option in the declaration (Art. 35(2)(e-bis)) |
The two checks compared: what each shows, who runs it and why VIES can say "invalid" for a real number.
Source: Agenzia delle Entrate, Verifica della partita IVA; Art. 35-quater D.P.R. 633/1972; European Commission, Your Europe, VIES.
Why does VIES say an Italian number is invalid, and can a number drop out?
VIES is a search engine owned by the European Commission, not a database. It queries the national VAT databases at the moment of the search (Your Europe, checking a VAT number). "Invalid" can therefore mean that the number does not exist, that it has not been activated for intra-EU transactions, or that the registration is not yet finalised.
In Italy, inclusion is an option ticked in the declaration (Art. 35(2)(e-bis) D.P.R. 633/1972), and it takes effect immediately. A number included in VIES that files no recapitulative statement (elenco riepilogativo) for four consecutive quarters is presumed to have stopped intra-EU trade. The Agenzia then excludes it after a notice, and the exclusion bites from the 60th day after the notice (Art. 35(7-bis); Agenzia delle Entrate, VIES inclusion page).
A non-EU/EEA business acting through a representative gets inclusion only after a guarantee, as the section on the representative route above explains.
What can take a new VAT number away in the first months?
The statute gives the Agenzia several ways to end a number that does not rest on a real activity. These are the five that matter to a new business abroad.
Automated risk checks
Every new number triggers automated checks for risk factors, and the Agenzia may visit the place of business (Art. 35(15-bis) D.P.R. 633/1972).
A summons in person
After a risk analysis, the office invites the taxpayer to appear in person to show that the activity is real. That can be a distance problem for a director abroad. The statute sets no term, and we found nothing on whether a non-resident legal representative may appear through a proxy.
Cessation and a EUR 3,000 penalty
A negative check or a no-show ends in cessation of the number. A EUR 3,000 administrative penalty is imposed with the order (Art. 11(7-quater) D.Lgs. 471/1997).
A surety for the next number
A new number for the same person after a cessation, also as legal representative of a company formed later, needs a surety of at least EUR 50,000 for three years (Art. 35(15-bis.2) D.P.R. 633/1972).
Dormant numbers
The Agenzia closes of its own motion the numbers of persons who carried on no business, artistic or professional activity in the three preceding years (Art. 35(15-quinquies)).
What comes with the number: returns, invoices and rates?
Holding a number brings recurring duties. These are the six a new holder meets first.
- The number goes on every invoice, together with the customer's number or, for an EU-established customer, the VAT number of its member state (Art. 21(2)(d) and (f) D.P.R. 633/1972).
- An annual VAT return is filed online between 1 February and 30 April. It binds holders with no taxable transactions, non-residents registered directly or through a representative, and permanent establishments (Art. 8(1) D.P.R. 322/1998).
- E-invoicing through the SDI (Sistema di Interscambio) follows a holder resident or established in Italy; the Agenzia's guide does not state an exemption for a merely identified non-resident.
- Changes and cessation are declared within 30 days, and a move of tax domicile takes effect from the 60th day (Art. 35).
- A VAT group invoices under one common number.
- The number and the VIES option are both part of the declaration.
Transmission of the annual return is reserved to the intermediaries listed in Art. 3(3) D.P.R. 322/1998. Where we assist, we coordinate with an enrolled intermediary and do not transmit returns ourselves.
| Rate | What it covers | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 22% | The standard rate | Art. 16 D.P.R. 633/1972 |
| 4% | Reduced rate; examples: foodstuffs, drinks and farm produce | Table A, Parts II, II-bis and III; Agenzia delle Entrate |
| 5% | Reduced rate; example: certain foods | Table A, Parts II, II-bis and III; Agenzia delle Entrate |
| 10% | Reduced rate; examples: domestic electricity and gas, medicines, some building work | Table A, Parts II, II-bis and III; Agenzia delle Entrate |
The Italian IVA rates under the text of Art. 16 D.P.R. 633/1972, which is shown in force to 31 December 2026.
Source: Art. 16 D.P.R. 633/1972 and Table A annexed; Agenzia delle Entrate, general rules and rates. No 2027 rate is stated.
Neighbouring taxes that the number does not decide are covered in the Italian corporate tax rates guide and in Italian tax on capital gains.
What does a late or wrong declaration cost, and what else does the state charge?
Not filing a declaration of commencement or change under Arts. 35 and 35-ter, or filing it inaccurately, is punished with a sanction "da euro 500 a euro 2.000". The sanction is reduced to one fifth of the minimum if the taxpayer regularises within 30 days of the office's invitation (Art. 5(6) D.Lgs. 471/1997).
We found no state charge for the number itself in the pages we read, and we have not confirmed that there is none, so this guide states no figure. Our own fees are quoted on request.
| Event | What the statute sets | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Missing or inaccurate declaration | EUR 500 to EUR 2,000; one fifth of the minimum if corrected within 30 days of the invitation | Art. 5(6) D.Lgs. 471/1997 |
| Cessation after a risk check | EUR 3,000, imposed with the order | Art. 11(7-quater) D.Lgs. 471/1997 |
| New number after a cessation | Surety of at least EUR 50,000 for three years | Art. 35(15-bis.2) D.P.R. 633/1972 |
| The number itself | No state charge found in the pages read; not confirmed as zero | No source |
| Declaring changes and cessation | Within 30 days; a move of tax domicile effective from the 60th day | Art. 35 D.P.R. 633/1972 |
The penalties and sureties tied to an Italian VAT number, with the statute for each.
Source: Art. 5(6) and Art. 11(7-quater) D.Lgs. 471/1997; Art. 35 D.P.R. 633/1972.
What changes with the consolidated VAT act?
D.Lgs. 19 January 2026 n. 10 approved the consolidated text of the VAT legislation. It was published in GU n. 24 of 30 January 2026 (S.O. n. 4) and is in force from 31 January 2026 (D.Lgs. 10/2026 on Normattiva).
The Normattiva texts of Arts. 16, 17, 35 and 35-ter D.P.R. 633/1972 carry an end date of 31 December 2026, so the article numbers quoted on this page will move. We have not read the replacement article numbers, and we print no 2027 article number, figure or rate.
This page states the law as it stands in 2026. A reader after 31 December 2026 should check the current text before relying on any article number given here.
From our practice
Our first questions to a founder abroad are whether any Italian customer is a consumer or a body without a number, where the business is established, and whether a company is being formed in Italy anyway. Those answers decide which of the three doors applies. For a company, the number arrives inside the Comunicazione Unica, with no separate application. Federica Conti
Sources
- Normattiva, Art. 35 D.P.R. 633/1972: the declaration, the certificate, VIES, risk checks, the surety
- Normattiva, Art. 17 D.P.R. 633/1972: reverse charge, representative, permanent establishment
- Normattiva, Art. 35-ter D.P.R. 633/1972: direct identification of non-residents
- Agenzia delle Entrate, how to file ANR/3: the Pescara office and the attachments
- Agenzia delle Entrate, registering through a tax representative: appointment and guarantee
- Registro delle Imprese, codice fiscale, partita IVA and REA: the same digits for a company
- Registro delle Imprese, guide to the Comunicazione Unica: the 5 and 7 day outcomes
- Agenzia delle Entrate, Verifica della partita IVA: the national check, separate from VIES
- Normattiva, Art. 5 D.Lgs. 471/1997: the declaration penalty
- Normattiva, Art. 11 D.Lgs. 471/1997: the penalty with cessation
- Your Europe, checking a VAT number in VIES: what VIES is and why it says "invalid"
- Normattiva, D.Lgs. 10/2026: the consolidated VAT act
Also used, named without a link: the Agenzia delle Entrate guide to the general VAT rules and its English pages on VAT registration and the VAT return; its pages on VIES inclusion, rates and e-invoicing; the European Commission page on VAT identification numbers; Arts. 16, 21 and 35-quater D.P.R. 633/1972; Art. 8(1) D.P.R. 322/1998; Art. 11(8) D.P.R. 581/1995.
Related service
Tax Advisory for Companies in Italy covers the tax and compliance work that follows registration.
Partita IVA for Non-Residents sets out the next step for a foreign company that needs a number.
Codice Fiscale for Foreigners explains the tax code a founder abroad needs before the deed.