A pass is not a registration
What the EORI guide does: 8 tools
- EORI number checker type a GB, XI or EU number and see at once whether its prefix, length and characters fit the published rules.
- Check a list of EORI numbers paste up to 500 numbers from a spreadsheet and get a reason, a suggested fix and the right official service for every row.
- Compare an EORI with a UK VAT number see whether the first nine digits of a GB or XI number match the holder's VAT number, as HMRC says they should.
- Which EORI number do I need? say where you are based and what you will move, and learn whether you need a GB, an XI or an EU number.
- EORI number formats by country type how many characters your number has and see which of the 29 prefixes allow that length.
- Do I need an EORI number? answer four questions about who you are and how often you make customs declarations to see whether you must register.
- Where to apply for an EORI number pick your situation and see which customs authority issues the number, with a link to the official list of authorities.
- How long an EORI number lasts enter the date a number stopped being valid and see the earliest date its record can be deleted, ten years on.
A number that passes the checker has the right shape. That is all it has. This page explains the gap, and who can close it.
Shape versus status
The checker can see that a number begins GB, is followed by twelve digits and has no stray character. It cannot see whether HMRC issued it, whether it is still valid, or whose it is. A made-up number with the right shape passes just as a real one does. For those facts use the GOV.UK checker for GB numbers and the Commission's validation service for XI and EU numbers.
Guidance, not advice
Our guides describe how EORI registration generally works. They are not customs, tax, legal or accounting advice, and relying on them does not turn us into your adviser. Rules differ between the UK and the EU, and between EU countries, and they change. Before you lodge a declaration, sign a contract or rely on a number, confirm with the authority or with a qualified customs agent.
Dates matter
Each page shows when its official source was last read. A rule that changed after that date will not be on the page until we notice. When we cannot tell which of two sources is newer, the page says so.
Other people's names
HMRC, the European Commission, GOV.UK and the national customs offices are named only so you can find them. We have no tie to them, and their names appear without their permission or endorsement.
Limits
We try to keep every page right and current, and we cannot promise it is complete. No sentence here cuts down a duty that the law forbids us to cut down.
Customs facts. What the guides say about customs identification numbers is general information, not the work of a customs broker, lawyer or tax adviser. Procedures and formats vary between countries and change over time; the last word belongs to the national customs authority that issues a number and to the European Commission's published guidance. Every page names its source and shows when that source was read.
The shape test. The checker compares what you typed with the number shapes described in official guidance. Registration, validity and ownership are outside its reach, and the official validation services linked from each result are where to settle them.
Independence. No part of this site belongs to the European Commission, HM Revenue and Customs or a national customs office. Their names point you to their services and nothing more.
Page last revised: 2026-10-26
Spotted an outdated EORI rule? Report an outdated rule
Edited