Questions
Frequently asked questions
Your data
Do my numbers go to a server?
Almost never. Handig Belgium checks IBANs, payment references, national register numbers, dates, amounts and postcodes on your own device. Only when you press ‘Check in VIES’ or ‘Look up’ in the Peppol tool yourself does that one number go to that service.
And my national register number?
It never leaves your device. Handig Belgium doesn’t send it anywhere, doesn’t store it and doesn’t put it in the page address either.
Do I need to create an account?
No. No account, no email address, no cookies to follow you.
The tools
Is it really free?
Yes. Every check is free, without ads. If you have a lot of work, there is Handig Plus: long lists in the bulk check, lookups in VIES and Peppol without a daily limit and the result as CSV. Handig Belgium is a free tool from nealvdv, part of Handig.
How up to date are the banks and postcodes?
Handig Belgium holds a copy of the National Bank list and the Statbel list, with their version and the date we fetched them. You’ll find them in the sources. We refresh them with every new version of Handig Belgium.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes, in a recent browser. The search box on the home page is made for pasting something you’ve copied elsewhere.
Limits
Does Handig Belgium tell me who a number belongs to?
No. Handig Belgium checks whether a number is well formed. Only the bank knows who an account belongs to; VIES sometimes gives the name for a VAT number, as published by the European Commission.
Is this legal or tax advice?
No. Handig Belgium calculates and checks. Which VAT rate applies, whether a deadline has passed or whether the e-invoicing obligation applies to you: ask your accountant or the relevant authority.
Why does VIES sometimes say the service is unavailable?
VIES asks each country’s register, and those aren’t always reachable. Try again a little later. The check-digit check on your device still stands.