Getting a USt-IdNr. in Germany on Mein ELSTER: who needs one, how to register, what the number looks like, how to find or check one, and where it goes on your invoices.
The USt-IdNr. is the number Bundeszentralamt für Steuern assigns to a taxpayer in Germany. It follows you across every tax you deal with: VAT (USt), income tax and withholding. Businesses that pay you will ask for it before they release payment, because they report their suppliers to Bundeszentralamt für Steuern by this number.
Who needs one
Germany uses three numbers and they are not interchangeable. Every resident has a lifelong 11-digit Steuer-Identifikationsnummer, which never goes on an invoice. A business gets a Steuernummer from its local Finanzamt, and one selling to businesses elsewhere in the EU also needs a USt-IdNr. from the Bundeszentralamt für Steuern. An invoice shows one of those last two.
How to register, step by step
Tell your Finanzamt within a month of starting, by filing the Fragebogen zur steuerlichen Erfassung through ELSTER.
Tick the box in that questionnaire for a USt-IdNr. and the Finanzamt passes the request to the Bundeszentralamt für Steuern.
An existing business applies instead on the BZSt online form, giving its name, address, Finanzamt and Steuernummer.
The USt-IdNr. is free and is sent by post only; the BZSt will not give it out by telephone or email.
How to find or check a USt-IdNr.
The BZSt confirmation service checks a customer's USt-IdNr., and EU VIES covers the rest of the EU.
Written from published tax-authority guidance and reviewed on 2026-10-11. Everything here is indicative rather than a ruling on your circumstances, and rules change. Confirm anything you rely on with Bundeszentralamt für Steuern before acting on it, and tell us if you find something out of date so we can correct it.
This guide explains the rules in general terms and is not tax advice for your circumstances. Confirm your position with a qualified adviser or with Bundeszentralamt für Steuern.