<strong>EU VAT number validation</strong> — when the EU VAT addon is enabled and a customer enters a VAT number at checkout, the VAT number and its country code are sent to the European Commission's <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/">VIES service</a> (<a href="https://commission.europa.eu/privacy-policy-websites-managed-european-commission_en">privacy</a>) or, for UK numbers, to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-vat-number">HMRC's VAT check API</a> (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hmrc-privacy-notices">privacy</a>).