Company register number formats outside the EU
VIES only covers EU VAT numbers. For a company based in the United Kingdom, Switzerland or Norway, WholesaleX checks its entry in the country's own company register instead — here is what each register's own number looks like, and where to search it yourself.
This is the exact company-register check WholesaleX runs on a listed supplier based outside the EU. See how we check suppliers.
The three registers WholesaleX recognises today
| Register | Country | Number format | Example | Search it yourself |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Companies House | United Kingdom | 8 digits, or two letters followed by 6 characters | 16693910 or SC123456 | Open the register |
| Swiss commercial register (Zefix) | Switzerland | “CHE-” followed by three groups of 3 digits, separated by full stops | CHE-123.456.789 | Open the register |
| Norwegian Register of Business Enterprises (Brønnøysundregistrene) | Norway | 9 digits | 923609016 | Open the register |
A company in a country not listed above
There is no single format to publish for “every other country”: each one runs its own company register, with its own number layout, and several have none that is searchable in English at all. When a supplier is based somewhere else, WholesaleX asks for that country's own register number and, where a public register exists, checks it there directly, on a case-by-case basis.
A listing checked this way still carries the same honest limit as the three registers above: it confirms the company is really registered and currently active under that name, nothing more.
Questions and answers
- Why isn't a UK, Swiss or Norwegian company checked with VIES?
- VIES is a European Commission system that only ever holds EU VAT numbers. A company based outside the EU has no VAT number in VIES to look up, whatever number it prints on its own site.
- What does “company registration checked” actually mean?
- It means WholesaleX confirmed the company's real, current entry in its own country's public company register: the number, that the company shows as active, and that the registered name matches the listing. It is a different check from a VAT check, and the listing says so plainly.
- Where can I search these registers myself?
- Each row of the table above links straight to the register's own free public search: UK Companies House's own service, Switzerland's Zefix, and Norway's Brønnøysundregistrene. None needs an account.
- What about a company in a country not on this list, for example Turkey or the United States?
- WholesaleX still asks for that country's own register number and checks it against a public register where one exists, case by case. There is no shared format to publish here, since every country outside this list runs a different system.
- Does a checked registration prove the company is trustworthy to deal with?
- No. It only confirms the company is genuinely registered and active under that name; it says nothing about quality, prices, stock or reliability. See how we check suppliers for the exact limits of every check WholesaleX runs.
- Is this page free to use, and do I need a WholesaleX account?
- Yes. Reading the formats and following the links to search a register costs nothing and needs no account.