Invalid UK Vat Number - On-going Issue

There is an on-going issue with the online VAT number checker: https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/check-vat-number A number of businesses, including my own, are showing up as having invalid VAT numbers, despite this not being the case. If you look back through the forum you will see a large number of posts about this problem, and so far HMRC have done nothing to formall ackowledge it or fix it. Personally, we have phoned in countless times, emailed in, filled out forms, and even submitted a complaint - but all avenues lead to the same place, we are told it is a known issue, and that it is 'with the relevant party' to resolve. In our case this has been on-going since August, and our VAT number has never shown as valid through the checker since we first registered in March. We are in a position where a key supplier cannot work with us as their system relies on the VAT number checker, there is no way for them to process it by calling HMRC or looking at our VAT registration certificate, their system is rigid. I am fairly certain there are other systems like this too, and for us what this means is that we are paying overheads for our business despite not being able to undertake any business due to this issue with a key supplier, which is solely the fault of HMRC. Worse than that is the effect this has on your relationship with suppliers, having to try and explain this to them, and also explain there there is no fix/we don't know when it might be fixed. This must be fixed by HMRC, or at the very least a notice places on the web page housing the number checker acknowleding this issue. How HMRC claim this checker is an authority when it has been broken for at least a year now?

Hi,
We apologise that you are having such difficulty with the VAT checker issue:
Check a UK VAT number — service availability and issues
HMRC are aware of the issue and are investigating this as a priority.
Please call our Helplne on 03002003700 so that we can take your VAT number and refer this over to the Team responsible for resolving this issue.
Thank you.

Hi, Thanks for the response but there is still no indication as to when this might be resolved. I have seen somebody claim they de-registered and re-registered for VAT to resolve this, is that really what it will take? We are now heading towards 2024 and we are as much in the dark as we were months ago, our most recent phone call the operator claimed not to have knowledge of this and that was that. Why is HMRC making this so difficult? I have no doubt that if somebody was avoiding paying VAT because of an error with the system showing them as not being VAT registered the problem would be fixed immediately, but when we need the system to work so we can simply trade we are at a standstill. Please give me a department name, or individual who I can speak to about this to get it resolved, I am tired of having to explain it to every operator after being on hold for almost an hour.

Hi,
 

Hi. I'm sorry to hear that you are having this issue and that it has yet to be resolved. If you have contacted HMRC and reported the issue then this will have been passed over to the Department responsible for resolving this. HMRC are working urgently to fix this issue for all companies affected but at the moment, unfortunately, we don't have a timescale for this issue to be resolved. Thank you .

I am in same situation and each time I call HMRC, I am given a timeline which is never adhered to by HMRC. I have lost thousands of pounds of business with Amazon as my VAT appears as invalid for past 5-6 weeks.