Regional Marketplace Information

1. I designed my certified app to support multiple languages and now I want to sell it in a different market. Do I need to pay the certification fee to certify again?

No. Your app will be published globally, unless you opt to sell only to particular markets. There is not a per-market fee in either case.

2. Do I need a new different .xap file for every region I want to localize and sell into?

No, one .xap file is all that is required and is recommended. When submitting your app, App Hub will detect the languages of your .xap and prompt you for the applicable metadata. See How to: Build a Localized Application for Windows Phone.

3. What are the accepted formats for VAT numbers?

Note that Microsoft does not provide tax advice, and the following table is provided only as guidance.

You should check with your local tax authorities for any recent changes if this guidance is not sufficient for you to provide Microsoft with a VAT number. You may also be able to use the VAT number validation system provided by the European Union (EU) for assistance at VIES VAT number validation.

• Austria

  VAT Number Format: 1 letter and 8 digits

  Country/region code: AT

  Example: U12345678

  Notes: First character will always be 'U'

• Belgium

  VAT Number Format: 10 digits

  Country/region code: BE

  Example: 1234567890

  Notes: 9 digits prior to 1 January 2007

• Denmark

  VAT Number Format: 8 digits

  Country/region code: DK

  Example: 12345678

• Finland

  VAT Number Format: 8 digits

  Country/region code: FI

  Example: 12345678

• France

  VAT Number Format: 11 digits

  Country/region code: FR

  Example: 12345678901, X1234567890, 1X123456789, or XX123456789

  Notes: May include any alphabetical characters except for I or Q as the first or second character, or as the first and second character, followed by 9 digits.

• Germany

  VAT Number Format: 9 digits

  Country/region code: DE

  Example: 123456789

  Notes: Must be the 9 digit 'Umsatzsteur Identifikationnummer' (Ust ID Nr.)

• Greece

  VAT Number Format: 9 digits

  Country/region code: EL, GR

  Example: 123456789

• Ireland

  VAT Number Format: 8 digits

  Country/region code: IE

  Example: 1234567X or 1X34567X

  Notes: Includes 1 or 2 alphabetical characters: either last, or second and last

• Italy

  VAT Number Format: 11 digits

  Country/region code: IT

  Example: 12345678901

• Luxembourg

  VAT Number Format: 8 digits

  Country/region code: LU

  Example: 12345678

• Netherlands

  VAT Number Format: 11 digits and 1 letter

  Country/region code: NL

  Example: 123456789B01

  Notes: Tenth character is always 'B'

• Poland

  VAT Number Format: 10 digits

  Country/region code: PL

  Example: 1234567890

• Portugal

  VAT Number Format: 9 digits

  Country/region code: PT

  Example: 123456789

• Spain

  VAT Number Format: 9 digits

  Country/region code: ES

  Example: X12345678, 12345678X, or X1234567X

  Notes: Includes 1 or 2 letters: either first, last, or first and last

• Sweden

  VAT Number Format: 12 digits

  Country/region code: SE

  Example: 123456789001

  Notes: The last 2 characters must be '01'

• United Kingdom

  VAT Number Format: 9 or 12 digits

  Country/region code: GB

  Example: 123456789 or 123456789001

  Notes: 9 digits generally, but 12 digits if the number represents a sub-company within a group.