Business Partner Records:
Some systems will not allow you to save an EC business partner record or a transaction unless you have the companies VAT number. Start collecting these as early in the process as possible and update the details to your legacy system.
Business Partner Records
The business partner records from your legacy system can be problematic to clean and import into your new system. Fields have probably been used in unexpected ways and users are likely to have input data inconsistently.
Fields in your new database may be defined differently and not allow for a direct mapping. For example, your legacy system might have accepted any character in the telephone field, so, over the drift of time, it includes symbols such as in "+44 (0)", text as in "+44 (0) 000 00000 / ext 2" and in "000-0000 tues pm", however, your new system may only allow numeric values in the field.
The Size of Your Database
If your database is large don't underestimate the task of undoing years of inconsistent input. The earlier you can handle your data and see the condition of it in an exported file, the better you will be able to plan the exercise. Special characters, such as commas, used everyday in address fields can produce additional columns of data in an export file because the comma is used as a separator of data.
Missing Data
You might not have all the data to export into your new database. This can include country codes, VAT codes, and payment terms. If you're able to isolate the country for each business partner then you can work out the VAT codes using a lookup.
Country Codes
Many import routines rely on the two or three character country code rather than the country name. The table below gives the two and three character country codes, as well as the EU member two character VAT prefix. You can download the file to excel by clicking the link below. Once downloaded, it's a simple exercise to associate a VAT code with a country (GB = VAT, EU = 0%, Rest of World = out of scope).
Click here to download this table to excel
| A | B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AF | AFG | Afghanistan | |
| 2 | AL | ALB | Albania | |
| 3 | DZ | DZA | Algeria | |
| 4 | AS | ASM | American Samoa | |
| 5 | AD | AND | Andorra | |
| 6 | AO | AGO | Angola | |
| 7 | AI | AIA | Anguilla | |
| 8 | AQ | ATA | Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) | |
| 9 | AG | ATG | Antigua and Barbuda | |
| 10 | AR | ARG | Argentina | |
| 11 | AM | ARM | Armenia | |
| 12 | AW | ABW | Aruba | |
| 13 | AU | AUS | Australia | |
| 14 | AT | AUT | Austria | AT |
| 15 | AZ | AZE | Azerbaijan | |
| 16 | BS | BHS | Bahamas | |
| 17 | BH | BHR | Bahrain | |
| 18 | BD | BGD | Bangladesh | |
| 19 | BB | BRB | Barbados | |
| 20 | BY | BLR | Belarus | |
| 21 | BE | BEL | Belgium | BE |
| 22 | BZ | BLZ | Belize | |
| 23 | BJ | BEN | Benin (was Dahomey) | |
| 24 | BM | BMU | Bermuda | |
| 25 | BT | BTN | Bhutan | |
| 26 | BO | BOL | Bolivia | |
| 27 | BA | BIH | Bosnia and Herzegovina | |
| 28 | BW | BWA | Botswana | |
| 29 | BV | BVT | Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) | |
| 30 | BR | BRA | Brazil | |
| 31 | IO | IOT | British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) | |
| 32 | VG | VGB | British Virgin Islands | |
| 33 | BN | BRN | Brunei Darussalam | |
| 34 | BG | BGR | Bulgaria | |
| 35 | BF | BFA | Burkina Faso (was Upper Volta) | |
| 36 | BI | BDI | Burundi | |
| 37 | KH | KHM | Cambodia | |
| 38 | CM | CMR | Cameroon | |
| 39 | CA | CAN | Canada | |
| 40 | CV | CPV | Cape Verde | |
| 41 | KY | CYM | Cayman Islands | |
| 42 | CF | CAF | Central African Republic | |
| 43 | TD | TCD | Chad | |
| 44 | CL | CHL | Chile | |
| 45 | CN | CHN | China | |
| 46 | CX | CXR | Christmas Island | |
| 47 | CC | CCK | Cocos (Keeling) Islands | |
| 48 | CO | COL | Colombia | |
| 49 | KM | COM | Comoros | |
| 50 | CD | COD | Congo | |
| 51 | CG | COG | Congo | |
| 52 | CK | COK | Cook Islands | |
| 53 | CR | CRI | Costa Rica | |
| 54 | CI | CIV | Cote D | |
| 55 | CU | CUB | Cuba | |
| 56 | CY | CYP | Cyprus | CY |
| 57 | CZ | CZE | Czech Republic | CZ |
| 58 | DK | DNK | Denmark | DK |
| 59 | DJ | DJI | Djibouti | |
| 60 | DM | DMA | Dominica | |
| 61 | DO | DOM | Dominican Republic | |
| 62 | EC | ECU | Ecuador | |
| 63 | EG | EGY | Egypt | |
| 64 | SV | SLV | El Salvador | |
| 65 | GQ | GNQ | Equatorial Guinea | |
| 66 | ER | ERI | Eritrea | |
| 67 | EE | EST | Estonia | EE |
| 68 | ET | ETH | Ethiopia | |
| 69 | FO | FRO | Faeroe Islands | |
| 70 | FK | FLK | Falkland Islands (Malvinas) | |
| 71 | FJ | FJI | Fiji | |
| 72 | FI | FIN | Finland | FI |
| 73 | FR | FRA | France | FR |
| 74 | GF | GUF | French Guiana | |
| 75 | PF | PYF | French Polynesia | |
| 76 | TF | ATF | French Southern Territories | |
| 77 | GA | GAB | Gabon | |
| 78 | GM | GMB | Gambia | |
| 79 | GE | GEO | Georgia | |
| 80 | DE | DEU | Germany | DE |
| 81 | GH | GHA | Ghana | |
| 82 | GI | GIB | Gibraltar | |
| 83 | GR | GRC | Greece | GR |
| 84 | GL | GRL | Greenland | |
| 85 | GD | GRD | Grenada | |
| 86 | GP | GLP | Guadaloupe | |
| 87 | GU | GUM | Guam | |
| 88 | GT | GTM | Guatemala | |
| 89 | GN | GIN | Guinea | |
| 90 | GW | GNB | Guinea-Bissau | |
| 91 | GY | GUY | Guyana | |
| 92 | HT | HTI | Haiti | |
| 93 | HM | HMD | Heard and McDonald Islands | |
| 94 | VA | VAT | Holy See (Vatican City State) | |
| 95 | HN | HND | Honduras | |
| 96 | HK | HKG | Hong Kong | |
| 97 | HR | HRV | Hrvatska (Croatia) | |
| 98 | HU | HUN | Hungary | HU |
| 99 | IS | ISL | Iceland | |
| 100 | IN | IND | India | |
| 101 | ID | IDN | Indonesia | |
| 102 | IR | IRN | Iran | |
| 103 | IQ | IRQ | Iraq | |
| 104 | IE | IRL | Ireland | IE |
| 105 | IL | ISR | Israel | |
| 106 | IT | ITA | Italy | IT |
| 107 | JM | JAM | Jamaica | |
| 108 | JP | JPN | Japan | |
| 109 | JO | JOR | Jordan | |
| 110 | KZ | KAZ | Kazakhstan | |
| 111 | KE | KEN | Kenya | |
| 112 | KI | KIR | Kiribati | |
| 113 | KP | PRK | Korea | |
| 114 | KR | KOR | Korea | |
| 115 | KW | KWT | Kuwait | |
| 116 | KG | KGZ | Kyrgyz Republic | |
| 117 | LA | LAO | Lao People | |
| 118 | LV | LVA | Latvia | LV |
| 119 | LB | LBN | Lebanon | |
| 120 | LS | LSO | Lesotho | |
| 121 | LR | LBR | Liberia | |
| 122 | LY | LBY | Libyan Arab Jamahiriya | |
| 123 | LI | LIE | Liechtenstein | |
| 124 | LT | LTU | Lithuania | LT |
| 125 | LU | LUX | Luxembourg | LU |
| 126 | MO | MAC | Macao | |
| 127 | MK | MKD | Macedonia | |
| 128 | MG | MDG | Madagascar | |
| 129 | MW | MWI | Malawi | |
| 130 | MY | MYS | Malaysia | |
| 131 | MV | MDV | Maldives | |
| 132 | ML | MLI | Mali | |
| 133 | MT | MLT | Malta | MT |
| 134 | MH | MHL | Marshall Islands | |
| 135 | MQ | MTQ | Martinique | |
| 136 | MR | MRT | Mauritania | |
| 137 | MU | MUS | Mauritius | |
| 138 | YT | MYT | Mayotte | |
| 139 | MX | MEX | Mexico | |
| 140 | FM | FSM | Micronesia | |
| 141 | MD | MDA | Moldova | |
| 142 | MC | MCO | Monaco | |
| 143 | MN | MNG | Mongolia | |
| 144 | MS | MSR | Montserrat | |
| 145 | MA | MAR | Morocco | |
| 146 | MZ | MOZ | Mozambique | |
| 147 | MM | MMR | Myanmar (was Burma) | |
| 148 | NA | NAM | Namibia | |
| 149 | NR | NRU | Nauru | |
| 150 | NP | NPL | Nepal | |
| 151 | AN | ANT | Netherlands Antilles | |
| 152 | NL | NLD | Netherlands | NL |
| 153 | NC | NCL | New Caledonia | |
| 154 | NZ | NZL | New Zealand | |
| 155 | NI | NIC | Nicaragua | |
| 156 | NE | NER | Niger | |
| 157 | NG | NGA | Nigeria | |
| 158 | NU | NIU | Niue | |
| 159 | NF | NFK | Norfolk Island | |
| 160 | MP | MNP | Northern Mariana Islands | |
| 161 | NO | NOR | Norway | |
| 162 | OM | OMN | Oman | |
| 163 | PK | PAK | Pakistan | |
| 164 | PW | PLW | Palau | |
| 165 | PS | PSE | Palestinian Territory | |
| 166 | PA | PAN | Panama | |
| 167 | PG | PNG | Papua New Guinea | |
| 168 | PY | PRY | Paraguay | |
| 169 | PE | PER | Peru | |
| 170 | PH | PHL | Philippines | |
| 171 | PN | PCN | Pitcairn Island | |
| 172 | PL | POL | Poland | PL |
| 173 | PT | PRT | Portugal | PT |
| 174 | PR | PRI | Puerto Rico | |
| 175 | QA | QAT | Qatar | |
| 176 | RE | REU | Reunion | |
| 177 | RO | ROU | Romania | |
| 178 | RU | RUS | Russian Federation | |
| 179 | RW | RWA | Rwanda | |
| 180 | SH | SHN | St. Helena | |
| 181 | KN | KNA | St. Kitts and Nevis | |
| 182 | LC | LCA | St. Lucia | |
| 183 | PM | SPM | St. Pierre and Miquelon | |
| 184 | VC | VCT | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | |
| 185 | WS | WSM | Samoa | |
| 186 | SM | SMR | San Marino | |
| 187 | ST | STP | Sao Tome and Principe | |
| 188 | SA | SAU | Saudi Arabia | |
| 189 | SN | SEN | Senegal | |
| 190 | CS | SCG | Serbia and Montenegro | |
| 191 | SC | SYC | Seychelles | |
| 192 | SL | SLE | Sierra Leone | |
| 193 | SG | SGP | Singapore | |
| 194 | SK | SVK | Slovakia (Slovak Republic) | SK |
| 195 | SI | SVN | Slovenia | SI |
| 196 | SB | SLB | Solomon Islands (was British Solomon Islands) | |
| 197 | SO | SOM | Somalia | |
| 198 | ZA | ZAF | South Africa | |
| 199 | GS | SGS | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands | |
| 200 | ES | ESP | Spain | ES |
| 201 | LK | LKA | Sri Lanka | |
| 202 | SD | SDN | Sudan | |
| 203 | SR | SUR | Suriname | |
| 204 | SJ | SJM | Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands | |
| 205 | SZ | SWZ | Swaziland | |
| 206 | SE | SWE | Sweden | SE |
| 207 | CH | CHE | Switzerland | |
| 208 | SY | SYR | Syrian Arab Republic | |
| 209 | TW | TWN | Taiwan | |
| 210 | TJ | TJK | Tajikistan | |
| 211 | TZ | TZA | Tanzania | |
| 212 | TH | THA | Thailand | |
| 213 | TL | TLS | Timor-Leste | |
| 214 | TG | TGO | Togo | |
| 215 | TK | TKL | Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) | |
| 216 | TO | TON | Tonga | |
| 217 | TT | TTO | Trinidad and Tobago | |
| 218 | TN | TUN | Tunisia | |
| 219 | TR | TUR | Turkey | |
| 220 | TM | TKM | Turkmenistan | |
| 221 | TC | TCA | Turks and Caicos Islands | |
| 222 | TV | TUV | Tuvalu (was part of Gilbert & Ellice Islands) | |
| 223 | VI | VIR | US Virgin Islands | |
| 224 | UG | UGA | Uganda | |
| 225 | UA | UKR | Ukraine | |
| 226 | AE | ARE | United Arab Emirates (was Trucial States) | |
| 227 | GB | GBR | United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland | GB |
| 228 | UM | UMI | United States Minor Outlying Islands | |
| 229 | US | USA | United States of America | |
| 230 | UY | URY | Uruguay | |
| 231 | UZ | UZB | Uzbekistan | |
| 232 | VU | VUT | Vanuatu (was New Hebrides) | |
| 233 | VE | VEN | Venezuela | |
| 234 | VN | VNM | Viet Nam | |
| 235 | WF | WLF | Wallis and Futuna Islands | |
| 236 | EH | ESH | Western Sahara (was Spanish Sahara) | |
| 237 | YE | YEM | Yemen | |
| 238 | ZM | ZMB | Zambia | |
| 239 | ZW | ZWE | Zimbabwe (was Southern Rhodesia) |
Inspired Notes
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