Vatican City IBAN validator
How the IBAN format works
- Format
- VA + 2 check digits + 18-digit bank/account number (22 chars)
- Example
- VA59001123000012345678
Things to watch for
- 22 characters total, all numeric after the country code
- Checks structure and checksum only, not that the account exists
^VA[0-9]{2}[0-9]{18}$A Vatican City IBAN is 22 characters long: “VA”, two check digits, and then 18 straight digits with no letters anywhere — the shortest and structurally simplest IBAN among the small European enclave states. Vatican City is the world’s smallest sovereign state, and its banking runs through the Institute for the Works of Religion, widely known as the Vatican Bank, which serves the Holy See’s own institutions and a limited set of account holders rather than the general public. Because the format is fully numeric, a Vatican City IBAN is easier to read aloud or key in by hand than its Italian or San Marino neighbors, but a single mistyped digit anywhere in those 18 numbers is just as capable of producing an invalid or misdirected transfer.
How this validator works
This tool confirms the “VA” prefix, checks that exactly 18 digits follow the two check digits with no letters present, and then runs the mod-97 (ISO 7064) checksum that a correctly formed Vatican City IBAN must satisfy — entirely in your browser, nothing sent anywhere, no signup.
What a pass doesn’t tell you
A pass confirms those 22 digits are structurally valid and pass the checksum — it says nothing about whether the account exists, is active, or belongs to the institution or person you expect. This tool has no connection to the Institute for the Works of Religion or any other bank and performs no name or account lookup. If a Vatican City IBAN fails, recount the digit groups carefully — an all-numeric string is easy to mis-split when copying from a printed or scanned document.
Scope: structure and mod-97 checksum validation for Vatican City IBANs only — not bank verification, payment processing, or proof an account is active. Use it to catch a typo, not to confirm the recipient.
Content last reviewed 2026-07-09.
IBAN FAQ
What does a Vatican City IBAN look like?
22 characters, and unlike most of its neighbors, entirely numbers after the country prefix: 'VA', two check digits, then 18 straight digits covering the bank and account identifiers — for example VA59001123000012345678. There's no letter block anywhere in the format.
Which bank issues Vatican City IBANs?
Vatican City's banking is handled by the Institute for the Works of Religion (commonly known as the Vatican Bank), which serves the Holy See's institutions and a narrow set of account holders — this tool doesn't identify or confirm any specific account with them, only the IBAN's own structure.
Why is the Vatican's IBAN all-numeric when Italy and San Marino next door use letters?
Italy and San Marino both embed a domestic CIN check letter inside their IBANs; Vatican City's format skips that entirely and uses a plain 18-digit numeric block, making it structurally simpler than its two closest neighbors despite sharing the same 27-character-adjacent regional banking context.