I don't have a complete list, but:
Royal marriages (5 each time), forming and extending alliances (5 each time), vassalizing or annexing nations, adding provinces to your empire, winning land or sea battles, creating colonies/trading posts, improving a tech level, completing a manufactory, completing a mission (from the missions list, bottom left) all grant victory points. How many, I never bothered to work out.
Having your monarch elected Holy Roman Emperor awards 50Vps, each time you succeed in doing so.
Ceding provinces, losing land and sea battles, and failing to complete missions, will penalise you VPs.
There may be others.