3402 90 — Surface-active preparations, washing preparations, incl. auxiliary washing preparations and cleaning preparations (excl. those put up for retail sale, organic surface-active agents, soap and organic surface-active preparations in the form of bars, cakes, moulded pieces or shapes, and products and preparations for washing the skin in the form of liquid or cream)

3402 Organic surface-active agents (other than soap); surface-active preparations, washing preparations (including auxiliary washing preparations) and cleaning preparations, whether or not containing soap (other than those of heading 3401): – organic surface-active agents, whether or not put up for retail sale: 3402 11 – – anionic 3402 12 – – cationic 3402 13 – – non-ionic 3402 19 – – other 3402 20 – preparations put up for retail sale

3402 90 – other (I) ORGANIC SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENTS (OTHER THAN SOAP) The organic surface-active agents of this heading are compounds, not chemically defined, which contain one or more hydrophilic or hydrophobic functional groups in such proportion that, when mixed with water at a concentration of 0.5% at a temperature of 20 °C and left to stand for 1 hour at the same temperature, they give a transparent or translucent liquid or a stable emulsion without separation of insoluble matter (see Note 3 (a) to this Chapter). For the purposes of this heading, an emulsion shall not be regarded as having stable properties if, after standing for 1 hour at a temperature of 20 °C: (1) solid particles are visible to the naked eye; (2) the emulsion separates into visually distinguishable phases; or (3) the emulsion separates into a clear part and a translucent part visible to the naked eye. Organic surface-active agents are capable of adsorption at an interface; in this condition they exhibit a number of physico-chemical properties, in particular surface activity (e.g., reduction of surface tension, foaming, emulsification, wetting), as a result of which they are usually called "surface-active agents". However, substances not capable of reducing the surface tension of distilled water to 4.5 x 10 -2 N/m (45 dyne/cm) or less at a concentration of 0.5% and a temperature of 20 °C are not regarded as surface-active agents and are therefore excluded from this heading. Organic surface-active agents may be: (1) Anionic, in which case they ionise in aqueous solution to produce negatively charged organic ions responsible for the surface activity. Examples: sulphates and sulphonates of fats, vegetable oils (triglycerides) or resin acids; sulphates and sulphonates derived from fatty alcohols; petroleum sulphonates, e.g., of alkali metals (including those containing mineral oils), of ammonium or of ethanolamines; alkyl polyether sulphates; alkyl sulphonates or alkyl phenyl ether sulphonates; alkyl sulphates, alkylaryl sulphonates (e.g., technical dodecylbenzene sulphonates). These surface-active agents may contain, as impurities arising from the manufacturing process, small quantities of fatty alcohols, alkylates or other hydrophobic raw materials which have not been sulphated or sulphonated. They may also contain sodium sulphate or other residual inorganic salts, generally not exceeding 15% calculated as anhydrous salts. (2) Cationic, which ionise in aqueous solution to produce positively charged organic ions responsible for the surface activity. Examples: salts of fatty amines and of quaternary ammonium bases. (3) Non-ionic, which do not produce ions in aqueous solution. Their solubility in water is due to the presence in the molecules of functional groups having a strong affinity for water. Examples: condensation products of fatty alcohols, fatty acids or alkylphenols with ethylene oxide; ethoxylates of fatty acid amides. (4) Ampholytic, having both anionic and cationic activity, which, depending on the medium, may ionise in aqueous solution and impart

to the compound the properties of an anionic or cationic surface-active agent. This ionic behaviour is analogous to that of amphoteric compounds in the widest sense of the term. They may, for example, be alkylbetaine or sulphobetaine proteins, their degradation products and substituted derivatives of aminocarboxylic, aminosulphonic, aminosulphuric and aminophosphoric acids. (II) SURFACE-ACTIVE PREPARATIONS, WASHING PREPARATIONS (INCLUDING AUXILIARY WASHING PREPARATIONS) AND CLEANING PREPARATIONS, WHETHER OR NOT CONTAINING SOAP, OTHER THAN THOSE OF HEADING 3401 These preparations fall into three categories: (A) Surface-active preparations. These include: (1) Mixtures of the surface-active agents listed in Part (I) above (e.g., sulphoricinoleates mixed with sulphonated alkylnaphthalenes or with sulphated fatty alcohols). (2) Solutions or dispersions of the surface-active agents listed in Part (I) above in an organic solvent (e.g., a solution of a sulphated fatty alcohol in cyclohexanol or in tetrahydronaphthalene). (3) Other mixtures with a basis of a surface-active agent listed in Part (I) above (e.g., surface-active preparations containing a certain proportion of soap, such as alkylbenzene sulphonate with sodium stearate). (4) Solutions or dispersions of soap in an organic solvent such as cyclohexanol. (Solutions of soap in water, which may contain a small quantity, generally not exceeding 5%, of added alcohol or glycerol, are liquid soaps of heading 3401.) Surface-active preparations are used for many industrial purposes because of their cleansing, wetting, emulsifying or dispersing properties, e.g., as: (i) detergents in the textile industry for removing grease and dirt from textiles during manufacture and finishing operations; (ii) wetting agents, emulsifying agents, fulling adjuncts and brightening agents for the textile industry; (iii) soaking adjuncts (for raw hides), degreasing agents, wetting agents (for use in dyeing), levelling agents or toners for the leather or furskin industries; (iv) base materials for the manufacture of the washing preparations described in Part (B) below (e.g., anionic surface-active preparations which may contain, either as a residue or as a special addition, a considerable proportion of sodium sulphate or other inorganic salts formed in the manufacture of the surface-active agents); (v) dispersing agents for the paper or synthetic rubber industries; (vi) flotation agents for the mining industry;

(vii) emulsifiers for the preparation of pharmaceutical products or cosmetics. This category does not include organic surfactants and skin washing appliances in which the active ingredient consists wholly or partly of synthetic surfactants (which may contain soap in any proportion), in the form of a liquid or cream and packaged for retail sale (heading 3401). (B) detergents (including auxiliary detergents) and cleaners based on soap or other organic surfactants. This category of substances includes detergents, auxiliary detergents and some cleaning agents. These various means comprise principal components and one or more auxiliary components. The presence of these latter components, in particular, distinguishes them from those described in (A) above. The main components of these media are synthetic surfactants or soaps, or mixtures thereof. Auxiliary components are as follows: (1) Basic filler (e.g., polyphosphates, carbonates, silicates or sodium borates, nitrile triacetic acid salts). (2) Amplifiers (e.g. alkanolamides, fatty acid amides, fatty amines oxides). (3) Fillers (e.g. sulfate or sodium chloride). (4) Minor substances (e.g. chemical or optical bleachers, re-deposition inhibitors, corrosion inhibitors, antistatics, coloring agent, fragrances, bactericides, enzymes). These substances cause contaminants to surface and transfer them to solution or dispersion. Detergents based on surfactants are also known as detergents. This type of product is used for washing clothes and also for washing dishes or kitchen utensils. They can be liquid, powdered or pasty and are used in the home or for industrial purposes. Toilet and detergents in the form of bars, pieces or molded articles are classified in heading 3401. Auxiliary detergents are used for soaking (pre-washing), rinsing or bleaching clothes, linens, etc. Cleaning products are used to clean floors, windows or other surfaces. They may also contain small amounts of fragrant substances. (C) Cleaning or degreasing products not based on soap or other organic surfactants. These include: (i) acidic or alkaline cleaning products of special formulations for cleaning sangigenic devices, pans, etc., for example, cleaning products containing sodium bisulfate or a mixture of sodium hypochlorite and sodium orthophosphate; (ii) degreasing or cleaning products used, for example, in the dairy or brewing industry, based on: - alkaline substances such as sodium carbonate or caustic soda; or

– solvents and emulsifiers. This group of products may contain small quantities of soap or other surface-active agents. The heading excludes: (a) shampoos or foam bath preparations, whether or not containing soap or other surface-active agents (Chapter 33); (b) paper, wadding, felt or fur felt and nonwovens, impregnated or coated with detergent (heading 3401); (c) preparations containing surface-active agents where the surface-active function is either not required or is merely subsidiary to the main function of the preparation (headings 3403, 3405, 3808, 3809, 3824, etc., as the case may be); (d) abrasive preparations containing surface-active agents (scouring pastes and powders) (heading 3405); (e) water-insoluble naphthenates, petroleum sulphonates and other water-insoluble surface-active products and preparations. These fall in heading 3824 provided that they are not covered by a more specific heading.

Notes

English text as published in Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2021/1832 (Combined Nomenclature). The EAEU tariff and the EU nomenclature copy these notes from the same convention. For a Russian declaration the binding version is the Russian one: Annex to Decision No 80 of the EEC Council of 14 September 2021.

1. This chapter does not cover:

(a) edible mixtures or preparations of animal, vegetable or microbial fats or oils of a kind used as mould release preparations (heading 1517);

(b) separate chemically defined compounds; or

(c) shampoos, dentifrices, shaving creams and foams, or bath preparations, containing soap or other organic surface-active agents (heading 3305, 3306 or 3307).

2. For the purposes of heading 3401, the expression ‘soap’ applies only to soap soluble in water. Soap and the other products of heading 3401 may contain added substances (for example, disinfectants, abrasive powders, fillers or medicaments). Products containing abrasive powders remain classified in heading 3401 only if in the form of bars, cakes or moulded pieces or shapes. In other forms, they are to be classified in heading 3405 as ‘scouring powders and similar preparations’.

3. For the purposes of heading 3402, ‘organic surface-active agents’ are products which, when mixed with water at a concentration of 0,5 % at 20 °C and left to stand for one hour at the same temperature:

(a) give a transparent or translucent liquid or stable emulsion without separation of insoluble matter; and

(b) reduce the surface tension of water to 4,5 × 10–2 N/m (45 dyn/cm) or less.

4. In heading 3403, the expression ‘petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals’ applies to the products defined in note 2 to Chapter 27.

5. In heading 3404, subject to the exclusions provided below, the expression ‘artificial waxes and prepared waxes’ applies only to:

(a) chemically produced organic products of a waxy character, whether or not water-soluble;

(b) products obtained by mixing different waxes;

(c) products of a waxy character with a basis of one or more waxes and containing fats, resins, mineral substances or other materials. The heading does not apply to:

(a) products of heading 1516, 3402 or 3823, even if having a waxy character;

(b) unmixed animal waxes or unmixed vegetable waxes, whether or not refined or coloured, of heading 1521;

(c) mineral waxes or similar products of heading 2712, whether or not intermixed or merely coloured; or

(d) waxes mixed with, dispersed in or dissolved in a liquid medium (headings 3405, 3809, etc.).