Vegetable waxes (other than triglycerides), beeswax, other insect waxes and spermaceti; whether or not refined or coloured (heading 1521): importing markets

Fact sheet

Code

1521

Chapter

15 · Animal, vegetable or microbial fats and oils and their cleavage products; prepared edible fats; animal or vegetable waxes

Subheadings

2

What to know before exporting HS 1521

Heading 1521 is in Chapter 15 and has two subheadings. In practice, one subheading covers vegetable waxes and the other covers beeswax and other insect waxes, with spermaceti. Check the exact wording of each in the tariff of the destination country before choosing one.

The table shows two large buyers well ahead of the rest: the United States and Germany. Together they are far above the third market, China. Germany is also a destination inside the European Union, so a company exporting from Spain ships there without customs duties on goods in free circulation, although the tax and documentary formalities of intra-EU trade still apply.

For markets outside the EU, such as the United States, China, Japan or the United Kingdom, the duty depends on the subheading and on the trade agreement in force between the EU and that country. It is checked for each product and destination in Access2Markets, the European Commission tool for exporters.

The figures are imports declared by each country from the whole world, not purchases from Spain. They show where the demand is, but they do not say how much of it a Spanish supplier can capture. To size a market for your own product, compare these totals with what each country imports from Spain under the same heading.

Waxes are used as inputs in cosmetics, food, coatings and candles. The same code can hide very different products, such as a refined wax and a raw one. Sanitary, labelling or food-contact requirements depend on the end use and on the destination, and are verified with the importer and the customs authority of that country before shipping.

Frequently asked questions