Subheading · Chapter 29 · Heading 2902
2902.20: Cyclic hydrocarbons, benzene
Benzene
Official description Benzene
2902.20 is the HS subheading for benzene, under heading 2902 in chapter 29.
What you pay
Importing into UK
Rates by national line · UK Global Tariff
UK lines →- 2902 20 00 00 Benzene Free
Additional duties and import rules
Charges on top of the customs duty, and rules the goods must meet at the border.
Additional duties and charges 1
- Duty suspensionSuspension - goods for certain categories of ships, boats and other vessels and for drilling or production platforms Free
- Applies to goods from
- all countries
- Legal act
- 2020 No. 1431
- Documents
- C990 End use authorisation ships and platforms (Column 8c, Annex A of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446)
Import requirements 3
- Import controlRestriction on entry into free circulation
- Applies to goods from
- Russia, Ukraine
- Legal act
- 2022 No.998, S.I. 2022/395
- Import controlImport control on restricted goods and technologies
- Applies to goods from
- North Korea
- Legal act
- S.I. 2019/411
- Documents
- Y920 Goods other than those described in the footnotes linked to the measure
- Import control
- Applies to goods from
- Iran
- Legal act
- 2023 No.1314
Preferential rates by country
| Agreement or scheme | Countries | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| standard rate (no agreement) | — | Free |
| DCTS Comprehensive | Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin and 38 moreAfghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo - Kinshasa, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Laos, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, São Tomé & Príncipe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tuvalu, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia | Free |
| European Union (including code "EU") | Free | |
| CARIFORUM | Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize and 10 moreAntigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago | Free |
| OCTs (Overseas Countries and Territories) | Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands and 7 moreAnguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands, St Helena, Turks & Caicos Islands | Free |
| SADC EPA | Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia | Free |
| CPTPP | Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico | Free |
| Eastern and Southern Africa States | Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Zimbabwe | Free |
| UK–Andorra agreement | Andorra | Free |
| UK–Albania agreement | Albania | Free |
| UK–Australia agreement | Australia | Free |
| UK–Canada agreement | Canada | Free |
| UK–Switzerland agreement | Switzerland | Free |
| UK–Côte d’Ivoire agreement | Côte d’Ivoire | Free |
| UK–Cameroon agreement | Cameroon | Free |
| UK–Colombia agreement | Colombia | Free |
| UK–Ceuta & Melilla agreement | Ceuta & Melilla | Free |
| UK–Ecuador agreement | Ecuador | Free |
| UK–Egypt agreement | Egypt | Free |
| UK–Fiji agreement | Fiji | Free |
| UK–Faroe Islands agreement | Faroe Islands | Free |
| UK–Georgia agreement | Georgia | Free |
| UK–Ghana agreement | Ghana | Free |
| UK–India agreement | India | Free |
| UK–Iceland agreement | Iceland | Free |
| UK–Jordan agreement | Jordan | Free |
| UK–Japan agreement | Japan | Free |
| UK–Kenya agreement | Kenya | Free |
| UK–South Korea agreement | South Korea | Free |
| UK–Liechtenstein agreement | Liechtenstein | Free |
| UK–Morocco agreement | Morocco | Free |
| UK–Moldova agreement | Moldova | Free |
| UK–North Macedonia agreement | North Macedonia | Free |
| UK–Norway agreement | Norway | Free |
| UK–New Zealand agreement | New Zealand | Free |
| UK–Peru agreement | Peru | Free |
| UK–Papua New Guinea agreement | Papua New Guinea | Free |
| UK–Palestinian Territories agreement | Palestinian Territories | Free |
| UK–Serbia agreement | Serbia | Free |
| UK–Solomon Islands agreement | Solomon Islands | Free |
| UK–Singapore agreement | Singapore | Free |
| UK–San Marino agreement | San Marino | Free |
| UK–Ukraine agreement | Ukraine | Free |
| UK–Vietnam agreement | Vietnam | Free |
| UK–Samoa agreement | Samoa | Free |
| UK–Kosovo agreement | Kosovo | Free |
| UK–South Africa agreement | South Africa | Free |
UK: imports by month
Main suppliers, last 12 months
| Country | Value | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
 Netherlands | £81.3m | 81.5% | +97.6% |
 Germany | £13.9m | 13.9% | +5.1% |
 Belgium | £4.5m | 4.5% | -56.9% |
 China | £23k | 0% | +287.1% |
 India | £12k | 0% | +173.9% |
 United States | £9k | 0% | -99.7% |
| United Kingdom | £2k | 0% | — |
 Georgia | £0 | 0% | -100% |
Same subheading in other tariffs
TürkiyeWorld trade in 2024
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$37.5mUS$37.5m+US$171m+US$498m+> US$1.3bn
Exports: 64
- South Korea: US$3.1bn
- India: US$1.3bn
- Netherlands: US$933.5m
- Japan: US$572.4m
- Brunei: US$538.9m
- Thailand: US$498m
- Germany: US$465.2m
- Belgium: US$301.7m
- Malaysia: US$292.5m
- Singapore: US$267.7m
- United Kingdom: US$202m
- Poland: US$183m
- Oman: US$180.3m
- Saudi Arabia: US$171m
- Vietnam: US$162.8m
- Canada: US$143m
- Indonesia: US$142.6m
- Türkiye: US$132.4m
- Israel: US$127.4m
- Philippines: US$98.7m
- Spain: US$90.8m
- France: US$78.8m
- Brazil: US$62.6m
- United States: US$40.9m
- Argentina: US$39.1m
- Hungary: US$38.9m
- Ukraine: US$37.8m
- Serbia: US$37.5m
- Romania: US$30.5m
- Slovakia: US$29.6m
- Kazakhstan: US$27.7m
- Italy: US$24.1m
- Colombia: US$14.1m
- Czechia: US$13.6m
- Georgia: US$9.3m
- Algeria: US$7.5m
- Switzerland: US$2.1m
- China: US$2m
- South Africa: US$1.4m
- Russia: US$1.4m
- Taiwan: US$368.5k
- Denmark: US$227.7k
- Lithuania: US$36.2k
- Kyrgyzstan: US$12.1k
- Bulgaria: US$10.2k
- Slovenia: US$9.1k
- Hong Kong SAR China: US$6.7k
- Latvia: US$5k
- Mauritius: US$1.7k
- Austria: US$1k
- Sweden: US$500
- Uganda: US$500
- Burkina Faso: US$300
- Finland: US$300
- North Macedonia: US$100
- Nigeria: US$100
- Angola: US$0
- United Arab Emirates: US$0
- Cyprus: US$0
- Greece: US$0
Trade value (US$) no reported trade < US$5.6kUS$5.6k+US$1.2m+US$137.6m+> US$799m
Imports: 120
- China: US$4.3bn
- United States: US$1.5bn
- Belgium: US$817.5m
- Taiwan: US$799m
- Saudi Arabia: US$659.5m
- Netherlands: US$423.3m
- Germany: US$378.7m
- Portugal: US$267.7m
- Italy: US$224.1m
- Kuwait: US$190.1m
- United Kingdom: US$156.2m
- France: US$137.6m
- Spain: US$135.6m
- South Korea: US$92.8m
- Singapore: US$82.6m
- Malaysia: US$75m
- Czechia: US$47.4m
- Hungary: US$36m
- Finland: US$35.3m
- Indonesia: US$21.7m
- Slovakia: US$21.5m
- Japan: US$16.4m
- Canada: US$10.7m
- Qatar: US$8.3m
- Switzerland: US$3.6m
- Thailand: US$3.3m
- Vietnam: US$3m
- United Arab Emirates: US$2.2m
- Zimbabwe: US$1.2m
- Mexico: US$1.2m
- Nigeria: US$951.8k
- Uganda: US$918.4k
- Norway: US$449.4k
- Poland: US$184.2k
- Ireland: US$171.9k
- Chile: US$162.5k
- Myanmar (Burma): US$132.4k
- South Africa: US$130.7k
- Greece: US$102.8k
- Slovenia: US$76.7k
- Kazakhstan: US$62k
- Brazil: US$42.7k
- India: US$35.1k
- Ukraine: US$27.1k
- Malawi: US$25.9k
- Zambia: US$21.4k
- Austria: US$17.5k
- Colombia: US$14.7k
- Türkiye: US$12.7k
- Israel: US$8.1k
- Mozambique: US$7.9k
- Kyrgyzstan: US$7.8k
- Azerbaijan: US$7.4k
- Bulgaria: US$7.2k
- Argentina: US$7k
- New Zealand: US$6.8k
- Nepal: US$5.6k
- Denmark: US$5.2k
- Eswatini: US$5.2k
- Bangladesh: US$5.1k
Top exporters
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  South Korea | US$3.1bn | 29.4% |
| 2 | India | US$1.3bn | 12.9% |
| 3 | Netherlands | US$933.5m | 9% |
| 4 |  Japan | US$572.4m | 5.5% |
| 5 |  Brunei | US$538.9m | 5.2% |
| 6 |  Thailand | US$498m | 4.8% |
| 7 | Germany | US$465.2m | 4.5% |
| 8 | Belgium | US$301.7m | 2.9% |
| 9 |  Malaysia | US$292.5m | 2.8% |
| 10 |  Singapore | US$267.7m | 2.6% |
Top importers
| Rank | Country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | US$4.3bn | 41.1% |
| 2 | United States | US$1.5bn | 14.1% |
| 3 | Belgium | US$817.5m | 7.9% |
| 4 |  Taiwan | US$799m | 7.7% |
| 5 |  Saudi Arabia | US$659.5m | 6.3% |
| 6 | Netherlands | US$423.3m | 4.1% |
| 7 | Germany | US$378.7m | 3.6% |
| 8 |  Portugal | US$267.7m | 2.6% |
| 9 |  Italy | US$224.1m | 2.2% |
| 10 |  Kuwait | US$190.1m | 1.8% |
Recent rule changes mentioning this code
Acts whose text cites this code or its heading. Check the act itself: a code can be cited for reasons other than a change of its duty.
- Tariff change
UK Trade Tariff: measure changes on 1015 commodity codes
Trade Tariff changes 2026-09-29 · Source: trade-tariff.service.gov.uk
- Sanctions · Applies from:
The Iran (Sanctions) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
S.I. 2026/983 · Source: legislation.gov.uk
-
Anti-dumping · Applies from: CELEX 32026R1854 · Source: eur-lex.europa.eu
- Tariff change · Applies from:
CELEX 32026R1395 · Source: eur-lex.europa.eu
- Sanctions · Applies from:
The Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
S.I. 2026/543 · Source: legislation.gov.uk
- Sanctions · Applies from:
CELEX 32026R0759 · Source: eur-lex.europa.eu
Subheading 2902.20 is a single line in the UK Global Tariff, where the duty is duty-free.
The EU Combined Nomenclature has one tariff line for subheading 2902.20; the duty is duty-free.
Goods from 146 countries can enter the UK at a preferential rate instead of the standard Free; 146 of them pay no duty at all, for example under DCTS Comprehensive or European Union.
In the 12 months to August 2026, the UK imported benzene worth £99.7m (up 35% on the year before), at an average of £0.72 per kg; Netherlands supplied 82%, followed by Germany.
World trade in benzene reached US$10.4bn in 2024, up 16.2% on 2023.
South Korea was the largest exporter with 29.4% of the total, ahead of India.
Questions and answers
What is the HS code for cyclic hydrocarbons, benzene?
Cyclic hydrocarbons, benzene fall under HS subheading 2902.20, part of heading 2902, in section VI of the Harmonized System.
What is the import duty on cyclic hydrocarbons, benzene in the UK?
Under the UK Global Tariff, imports under 2902.20 from countries without a preferential agreement are free of duty. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
What is the import duty on cyclic hydrocarbons, benzene in the EU?
Under the EU Combined Nomenclature, imports under 2902.20 from countries without a preferential agreement are free of duty. Preferential rates, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
Which country exports the most cyclic hydrocarbons, benzene?
South Korea, with US$3.1bn in 2024 (29.4% of world exports).
Which countries can export benzene to the UK duty-free?
146 countries pay no duty under a trade agreement or preference scheme, among them partners under DCTS Comprehensive, European Union, CARIFORUM. The goods must meet the agreement’s rules of origin and the importer needs proof of origin; otherwise the standard rate of Free applies. Pick a country above to see its rate.
Where does the UK import benzene from?
In the 12 months to August 2026, the largest suppliers were Netherlands (82%), Germany (14%) and Belgium (5%), out of total imports of £99.7m.