UK Global Tariff · commodity code · HS 3912.39
3912 39 85 30: Cellulose, both hydroxyethylated and alkylated with alkyl chain-lengths of 3 or more carbon atoms
Other cellulose ethers
✓ Can be used in a customs declaration Data: UK Global Tariff · checked on 24 October 2026
- 3912 Cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere specified or included, in primary forms
- Cellulose ethers
- 3912 39 00 00 Other
- 3912 39 85 00 Other
- 3912 39 85 30 Cellulose, both hydroxyethylated and alkylated with alkyl chain-lengths of 3 or more carbon atoms
What you pay
Importing into UK
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 2
- Additional dutyAdditional duties 35%
- Applies to goods from
- Belarus, Russia
- Legal act
- 2022 No. 833
- Documents
- 9018
- Duty suspensionAutonomous tariff suspension Free
- Applies to goods from
- all countries
- In force
- until 31 December 2028
- Legal act
- 2020 No. 1435
Import requirements 2
- Import controlRestriction on entry into free circulation
- Applies to goods from
- Ukraine
- Legal act
- S.I. 2022/395
- Documents
- 9009
- 9010
- 9017
- Import controlImport control - Waste
- Applies to goods from
- all countries
- Legal act
- S.I. 2019/590
- Documents
- C672 Information document accompanying shipments of waste as mentioned in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 – Article 18 and Annex VII
- C669 Notification document as mentioned in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 - Article 5 and Annex IA
- Y923 Product not subjected to the provisions of Regulation (EU) 2024/1157
- C670 Movement document as mentioned in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 – Article 5 and Annex IB
Preferential rates by country
| Agreement or scheme | Countries | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| standard rate (no agreement) | — | 6% |
| 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 | |
| DCTS Enhanced | Algeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Congo - Brazzaville and 13 moreAlgeria, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Congo - Brazzaville, Cook Islands, Kyrgyzstan, Micronesia, Mongolia, Nigeria, Niue, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu | 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 |
| Central America | Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama | Free |
| SADC EPA | Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia | Free |
| Eastern and Southern Africa States | Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Zimbabwe | Free |
| CPTPP | Brunei, Malaysia | 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–Chile agreement | Chile | 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 |
| DCTS Standard | Indonesia | Free |
| UK–Israel agreement | Israel | 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–Lebanon agreement | Lebanon | Free |
| UK–Liechtenstein agreement | Liechtenstein | Free |
| UK–Morocco agreement | Morocco | Free |
| UK–Moldova agreement | Moldova | Free |
| UK–North Macedonia agreement | North Macedonia | Free |
| UK–Mexico agreement | Mexico | 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–Tunisia agreement | Tunisia | Free |
| UK–Türkiye agreement | Türkiye | 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 |
Footnotes
TN701 According to the Council Regulation (EU) No 692/2014 (OJ L183, p. 9), as retained in UK La…
The prohibition shall not apply in respect of:
(a) the execution until 26 September 2014, of trade contracts concluded before 25 June 2014, or of ancillary contracts necessary for the execution of such contracts, provided that the natural or legal persons, entity or body seeking to perform the contract have notified, at least 10 working days in advance, the activity or transaction to the competent authority of the Member State in which they are established.
(b) goods originating in Crimea or Sevastopol which have been made available to the Ukrainian authorities for examination, for which compliance with the conditions conferring entitlement to preferential origin has been verified and for which a certificate of origin has been issued in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 978/2012 and Regulation (EU) No 374/2014, as retained in UK Law, or in accordance with the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement
UK: imports by month · HS 3912.39
Main suppliers, last 12 months
| Country | Value | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
 Germany | £18.9m | 38% | +9.3% |
 Netherlands | £6.2m | 12.5% | +5.5% |
 South Korea | £5.6m | 11.3% | +8.3% |
 United States | £5.1m | 10.2% | -20.3% |
 Sweden | £4.5m | 9.1% | +12.9% |
 China | £3.2m | 6.4% | -19.8% |
 Belgium | £2.7m | 5.4% | -12.2% |
 Japan | £1.4m | 2.8% | +12.2% |
Same subheading in other tariffs
3912.39 Cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere: cellulose ethers, other
EU Free – 6.5% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines · average 3.3% 
Türkiye Free – 6.5% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines · average 3.3% USA 4.2% General (MFN) 1 tariff line 
Canada Free Third-country duty 2 tariff lines 
Mexico 7% – 10% Third-country duty 6 tariff lines · average 8.5% 
Brazil Free Third-country duty 4 tariff lines 
Argentina Free Third-country duty 6 tariff lines 
Peru Free Third-country duty 2 tariff lines 
New Zealand Free Third-country duty 2 tariff lines Japan 3.1% Third-country duty 1 tariff line 
Taiwan 2.5% Third-country duty 6 tariff lines 
GCC 5% Third-country duty 4 tariff lines 
Switzerland Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line 
Norway Free Third-country duty 1 tariff line 
North Macedonia 5% Third-country duty 2 tariff lines 
Nigeria 5% Third-country duty 1 tariff line UK lines: 3912.39
- 3912 39 20 00Cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere: cellulose ethers, other, hydroxypropylcellulose
- 3912 39 85 10Cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere: cellulose ethers, other, other, ethylcellulose, not plasticised
- 3912 39 85 20Ethylcellulose, in the form of an aqueous dispersion containing hexadecan-1-ol and sodium dodecyl sulphate, containing by weight 27 (± 3) % of ethylcellulose
- 3912 39 85 30Cellulose, both hydroxyethylated and alkylated with alkyl chain-lengths of 3 or more carbon atoms
- 3912 39 85 50Polyquaternium 10 (cas rn 68610-92-4)
- 3912 39 85 60Hypromellose (inn) (cas rn 9004-65-3), for use in the manufacturing of food supplements or pharmaceuticals
- 3912 39 85 90Cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere: cellulose ethers, other, other, other
Binding rulings for similar goods
Decisions of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CROSS) and HMRC (Advance Tariff Rulings) on goods classified here. A ruling binds only its holder, but shows how the authorities classify similar goods. The descriptions are the authorities’ own, in English.
- N336497 U.S. CBP
The tariff classification of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose phthalate (CAS-9050-31-1) and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose acetate succinate (CAS-71138-97-1) from Japan
Legal notes
Commodity code 3912 39 85 30 is a line of the UK Global Tariff under HS subheading 3912.39 (cellulose and its chemical derivatives, not elsewhere: cellulose ethers, other).
The third-country duty is 6%.
174 countries pay no duty in the UK thanks to trade agreements and preference schemes such as DCTS Comprehensive and European Union, against a standard rate of 6%.
In the UK, additional duty of 35% applies on top of the customs duty to goods from Belarus and Russia.
Imports of other cellulose ethers (HS 3912.39) into the UK came to £49.6m between September 2025 and August 2026 (down 0% on the year before); Germany supplied 38%, followed by Netherlands.
For the same subheading, the EU duty is 0%–6.5%, the Türkiye duty is 0%–6.5%, the US duty is 4.2%, the Canada duty is free, the Mexico duty is 7%–10%, the Brazil duty is free, the Argentina duty is free, the Peru duty is free, the New Zealand duty is free, the Japan duty is 3.1%, the Taiwan duty is 2.5%, the GCC duty is 5%, the Switzerland duty is free, the Norway duty is free, the North Macedonia duty is 5% and the Nigeria duty is 5%.
The UK imported goods of subheading 3912.39 worth US$66m in 2024; the largest supplier was Germany.
Questions and answers
What is the UK import duty for commodity code 3912 39 85 30?
The third-country duty in the UK Global Tariff is 6%. Preferential rates for goods from agreement countries, anti-dumping duties and VAT are not included.
Which countries get a lower rate on 3912 39 85 30?
174 countries have a preferential rate on this line, 174 of them at 0%, under DCTS Comprehensive, European Union and DCTS Enhanced and other arrangements. The rate applies only to goods that meet the rules of origin of the agreement, with proof of origin. Choose the country of origin on this page to see its rate.
Do anti-dumping or other extra duties apply to 3912 39 85 30?
Additional duty of 35% on goods from Belarus and Russia. These are charged on top of the customs duty.
Where does the UK import these goods from?
For subheading 3912.39 as a whole, the largest supplier in 2024 was Germany (US$22m), followed by the United States.
Typical products
Everyday names, not part of the legal text.