HEADING 34.01 - SOAP; ORGANIC SURFACE-ACTIVE PRODUCTS AND PREPARATIONS FOR USE AS SOAP IN THE FORM OF BARS CAKES MOULDED PIECES OR SHAPES WHETHER OR NOT CONTAINING SOAP; PAPER WADDING FELT AND NONWOVENS IMPREGNATED COATED OR COVERED WITH SOAP OR DETERGENT.

68 COMMODITIES

- Soap and organic surface-active products and preparations in the form of bars cakes moulded pieces or shapes and paper wadding felt and nonwovens  impregnated coated or covered with soap or detergent :

3401.11 - - For toilet use (including medicated products)

3401.19 - - Other

3401.20 - Soap in other forms

(I) SOAP

Soap is an alkaline salt (inorganic or organic) formed from a fatty acid or a mixture of fatty acids containing at least eight carbon atoms. In practice part of the fatty acids may be replaced by rosin acids.

The heading covers only soap soluble in water that is to say true soap. Soaps form a class of anionic surface-active agents with an alkaline reaction which lather abundantly in aqueous solutions.

There are three categories of soap :

Hard soaps which are usually made with sodium hydroxide or sodium carbonate and comprise the bulk of the ordinary soaps. They may be white coloured or mottled.

Soft soaps which are made with potassium hydroxide or potassium carbonate. They are viscous and generally green brown or pale yellow in colour. They may contain small quantities (generally not exceeding 5 %) of synthetic organic surface-active products.

Liquid soaps which are solutions of soap in water in some cases with a small quantity (generally not exceeding 5 %) of alcohol or glycerol added but not containing synthetic organic surface-active products.

This part covers in particular :

(1) Toilet soaps frequently coloured and perfumed which include : floating soaps and deodorant soaps as well as glycerin soaps shaving soaps medicated soaps and certain disinfectant or abrasive soaps as described below.

(a) Floating soaps and deodorant soaps.

(b) Glycerin soaps which are translucent and are made by treating white soap with alcohol glycerol or sugar.

(c) Shaving soaps (shaving creams fall in heading 33.07).

(d) Medicated soaps containing boric acid salicylic acid sulphur sulphonamides or other medicinal substances.

(e) Disinfectant soaps containing small quantities of phenol cresol naphthol formaldehyde or other bactericidal bacteriostatic etc. substances. These soaps should not be confused with disinfecting preparations of heading 38.08 containing the same constituents the difference lying in the proportions of the constituents (soap on the one hand and phenol cresol etc. on the other). The disinfecting preparations of heading 38.08 contain a substantial proportion of phenol cresol etc. and are liquid whereas disinfectant soaps are usually solid.

(f) Abrasive soaps consisting of soap to which sand silica pumice powder slate powder sawdust or any similar product has been added. The heading covers abrasive soaps only in the form of bars cakes or moulded pieces or shapes. Abrasive scouring pastes and powders whether or not containing soap fall in heading 34.05.

(2) Household soaps which may be coloured or perfumed abrasive or disinfectant.

(3) Rosin tall oil or naphthenate soaps containing not only alkaline salts of fatty acids but also alkaline resinates of heading 38.06 or alkaline naphthenates of heading 34.02.

(4) Industrial soaps prepared for special purposes such as those used for wire-drawing for polymerising synthetic rubber or in laundries.

Subject to the exception in paragraph 1 (f) above the soaps of this heading are generally in the following forms : bars cakes moulded pieces or shapes flakes powder paste or aqueous solution.

(II) ORGANIC SURFACE-ACTIVE PRODUCTS AND PREPARATIONS FOR USE AS SOAP IN THE FORM OF BARS CAKES OR MOULDED PIECES OR SHAPES WHETHER OR NOT CONTAINING SOAP

This part includes toilet or washing products and preparations in which the active component consists wholly or partly of synthetic surface-active agents (which may contain soap in any proportion) provided they are put up in the form of bars cakes or moulded pieces or shapes that is to say the ordinary forms of soaps intended for the same uses.

This part also includes such products and preparations which have been rendered abrasive by adding sand silica pumice powder etc. provided they are put up in the forms described above.

(III) PAPER WADDING FELT AND NONWOVENS IMPREGNATED COATED OR COVERED WITH SOAP OR DETERGENT

This part covers paper wadding felt and nonwovens impregnated coated or covered with soap or detergent whether or not perfumed or put up for retail sale. These products are generally used for washing the hands or the face.

Apart from the exclusions referred to above the heading excludes :

(a)Soap-stocks (heading 15.22).

(b)Products and preparations insoluble in water which are " soaps " only in the chemical sense such as calcium or other metallic " soaps " (Chapters 29 30 38 etc. as the case may be).