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  3. Chemical building products 097

Chemical building products 097

The product group covers a wide range of product types, such as adhesives, fillers, primers, sealants, self-levelling products, industrial paints and exterior paints and varnishes.

A Nordic Swan Ecolabelled chemical building product will be amongst the least environmentally impacting products in its group and the ecolabel indicates that the product fulfils strict environmental requirements.

The requirements are based on an assessment of the life cycle of the product and imposed on raw materials, production, use, performance and waste. The lower impact of chemical building products on health and the environment is achieved by means of a reduced use of chemicals that are harmful to health and the environment and lower emissions to air and water.

Below you will find all the necessary documents and background information to apply for the Nordic Swan Ecolabel. 

    1. Start your application process by reading the criteria document and find out if your product can obtain the Nordic Swan Ecolabel. 
    2. Read your Application Guide.
    3. Request login credentials.
    4. Now you are ready to enter the Nordic Ecolabelling Portal.

     

    Portal sign in                               Get login credentials

     

    Should you wish to transfer your licence, please use this form. 

  • The criteria document for chemical building products is an overall document for the commodity groups:

    • Adhesives, sealants and fillers
    • Anti corrosion for industrial and infrastructure applications
    • Impregnating agents for tiles, stone and concrete
    • Other industrial paints and varnishes
    • Outdoor paints and varnishes

    Fees are charged per commodity group according to the price list below. Exceptions apply to Outdoor paints and varnishes and Indoor paints and varnishes (from product group 096) which are counted as one commodity group.

    Fees valid from 1 January 2025

    Application fee

    Application fee including one on-site inspection within the Nordic region *) 3 348 EUR excl. VAT. Inspection of eight recipes is included in the application fee. For inspection of aditional recipes, 418 EUR excl. VAT per recipe will be charged.
    Renewal fee *) 1 673 EUR excl. VAT. Inspection of eight recipes is included in the fee. For inspection of aditional recipes, 209 EUR excl. VAT per recipe will be charged.

    Annual licence fee

    Annual licence fee: The annual licence fee for the Nordic Swan Ecolabelled products is based on their turnover in the Nordic countries. **)

    		 0.3% of turnover + VAT from 0 – 30.9 million EUR 
    0.05% of turnover + VAT > 30.9 million EUR
    Minimum fee for the Nordic countries 2 232 EUR annually excl. VAT
    Maximum fee for the Nordic countries No maximum fee
    Annual licence fee outside the Nordic countries (for licence holders with a turnover of more than 300 000 EUR of Nordic Swan ecolabelled products, sold outside the Nordic countries) 2 232 EUR annually excl. VAT

    If the Nordic Swan ecolabelled products are only sold outside the Nordic countries, a minimum fee is always charged.

    Fee for extensions/alterations of licence

    Extension/alteration of existing licence Should the extension regard inspection of recipes, which are not already included in the licence, 406 EUR excl. VAT will be charged per recipe.

    Other types of alterations will be charged according to how long it takes to deal with the matter:
    - Less than 4 hours: 418 EUR excl. VAT
    - Between 4 and 8 hours: 836 EUR excl. VAT
    - More than 8 hours: 1 673 EUR excl. VAT

    Fees for on-site inspections

    Extra fee for additional on-site inspection within the Nordic countries 557 EUR excl. VAT per visit
    On-site inspection outside the Nordic region, but within Europe***) 1 673 EUR excl. VAT per visit
    On-site inspections outside Europe***) 2 790 EUR excl. VAT per visit

    *) Micro enterprises are charged half the fee. A micro enterprise, according to our definition, is a company with a maximum of 10 employees and with a total turnover of €2 000 000 (including both ecolabelled and non-ecolabelled products).

    **) Corporations pay only one licence fee

    ***) There is an extra fee of 1 115 EUR per day if the inspection takes more than one day.

    Fees valid from 1 January 2024

    Application fee

    Application fee including one on-site inspection within the Nordic region *) 3 251 EUR excl. VAT. Inspection of eight recipes is included in the application fee. For inspection of aditional recipes, 389 EUR excl. VAT per recipe will be charged.
    Renewal fee *) 1 625 EUR excl. VAT. Inspection of eight recipes is included in the fee. For inspection of aditional recipes, 203 EUR excl. VAT per recipe will be charged.

    Annual licence fee

    Annual licence fee: The annual licence fee for the Nordic Swan Ecolabelled products is based on their turnover in the Nordic countries. **)

    		 0.3% of turnover + VAT from 0 – 30 million EUR 
    0.05% of turnover + VAT > 30 million EUR
    Minimum fee for the Nordic countries 2 167 EUR annually excl. VAT
    Maximum fee for the Nordic countries No maximum fee
    Annual licence fee outside the Nordic countries (for licence holders with a turnover of more than 300 000 EUR of Nordic Swan ecolabelled products, sold outside the Nordic countries) 2 167 EUR annually excl. VAT

    If the Nordic Swan ecolabelled products are only sold outside the Nordic countries, a minimum fee is always charged.

    Fee for extensions/alterations of licence

    Extension/alteration of existing licence Should the extension regard inspection of recipes, which are not already included in the licence, 406 EUR excl. VAT will be charged per recipe.

    Other types of alterations will be charged according to how long it takes to deal with the matter:
    - Less than 4 hours: 406 EUR excl. VAT
    - Between 4 and 8 hours: 812 EUR excl. VAT
    - More than 8 hours: 1 625 EUR excl. VAT

    Fees for on-site inspections

    Extra fee for additional on-site inspection within the Nordic countries 541 EUR excl. VAT per visit
    On-site inspection outside the Nordic region, but within Europe***) 1 625EUR excl. VAT per visit
    On-site inspections outside Europe***) 2 709 EUR excl. VAT per visit

    *) Micro enterprises are charged half the fee. A micro enterprise, according to our definition, is a company with a maximum of 10 employees and with a total turnover of €2 000 000 (including both ecolabelled and non-ecolabelled products).

    **) Corporations pay only one licence fee

    ***) There is an extra fee of 1 083 EUR per day if the inspection takes more than one day.

  • In the criteria document, you can read about how to document and verify compliance for each requirement. You can also find other application documents here.

  • There are many possibilities to communicate the Nordic Swan Ecolabel. Find more information here.

  • Information on the latest version of the criteria for chemical building products

    2.21 ⇛ 2.22: Prolongation of the validity of the criteria

    Nordic Ecolabelling decided on 1 October 2024 to prolong the criteria with 8 months to 28 February 2026. The new version is called 2.22.

    2.20 ⇛ 2.21: Adjustment of the criteria

    Adjustment in O3 where the exception for Respirable crystalline silica has been extended with the classification H350i. 

    The new version is called 2.21 and is valid to June 30, 2025.

    2.19 ⇛ 2.20: Adjustment and prolongation of the validity of the criteria

    Adjustment in O2 where the EUH208 requirement has been removed. Furthermore, the validity of the criteria have been prolonged with 12 months.

    The new version is called 2.20 and is valid to June 30, 2025.

    2.18 ⇛ 2.19: Adjustment of criteria

    Adjustment of the limit value for isothiazolinones for adhesives, sealant and multipurpose adhesives. The adjustment means that the total amount allowed increases to 300 ppm.

    The new version is called 2.19.

    2.17 ⇛ 2.18: Adjustment of criteria

    Adjustment of the time-based exemption for trimethylol propane (TMP). The current exemption will last during the validity of the criteria and TMP will be reevaluated during the development of new criteria. The new version is called 2.18.

    2.16 ⇛ 2.17: Prolongation of the validity of the criteria

    The criteria have been prolonged with 12 months . The new version is called 2.17 and is valid until 30 June 2024.

    2.15 ⇛ 2.16: Adjustment of criteria

    Adjustment of requirement O11 Nanoparticles and permission to use synthesized calcium carbonate. In addition, the product definition "Impregnating agent for Tiles, Stone and Concrete" has been harmonized with the criteria for outdoor furniture and playground equipment. The new version is called 2.16.

    2.14 ⇛ 2.15: Prolongation of the validity of the criteria

    The criteria have been prolonged with 24 months and updated by harmonizing the reclassification of MIT with the Nordic Ecolabelling requirements for preservatives and the applicable exemption for the dispersant trimethylolpropane (TMP). The new version is called 2.15 and is valid until 30 June 2023.

    2.13 ⇛ 2.14: Adjustment of criteria

    An adjustment of requirements O4 Environmentally hazardous substances and O5 Preservatives has been made to comply with the criteria for Indoor paint. The new version is called 2.14.

    2.12 ⇛ 2.13: Expansion of criteria

    The criteria have been expanded with impregnating agents for tile, stone and concrete. What can carry the Nordic Swan Ecolabel and O5 Preservatives have been adjusted. New sections for product-specific requirements (section 2.6) have been added. The new version is called 2.13.

    2.11 ⇛ 2.12: Expansion and alteration of criteria

    The criteria have been expanded with multipurpose adhesives/construction adhesives. What can carry the Nordic Ecolabel, O2 classification of product and product-specific adhesive requirements (section 2.1) have been adjusted. The VOC ban of wallpaper paste was deleted in O13 at the same time. The new version is called 2.12.

    2.10 ⇛ 2.11: Alteration and prolongation of criteria

    Requirement O32 Take-back system has been removed. Furthermore an adjustment was made in requirement O21, Quality requirements for fillers, to allow an alternative test method for fillers. Requirement O6 Formaldehyde has been harmonized with the criteria for indoor paints. The criteria has been prolonged until 30 June 2021.The new version is called 2.11.

    2.9 ⇛ 2.10: Alteration of criteria

    An adjustment was made in requirement O3 Classification of constituent chemical substances to allow that raw materials classify with STOT SE 2 or STOT RE 2. The new version is called 2.10.

    2.8 ⇛ 2.9: Alteration of criteria

    An adjustment was made in requirement O7, residual monomers in polymers. The new version is called 2.9.

    2.7 ⇛ 2.8: Alteration of criteria

    • Exemptions in requirement O3 and O12 regarding driers were included.
    • Several exemptions were removed from O3 and classification with acute tox was deleted from the list of residual monomers in polymers that can not be present in 100 ppm in O7.
    • Prohibition of metal packaging for pacs of less than 1 liter was deleted.

    The new version is called 2.8.

    2.6 ⇛ 2.7: Alteration of criteria

    • Exemptions regarding driers were introduced in requirements O3 and O12.

    The new version, 2.7, is valid until March 31st 2019.

    2.5 ⇛ 2.6: Alteration of criteria

    An exemption for polymerized vinylchloride has been introduced in requirement O12. The new version, 2.6, is valid until March 31st 2019.

    2.4 ⇛ 2.5: Alteration of criteria

    Exemptions regarding glyoxal, sodium nitrite and neutralizing agents have been introduced in requirement O3. The new version, 2.5, is valid until March 31st 2019.

    2.3 ⇛ 2.4: Alteration of criteria

    • Requirement O4 has been eased.
    • A change has been made to requirement O7.
    • Adjustments have been made in the section "What can carry the Nordic Ecolabel?", requirements O2, O3, O4, O6, O8, O11, O18, O21, O23, O24, appendix 1 and appendix 2.

    The new version, 2.4, is valid until March 31st, 2019.

    2.2 ⇛ 2.3: Alteration of criteria

    • Exceptions have been introduced in requirements O2 and O4.
    • The text in Table 5 has been made clearer.
    • Requirement O7 has been adjusted.

    The new version, 2.3, is valid until March 31st 2019.

    2.1 ⇛ 2.2: Alteration of criteria

    • Requirement O3 regarding driers has been changed.
    • Requirement O41, regarding marketing, has been removed.

    The new version, 2.2, is valid until March 31st 2019.

    2.0 ⇛ 2.1: Alteration of criteria

    • O3: A change in requirement O3 regarding construction adhesives has been made. The new version, 2.1, is valid until March 31st 2019.

    1.7 ⇛ 1.8: Alteration of criteria

    • R2 has been updated with an exception for "In can" conservation regarding the risk phrase for allergy.

  • In the background document below you will find reasoning and facts behind the specific requirements in the criteria document.

    Here you can also read the comments, requirement for requirement, from the public hearing.

    If the documents are in a Nordic language, you can get help in understanding the sections you need by contacting the product specialist in your chosen country below.