LAURETH-9 (polidocanol)
Official label name (INCIInternational name of cosmetic ingredients: the one printed on the pack. name, EU glossary of cosmetic ingredient names), No 14994
- Allowed with restrictions (Annex III)
LAURETH-9 (polidocanol): Allowed with restrictions, with limits depending on the product type (Annex III, entry 257), under Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009. Annexes of the Regulation consulted on 21 October 2026.
Who it concerns
What official classifications and rules say for each group. A classification describes the hazard of the pure substance, not the risk of a product that contains it, which depends on the dose and the exposure.
Prohibition or serious classificationThe text prohibits the substance for this use, or ranks it among the most serious hazards (known or presumed carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic, identified endocrine disruptor).Worth watchingThe text sets a condition or flags a hazard worth knowing: allergen, suspected effect, condition for children, hazard to the aquatic environment.For informationOfficial information with no condition on a finished product: warning to read, irritation of the pure substance.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
No classification harmonised by the European Union covers reproduction, the unborn child or breastfeeding for this substance. This does not mean it has been judged to have no effect during pregnancy.
Babies and children
The Cosmetics Regulation sets no age-related condition for this ingredient.
Skin, eyes and allergies
No official classification for sensitisation, irritation or eye damage, and no obligation to label it as an allergen.
Environment
No official classification as hazardous to the aquatic environment and no assessment as an endocrine disruptor for the environment.
Read on the label
The Cosmetics Regulation requires no warning to be printed for this ingredient.
In plain words
What it is used for
Functions declared by manufacturers:
Emulsifying (surfactant): promotes the formation of intimate mixtures of non-miscible liquids by altering the interfacial tension.
What the rules say
Allowed, with restrictions: Annex III sets a maximum concentration and the product types allowed. Ingredient lists do not give quantities, so the concentration cannot be checked on the label.
The text of the annexes
Allowed with restrictions
| Product type | Maximum concentration |
|---|---|
| (a) Leave-on products | 3.0% |
| (b) Rinse-off products | 4.0% |
- Entry
- Annex III, No 257
- Substance
- Laureth-9
- Glossary names
- LAURETH-9
- CAS
- 3055-99-0
- EC
- 221-284-4
Dates in the act (3)
- Entry into force on 14 June 2013
- Application from 1 April 2014
It shall apply from 1 April 2014.
- Entry into force on 1 April 2014
Excerpts from the English text published in the Official Journal. A date may concern only some substances of the act: the excerpt says so.
What has changed, and what will change
Dates of the texts that cover this ingredient. A text date may cover several substances: the details of each entry are below.
Annex III, entry 257: introduced or replaced by Regulation (EU) n° 483/2013
Annex III, entry 257: applies from this date
Identity
- CosIng identifier
- 34930
- CAS (according to CosIng)
- 3055-99-0, 68439-50-9, 9002-92-0
- EC (according to CosIng)
- 221-284-4, 500-002-6, 500-213-3
- Declared functions
- Surfactant: emulsifying
- Wikidata
- Q377036
- ECHAEuropean Chemicals Agency. InfoCard
- 100.019.351
CosIng cites 3 CAS numbers for this name: it covers several substances.
Elsewhere in the world
Information on other jurisdictions, with no effect on sale in France. What is covered, and what is not yet.
Comparison between countries
Most restrictive status in each country, and the maximum concentration cited. The details and the source of each rule follow.
| Country | Rule | Maximum concentration cited |
|---|---|---|
| European Union | Allowed with restrictions | 3 to 4% |
| United Kingdom | Allowed with restrictions | 3 to 4% |
| Switzerland | EU Regulation applies | 3 to 4% |
| United States (federal) | No federal rule recorded | not cited |
| Japan | No entry in the lists recorded | not cited |
| South Korea | Restricted differs from the EU | 2% |
| China | No entry in the lists recorded | not cited |
| Australia | No entry in the lists recorded | not cited |
| Brazil | No entry in the lists recorded | not cited |
United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Allowed with restrictions (Annex III)
Same entries as in the European Union. Conditions (concentrations, warnings) may differ: they are not compared here.
Switzerland
Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 applies in Switzerland (Article 54 of the Ordinance on Foodstuffs and Utility Articles).
United States, federal rules
None of the integrated sections of the federal code (21 CFR 700.11 to 700.27 and 250.250) targets this name. The FDA does not publish a list of allowed ingredients.
South Korea
- Restricted: 라우레스-8, 9 및 10 (LAURETH-9)
별표 2, 기타 (other substances with limits), entry 9, page 28. Limit: 2%.
Conditions, source text, in Korean
화학물질명: 라우레스-8 (CAS No. 9002-92-0 / 3055-98-9) | 화학물질명: 라우레스-9 (CAS No. 3055-99-0 / 9002-92-0 / 68439-50-9) | 화학물질명: 라우레스-10 (CAS No. 9002-92-0 / 6540-99-4 /68002-97-1)
Recorded cosmetics that contain it
18 recorded products list it, according to Open Beauty Facts contributors. Records are dated: the formula may have changed. See the list (in French).
Glossary: Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1175. Page updated on 21 October 2026.