Nordic Swan Ecolabelled cleaning products are among the environmentally best cleaning products. The whole life cycle of the products is considered, and strict requirements are set for especially the products’ ingredients and packaging.
Nordic Swan Ecolabelled cleaning products:
- Offer effective cleaning performance
- Meet strict environmental requirements for chemicals to avoid long-term, negative effects in nature (biodegradability), to avoid accumulating in animals and humans (bioaccumulation), and to avoid substances that are toxic to, for example, fish and crustaceans (ecotoxicity)
- Do not contain microplastics
- Meet strict health requirements for chemicals, including a ban on adding substances classified to cause cancer, as toxic to reproduction, or to potentially damage genetic material. Also identified or potential endocrine disruptors on up1to-date lists from EU and national authorities or by classification are banned.
- Have a packaging design and a material composition that promote material recycling and reduce resource use, contributing to a circular economy
- Promote responsible sourcing of renewable raw materials, and any palm oil or palm kernel oil in the product is RSPO certified
The criteria apply to consumer and professional products designed to clean hard surfaces, indoor and outdoor, and textile flooring. The products can be in the form of concentrated products, ready-to-use (RTU) products, and mix-it-yourself RTU products. Cleaning products containing micro-organisms are also included and are subject to specific requirements.
Welcome to apply for a Nordic Swan Ecolabel licence!
This is how you do:
- Read the application guide.
- Log in to the Nordic Ecolabelling Portal.
- Start your application.
If this is the first time you are applying, the authorized signatory must fill in your company information and approve the application conditions. In this way, you get login to the portal and the right to assign access to other colleagues.
Some special cases can not be done in the Nordic Ecolabelling Portal. Contact your advisor for such cases. More information can be found on Application step by step.
The criteria document for cleaning products is an overall document for the commodity groups:
The criteria document for cleaning products is an overall document for the commodity groups:
The criteria document for cleaning products is an overall document for the commodity groups:
- Floor- and All-purpose cleaners
- Kitchen, glass, mirrors and blank surfaces
- Outdoor and special cleaning products
- Sanitary cleaners
If you have several products within the same commodity group that are manufactured in the same production site, they are considered as one single licence. Application fees are paid per licence while the annual fee is paid across all licences in the product group.
| Valid from 1/1 2026 | Amount excluding VAT |
| Application fee | |
| Application for a new licence including inspection of four recipes | 3 401 EUR |
| Inspection of additional recipes | 849 EUR per recipe. |
| Application for a renewal including inspection of four recipes when the requirements have been tightened | 1 699 EUR |
| Inspection of additional recipes | 424 EUR per recipe. |
Annual licence fee
The licence fee for the Nordic Swan Ecolabelled products is based on their turnover in the Nordic region.
| Up to 52.324 million EUR. | 0.3% of the products’ turnover |
| More than 52.324 million EUR. | 0.05% of the products’ turnover |
| Minimum fee in the Nordic region | 2 267 EUR per year. |
| Fixed fee applicable to turnover outside the Nordic region | 2 267 EUR per year for turnover exceeding 300 000 EUR. |
Fee for extension / change of licence
Should the extension regard inspection of recipes, which are not already included in the licence, 849 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:
| Up to 4 hours | 424 EUR |
| 4-8 hours | 849 EUR |
| 8 or more hours | 1 699 EUR |
Fee for on-site inspections
One on-site visit within the Nordic region is included in the application for a new or renewed licence.
| Additional on-site inspection within the Nordic region | 565 EUR per visit |
| On-site inspection outside the Nordic region, but within Europe | 1 699 EUR per visit |
| On-site inspection outside Europe | 2 834 EUR per visit |
| Additional fee for on-site inspections lasting longer than one day | 1 132 EUR per day |
About the fees
For clarification of fees, click here.
Ecolabelling Sweden AB has no financial profit purpose and is financed through the fees above along with an annual government grant. The company is however liable for VAT according to article 56 of the European Council Directive 2006/112/EC.
Invoicing is made in SEK with the exchange rate from the first banking day of the year.
When both the applicant and the manufacturer are micro-enterprises, the application fee is reduced by 50%. A micro-enterprise is in this context defined as an enterprise with less than 10 employees and an annual turnover (of both ecolabelled and not ecolabelled products) below 2 million EUR.
| Valid from 1/1 2025 | Amount excluding VAT |
| Application fee | |
| Application for a new licence including inspection of four recipes | 3 348 EUR |
| Inspection of additional recipes | 836 EUR per recipe. |
| Application for a renewal including inspection of four recipes when the requirements have been tightened | 1 673 EUR |
| Inspection of additional recipes | 418 EUR per recipe. |
Annual licence fee
The licence fee for the Nordic Swan Ecolabelled products is based on their turnover in the Nordic region.
| Up to 51.5 million EUR. | 0.3% of the products’ turnover |
| More than 51.5 million EUR. | 0.05% of the products’ turnover |
| Minimum fee in the Nordic region | 2 232 EUR per year. |
| Fixed fee applicable to turnover outside the Nordic region | 2 232 EUR per year for turnover exceeding 300 000 EUR. |
Fee for extension / change of licence
Should the extension regard inspection of recipes, which are not already included in the licence, 836 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:
| Up to 4 hours | 418 EUR |
| 4-8 hours | 836 EUR |
| 8 or more hours | 1 673 EUR |
Fee for on-site inspections
One on-site visit within the Nordic region is included in the application for a new or renewed licence.
| Additional on-site inspection within the Nordic region | 557 EUR per visit |
| On-site inspection outside the Nordic region, but within Europe | 1 673 EUR per visit |
| On-site inspection outside Europe | 2 790 EUR per visit |
| Additional fee for on-site inspections lasting longer than one day | 1 115 EUR per day |
About the fees
For clarification of fees, click here.
Ecolabelling Sweden AB has no financial profit purpose and is financed through the fees above along with an annual government grant. The company is however liable for VAT according to article 56 of the European Council Directive 2006/112/EC.
Invoicing is made in SEK with the exchange rate from the first banking day of the year.
When both the applicant and the manufacturer are micro-enterprises, the application fee is reduced by 50%. A micro-enterprise is in this context defined as an enterprise with less than 10 employees and an annual turnover (of both ecolabelled and not ecolabelled products) below 2 million EUR.
Information on the latest version of the criteria for cleaning products
Nordic Ecolabelling adopted version 7.0 of the criteria for cleaning products 11 March 2026. The criteria are valid until 31 March 2031.
6.15 ⇛ 6.16: Adjustment of requirements
On 20 May 2025 Nordic Ecolabelling decided to adjust requirement O26 by making an exemption for fold-out (cross-over) labels of PP. The new version is called 6.16.
6.14 ⇛ 6.15: Adjustment and prolongation of requirements
On 15 October 2024 Nordic Ecolabelling decided to adjust requirement O7 by exempting acetic acid from exclusion of VOC. On 10 December 2024 it was decided to prolong the validity of the criteria until 31 August 2027. The new version is called 6.15.
6.13 ⇛ 6.14: Adjustment of requirements
On 13 August 2024 Nordic Ecolabelling decided to allow IFS standard for Household and Personal care as an alternative to ISO9001 (Appendix 1). The new version is called 6.14.
6.12 ⇛ 6.13: Adjustment of requirements
On 24 October 2024 Nordic Ecolabelling decided to change the transition period of the requirement O26B Labels for rigid plastic packaging until 2024-12-31.
6.11 ⇛ 6.12: Adjustment of requirements
An adjustment in the requirement for micro-organisms (O10) where it is no longer mandatory to state on the label/product information sheet that “the products should not be used in places where immunocompromised people stay”. Furthermore, a requirement is introduced that it must be checked that the product is not contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms.
The new version is called 6.12 and is valid to 31 December 2025.
6.10 ⇛ 6.11: Prolongation of the validity of the criteria
The validity of the criteria has been prolonged with 12 months . The new version is called 6.11 and is valid until December 31, 2025.
6.9 ⇛ 6.10: Adjustment of requirements
On October 18, 2022, Nordic Ecolabelling decided to adjust requirement O27 and change the permitted amount of EVOH in flexible plastic bags from 2% to 5%.
The new version is called 6.10 and is valid to 31 December 2024.
6.8 ⇛ 6.9: Adjustment of requirements
- Time-limited exemption from the monomaterial requirement (O27) for pouches in closed-system dosing until 31 December 2023;
- Exemption is made for TPE-PE in fittings for pouches in closed-system automatic dosing;
- Clarification that products containing microorganisms are only for the professional market and only for indoor use.
The new version is called 6.9 and is valid to 31 December 2024.
6.7 ⇛ 6.8: Adjustment of requirements
Nordic Ecolabelling decided on 29 March 2022 to adjust requirements O11 and O21 by also exempting H411 classified suffactants from the requirement. The new version is called 6.8 and is valid until 31 December 2024.
6.6 ⇛ 6.7: Prolongation and adjustment of requirements
The validity of the criteria document has been prolonged with 14 months and requirement O26 has been adjusted. The new version is called 6.7 and is valid until 31 December 2024.
6.5 ⇛ 6.6: Adjustment of requirements
- Clarification of packaging requirements for concentrated products for refilling RTU bottles that are always diluted at least 10 times by the user of the finished product.
- Plastic packaging larger than 200 liters is exempt from the requirement for recycling design (O26).
The new version is called 6.6.
6.4 ⇛ 6.5: Prolongation and adjustment of requirements
The validity of the criteria document has been prolonged and requirement O26 has been adjusted. The new version is called 6.5 and is valid until 31 October 2023.
6.3 ⇛ 6.4: Adjustment of requirements
Requirement O7 has been clarified with regard to denaturants in ethanol in the VOC exemption. Furthermore, metal parts are allowed in pumps since requirement O27 har been adjusted. The new version is called 6.4.
6.2 ⇛ 6.3: Adjustment of requirements
For requirement O27, it has been decided on a transition period for monomaterial in pouches. The new version is called 6.3.
6.1 ⇛ 6.2: Adjustment of requirements
The packaging requirements O26, O27 and O28 have been harmonized with the corresponding requirements in 006 Textile detergent. Adjustment of requirements regarding super concentrates and updating of product group demarcation and overall text on ecotoxicity and biodegradability. The efficiency test has also been adjusted. The new version is called 6.2.
6.0 ⇛ 6.1: Adjustment of requirements
In requirement O7, an exception for perfumes in the subgroup VOC has been added. The new version is called 6.1.
6.0: New generation of criteria
A new generation of criteria for Celaning Products has been adopted. The new version 6.0 is valid until 31 October 2022.