European Accessibility Act (EAA) 2025 – how to prepare your website for the new rules?

From 28 June 2025, new EU legislation known as the European Accessibility Act (EAA) will come into force. This directive aims to ensure that all digital products and services are accessible to people with disabilities. This means a significant change for websites, e-shops and mobile apps, which will have to comply with set digital accessibility rules. If you own a website, e-shop or other digital service, you should start preparing as soon as possible.

What is the European Accessibility Act and who is it for?

The EAA is a European Directive (EU 2019/882) which sets out the obligation to ensure that digital services are accessible to everyone – especially people with disabilities such as visual, hearing or motor impairments. These rules do not only apply to government, but also apply to private companies and entrepreneurs who provide their services or products online.

Specifically:

• e-shops and online shops
• bank, insurance and financial services websites
• mobile applications
• online ticketing for transport, events and concerts
• e-books and digital media (streaming platforms)

So if you run any online sales or digital service, the EAA probably applies to you.

What exactly do the EAA require websites to do?

The main standard required by the EAA is WCAG 2.1 (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), specifically at level AA. In practical terms, this means that your website must be easy to read, navigate, and usable by people who have various kinds of limitations.

For example, you need to ensure:

• Sufficient colour contrast between text and background (min. 4.5:1).
• All images and visual elements must contain alternative text for the blind.
• The web must be completely navigable with a keyboard, not just a mouse.
• Videos must include subtitles for the hearing impaired.
• Forms and shopping baskets must be accessible and clearly described.

Why is it important to meet the EAA?

If you do not comply with these rules, you could face fines of between €5,000 and €20,000, depending on the severity of the breach and the size of your business. However, apart from the financial aspect, the important thing is that by complying with these requirements you will be able to reach a wider group of customers and users who would otherwise not be able to use your services.

Is it necessary to achieve 100% compliance with the rules?

Although the legislation does not require 100% perfection, it is necessary to meet all the basic points according to WCAG 2.1 AA. This means that your website doesn’t have to be perfect in everything, but basic and important features must be accessible to every user regardless of their health condition.

A handy EAA checklist for websites:

📌 1. Text and colour contrast

• The contrast between text and background is at least 4.5:1 (large text 3:1).
• Font size is a minimum of 16px or readable without zooming.
• The web doesn’t just use colour to communicate important information (e.g. bugs).

📌 2. Images and alternative texts

• Each semantic image should contain alternative text(alt).
• Purely decorative images have empty alternative text(alt="").

📌 3. Video and audio content

• All videos have clearly legible subtitles.
• Audio content (podcasts, audio files) has text transcription available.
• Videos do not start automatically with sound.

📌 4. Navigation and maneuverability

• The entire site is fully navigable using the keyboard (no mouse).
• The focus (highlight) of the active elements is visible.
• The website has a “Skip navigation” option (skip-link).
• All links have a clear description (not “click here”, but e.g. “more product information”).

📌 5. Forms and interactive elements

• Each form field must have a properly defined label (description).
• Required fields are clearly marked and errors well explained.
• Forms can be submitted without using the mouse.

📌 6. HTML structure and semantics

• Correct and logical structure of headings(<h1> to <h6>).
• HTML is semantically correct – interactive elements use appropriate tags (e.g. <button>, <input>, <nav>, <main>).

📌 7. ARIA attributes for dynamic elements

• Custom components (buttons, tabs, modals) have ARIA attributes (e.g. aria-label, aria-expanded, role="button").
• Dynamically updated content is tagged with aria-live (e.g. notifications, errors, notifications).

📌 8. Mobile accessibility and responsiveness

• The website works properly and is readable on mobiles and tablets.
• Interactive elements are large enough for comfortable finger touches (min. 44px per touch element).

📌 9. Content and clarity

• The page language is defined(<html lang="en">).
• The content is written simply and clearly.
• Abbreviations and complicated terms are explained.

📌 10. PDF and documents

• Documents like PDFs are accessible – text, not just scanned images.
• PDF documents have the correct structure and alternative texts to images.

📌 11. Technical requirements

• No unexpected automatic redirects or automatic page refreshes.
• Time-limited content allows for time extensions (e.g. session expiration for forms).

📌 12. Accessibility information

• The page includes a prominent link to the “Accessibility Statement” (e.g. in the footer of the page).
• Contact method listed for any accessibility issues.

📌 13. Testing and auditing

• The website has passed at least a basic accessibility audit (e.g. using Google Lighthouse, axe DevTools, AccessiBe, WebAIM).
• The most serious problems that prevent users from using the site normally have been fixed.

📌 14. Documentation

• You have prepared a document that captures the process of auditing and modifying accessibility (as evidence of your efforts to comply with the EAA).

How to check if your website meets the EAA?

There are a number of tools that can help you easily verify that your site meets the basic EAA requirements. Some of the best include:

• WebAIM Contrast Checker (for checking colours)
• Google Lighthouse (tool in Chrome)
• AccessiBe or axe DevTools (browser extensions)

How to prepare for the EAA?

The best way to do this is to start with a simple accessibility audit that reveals where your weak spots are. Then, we recommend gradually removing critical flaws – especially those that prevent users from using the site in a basic way.

It is important to document all the steps you take, because in the event of an inspection you can demonstrate your efforts to comply with the requirements. Companies that actively work to improve accessibility tend to be more positively evaluated by inspections.

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is coming soon and brings new rules for all digital services. Complying with it will not only prevent fines, but also provide a better user experience for a wider group of people. It makes sense to start preparing today, not only from a legal perspective but also from a marketing perspective, because an accessible website means more satisfied customers.

The full directive can be found here: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/SK/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32019L0882