Guide
The European Accessibility Act, answered plainly
The EAA's compliance date was 28 June 2025. It is not a future deadline to prepare for; it is a law in force, and member states have moved from guidance to enforcement. Here is who it covers, who is exempt, what standard applies, and where an audit fits, written for a business owner rather than a policy reader.
Does it apply to you?
- You run an e-commerce site selling to consumers in the EU: yes. E-commerce is explicitly in scope, and the law follows the consumer, not your headquarters. A US or UK shop selling into the EU is covered for those sales.
- B2C services beyond shops are covered in scope areas including banking, transport ticketing, e-books, and telecoms. Pure B2B systems are generally outside the EAA's scope.
- Microenterprise exemption: service providers with fewer than 10 employees AND annual turnover or balance sheet at or under EUR 2 million are exempt. Both conditions, not either. Crossing either threshold ends the exemption, and the exemption covers services, not products.
- "Disproportionate burden" is a narrow, documented defense you must be able to evidence, not a box you tick. Relying on it without a written assessment is the same bet as ignoring the law.
What standard your site is measured against
The harmonized technical standard is EN 301 549, which for websites points at WCAG 2.1 level AA, the same criteria our audits test. If your site genuinely meets WCAG 2.1 AA and you publish an accessibility statement, you are aligned with what enforcement bodies check. Overlay widgets are not acceptance: regulators evaluate the site itself, and the widget story ends the same way in the EU as in the US.
What enforcement looks like now
Since the deadline passed, enforcement has been national and uneven, which is exactly what makes it hard to ignore: Germany's BFSG regime issues warning letters, France saw the first private enforcement actions against major retailers in late 2025, the Netherlands announced market surveillance audits for 2026, and fines across member states are set in national law with maximums reaching six figures. Market withdrawal, being ordered to stop serving EU consumers, is the sanction businesses underestimate. If you already received a letter or complaint, go straight to the warning letter guide.
Where an audit fits
- You want to know your exposure: the $149 automated audit maps your whole site against the machine-checkable WCAG layer in 24 hours, honestly labeled as exactly that.
- You need something to show a regulator, enterprise customer, or court: the signed audit ($490 for 10 pages, $990 for 25), reviewed and signed by an IAAP-certified specialist, with per-finding evidence and remediation instructions, delivered in 48-72 hours.
- Either way, the audit's findings list is the work plan for your developer and the basis for the accessibility statement the EAA expects you to publish.
Common questions
We are under 10 employees. Can we forget about this?
Check both halves: under 10 employees AND at or under EUR 2 million turnover. If you clear both today, note that the exemption ends the day you grow past either, and enterprise customers increasingly ask for accessibility evidence regardless of the legal floor.
Do we need a certificate?
No such certificate exists, and anyone selling you "EAA certification" is selling paper. What exists: conformance with EN 301 549, an accessibility statement, and evidence. An audit is the evidence layer, and ours says exactly that rather than claiming to confer compliance.
Which pages should an audit cover?
The purchase path first: home, category, product, cart, checkout, account, contact. That is where both real users and market surveillance look first, and it is what our 10-page tier is scoped for.