European Accessibility Act (EAA) explained
Updated
The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is an EU law that sets common accessibility rules for a list of products and services. Its legal name is Directive (EU) 2019/882. It was adopted on April 17, 2019.
A directive is not applied directly. Each EU country writes it into its own national law. In Germany, for example, that law is the BFSG. So the exact duties, the authority that checks them and the penalties depend on the country.
Key dates
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| April 17, 2019 | The directive is adopted. |
| June 28, 2022 | Deadline for EU countries to adopt and publish their national laws (Article 31). |
| June 28, 2025 | National rules apply. They cover products placed on the market after this date and services provided to consumers after this date (Articles 2 and 31). |
| June 28, 2030 | End of the transition period. Until then, service providers may keep using products they already used lawfully before June 28, 2025. Service contracts agreed before June 28, 2025 may run unchanged until they expire, but no longer than this date (Article 32). |
Countries may also let self-service terminals already in use before June 28, 2025 stay in service until the end of their useful life, for up to 20 years (Article 32).
Who it covers
The EAA applies to these products (Article 2(1)):
- Consumer computers and their operating systems
- Payment terminals, and self-service terminals for covered services: ATMs, ticketing machines, check-in machines and interactive information terminals
- Consumer devices for electronic communications, such as smartphones
- Consumer devices for audiovisual media, such as smart TVs
- E-readers
And to these services provided to consumers (Article 2(2)):
- Electronic communications services, such as phone and messaging services
- Services that give access to audiovisual media, such as streaming apps
- Parts of air, bus, rail and waterborne passenger transport: websites, mobile apps, e-tickets, travel information and interactive terminals. For urban, suburban and regional transport, only interactive terminals are covered.
- Consumer banking services
- E-books and the software made for them
- E-commerce: selling products or services to consumers online
The last point is the widest: many online shops that sell to consumers in the EU fall under it.
What is left out
Some website and app content is excluded (Article 2(4)):
- Pre-recorded audio and video published before June 28, 2025
- Office files, such as PDFs, published before June 28, 2025
- Online maps, if the key information for navigation is also given in an accessible way
- Third-party content that you don’t fund, develop or control
- Archives: content that is not updated or edited after June 28, 2025
The microenterprise exemption
Microenterprises that provide services don’t have to meet the accessibility requirements (Article 4(5)). A microenterprise is a business with (Article 3):
- fewer than 10 people, and
- an annual turnover of no more than €2 million, or an annual balance sheet total of no more than €2 million.
The exemption is for services only. Microenterprises that make or sell covered products still have to meet the product requirements, with lighter paperwork.
Larger businesses can rely on two other limits (Article 14): when a requirement would fundamentally change the product or service, or when it would be a disproportionate burden. Both need a written assessment that is kept for five years. For services, the burden assessment must be renewed at least every five years.
EN 301 549 and WCAG
The directive describes what must be accessible, not how to test it. For websites and apps, it asks that they be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust (Annex I). Those are the four principles of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
If a product or service meets a harmonized standard whose reference is published in the Official Journal of the EU, it is presumed to meet the requirements that standard covers (Article 15). The European standard for digital accessibility is EN 301 549. Its web clause is built on WCAG Level A and AA.
Version 4.1.1 of EN 301 549, published in September 2026, is the first version written for the EAA. It moves the web requirements to WCAG 2.2. It gives a presumption of conformity under the EAA once its reference is published in the Official Journal. Read our EN 301 549 guide for the details.
The information you must publish
Service providers must explain how their service meets the accessibility requirements (Article 13(2) and Annex V). This information goes in the general terms and conditions, or an equivalent document. It must be public and accessible. Annex V says it should, where relevant, include:
- a general description of the service, in accessible formats
- the descriptions and explanations needed to understand how the service works
- a description of how the service meets the relevant accessibility requirements
Providers must also show that the way they deliver and monitor the service keeps it accessible (Annex V, point 3). They must keep the information for as long as the service runs, and fix problems when they find them (Article 13).
Many businesses publish this as an accessibility statement page and link it from their terms. National laws may add their own items, such as the name of the authority that checks the service.
Enforcement
Each country sets up its own checks and its own penalties. The directive only says that penalties must be “effective, proportionate and dissuasive” (Article 30). It also says that consumers, and organizations with a legitimate interest, must be able to take action in court or before an authority (Article 29). So the authority, the process and the size of fines vary by country.
How Perceivly helps
- Find and track issues. Monitoring checks your whole site against WCAG 2.2 A and AA on a schedule and tracks each issue until it is fixed.
- Reports. PDF reports show your current issues, their status and how to fix them, for your team, your clients or an auditor.
- A statement page. The statement generator helps you write and host an accessibility statement that you can link from your terms.
- Evidence of ongoing work. Every found, fixed and reopened issue is logged with a date, so you can show how you monitor and improve the service over time.
What Perceivly can’t do
- Automated tests find only part of accessibility issues. A person still needs to check keyboard use, screen reader use, the meaning of alt text, captions, reading order and plain language.
- Perceivly checks web pages. It doesn’t check native apps, documents, terminals, customer support or your terms.
- Perceivly can’t tell you whether the EAA applies to you, and it doesn’t certify anything. It helps you find and track accessibility issues.
Want a first look? Run the free accessibility checker on one page.
Sources
- Directive (EU) 2019/882 on the accessibility requirements for products and services (EUR-Lex)
- Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2021/1339, which cites EN 301 549 V3.2.1 (EUR-Lex)
- EN 301 549 V4.1.1 (2026-09) (ETSI, PDF)
This page is general information, not legal advice. For your own case, ask a lawyer in the country where you sell.