Everyday life
Directive (EU) 2019/882
Accessibility Act
European Accessibility Act
Phones, computers, payment terminals, e-commerce, banking services, e-books and some transport ticketing must be usable by people with disabilities — by design, not by a hidden PDF.
Does this hit me?
You should be able to buy, bank and read without a workaround. Enforcement is national; a complaint to the designated authority is the path, not a Union app store.
Check in the wizardPick a country in the header to see who enforces this at home. Union text is not the last word for directives.
Next switch-on: already in force · 28 Jun 2025 — European Accessibility Act — most products and services
How it rolls in
2019
Directive adopted.
28 Jun 2022
Transposition deadline.
28 Jun 2025
Application for most products and services.
2030
Some self-service terminals already in use get more time.
Why it exists
Access was a patchwork of standards and goodwill. The Act picks the products and services that shut people out of a single market if they only work for the fully sighted, hearing, and mobile.
What actually changes
- Harmonised accessibility requirements for listed products and services.
- E-commerce and consumer banking services in scope, including apps and websites.
- Microenterprises providing services get a lighter regime; product manufacturers do not vanish from the list.
- Standards (EN 301 549 and friends) become the practical test.
How it hits you
You should be able to buy, bank and read without a workaround. Enforcement is national; a complaint to the designated authority is the path, not a Union app store.
For citizens
What this does to everyday life
Rights, bills, and what you can ignore. You are usually not the one who files — companies and states are.
Shops, banks and phones should work without a workaround
From June 2025, listed products and services — including many webshops and banking apps — must be usable with screen readers, captions, and keyboards.
Rights you actually get
- Access to listed products and services on an equal basis.
- A national complaint path.
Costs and trade-offs
- Some tiny service providers have more time or relief. A big webshop does not.
What you can do
- Complain to the designated national authority if a bank app or webshop is unusable.
- Ask for an accessibility statement and test it.
What you can ignore
- You do not have to accept an overlay widget as ‘done’.
If something goes wrong
National disability or market-surveillance authority designated under the Act; equality body as a second door.
More citizen notes across files: For people
Heard this? Not quite.
Claim: A widget overlay makes the site compliant.
Overlays do not replace semantic HTML, keyboard paths, and captions. Authorities and courts look at the service, not the badge.
Latest official statements
All EU NewsNo tagged Commission, Parliament or Council statement in the current feeds.
Board one-pager
Board one-pager
Who this is for: EU consumer brands and households. Directive (EU) 2019/882. already in force · 28 Jun 2025.
Scope
- You manufacture or import listed products, or provide e-commerce, consumer banking, e-books, audiovisual access services, or specified transport ticketing to consumers in the EU.
First 90 days
- This week: Decide which products/services are listed in Annex I.
- This month: Audit the consumer site/app against EN 301 549 / WCAG 2.2 AA.
- This quarter: Conformity documentation and an accessibility statement that matches reality.
Penalties: National market-surveillance and service-authority fines; withdrawal of products; consumer injunctions.
For companies
How to stay on the right side of this file
Practical order of work, not a substitute for counsel. Manufacturers of listed products and providers of listed services, including e-commerce and consumer banking.
You are probably
Manufacturers of listed products and providers of listed services, including e-commerce and consumer banking.
Effort
Treat as an operating process, not a project.
Budget
SME: owner time plus one honest vendor. Large: a named lead, not a taskforce slide.
Roles in this file
The same company can wear more than one hat. Classify before you buy a tool.
Legal + product
This pack names Legal + product as an owner of early work.
Decide which products/services are listed in Annex I.
Digital
This pack names Digital as an owner of early work.
Audit the consumer site/app against EN 301 549 / WCAG 2.2 AA.
Compliance
This pack names Compliance as an owner of early work.
Conformity documentation and an accessibility statement that matches reality.
Are you in scope?
Act now- You manufacture or import listed products, or provide e-commerce, consumer banking, e-books, audiovisual access services, or specified transport ticketing to consumers in the EU.
Usually not, if
- Microenterprises providing services (with conditions) — products still in.
- B2B-only machinery with no consumer interface.
First moves
- This weekDecide which products/services are listed in Annex I.Legal + product
- This monthAudit the consumer site/app against EN 301 549 / WCAG 2.2 AA.Digital
- This quarterConformity documentation and an accessibility statement that matches reality.Compliance
- If you run a webshop, this is a digital-design file, not a hardware file. Overlays are not a strategy.
If you skip this
- Accessibility overlay as the only control.
- Assuming June 2025 slipped because transposition was late — the apply-date is in the Directive.
Done looks like
- Annex mapping
- Accessibility audit
- Technical documentation
- Terminal procurement specs
Keep this evidence
- Annex mapping
- Accessibility audit
- Technical documentation
- Terminal procurement specs
Ask vendors
- Does this terminal meet the EAA? Show the documentation.
- Can the app be used with a screen reader end-to-end, including payments?
Where programmes usually break
- Accessibility overlay as the only control.
- Assuming June 2025 slipped because transposition was late — the apply-date is in the Directive.
Call counsel when
- National market-surveillance and service-authority fines; withdrawal of products; consumer injunctions.
- A supervisor letter, a dawn information request, or a deal that warrants this file.
Enforcement
National market-surveillance and service-authority fines; withdrawal of products; consumer injunctions.
National authorities designated under the Directive (often a mix of market surveillance and digital/disability bodies).
Need a stack, not one file? Open the company desk
Professional briefing
Legal architecture and duties
For counsel, compliance, and policy teams. Not advice. The Official Journal still wins.
- Instrument
- Directive
- Legal basis
- Art 114 TFEU · Directive (EU) 2019/882
- Application
- National law must apply from 28 June 2025 for most products and services; longer for some terminals already in use.
Harmonised accessibility for a closed list of products and services, including e-commerce and consumer banking. EN 301 549 / WCAG are the practical test. Micro service providers get relief; product manufacturers do not disappear.
How the file is built
Annex I list
If you are not on the list, this Directive is not your file — the Web Accessibility Directive may still be, if you are public.
Presumption of conformity
Harmonised standards give a safe harbour; overlays do not.
Operators
| Role | Who | Core duties |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Listed products. | Design, CE-style documentation where required, instructions. |
| Service provider | E-commerce, banking, e-books, AV access, specified transport. | Accessible service, statement, feedback path. |
Scope
Products placed on the Union market and services provided to consumers in the Union.
In
- Products and services in Annex I
- Answerphones, e-readers, payment terminals, consumer banking, e-commerce…
Out, or narrower than assumed
- Microenterprises providing services (with conditions)
- Specific transport infrastructure already covered elsewhere as carved out
Operative provisions
| Anchor | Rule | What it does in practice |
|---|---|---|
| Art 4 / Annex I | Scope list. | Start here; do not generalise to every website. |
| Art 13–14 | Obligations of service providers; accessibility statement. | A lying statement is worse than a modest one. |
| Art 4(5) | Fundamental alteration / disproportionate burden. | A documented, narrow defence — not a vibe. |
Secondary law and guidance
- EN 301 549
- Implementing decisions on standards
- National transposition
National layer. Transposition and designated authorities differ. Public-sector sites also sit under Directive (EU) 2016/2102.
How it sits with other files
Enforcement and private rights
Who
Market surveillance (products) and designated service authorities.
Tools
Fines, withdrawal, orders to make a service accessible.
Private rights
National equality and consumer injunctions.
Risk register
| Risk | Signal | Control |
|---|---|---|
| Webshop fail | Checkout not keyboard-usable | WCAG audit of the purchase path. |
| Terminal fleet | ATMs ordered in 2024 without EAA specs | Procurement freeze and retrofit plan. |
Open issues
- Uneven 2025 enforcement.
- Disproportionate-burden evidence quality.
- App-store vs webshop split.
Primary sources
Phones, computers, payment terminals, e-commerce, banking services, e-books and some transport ticketing must be usable by people with disabilities — by design, not by a hidden PDF.
You feel it now
Duties are already live.
Next
Member States apply from 28 June 2025 (some products later)
Where it lands
| Channel | People | Companies |
|---|---|---|
| E-commerce is in | You should be able to buy, bank and read without a workaround. Enforcement is national; a complaint to the designated authority is the path, not a Union app store. | A consumer webshop is a service. WCAG-level accessibility is the working test. |
| Hardware with a UI | You should be able to buy, bank and read without a workaround. Enforcement is national; a complaint to the designated authority is the path, not a Union app store. | Phones, computers, payment terminals, e-readers — design and documentation. |
| Banking apps | You should be able to buy, bank and read without a workaround. Enforcement is national; a complaint to the designated authority is the path, not a Union app store. | Consumer banking services including identification and payments flows. |
Who gains
People with disabilities, and everyone on a bad laptop or a bright street.
Who pays
Manufacturers and service providers, in design time.
Who pays
Manufacturers and service providers, in design time.
Who benefits
People with disabilities, and everyone on a bad laptop or a bright street.
Read the official text