European Accessibility Act Compliance for UK Businesses

What the European Accessibility Act is

The European Accessibility Act is Directive (EU) 2019/882, adopted on 17 April 2019. EU countries had to write it into national law by June 2022, and Article 2 of the Directive applies it to products placed on the market and services provided after 28 June 2025. It sets common accessibility requirements for certain products and services sold to consumers across the EU.

The European Commission lists the services covered as including e-commerce, consumer banking, e-books, and air, bus, rail and waterborne passenger transport services, plus products such as computers and operating systems, smartphones, ATMs, ticketing and check-in machines, and e-readers. The Directive defines e-commerce services as services provided at a distance, through websites and mobile apps, at the request of a consumer, with a view to concluding a consumer contract. In plain terms: if consumers can buy from you online, your shop is the kind of service the Act is aimed at.

Does it apply to a UK business?

The Act is EU law, not UK law, but it is about the market you sell into. A UK business selling online to consumers in EU countries is generally expected to meet the requirements for that part of its business. A UK-only business selling only to UK customers is not caught by the Act itself, although the Equality Act 2010 still applies at home.

Key points to check:

• Who your customers are. Business-to-business sales are largely outside the e-commerce definition, which is about consumer contracts.
• The microenterprise exemption. Article 4 exempts microenterprises providing services. The Directive defines a microenterprise as having fewer than 10 staff and an annual turnover not exceeding €2 million or a balance sheet total not exceeding €2 million. The exemption covers services, not products.
• Transitional periods. Article 32 allows service providers to keep using products they lawfully used before 28 June 2025 until 28 June 2030, and service contracts agreed before that date to continue until they expire, for no more than five years.
• Disproportionate burden. Article 14 lets a business claim a requirement would be a disproportionate burden, but it must document an assessment, and it is not a blanket opt-out.

We are IT specialists, not lawyers. For a firm view on whether you are in scope, especially near the microenterprise threshold, take legal advice. We can then handle the technical work.

What it means for your website

The Directive sets functional requirements rather than naming a single web standard. In practice, the benchmark is the European standard EN 301 549, whose web section is built on WCAG. Version 3.2.1 maps to WCAG 2.1 AA, and a newer version based on WCAG 2.2 was published in 2026; check its official status with your adviser. Building to WCAG 2.2 AA covers both.

For a typical online shop, that means:

• Product search, filters, basket and checkout usable by keyboard and screen reader.
• Form fields labelled, with errors announced and explained.
• Text contrast at least 4.5:1, and content that reflows at 400% zoom.
• Log-in that works with password managers, with no memory puzzles.
• Alt text for product images and captions for product videos.
• Information about how your service meets the accessibility requirements, which the Directive expects service providers to make available, often alongside terms and conditions.

How we help

1. Scope check: which sites, apps and journeys EU consumers use, and which third-party parts (payment pages, booking widgets) sit outside your control.
2. Audit: a website accessibility audit against WCAG 2.2 AA, focused on the buying journey.
3. Fixes: code and content fixes on WordPress, WooCommerce, Shopify and similar platforms. See accessibility fixes.
4. Documentation: a draft accessibility statement and the service information for your terms, for your adviser to check.
5. Ongoing checks: new products, plugins and theme updates can break accessibility, so we recheck after changes.

Cost

Audits and documentation are quoted upfront because shops vary so much in size. Fixes are £45 an hour + VAT, or can use the monthly hours in our Business plan (£50 a month + VAT, 1 hour) or Complete plan (£99 a month + VAT, 3 hours). For WooCommerce and Shopify shops, see also ecommerce support.

Related