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Which countries’ laws

We check against the laws of all five markets. You can pick several at once, say the EU and the US if you ship between them or sell to customers in both.

Laws and fines

European Accessibility Act (EAA): who it covers and what to fix

Since 28 June 2025 shops and services for EU customers must be accessible to people with disabilities. Who it covers, the standard, what to fix first.

Checked against sources: 11 October 2026

  • 28.06.2025the act applies from this date
  • AAthe WCAG level to aim for
  • 4.5:1minimum contrast for normal text

Who it covers

Directive (EU) 2019/882 applies from 28 June 2025. It covers online shops, consumer banking, e-books, ticket sales and some other services offered to customers in the EU. If your shop sells to Europeans the requirement reaches you even when the company is outside the EU. Microenterprise service providers (fewer than 10 staff and turnover or balance sheet up to €2M) are exempt.

Which standard

The directive points to the European standard EN 301 549, which builds on WCAG 2.1 level AA. In practice aim for WCAG 2.2 AA: it includes the 2.1 requirements.

What to fix first

Awe Check tests most of the points visible in the markup but does not replace an audit with real users and screen readers.

  • Image text alternatives, field labels and button names: that is how a screen reader understands the page.
  • A <main> landmark and a “skip to content” link for keyboard users.
  • Text contrast of at least 4.5:1 and the ability to zoom without losing content.
  • The whole purchase path usable by keyboard: catalogue, cart, checkout, payment.
  • Autoplaying audio and video without a way to stop it.
  • An accessibility statement on the site with a contact for complaints.

Frequently asked

What are the penalties?

Each EU country sets them: some use fines, others orders and sales bans. Amounts differ, so read the law of the country where your customers are.

Does the act cover a site without sales?

It covers specific services: e-commerce, banking, e-books, tickets. A plain information blog is outside it, though accessibility helps it too.

Do accessibility overlay plugins help?

Overlays that promise to fix accessibility with one line do not replace correct markup and create complaints of their own. Fix the markup.

Sources

Check your site

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