European Accessibility Act: Making Digital Products Accessible for Everyone
Read Time: 7 minutes
In our recent webinar, "Designing for Everyone: Making Accessibility a Design Superpower for Success," we explored the crucial implications of the European Accessibility Act (EAA) coming into effect on 28 June 2025. This comprehensive session brought together industry experts to discuss how businesses can prepare for this significant legislative change while creating more inclusive digital experiences.
Why accessibility matters: the business case
The statistics are eye-opening: 27% of the EU population over the age of 16 are living with some form of a disability. That's over 100 million people, or one in four adults. To put that in perspective, it’s equivalent to the combined populations of Spain and Italy.
"If your website is not dyslexic friendly, there is a chance that you are alienating 77,800 people alone... which is a loss or missed opportunity of 7 million pounds. And this is just dyslexia; imagine what that number and figure would be when taking into consideration other disabilities people are living with." Drew Masci, 383 Lead Support Engineer
Accessibility isn’t just a compliance issue, it’s a commercial opportunity. Inclusive design opens up access to millions of potential customers currently excluded from digital services. It improves the experience for everyone, strengthens brand perception, and often drives innovative thinking in design and development. It can also deliver long-term savings, as building accessible products from the outset is far more cost-effective than retrofitting them later.
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The European Accessibility Act: What you need to know
Professor Inez Brown, DEI expert and CEO of Mackenzie Brown, provided an accessible overview of the EAA and its implications. As she explained, the Act is designed to harmonise accessibility standards across the EU, ensuring digital products and services are accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities.
The EAA applies to businesses with more than 10 employees, an annual turnover above €2 million, and any customers based in the EU, regardless of where the business is physically located.
It covers a broad range of digital products and services, including websites, mobile apps, e-commerce platforms, e-books, banking systems, digital media, self-service terminals, and public transport ticketing. While the Act doesn’t lay out technical specifications itself, it references internationally recognised standards such as WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
Our Experience Director, Karl Randay, explained that these guidelines are based on four principles: content must be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. In other words, people should be able to access, interact with, and understand digital content, and it must work reliably across devices and assistive technologies.
Making accessibility work: practical approaches
Our speakers shared practical tips for embedding accessibility in digital products from day one. Professor Brown emphasised the importance of including alternative text for images and captions for videos, to ensure that users who rely on screen readers or captions aren’t left behind.
Visual design also plays a crucial role. Considerations like colour contrast, font choice, and page layout all contribute to an inclusive experience. Drew spoke from personal experience about how enabling dark mode transformed his ability to read and comprehend text, turning something frustrating into something enjoyable.
Keyboard accessibility is another critical consideration. For users who cannot use a mouse, interfaces need to be fully navigable via keyboard alone. Skip links, correct HTML structure, and proper use of ARIA attributes all make a huge difference.
Professor Brown also urged content creators to write in plain, accessible language. Complex jargon and industry speak can alienate users, so clarity and simplicity are key. As she put it, “Even a child should be able to understand your website.”
Industries most impacted by the EAA
Certain sectors will feel the pressure of compliance more than others. E-commerce businesses, for example, need to ensure their product listings, payment processes and customer journeys are accessible to all users. Financial services must think about how users interact with digital tools, read documents and manage accounts. Public transport operators will need to ensure digital ticketing systems are usable by everyone, including people with vision impairments or cognitive challenges.
Steps to ensure compliance
Karl recommended a clear and phased approach. Start with an accessibility audit to assess where your current digital products fall short. From there, work with your design and development teams to implement changes and ensure you document your accessibility requirements clearly for future projects. It’s also important to set up regular review cycles to maintain standards, and to bring in experts when the challenges require specialist input. Equally vital is internal education, training teams to understand accessibility best practices and building capability into your organisation’s DNA.
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The future of accessible design
The EAA represents not just a compliance requirement but an opportunity to embrace more inclusive design principles. As Karl noted, "By designing, considering accessibility, the experience itself for everybody else becomes much more improved."
The intersection of accessibility and emerging technologies like AI offers exciting possibilities for creating more adaptable, personalised experiences that work for users of all abilities.
This approach aligns perfectly with our friction mapping methodology, helping to identify and remove barriers that prevent users from achieving their goals.
Case study: accessible design in action
We've previously worked with Callsign to enhance the accessibility of their authentication and security systems, partnering with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to conduct thorough accessibility audits. This project showcased how security and accessibility can work hand-in-hand when approached thoughtfully through service design mapping.
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Get your free accessibility audit
With the EAA deadline fast approaching, there’s no time to wait. We’re currently offering a free accessibility audit to help you identify issues, close gaps and get your digital products EAA-ready.
If you’d like to explore the topic further, download our Download our FREE European Accessibility Act White Paper to discover how your organisation can stay ahead of the curve and lead the way in inclusive digital experiences.
Frequently asked questions about the European Accessibility Act
Q: What is the European Accessibility Act
A:The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is legislation aimed at harmonising accessibility standards across the European Union. It ensures digital products and services are accessible to people with disabilities, promoting equal opportunities in areas such as education, employment, and transportation.
Q: When does the European Accessibility Act come into effect?
A: The European Accessibility Act comes into effect on 28 June 2025. Businesses have until this date to ensure their digital products and services are compliant with the accessibility requirements outlined in the Act.
Q: Does the European Accessibility Act apply to UK businesses?
A: Yes, the European Accessibility Act applies to any business with customers based in the EU, regardless of where the business itself is based. If you're a UK business with EU customers, you will need to comply with the EAA requirements.
Q: What digital products and services are covered by the EAA?
A: The EAA covers a wide range of digital products and services, including websites, mobile applications, e-books, e-commerce platforms, banking services, electronic communications, digital television, ticketing systems, and self-service terminals.
Q: What are the consequences of non-compliance with the EAA?
A: Non-compliance with the European Accessibility Act can result in financial penalties, reputational damage, disqualification from public or private service contracts, and loss of customers. As Professor Brown mentioned, "regulatory bodies can impose financial penalties," and companies that are fined will be listed publicly.
Q: What accessibility standards should we follow to comply with the EAA?
A: The EAA relies on the EN 301 549 standard, which incorporates the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 level AA requirements. These guidelines follow the POUR principles: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust.
Q; How do we make our website accessible for people with dyslexia?
A: For people with dyslexia, consider implementing options for dark mode, using dyslexia-friendly fonts like Open Dyslexic 3, ensuring sufficient contrast between text and background, avoiding cursive or elaborate fonts, and providing clear spacing between paragraphs and lines of text.
Q: How can we test our digital products for accessibility?
A: Comprehensive accessibility testing involves both automated tools and manual testing. While automated tools can identify technical issues, manual testing with actual users who have disabilities provides invaluable insights into real-world accessibility challenges. Working with professional organisations that specialise in accessibility testing, such as the RNIB, is highly recommended. The GOV.UK accessibility guidance also provides excellent resources for testing.
