European Accessibility Act: What Web Agencies Need to Know

What Is the European Accessibility Act?

The European Accessibility Act (Directive 2019/882) is an EU directive that establishes common accessibility requirements for certain products and services sold within the European Union. It was adopted in April 2019, and EU member states were required to transpose it into national law by June 28, 2022. The requirements became applicable on June 28, 2025.

Unlike previous EU accessibility measures that focused primarily on public sector websites (the Web Accessibility Directive 2016/2102), the EAA covers private sector products and services. This is a fundamental shift. Your agency's commercial clients — not just government bodies — now have legal accessibility obligations.

The directive is intentionally technology-neutral. It defines functional requirements rather than referencing specific technical standards. However, the harmonised standard EN 301 549 (which incorporates WCAG 2.1 Level AA for web content) is the primary way to demonstrate conformance.

Who Must Comply

The EAA applies to specific categories of products and services. For web agencies, the most relevant covered services are:

The Micro-Enterprise Exemption

Micro-enterprises — defined as businesses with fewer than 10 employees andannual turnover or balance sheet total not exceeding EUR 2 million — are exempt from the EAA's service requirements. However, this exemption is narrower than many assume. A web agency with 8 employees building sites for larger clients is itself exempt, but the clients' services are not.

Furthermore, the "disproportionate burden" defence allows covered businesses to argue that specific accessibility requirements would impose an excessive cost relative to the benefit. This assessment must be documented and reviewed regularly — it is not a blanket exemption.

Technical Requirements

The EAA itself does not reference WCAG directly. Instead, it defines functional accessibility requirements in Annex I, covering principles like perceivability, operability, understandability, and robustness — deliberately echoing the POUR principles of WCAG.

In practice, compliance is demonstrated through the harmonised European standard EN 301 549. The current version (v3.2.1, published 2021) maps directly to WCAG 2.1 Level AA for web content, plus additional requirements for non-web software, hardware, and documentation.

What This Means in Practice

• Web content must conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA. This is the practical benchmark for any agency performing audits. See our WCAG 2.1 AA Checklist for E-Commerce for a detailed criterion-by-criterion guide.
• Mobile apps must also conform, following the mobile-relevant criteria in EN 301 549.
• PDFs and documents published as part of the service (e.g., invoices, terms of service, product documentation) must also be accessible.
• Third-party content and integrations — payment providers, chat widgets, analytics consent banners, embedded maps — all fall under the scope if they are part of the service offered to end users.

Accessibility Statement

While the EAA does not explicitly require an accessibility statement the way the Web Accessibility Directive does for public sector sites, several member state transpositions include such a requirement. Best practice is to publish one regardless. An accessibility statement should declare the level of conformance, list known issues, provide a contact mechanism for accessibility feedback, and be updated regularly.

Timeline and Deadlines

The key takeaway: as of mid-2025, any new or substantially updated e-commerce service must meet the requirements. Services already in operation get until 2030 to comply, but waiting until 2030 is risky — enforcement bodies are already active, and consumer complaints can trigger investigations at any time.

Enforcement and Penalties

The EAA requires each member state to designate market surveillance authorities responsible for enforcement. The directive mandates "effective, proportionate and dissuasive" penalties, but leaves the specifics to national law. This creates a patchwork of enforcement regimes across the EU.

How Enforcement Varies by Country

• Germany (BFSG — Barrierefreiheitsstarkungsgesetz) — one of the stricter transpositions. Market surveillance is handled by the Bundesnetzagentur. Fines can reach up to EUR 100,000 per infringement, and repeated violations can lead to service restrictions.
• France has extended its existing accessibility framework (RGAA) to cover EAA requirements, with the ARCOM overseeing compliance. Fines of up to EUR 50,000 per service can be imposed.
• Netherlands — the Dutch transposition designates the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) for enforcement, with a focus on consumer complaint-driven investigation.
• Spain, Italy, Sweden and other member states have similar structures with varying fine levels and enforcement priorities.

Beyond fines, the real risk is market access. Member states can restrict or prohibit non-compliant services from operating in their market. For cross-border e-commerce businesses — many of your agency's clients — this is a significant commercial threat.

Consumer Complaints and Legal Action

The EAA also strengthens the position of individual consumers. Users with disabilities (or organisations representing them) can file complaints with national authorities or take direct legal action. In practice, the threat of a complaint — not the fine itself — is what motivates most businesses to act. A public accessibility complaint can cause reputational damage that far exceeds any fine.

EAA vs. WCAG vs. EN 301 549

The relationship between these three standards confuses many agencies. Here is how they fit together:

In short: the EAA is the law, EN 301 549 is the standard you follow to satisfy the law, and WCAG 2.1 AA is the specific part of that standard applicable to websites. When auditing a website for EAA compliance, you are effectively auditing against WCAG 2.1 Level AA — plus checking that documents, videos, and other non-web content also meet the relevant EN 301 549 requirements.

The Agency Opportunity

The EAA creates a structural shift in demand for accessibility services. Before the EAA, accessibility was a best practice — a "nice to have" that clients could defer indefinitely. Now it is a legal requirement with penalties for non-compliance. This changes the conversation from "should we invest in accessibility?" to "how quickly can we become compliant?"

Revenue Potential

For agencies managing 10-40 client websites, accessibility services can generate significant recurring revenue:

• Initial audits (EUR 500-2,000 per site) — a one-time assessment covering the current state, prioritised issues, and a remediation plan.
• Remediation work (billed hourly or as a project) — fixing the issues identified in the audit. This is where the bulk of development work happens.
• Monthly monitoring (EUR 100-500/site/month) — ongoing scanning, regression detection, and reporting. This is the recurring revenue opportunity that sustains the service long-term.

An agency managing 20 client sites with monthly monitoring at EUR 200/site generates EUR 4,000/month in recurring revenue — before the initial audit and remediation work.

Building an Accessibility Service

Adding accessibility services to your agency does not require hiring a dedicated accessibility consultant from day one. Here is a pragmatic approach to building this capability:

Phase 1: Automated Scanning + Targeted Expert Checks

Start with automated scanning tools that catch the 30-40% of issues that machines can detect reliably. Combine this with a structured round of keyboard, screen reader, and workflow verification using a checklist like our WCAG 2.1 AA Checklist for E-Commerce. Train one or two developers on keyboard testing and basic screen reader testing — these two skills cover the majority of issues that automated tools miss.

Phase 2: Productize the Offering

Create a standard audit deliverable: a professional report that clients can show to their management and legal teams. The report should include an executive summary, a prioritised issue list with severity levels, specific remediation guidance for each issue, and screenshots or code snippets illustrating the problems.

Package your service at fixed prices — clients strongly prefer predictable costs for compliance work. Offer tiers: a basic automated scan, a comprehensive audit, and an audit + remediation package.

Phase 3: Monthly Monitoring

Once a site is remediated, offer ongoing monitoring. Regular automated scans catch regressions introduced by content updates, plugin updates, or new features. Monthly reports show compliance status over time and demonstrate ongoing diligence — useful both for the client's internal stakeholders and as evidence in case of any regulatory inquiry.

This is where tools like AccessiGuard fit in. Rather than building your own scanning infrastructure, you can use a purpose-built platform that handles the scanning, generates professional reports, and provides the monitoring dashboards your clients expect.

Positioning and Sales

When selling accessibility services to existing clients, lead with the legal requirement — the EAA is no longer upcoming, it is active. But do not rely on fear alone. Emphasise the practical benefits: improved SEO (search engines reward accessible markup), broader audience reach (15-20% of the EU population has some form of disability), and reduced legal risk.

For new client acquisition, accessibility expertise is a differentiator. Agencies that can promise EAA-compliant deliverables win contracts over those that cannot.

Next Steps

The EAA is not a future concern — it is current law. Every month your clients' sites remain non-compliant increases their exposure to complaints and fines. Here is what to do this week:

1. Audit your highest-risk clients first — start with e-commerce sites that serve customers in Germany, France, or the Netherlands, where enforcement is most active.
2. Run a baseline scan to understand the current state. Even a free automated scan gives you a starting point for the conversation.
3. Use the WCAG checklist for a structured verification pass on the most critical page templates.
4. Present findings to your client with a clear remediation plan and pricing for the fix.
5. Propose monthly monitoring to prevent regressions and demonstrate ongoing compliance.