European Accessibility Act (EAA 2025): what it requires from an online store and how to comply
Since 28 June 2025 the EAA applies to e-commerce, including non-EU companies selling to Europeans. What it asks for, the fines, and what to check today.
· Rampa
The European Accessibility Act (EAA) has been in force since 28 June 2025. It requires digital products and services sold in the European Union to be usable by people with disabilities. Online stores are covered, and it does not matter where the company is based: if you sell to customers in Europe, it applies to you.
Penalties are set by each country. In Germany, the implementing law (BFSG) provides for fines of up to €100,000; other countries have fines and can also order the service withdrawn until it complies. No lawsuit is needed: a single user complaint to the national authority is enough to open a case.
What "accessible" means in practice
The EAA points to the European standard EN 301 549, which in turn uses WCAG 2.1 level AA (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines: the technical rules that define an accessible website). In concrete terms for a store:
- Every product photo has a description a screen reader can read out.
- Searching, picking a size, adding to cart and paying all work with the keyboard alone, no mouse.
- Text is readable: enough contrast between letters and background, and the page still works zoomed to 200%.
- Checkout fields say what they are (email, address, card) and errors are explained in words, not only with a red border.
- Buttons and icons have names: "Add to cart", not "button".
Micro-enterprises are exempt, with fine print
The law exempts service micro-enterprises: fewer than 10 employees and under €2 million in turnover. Two caveats: the exemption is for the service provider, not for the marketplace you sell on (which must comply and may require it from you), and several countries chose to apply the law to small businesses too. The right question for your advisor is "is my store an e-commerce service under my country's transposition?".
Where to start today
First, know where you stand. An automated check finds roughly half of the criteria (images without descriptions, contrast, unlabeled fields, unnamed buttons, undeclared language), and those are usually most of a store's failures. The rest (keyboard, zoom, captions) takes a few minutes by hand with a checklist.
Second, keep a record: date, what was found, what was fixed. If a complaint ever arrives, what protects you is not being perfect; it is showing that you check and fix.
Third, publish an accessibility statement: a page stating which standard you follow, the known issues and how to reach you. The EAA and several national laws ask for one.