28 June 2025 is a crucial date for European businesses: it is the deadline set by the European Accessibility Act (EAA) for ensuring that companies’ digital products and services (websites, mobile apps, e-commerce platforms and software) are accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities.
For many, digital accessibility is still an abstract concept, or one seen as a technical constraint. But for those who work in user experience and user interface design, it is clear that designing accessibly means creating value for the user, for the brand and for the business.
So let’s clarify what web accessibility requires in 2025, which obligations the EAA introduces and which concrete steps companies and professionals need to take to be compliant and competitive.
What is the European Accessibility Act?
The European Accessibility Act (EU Directive 2019/882) is a binding piece of legislation that sets common accessibility requirements for a range of digital products and services distributed in the European market. The directive was transposed by the Member States in 2022 and provides for the new obligations to come into force from 28 June 2025.
Objective: to break down digital barriers and harmonise national rules, promoting social inclusion and fair access to the single market.
Main areas of application:
- Websites and mobile apps
- E-commerce and marketplaces
- Digital banking services
- E-book and e-reader platforms
- Self-service terminals (e.g. ticket machines)
- Electronic communications (chatbots, call centres, digital voice assistants)
Fundamental requirement: compliance with the technical standards based on WCAG 2.1 level AA (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), which specify how to make digital content perceivable, operable, understandable and robust.
Who is required to comply with digital accessibility?
The EAA concerns all private businesses, SMEs included, that provide digital products and services in the B2C sphere in the European Union. Micro-enterprises are excluded (fewer than 10 employees and turnover < €2 million), but beware: legal exclusion is not the same as a strategic exemption.
Complying with accessibility, even where there are no direct obligations, means:
- Avoiding discrimination and litigation
- Gaining access to public tenders and European calls for funding
- Building a solid, socially responsible reputation.
Why does digital accessibility pay off (for the business too)?
Designing for accessibility is not only ethical: it is also smart. Here are 4 good reasons to put it into practice:
- Around 87 million European citizens live with some form of disability
- Accessibility improves UX for everyone: older people, users with slow connections, mobile contexts or temporary limitations (e.g. a hand in plaster, forgotten glasses)
- Accessible sites tend to have better SEO, which translates into a semantic structure, text alternatives and clear navigation
- A lower bounce rate and higher conversion.
With my long experience as a UX/UI Designer, I can say it with certainty: an accessible interface is more usable, consistent and scalable, simply because an accessible product is for everyone, not for some (I discussed this in more depth in my article “Website accessibility: UX and UI Design”).
Operational roadmap for complying with digital accessibility 2025
- Accessibility audit – Use of automated tools (WAVE, axe, Lighthouse) for an initial diagnosis – Manual testing with assistive technologies (e.g. NVDA, VoiceOver, keyboard) – Involvement of real users with disabilities for testing in concrete situations of use.
- Design System review – Colours: minimum contrast of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text – Typography: clear hierarchies, legibility, spacing, line-height > 1.5 – Navigation: visible, keyboard-operable, clear focus states – Visual and audio feedback: accessible confirmations, errors and transitions.
- Front-End refactoring – Correct use of semantic HTML tags (header, nav, main, section, article) – Use of ARIA elements only when necessary – Accessible forms: associated labels, fields with hints, clear error handling – Responsive behaviour: compatibility with screen readers and mobile devices.
- Drafting the accessibility statement – Mandatory by law – It must state the degree of compliance, the known issues and the contacts for reports.
- Training and company culture
Accessibility is a continuous process. It must involve the whole team: designers, devs, content managers, stakeholders. Building accessibility into QA processes, content writing and project briefs is essential.
And if you are not compliant?
Failing to comply with the EAA can lead to:
- Financial penalties (varying from country to country)
- Legal action for discrimination
- Exclusion from partnerships and public funding
- Reputational damage and loss of customers.
In Italy, for example, the Agenzia per l’Italia Digitale (AgID) has already introduced supervision and reporting mechanisms similar to those in place for the Public Administration, for private entities too.
Digital accessibility as a lever for innovation
Digital accessibility is not a technical finishing line, but a mindset. It means anticipating needs, designing with empathy and making digital a right, not a privilege.
In 2025, it will no longer be enough to have a “beautiful” or “functional” site. You will need a site that is responsible, inclusive and compliant. This is the new standard.
As designers, developers and companies, it is our duty (but also an opportunity) to contribute to the design of accessible, inclusive products, in which every user can feel an active part of the experience.
Do you want to make your site compliant with the European Accessibility Act by 2025?
We help you take stock, plan a compliance programme, or we can simply give you some advice over a coffee (real or virtual).
Together we can design a more accessible digital future, for everyone.