This regulation represents a significant step toward a more inclusive society and offers companies the opportunity to lead in digital accessibility.
What is the European Accessibility Act?
The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is a directive adopted by the European Union that establishes accessibility requirements for a wide range of products and services. The main objective is to eliminate barriers created by divergent rules among member states, thereby facilitating the functioning of the internal market for accessible products and services.
Products and services covered by the EAA
The Act covers products and services identified as essential for people with disabilities and which are likely to have divergent accessibility requirements across EU countries. These include:
- Products:
- Computers and operating systems
- ATMs, ticketing, and check-in machines
- Smartphones and electronic communication devices
- Digital televisions and associated equipment
- Services:
- E-commerce and digital platforms
- Passenger transport (ticketing, customer service, mobile apps)
- Banking and financial services
- Audiovisual content and telecommunications services
How does the European Accessibility Act affect businesses?
Companies offering services and products covered by the EAA must ensure they comply with the established requirements before June 2025. This means they will need to implement changes in the design, development, and presentation of their digital interfaces.
Furthermore, compliance with the regulations will not only avoid sanctions but can also provide additional benefits such as:
- Better search engine positioning thanks to web accessibility optimization.
- An improved user experience for all visitors.
- A wider audience, including people with disabilities.
- A strengthened corporate image and better social responsibility.
Key UI/UX adaptations to comply with the EAA
To ensure compliance with the European Accessibility Act, it is essential to adapt UI/UX design aspects. Some of the key changes companies should consider include:
- Accessible visual design
- Color contrast: Texts must have a minimum contrast of 4.5:1 against the background (3:1 for large elements).
- Legible typography: Use clear sans-serif fonts and a minimum font size of 16px, with the ability to zoom up to 200% without losing functionality.
- Alternative visual indicators: Do not rely on color alone to convey information; add icons, underlines, or patterns where necessary.
- Clear navigation and structure
- Visual and semantic hierarchy: Proper semantic HTML with descriptive tags for interactive elements will be used.
- Keyboard navigation: The website must be accessible without a mouse, with interactive elements having a visible focus.
- Avoid excessive moving content: Ability to pause or stop automatic animations so as not to affect reading.
- Accessible forms and interactive elements
- Clear labels and instructions: All form fields must have visible labels and understandable instructions.
- Appropriate size and spacing: Buttons must have a minimum size of 44×44 px and enough space between elements to facilitate use on touch devices.
- Accessible multimedia content
- Alternative text for images: Add appropriate descriptions to all relevant images.
- Subtitles and transcripts: Videos must include subtitles and, if possible, audio transcripts.
- Audio descriptions: For videos with key visual information, an audio description must be added.
- Adaptability and compatibility
- Responsive design: The website must be compatible with mobiles, tablets, and computers.
- Compatibility with assistive technologies: Websites must work correctly with screen readers such as NVDA or VoiceOver.
- ARIA labels: These help improve the understanding of the interface for users with visual impairments.
Why is it important to adapt to the European Accessibility Act?
Adapting to the European Accessibility Act is not just a legal obligation, but also an opportunity to create an inclusive user experience and optimize online visibility. Implementing accessibility best practices not only facilitates navigation for users with disabilities but also improves the overall experience for all website visitors.
At Cactus Seny Gràfic, we are experts in web and document accessibility (PDFs) and can help your company comply with the new requirements of the European Accessibility Act 2025. If you want to adapt your website or improve its accessibility, contact us today!
Complying with the European Accessibility Act starts with good design: in our web design service, we take this into account from day one.
