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The European Accessibility Act (EAA)

Directive (EU) 2019/882 extends EU accessibility rules into the private sector. Adopted on 17 April 2019 with a transposition deadline of 28 June 2022, the directive has applied across the EU since 28 June 2025. It covers 11 product and service categories, and reaches non-EU companies that place products on the EU market.

Adopted
17 April 2019
Applies from
28 June 2025
Categories
11 — P1–P5 (products) + S1–S7 (services)
Standard
EN 301 549 + sector-specific requirements
Reach
Non-EU companies placing products on the EU market are in scope

What the EAA covers

The EAA defines 11 product and service categories in Annex I. Anything placed on the EU market or offered to EU consumers after 28 June 2025 falls in scope. Member States cannot narrow or broaden these categories; the scope is harmonised across all 27 transpositions.

P1
Consumer hardware + OS
General-purpose computer hardware systems and their operating systems
P2
Self-service terminals
ATMs, ticket vending, check-in machines, interactive kiosks
P3
Telecom terminal equipment
Consumer equipment for electronic communications services
P4
AV media terminal equipment
Consumer equipment for audiovisual media services
P5
E-readers
Dedicated reading hardware
S1
Electronic communications services
Telecom services
S2
AV media access services
Streaming, broadcast, video-on-demand interfaces
S3
Passenger transport services
Air, bus, rail, water — websites, apps, e-tickets, real-time info
S4
Consumer banking services
Retail banking, payments
S5
E-books + dedicated software
Digital reading platforms and apps
S6
E-commerce services
Online retail, marketplaces, transactional sites
S7
Emergency communications (112)
Single European emergency number operator services
Public-sector websites and mobile apps sit outside the EAA. Those fall under the Web Accessibility Directive (WAD). A few entities land under both regimes. Public transport operators that also offer consumer-facing services are the most common example.

Who is affected

The directive reaches four economic operators:

  • Manufacturers placing in-scope products on the EU market
  • Importers bringing them into the EU
  • Distributors making them available
  • Service providers offering in-scope services to EU consumers

Where the company is established doesn't matter. The EAA applies the moment a product is placed on the EU market, or a service is offered to EU consumers. Non-EU manufacturers will typically need an authorised representative established in the EU.

Micro-enterprise exemption, but only for services. Service providers with fewer than 10 employees and annual turnover or balance below €2 million are exempt. The exemption does not extend to products.

Technical standard

The EAA points to the same harmonised standard as the WAD: EN 301 549. Conformance with it creates a presumption of compliance. Sector-specific standards may layer on top, for example for self-service terminals or e-readers.

For the built-environment dimension under Article 4(4), Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/2940 sets the technical criteria. These cover the physical installations of self-service terminals: tactile markings, screen tilt, spatial clearances.

Key dates

  • 17 April 2019 — Directive adopted
  • 28 June 2022 — transposition deadline
  • 28 June 2025 — applies across the EU and Norway. New in-scope products and services must comply.
  • 28 June 2030 — end of the transitional period for self-service terminals installed before 28 June 2025 (Article 32)

Transposition was uneven. Only Denmark and Estonia met the June 2022 deadline. Most others ran years late: Cyprus, the Netherlands and Poland landed in 2024. Bulgaria transposed in April 2025. Croatia squeezed in three weeks before EAA application. The Commission opened an infringement procedure against Greece in March 2025.

Enforcement is distributed, not centralised

The WAD has one monitoring body per country. The EAA does not. Each Member State designates a different sector regulator for each EAA category, and the split varies sharply:

  • France runs seven bodies: DGCCRF (products and e-commerce), ARCEP (telecom and 112), ARCOM (AV media), ART (transport), ACPR (banking), Ministry of Culture (e-books), plus DINUM on the WAD side.
  • Italy runs five: MIMIT for tangible products, AgID for digital services, Banca d'Italia for banking, AGCOM for AV media content, and local contracting bodies for the physical elements of transport.
  • Ireland runs six: CCPC, ComReg, Coimisiún na Meán, NTA, Central Bank of Ireland, with the NDA on the WAD side.
  • Norway is the outlier. A single body, uutilsynet (under Digdir), covers most of the digital scope.

Most other Member States have not been fully mapped publicly. Full splits are confirmed so far for France, Italy, Ireland and the Netherlands. See the full enforcement picture →

For non-EU and non-EEA companies

The EAA reaches non-EU manufacturers and service providers at the point of EU market placement. The practical checklist:

  • Authorised representative established in the EU, for manufacturers based outside the EU.
  • Technical documentation demonstrating conformity, kept available for 5 years after the product is placed on the market.
  • EU Declaration of Conformity per Decision 768/2008/EC Annex III, with the EAA Annex IV elements added.
  • CE marking on physical products (Articles 19 and 20).
  • Language requirements vary by country. Instructions and safety information must be in the language of the Member State where the product is placed. Importers usually face stricter requirements. Italy and Croatia add a Latin-script rule.

UK companies. Post-Brexit there is no UK-wide EAA equivalent. Northern Ireland is the exception. Under the Windsor Framework, EAA-scoped products placed on the NI market must comply with Directive 2019/882 and carry CE marking.

Swiss companies. No Swiss EAA equivalent. Comply at the point of EU market placement.

How each country transposed EAA

Every country page lists the national EAA act, the sector supervisors (where designated), and the country-specific extras.

Browse by country →