Accessibility Requirements

Products and services that fall within the scope of this Directive must be designed and produced in such a way as to maximize their foreseeable use by persons with disabilities and shall be accompanied by accessible information on their functioning and on their accessibility features.

The accessibility requirements are formulated in terms of functional performance criteria, following four key principles derived from the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG):

• Perceivability: Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive
• Operability: User interface components and navigation must be operable by all users
• Understandability: Information and operation of the user interface must be comprehensible
• Robustness: Content must be robust enough to be interpreted by various user agents, including assistive technologies

For products covered by this Directive (see Scope and Application), the accessibility requirements include:

• Providing information about the use of the product on the product itself (labelling, instructions, warning) that shall be:
  • Made available by more than one sensory channel
  • Presented in an understandable way
  • Presented to users in ways they can perceive
  • Presented in fonts of adequate size and suitable shape
• Making the user interface of the product accessible to enable persons with disabilities to perceive, operate, and understand it
• Ensuring compatibility with assistive technologies, including hearing aids, telecoils, cochlear implants, and assistive listening devices
• Providing support services (help desks, call centers, technical support, relay services) that provide information on the accessibility of the product

The provision of services must be ensured in a way that:

• Makes information available about the functioning of the service and about its accessibility characteristics and facilities
• Makes websites accessible in a consistent and adequate way for users' perception, operation, and understanding, including the adaptability of content presentation and interaction
• Includes functions, practices, policies, and procedures targeted to address the needs of persons with disabilities
• Ensures that mobile applications are accessible in a consistent and adequate way for users' perception, operation and understanding
• Makes electronic identification, security and payment methods necessary for the provision of the service understandable, perceivable, operable, and robust

Electronic Communications

• Provide real time text in addition to voice communication
• Provide total conversation where video is provided in addition to voice communication
• Ensure that emergency communications using voice, text and video are synchronized

Audiovisual Media Services

• Provide electronic program guides (EPGs) that are perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust
• Ensure that accessibility components of audiovisual media services are transmitted in full

E-books

• Ensure that digital files use features, practices, policies, and procedures that address the needs of persons with disabilities
• Respect the integrity of the author's work while providing accessibility
• Enable alternative renditions of the content and its interoperability with assistive technologies

E-commerce

• Provide identification methods, electronic signatures, and payment services that are perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust
• Make information about the functioning of the service accessible

The specific technical requirements are detailed in Annex I of the Directive, which is organized into several sections:

• Section I: General accessibility requirements for all products
• Section II: User interface and functionality design requirements for products
• Section III: General accessibility requirements for all services
• Section IV: Additional accessibility requirements for specific services
• Section V: Specific accessibility requirements for emergency communications
• Section VI: Accessibility requirements for features, elements, or functions of products and services
• Section VII: Functional performance criteria

Additionally, Annex II provides non-binding examples of possible solutions that contribute to meeting the accessibility requirements, which Member States may inform economic operators about.

For a comprehensive overview of all annexes, visit the Annexes Overview page.