On June 28, 2025 the Accessibility Improvement Act (Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz ("BFSG")), Germany's implementing act of the European Accessibility Act ("EAA"), will come into force, imposing a whole range of new obligations on many companies.
This Orrick Insight explores the key elements of the Accessibility Improvement Act and its implications for businesses operating in Germany.
European Background – The European Accessibility Act
The EEA aims to harmonize accessibility requirements across the EU, ensuring that people with disabilities can access essential products and services on an equal basis with others. It covers a wide range of areas, including digital services, transportation, banking, and e-commerce. By setting common accessibility standards, the EAA seeks to remove barriers and promote inclusivity throughout the European Union.
Germany's Approach: The Accessibility Improvement Act
Germany's BFSG implements the EAA at the national level.
1. Who is Likely to be Impacted?
The BFSG contains regulations for digital products and services offered by business-to-consumers ("B2C") as shown in the table below. Private and purely business-to-business ("B2B") offers are not subject to the BFSG. However, it must be clearly indicated that these are purely B2B offers and not sold to consumers. If a product or service falls within the scope of the BFSG, retailers, manufacturers, importers, and service providers must comply with the accessibility requirements.
The BFSG provides an exemption for micro-enterprises that offer services within the scope of the BFSG. Micro-enterprises are defined as companies that have fewer than ten employees and do not exceed a maximum annual turnover of EUR 2,000,000.
2. What Businesses Need to do?
Products made available on the market and services offered or provided must be accessible.
This is the case if they can be found, accessed, and used by people with disabilities in the usual way, without significant difficulty and, in principle, without external assistance.
The specific requirements depend on the product or service. These have been specified in the Regulation on the Accessibility Improvement Act (Verordnung zum Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz ("BFSGV")). It outlines technical standards for accessibility, which businesses must adhere to when designing and offering their products and services.
Below is an overview of the most important technical standards for accessibility according to the BFSGV. However, it should be noted that the BFSGV imposes specific obligations on certain products or services (e.g. for check-in terminals or e-book readers). In addition, attention must be paid to the provision of information, packaging, and instructions for use, all of which fall under these compliance requirements.
Key Obligations and Technical Standards
- Multi-Sensory Communication. Products must enable communication, operation, information, control, and orientation through more than one sensory channel.
- Spoken Language Alternatives. If spoken language is used, products must offer alternatives for communication, operation, control, and orientation.
- Visual Element Flexibility. Allow flexible adjustment of size, brightness, and contrast for communication and information. Provide alternatives to colors when conveying information or marking elements.
- Auditory Signal Alternatives. Provide alternatives to audible signals when conveying information or marking elements.
- Audio Element Control. Enable consumers to adjust volume and speed. Offer advanced audio features like reducing disruptive signals and enhancing auditory clarity.
- Manual Operation. Provide sequential control and alternatives to fine motor control. Use tactilely recognizable parts and avoid operations requiring significant reach or force.
- Assistive Technology Compatibility. Ensure software and hardware interfaces are compatible with assistive technologies.
3. When do the Obligations Come into Effect?
Affected websites and online shops need to comply by June 29, 2025.
Services that can only be provided using products that fall within the scope of the BFSG may continue to be provided with these products until June 27, 2030, i.e., there is a transitional provision of five years.
Service contracts concluded before June 28, 2025, may continue unchanged until the end of the period for which they were entered into, but no longer than until June 27, 2030.
Non-accessible self-service terminals will remain in place until the end of their economic life, but no later than 2040.
4. What are the Consequences of Violating the BFSG?
If the economic operator does not take appropriate measures to ensure conformity the market surveillance authority can take measures to restrict the making available of the product or service on the German market.
Furthermore, fines up to EUR 100,000 can be imposed for violations and non-compliance.
Since many of the provisions of the BFSG are likely to constitute rules of market conduct, there is a risk of legal action being taken by competitors on grounds of unfair competition.
5. Key To-Do's for Companies
- Conduct an Accessibility Audit. Assess current products and services to identify areas that require improvement. This audit will serve as a baseline for developing an accessibility strategy.
- Develop an Action Plan. Create a detailed plan outlining the steps needed to achieve compliance. This plan should include timelines, resource allocation, and responsibilities.
- Implement Accessible Design Principles. Incorporate accessible design principles from the outset. This includes using clear and consistent navigation, ensuring color contrast, and providing text alternatives for images and multimedia.
- Monitor Progress. Regularly review and update your accessibility strategy to ensure ongoing compliance and improvement.
- Ensure Transparency. If an application must be accessible, the law requires an accessibility statement. This statement must also be accessible itself. Update websites, contracts, and information provided.
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