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Starting next year, the law will require businesses to ensure digital accessibility. This is a crucial step toward improving the online experience for people with disabilities A major shift is anticipated in 2025, as these changes are set to disrupt numerous industries.
The first law on digital accessibility for public sector websites and mobile apps came into effect in 2019. It applies exclusively to publicly funded entities, such as city offices, schools, and courts, and ensures digital accessibility through their websites or mobile apps based largely on WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines (attached to the legislation).
At the same time, the European Parliament and Council (EU) introduced the European Accessibility Act (EAA). This directive expanded accessibility requirements for products and services across all member states, adding even more responsibilities.
Polish digital accessibility laws remained unchanged until 2023 when work on new legislation commenced. This was a direct result of the European Accessibility Act (EAA), which set a deadline for EU member states to update their regulations.
The EAA significantly broadens the scope of entities and services required to ensure digital accessibility and introduces a range of new procedures. Adequate time was needed to ensure that the new law would provide a comprehensive understanding of accessibility for products and services. The ultimate goal is to create equal opportunities for everyone, including individuals with special needs.
On May 9, 2024, the President signed the “Act of April 26, 2024, on Ensuring Accessibility Requirements for Certain Products and Services by Economic Entities,” now commonly referred to as the Polish Accessibility Act, in line with the European Accessibility Act (EAA). The law will come into force on June 28, 2025.
This legislation expands its reach, covering more entities by imposing accessibility requirements on the private sector. State-owned companies and private firms now have just a few months to implement the necessary changes to avoid potential penalties. While the deadline may seem distant, understanding and integrating accessibility standards takes time, especially as the regulatory framework continues to evolve. Businesses should stay vigilant in the coming months to ensure they correctly interpret and comply with the law, particularly given the penalties outlined later in this article.
In Summary ensuring accessibility will become a new obligation for:
The new legislation will broaden its scope to include not just websites and mobile applications (as was previously the case) but also various products such as:
Additionally, it will encompass services like:
The law specifies the accessibility requirements that designated products and services must meet. These provisions aim to ensure that businesses implement solutions that enable and facilitate the use of these products by individuals with special needs, thereby reducing social exclusion. Consequently, manufacturers, importers, distributors, and service providers are subject to a series of obligations they must fulfill.
The new law clearly outlines the functioning of the market oversight system to ensure that businesses meet accessibility obligations and are consistently monitored. This oversight will be led by the President of PFRON, market supervisory authorities, and customs agencies.
Importantly, the new regulations do not apply to micro-enterprises, so they need not worry about potential penalties. Additionally, the following are exempt from compliance:
Crucially, the 2019 act remains in effect for entities funded by public resources. This is a key point, as one might assume that the introduction of a new law naturally replaces the previous one. However, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
So far, the penalties imposed on entities for failing to comply with the law have been relatively low—much like the awareness surrounding the existence of such regulations. This helps explain the small number of complaints filed with PFRON (the State Fund for Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons) in recent years.
It’s disheartening that only 15 complaints have been resolved favorably so far. One educational institution failed to comply with PFRON’s decision to ensure accessibility, resulting in a fine of PLN 15,000. If the entity continues to ignore accessibility requirements as outlined by PFRON, additional fines may be imposed.
The low number of complaints can also be attributed to mistakes made during the submission process. While anyone can file a complaint, the first step is submitting a formal request for accessibility, which can only be done by a person with special needs or their guardian. This is rather unfortunate, considering that improving accessibility is in everyone’s best interest, yet many find their hands tied at this stage. A successful complaint can lead to a mandate to ensure accessibility and failure to comply may result in a financial penalty, just as in the case mentioned above.
The sanctions regime has undergone a complete transformation in the new law. According to the updated regulations, any individual can file a complaint regarding non-compliance with accessibility requirements for a product or service, either directly with the entity in question or with the President of the PFRON Board, who will initiate control measures.
Under the new act, fines can reach up to ten times the average monthly salary from the previous year, but no more than 10% of the entity’s turnover in the year preceding the sanction. This is a significant increase compared to the 2019 law, where fines for non-compliance with digital accessibility (websites or mobile apps) or failure to publish an Accessibility Declaration capped at PLN 5,000, or PLN 10,000 for persistent and unjustified non-compliance.
More severe penalties have also been introduced for failing to meet accessibility requirements, including a potential sales ban or the obligation to withdraw a product from the market if corrective actions are not taken. This could have a substantial impact on a company’s image and reputation.
All fines contribute to the Accessibility Fund, which supports initiatives aimed at improving accessibility for people with special needs, particularly in public-use buildings and multi-family housing (such as the installation of elevators).
Until official interpretations of the new regulations are released, we can only rely on subjective understanding of the changes introduced by the Polish Accessibility Act, coming into effect next year. Take, for instance, the mentioned sanctions—depending on the type of entity, the process for filing complaints differs significantly, and it’s easy to make a misstep at this stage. I strongly encourage you to stay informed on this topic, as we’re bound to see initial uncertainties and inconsistencies arise.
In summary, both Polish accessibility laws—the first introduced in 2019 and this year’s act—complement each other. The process of verifying and ensuring digital accessibility is finally being formalized. It’s safe to say that awareness of these upcoming changes and their necessity is steadily growing across our society—a very positive development. This shows that we are committed to the well-being and interests of all citizens, including those with special needs.
