The European Accessibility Act (EAA) creates specific obligations and requirements for economic operators. To meet these, you’ll need an accessibility audit, user testing, documentation, and compliance tracking. Here’s an EAA outline for compliance in a box.
| Service Type | How It Helps You |
|---|---|
| Audits | Formal evaluation to identify accessibility issues and correct them |
| User Testing | Real people with disabilities test your products and services to relay their experience (document this) |
| VPAT Documentation | Creates standardized accessibility reports that satisfy EAA documentation requirements |
| Compliance Tracking | EAA App and Accessibility Tracker keep you organized and ready for surveillance authorities |
Table of Contents
Audits
Professional accessibility audits verify your digital assets meet EAA requirements and identify accessibility issues before market surveillance authorities conduct reviews.
What EAA Audits Check
EAA audits examine whether your digital products actually work for people with disabilities through WCAG 2.1 AA evaluation. Audits track your technical documentation for completeness and accuracy, ensuring you’re prepared when authorities request compliance information.
For digital product manufacturers, this includes verifying technical documentation meets EAA standards, conformity assessment procedures are properly documented, and accessibility statements accurately reflect product capabilities. For digital service providers, audits verify accessibility information is correctly prepared and service delivery meets EAA accessibility requirements.
Why You Need EAA Audits
The EAA directive requires digital product manufacturers to “draw up technical documentation and carry out the conformity assessment procedure” while digital service providers must “prepare necessary information and explain how services meet accessibility requirements.” Professional audits ensure you’re implementing these EAA obligations correctly before authorities check your compliance.
Audits identify accessibility gaps in your digital assets that could trigger EAA enforcement actions. When you track audit findings and complete remediation before EAA enforcement dates, you demonstrate proactive compliance efforts.
User Testing
User testing involves real people with disabilities evaluating your products and services. This helps improve user experience and accessibility and provides tangible, compelling evidence that accessibility actually works.
How User Testing Works
For digital products, users with disabilities test websites and apps using screen readers, keyboard navigation, and other assistive technologies. For physical products, users evaluate information accessibility and product operation. For services, users test communication channels, support systems, and service delivery processes.
Why User Testing Matters
The EAA requires products be designed “to maximize their foreseeable use by persons with disabilities” and services work for people with various disabilities. User testing validates this requirement with real evidence rather than assumptions about accessibility.
VPAT Documentation Services
Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPATs) create standardized accessibility reports that support EAA compliance documentation requirements.
What VPATs Provide
VPATs document how products meet WCAG standards and other accessibility requirements. They provide clear compliance status for each accessibility criterion and explain how accessibility features work. Accessible.org recommends WCAG 2.1 AA or WCAG 2.2 AA as technical standards for digital assets under EAA requirements.
How VPATs Help EAA Compliance
The EAA requires technical documentation that demonstrates conformity with accessibility requirements. VPATs provide this documentation in a standardized format that authorities understand. They also help with procurement processes and market surveillance requests.
EAA App
We built the EAA App specifically for tracking European Accessibility Act compliance. It transforms complex regulatory obligations into simple checklists.
How the EAA App Works
The app creates custom checklists based on your economic operator role. Manufacturers get obligations for technical documentation, conformity assessment, and CE marking. Service providers see requirements for accessibility information and service delivery. Importers and distributors get their specific verification obligations.
Each checklist item includes plain English explanations, AI assistance for compliance questions, and space for notes and document uploads. The app tracks your progress percentage and enables team collaboration.
Why You Need the EAA App
The EAA directive contains numerous obligations scattered throughout the text. The app organizes these into manageable tasks custom to your role. You only see obligations that apply to you, eliminating confusion about irrelevant requirements.
Accessibility Tracker Platform
Our Accessibility Tracker manages ongoing accessibility compliance across all your products and services.
What Accessibility Tracker Does
The platform stores audit reports, user testing results, VPATs, and other compliance documentation. It tracks progress across multiple products and services, coordinates team activities, and generates reports for management and regulatory authorities.
How Tracker Supports EAA Compliance
The EAA requires maintaining documentation for five years and providing information to authorities upon request. Accessibility Tracker organizes everything in one place, making authority requests manageable and ensuring nothing gets lost.
How These Products and Services Work Together
EAA compliance requires coordinated effort across multiple areas. Our services integrate to provide complete coverage.
Start with audits to understand your current compliance status and identify gaps. Add user testing to validate that accessibility actually works for people with disabilities. Use VPAT documentation to create standardized compliance records. Track everything with the EAA App to stay organized and prepared.
The key is having services that work together rather than managing separate vendors for each requirement. This keeps compliance manageable while ensuring you meet all EAA obligations for your specific economic operator role.
What This Means for Your Business
The EAA is already in effect. Market surveillance authorities are checking compliance and can require corrective measures for non-compliant products and services.
You need professional services that understand EAA requirements and can help you meet obligations efficiently. The directive places different obligations on manufacturers, service providers, importers, and distributors, so services must be tailored to your specific role.
Our approach combines audits, user testing, documentation, and tracking tools to provide complete EAA compliance support. The EAA App keeps you organized while professional services ensure you meet all technical and documentation requirements.
Get Started
Do you need help with EAA Compliance? Contact us to ask about an audit or other services.
Our EAA App launches in October 2025. Contact us for early access, or sign up for our Accessibility Tracker platform at AccessibilityTracker.com.
