The European Accessibility Act: What should financial services firms be focusing on as the June 2025 compliance deadline approaches?

There are over 80 million people with disabilities in the EU. The European Accessibility Act 2019 (EAA) (Directive (EU) 2019/882) implements the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) and aims at providing greater accessibility to everyday goods and services. It is applicable in member states from 28 June 2025. This article considers what in-scope financial services providers and related firms must do to ensure that retail banking products and services are more accessible to persons with disabilities. From 28 June 2025, in-scope firms will need to ensure that they design their websites, mobile apps, contracts and all forms of communication with consumers - including call centre services as well as devices such as payment terminals and ATMs - in a way that is accessible to persons with disabilities.

Chapter 1 At a glance: European Accessibility Act and financial services

The Directive on the accessibility requirements for products and services (European Accessibility Act - EAA) ((EU) 2019/882) applies in member states from 28 June 2025. The EAA:

• Promotes the equal and non-discriminatory participation of people with disabilities, limitations and older people.
• Covers “consumer banking services“ (including credit agreements, payment services and certain investment services) and “e-commerce services”. However, pure deposit business is not in scope of “consumer banking services” under this Act; only payment accounts and electronic money are covered.
• Also covers payment terminals and ATMs.
• Requires “economic operators” of in-scope products and services to provide certain information in an accessible manner (the two-senses principle), making websites and mobile applications accessible (by making them perceivable, operable, understandable and robust).

“Economic operators” includes financial services providers, including banks, payment service providers and e-money providers. In relation to physical products, “economic operators” includes the manufacturers, authorised representatives, importers and distributors of ATMs and payment terminals.

Where available, support services (help desks, call centres, technical support, relay services and training services) must provide information on the accessibility of the service and its compatibility with assistive technologies, in accessible modes of communication. “Relay services” are not defined in the EAA but are services that allow people with disabilities (e.g. those with hearing and/or speech impairments) to communicate with others through a relay assistant that, for example, converts speech to text.

Additional obligations for consumer banking services are:

• identification methods, electronic signatures, security, and payment services must be perceivable, operable, understandable and robust; and
• information provided must be understandable, without exceeding a level of complexity superior to level B2 (upper intermediate) of the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Chapter 2 What should in-scope financial services firms be thinking about?

• Firms with retail banking products and services offered to customers in the EU will need to ensure that they design their websites, mobile apps and certain communications with consumers, including call centre services as well as devices such as payment terminals and ATMs, in a way that is accessible to persons with disabilities.
• Firms are required to meet certain information obligations on their services in an accessible manner. This includes an explanation of how the services meet the accessibility requirements, and this information must be made available to the public in a written and oral format.
• ATMs and payment terminals (card machines) placed on the market after 28 June 2025 will need to be designed in accordance with certain international standards. There is a transitional period for payment terminals and ATMs which were lawfully in use before 28 June 2025, which applies either until the end of their life or for 20 years from first use, whichever is sooner.
• Firms should consider whether they may be able to avail of an exemption, i.e. where compliance with the EAA requires a significant change in a product or service that would “fundamentally alter its basic nature” or would impose a disproportionate burden. Any firm seeking to rely on an exemption should take advice as any such decision needs to be carefully documented and improper reliance on exemptions could lead to regulatory enforcement action.
• Microenterprises providing services or products are exempt from certain accessibility requirements with the aim of preventing undue burdens on them. Microenterprises are defined as businesses with fewer than ten employees and an annual turnover or balance sheet total not exceeding €2 million euros.
• Firms providing consumer banking services or e-commerce services (as defined in the EAA) need to ensure that identification methods are accessible. In order to meet these requirements, firms can use the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines as a standard for implementation.

Chapter 3 How can Hogan Lovells help?

• Our Europe-wide regulatory team can help you with the process of mapping/gap analysis to ensure compliance with the EAA, including any required uplift in your current approach to accessibility. In particular, we can assist with:
  • The detail of national implementation: This includes any exercise of member state discretions under the EAA eg in relation to the requirement that the built environment used by clients of consumer banking services - and for which the service provider is responsible - complies with applicable accessibility requirements (see further ‘General requirements’ below);
  • The regulatory implications for cross-border business: Firms operating in the UK will need to comply with all applicable UK law relating to accessibility of products, services and premises for disabled people. An important point for cross-border firms to be aware of is that the EAA requirements apply according to the location of the customer, not the firm. This means that if such firms or their wider group also offer in-scope products or services to customers in the EU, they will need to ensure that their systems comply with the accessibility requirements in the EAA and any relevant national implementing measures.
• We can also help you to establish whether either of the limited ‘fundamental alteration’ or ‘disproportionate burden’ exemptions to compliance with the EAA accessibility requirements may apply to your product or service. This is especially important given the risk of regulatory enforcement action - and consequent reputational damage - for incorrect reliance on an exemption.

Read on for more detail on the key EAA provisions of relevance to in-scope financial services firms.

Chapter 4 Obligation to comply with accessibility standards

By 28 June 2025, in-scope firms must ensure that they only place on the market products or provide services that meet the relevant accessibility requirements. This means that in-scope firms need to design their consumer services in order to ensure that they are accessible for those consumers who are persons with disabilities.

Chapter 5 Meaning of ‘persons with disabilities’

The EAA defines persons with disabilities in line with the UNCRPD, which states that persons with disabilities ‘include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others’.

Chapter 6 Which financial services and related products are in scope?

Amongst other services, the requirements in the Directive are applicable to consumer banking services provided after 28 June 2025 (although see also ‘Transitional provisions’ below).

‘Consumer banking services’ means the provision to consumers of the following banking and financial services:

1. credit agreements covered by Directive 2008/48/EC on credit agreements for consumers (CCD1) or Directive 2014/17/EU on credit agreements for consumers relating to residential immovable property;
2. certain activities under Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments (MiFID 2), including the reception and transmission and execution of orders relating to financial instruments, portfolio management, investment advice, safekeeping and custodianship, including cash/collateral management and providing FX services;
3. payment services under Directive (EU) 2015/2366 on payment services in the internal market (PSD2);
4. services linked to the payment account as defined in Directive 2014/92/EU on the comparability of fees related to payment accounts, payment account switching and access to payment accounts with basic features (PAD); and
5. electronic money as defined in Directive 2009/110/EC on the taking up, pursuit and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions (E-Money Directive).

A ‘consumer’ is defined as ‘any natural person who purchases the relevant product or is a recipient of the relevant service for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.’

The EAA also contains requirements applicable to ATMs and payment terminals (card machines) placed on the market after 28 June 2025. There is an optional transitional provision for any such terminals in use before that date (see ‘Transitional provisions’ below).

Chapter 7 Which firms are in scope?

The EAA requirements apply to a wide range of ‘economic operators’. This includes financial services providers, including banks, payment services providers and e-money providers. In relation to physical products, the manufacturers, authorised representatives, importers and distributors of ATMs and payment terminals are captured. In debt capital markets, issuers should generally be out of scope, as they do not provide consumer banking services; if distributors offer such services, they could benefit from applicable exemptions.

A wide range of other economic operators are also in scope of the new requirements, for example those providing e-commerce services which are defined as ‘services provided at a distance, through websites and mobile device-based services by electronic means and at the individual request of a consumer with a view to concluding a consumer contract.’

Chapter 8 General requirements

Consumer banking services must be designed and provided in accordance with the accessibility requirements set out in the EAA (Article 13).

There is an extensive list of obligations on firms. In order to allow for innovation, these are not detailed technical specifications but functional requirements, which will have to be re-assessed when new services are designed.

Under Section III of Annex I, consumer banking services must be provided in such a way that maximises their foreseeable use by persons with disabilities, in particular by:

• ensuring the accessibility of any products used in the provision of the services – for consumer banking services, this will encompass self-service terminals such as payment terminals and ATMs which need to comply with the product accessibility requirements in Section I, Annex I (for example the product, including its user interface, must contain features, elements and functions that allow persons with disabilities to access, perceive, operate, understand and control the product, and there are certain specific requirements for self-service terminals including that they must provide for text-to-speech technology);
• providing information about the functioning of the service, and where products are used in the provision of the service, its link to these products as well as information about their accessibility characteristics and interoperability with assistive devices and facilities:
  • making the information available via more than one sensory channel;
  • presenting the information in an understandable way;
  • presenting the information to users in ways they can perceive;
  • making the information content available in text formats that can be used to generate alternative assistive formats to be presented in different ways by the users and via more than one sensory channel; opresenting in fonts of adequate size and suitable shape, taking into account foreseeable conditions of use and using sufficient contrast, as well as adjustable spacing between letters, lines and paragraphs;
  • supplementing any non-textual content with an alternative presentation of that content; and
  • providing electronic information needed in the provision of the service in a consistent and adequate way by making it perceivable, operable, understandable and robust (see ‘Requirements unique to consumer banking services’ below for an explanation of these four elements);
• making websites, including the related online applications, and mobile device-based services, including mobile applications, accessible in a consistent and adequate way by making them perceivable, operable, understandable and robust;
• where available, support services (help desks, call centres, technical support, relay services and training services) providing information on the accessibility of the service and its compatibility with assistive technologies, in accessible modes of communication.

Annex II contains some indicative non-binding examples of possible solutions to meet the Annex I accessibility requirements.

Under Article 13 and Annex V, service providers are required to provide information to explain how the services meet the relevant accessibility requirements in their general terms and conditions or equivalent document. The information must be made available to the public in written and oral format, including in a manner which is accessible to persons with disabilities. Service providers must keep the information for as long as the service is in operation.

Article 13(4) provides that where a service does not comply with the applicable accessibility requirements, service providers must take corrective measures to rectify the non-compliance. They must also immediately inform the competent national authorities of the member state in which the service is provided, giving details of the non-compliance and of any corrective measures taken.

Member states have a discretion under Article 4(4) of the EAA to require that the built environment used by clients of consumer banking services - and for which the service provider is responsible - complies with the accessibility requirements set out in Annex III. These include the accessibility of entrances and equipment and facilities used in the provision of the service.

Chapter 9 Requirements unique to consumer banking services

Under Annex I, Section IV (Additional accessibility requirements related to specific services):

• Providers of consumer banking services should include identification methods, electronic signatures, security, and payment services which are perceivable, operable, understandable and robust. Recital 47 to the EAA explains that these four principles of accessibility of websites and mobile applications, as used in Directive (EU) 2016/2102 on the accessibility of the websites and mobile applications of public sector bodies, are also relevant for the EAA and sets them out in more detail as follows:
  • perceivability, meaning that information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive;
  • operability, meaning that user interface components and navigation must be operable;
  • understandability, meaning that information and the operation of the user interface must be understandable; and
  • robustness, meaning that content must be robust enough to be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies.
• Information provided in respect of consumer banking services should be understandable, without exceeding a level of complexity superior to level B2 (upper intermediate) of the Council of Europe's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Chapter 10 Are there any exemptions?

There are limited exemptions available. Under Article 14, an exemption may be available if compliance with the accessibility requirements either:

1. requires a ‘significant change in a product or service that results in the fundamental alteration of its basic nature’; or
2. imposes a ‘disproportionate burden’ on the firm concerned.

Firms seeking to rely on either of these exemptions will need to carry out and document an assessment of whether compliance would either introduce a fundamental alteration or, based on the criteria specified in Annex VI, impose a disproportionate burden. The assessment must be provided to the national compliance authorities on request. Firms relying on the disproportionate burden exemption must renew their assessment of whether the burden is disproportionate:

• when the service offered is altered; or
• when requested to do so by the national compliance authorities; and
• in any event, at least every five years.

Any firm seeking to rely on an exemption should take advice as any such decision needs to be carefully documented and improper reliance on exemptions could lead to regulatory enforcement action.

Chapter 11 Transitional provisions

While the EAA will apply from 28 June 2025, it requires member states to provide a transitional period up to 28 June 2030 during which service providers may continue to provide their services using products which were lawfully used by them to provide similar services. Service contracts agreed before 28 June 2025 may continue without alteration until they expire, but no longer than 5 years from that date.

There is also an optional transitional period for self-service terminals – including payment terminals and ATMs - which were lawfully used by service providers for the provision of services before 28 June 2025. These terminals may continue to be used in the provision of similar services until the end of their economically useful life, but no longer than 20 years after their entry into use.

Chapter 12 Compliance monitoring and enforcement

Member states must establish, implement and periodically update adequate procedures to ensure compliance with the EAA accessibility requirements relating to services. They must also designate the authorities responsible for implementing those procedures which will include, where necessary, verifying that a firm has taken corrective action in case of non-compliance and checking firms’ assessments when relying on an exemption (see ‘Are there any exemptions?’ above). For products, member states’ market surveillance authorities have this responsibility.

Member states must also ensure that the public is informed of the existence, responsibilities, identity, work and decisions of the national compliance authorities. Those authorities must make that information available in accessible formats on request.

In addition, Member states must ensure that there are ‘adequate and effective means’ to ensure compliance with the EAA. These must include:

• provisions under which a consumer may take action under national law before the courts or before the competent administrative bodies to ensure that the national provisions transposing the EAA are complied with;
• provisions under which public bodies or private associations, organisations or other legal entities which have a legitimate interest in ensuring that the EAA is complied with may engage under national law before the courts or before the competent administrative bodies either on behalf or in support of the complainant, with his or her approval, in any judicial or administrative procedure provided for the enforcement of obligations under the EAA.

Member states must lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of national provisions adopted in accordance with the EAA and must take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties must be ‘effective, proportionate and dissuasive’, and must also be accompanied by effective remedial action in case of a firm’s non-compliance. They must take into account the extent of the non-compliance, including its seriousness, and the number of units of non-complying products or services concerned, as well as the number of persons affected.

Firms that operate across the EU will need to ensure they comply with all relevant national rules implementing the EAA and could be subject to enforcement action in multiple jurisdictions.

Chapter 13 What about accessibility requirements for financial services in the UK?

The UK government chose not to mirror the EAA (the EEA was not part of retained EU law because its operative provisions came into force after Brexit), taking the view that the UK already had ‘robust legislation on accessibility through the protections covered by the Equality Act 2006, Equality Act 2010, and equivalent legislation in Northern Ireland’ (see this January 2021 answer to a written Parliamentary question). However, the response did also state that the government would ‘consider how further to improve or enhance accessibility through domestic legislation, and provide real benefit to citizens with disabilities.’ More recently, the current government has confirmed in an October 2024 answer to a written Parliamentary question that there are no immediate plans to transpose the EAA and there was no mention of plans for further enhancements to domestic legislation (although see below in relation to plans for a National Financial Inclusion Strategy). The response points out that UK companies offering in-scope products or services in the EU will need to comply with the EAA’s provisions.

One of the focus areas for the recently established Financial Inclusion Committee is digital inclusion and access to banking services. As part of its work, the Committee will also consider a number of cross-cutting themes which include accessibility. This should therefore be one for firms to watch, with a National Financial Inclusion Strategy due to be published this year.

Firms operating in the UK will need to comply with all applicable UK law relating to accessibility of products, services and premises for disabled people. As mentioned above, if such firms or their wider group also provide products or services falling within the scope of the EAA to customers in the EU, they will need to ensure that their systems comply with the accessibility requirements in the EAA and any relevant national implementing measures.

Some of the relevant legislative and regulatory considerations for financial services firms operating in the UK include:

Equality Act 2010

In the UK, one of the key pieces of legislation relating to accessibility for disabled people is the Equality Act 2010. The Act aims to protect people with certain personal characteristics, which are protected characteristics under the Act, from discrimination and harassment. Disability is one of the protected characteristics.

It should be noted that the Act does not apply to Northern Ireland, where other anti-discrimination legislation applies.

Part 3 of the Act prohibits direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation in the provision of goods, facilities and services (and the exercise of public functions). While services are not defined in the Act (other than to state that the provision of a service includes the provision of goods or facilities, and includes the provision of a service in the exercise of a public function), they have been interpreted widely by the courts and do include financial services.

Relevant obligations in the Act include an anticipatory duty on service providers to make reasonable adjustments for disabled persons to enable them to use the service (section 29(7)). This duty is owed to all disabled persons who want to access the service provider's services and requires service providers to consider in advance whether there are features of the way in which it offers or provides its services that could put people with disabilities at a disadvantage. As the FCA points out in its non-Handbook Guidance on the Consumer Duty (see below), this can include providing information in an accessible format, eg for a customer with a visual impairment it may be reasonable to provide information in braille, audio or another format rather than by letter.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has powers to take action for breaches of firms’ obligations under the Act. In addition, it is likely that a breach of the Act will also be a breach of the FCA’s rules, including its Principles for Businesses (PRIN). There is a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the FCA and the EHRC which outlines applicable principles and areas of co-operation including, where relevant, sharing knowledge and expertise, and cross-referring issues and concerns.

FCA vulnerable customers guidance

In its Guidance for firms on the fair treatment of vulnerable customers (FG21/1), the FCA points out that there is an overlap between certain protected characteristics under the Act and characteristics of vulnerability. It highlights in particular that one driver of vulnerability, health, largely overlaps with the protected characteristic of disability under the Act. Whilst its Guidance is broader, the FCA makes it clear that it also seeks similar outcomes to the anticipatory duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people under the Act.

FCA Consumer Duty

In its Non-Handbook Guidance for firms on the Consumer Duty (FG22/5), the FCA also makes it clear that it expects firms to be able to identify when particular groups of customers, such as customers with characteristics of vulnerability or customers who share specific protected characteristics under the Act or equivalent legislation, receive systematically poorer outcomes as: ‘This may indicate that the firm is not meeting the Duty for those groups or is breaching its legal responsibilities.’ The FCA also states that the Duty supports existing legal requirements such as those in the Act by ‘requiring firms to monitor whether any group of retail customers is experiencing different outcomes than other customers and take appropriate action where they do.’