Question 1

What is the European Accessibility Act (EAA)?

Accepted Answer

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) — EU Directive 2019/882 — requires digital products and services to meet accessibility standards. Since June 28, 2025, it is enforceable across all 27 EU member states. Websites and e-commerce platforms must conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA, covering 50 success criteria for perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust content.

Question 2

Why should I not use overlay widgets like AccessiBe or UserWay?

Accepted Answer

Overlay widgets add a cosmetic JavaScript layer that does not fix underlying code accessibility issues. The National Federation of the Blind, the European Disability Forum, and over 700 accessibility professionals have publicly opposed overlays. Multiple lawsuits have been filed against overlay users. EAAPass detects overlay widgets during audits and flags them as a separate compliance concern. Real accessibility requires real code changes.

Question 3

What does WCAG 2.1 Level AA mean?

Accepted Answer

WCAG 2.1 Level AA is the mid-range conformance level of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, published by the W3C. It contains 50 testable success criteria organized across four principles: Perceivable (can users perceive the content?), Operable (can users navigate and interact?), Understandable (can users comprehend the content?), and Robust (does it work with assistive technologies?). Level AA is the standard required by the European Accessibility Act and most national legislation.

Question 4

How long does an EAAPass accessibility audit take?

Accepted Answer

A free EAAPass homepage audit typically completes in 10-30 seconds. Three engines (axe-core, Google Lighthouse, and Pa11y) run simultaneously against all WCAG 2.1 AA criteria, then results are deduplicated and scored. No account or signup is required — just paste your URL and get results.

Question 5

What penalties exist for EAA non-compliance in Europe?

Accepted Answer

Each EU member state sets its own enforcement authority and fine ranges. Examples: Portugal €5,000-€44,890 (ANACOM/AMA), Germany €10,000-€100,000 (BFIT), France €20,000-€250,000 (ARCOM), Spain €30,001-€1,000,000 (Min. Social Rights), Italy €5,000-€150,000 (AgID), Netherlands up to €900,000 or 10% of turnover (ACM), Austria €5,000-€80,000 (Sozialministeriumservice). Fines apply to websites and e-commerce platforms that fail to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA requirements.

Question 6

How is EAAPass different from other accessibility tools?

Accepted Answer

EAAPass is a European-built platform that runs three audit engines in parallel (axe-core, Lighthouse, Pa11y) for maximum coverage, uses AI to validate ambiguous results and reduce false positives, detects overlay widgets, provides country-specific EAA legal context, and is available in 6 EU languages. We never install overlay widgets and never promise 100% compliance — we provide real audit data and real remediation guidance.

Question 7

Do I need to create an account to use EAAPass?

Accepted Answer

No. The free audit requires zero signup — just paste a URL and click scan. You optionally provide an email to receive results. Paid reports are purchased via Stripe checkout without requiring an account. Monitoring subscriptions only need a URL and email.

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