Nový zákon o požadavcích na přístupnost některých výrobků a služeb

The Czech Republic has implemented the directive of the European Parliament and Council (EU) 2019/882, known as the European Accessibility Act, through Act No. 424/2023 Coll., on the accessibility requirements for certain products and services (hereinafter referred to as the "Law"), which will come into effect on June 28, 2025. The purpose of this legal regulation is to harmonize accessibility requirements for products and services across member states and thus support effective competition within the European Union.

Products

The scope of the Law applies not only to manufacturers but also, to varying extents, to importers and distributors of these products:

• Hardware computer systems for general purposes intended for consumers and their operating systems,
• Self-service payment terminals,
• Self-service terminals intended for providing services, which ensure accessibility under this law, including:
  • ATMs,
  • Devices for issuing transport documents,
  • Check-in kiosks, and
  • Information terminals,
• End-user devices with interactive computing potential intended for consumers to use for electronic communication services,
• End-user devices with interactive computing potential intended for consumers to ensure access to audiovisual media services,
• E-book readers.

Regarding the specified products, it will be necessary for them to meet a range of accessibility requirements, including:

• Allowing users to adjust font size and screen brightness,
• Providing an alternative to biometric identification,
• Absence of elements that require excessive force to operate,
• Inclusion of an accessible user manual,
• Preparation of technical documentation and assessment of the product's compliance with accessibility requirements, and marking the product with the CE label.

Services

Providers of the following services:

• Electronic communication services,
• Services providing access to audiovisual media services,
• Financial services,
• E-commerce services,
• Sale of e-books and software for e-books,
• Services of commercial air transport, international and domestic scheduled transport, railway transport, and water transport, excluding urban or regional transport, concerning:
  • Websites,
  • Services provided on mobile devices, including mobile applications,
  • Electronic transport documents and services for their issuance,
  • Providing information about transport services, including real-time travel information,
  • Self-service terminals,
• Services of urban and regional transport, concerning self-service terminals,

will be required under the Law to ensure that the services they provide, for example:

• Are accessible through more than one sense,
• Are presented in an understandable manner,
• In the case of non-text content, are supplemented with alternative presentations of that content,
• Meet all accessibility requirements, and information about this fact is published in the terms and conditions or other similar documents.

The Law also considers situations where fulfilling accessibility requirements would be redundant or disproportionately costly and establishes a range of exceptions under which compliance with accessibility requirements is not necessary. The most significant exceptions include:

• Services provided by a business employing fewer than 10 persons and whose annual turnover or balance sheet total does not exceed EUR 2 million,
• Cases where meeting accessibility requirements would impose an unreasonable burden or constitute a fundamental change to the product or service,
• Content on websites and mobile applications that does not belong to the service provider unless it is financed, created, or can be influenced by them,
• Websites and mobile applications that contain exclusively content that has not been updated or modified since the effective date of the Law.

The requirements set forth by the Law are mandatory for entities concerning the specified products and services placed on the market after June 28, 2025, or provided after this date in the case of services. However, service providers that offer services using products that do not meet the requirements of the Law may, under certain conditions, continue to provide these services until June 28, 2030, without having to comply with the accessibility requirements established by the Law.

If the relevant authorities conclude that an entity is not fulfilling all obligations set forth by the Law, they may impose a fine of up to CZK 10 million.

Authors:

Jan Turek
Martin Reck