Skip to content

European Accessibility Act (EAA)

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) aims to ensure that people with disabilities have the same (online) opportunities as people without disabilities throughout the European Union. This also applies to payments and all related services.

What is the EAA?

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is a European directive that has been transposed into Dutch legislation for ‘Accessibility requirements for products and services’. The law came into force in mid-2025.

The EAA applies to a wide range of products and services, including:

  • Tickets and check-in machines
  • ATMs and payment terminals (hardware and software)
  • PCs, operating systems, and mobile devices
  • Banking services for consumers
  • E-books and e-commerce services
  • Passenger transport by road, rail, water, and air

Within the payments sector, the Dutch Payments Association focuses primarily on:

  • ATMs and payment terminals.
  • Banking services for consumers.

Banking services under the EAA

The directive is intended for service providers that offer banking services to consumers. These include:

  1. Payments accounts – including opening accounts, using debit cards, internet banking (via app or computer), and paper orders and statements.
  2. Payment services – withdrawing and depositing cash and executing transactions.
  3. Mortgages and consumer credit.
  4. Investment services, such as:
    • investment advice and individual asset management
    • transmitting, executing, and consulting orders
    • securities credit and currency exchange services
  5. Electronic money, such as digital gift cards and stablecoins (Electronic Money Tokens).

Role of the Dutch Payments Association

The Dutch Payments Association coordinates the implementation and application of the EAA within payments. For example, we discuss ambiguities in the legislation with experts and regulators such as the AFM and ACM. Important topics include:

  • clarification of regulations;
  • joint interpretations and solutions;
  • coordination between Dutch and European parties.

The Dutch Payments Association also discusses these issues with, for example:

  • Rijksdienst Digitale Infrastructuur (RDI),
  • Febelfin (Belgian Payments Association),
  • European Banking Federation (EBF),
  • Bundesverband deutscher Banken (BvD),
  • Deutsche Sparkassen- und Giroverband (DSGV)

Joint solutions

An example of a joint interpretation is the Information Sheet of Dutch payment service providers (from banks, referred to in Appendix 5(opens in new window) of the EAA Directive). We have also jointly created a template for the mandatory reporting of non-compliance (not yet complying with the directive). The joint Accessibility Task Force shares knowledge and experience among participants and coordinates solutions with interest groups such as Ieder(in) and the Oogvereniging.

Payment terminals

The Dutch Payments Association is investigating the impact of the EAA on payment terminals and discussing with chain parties how the implementation of the relevant EAA directives can proceed as smoothly as possible. The RDI is also involved in this.

Read more