Accessibility law · Europe

Italy AgID guidelines → EN 301 549 → WCAG 2.1 AA

In Italy, the standard to meet is AgID guidelines → EN 301 549 → WCAG 2.1 AA. It binds public administrations and publicly funded bodies, companies with average turnover above €500 million that serve the public through websites or apps, and providers of the consumer services covered by the European Accessibility Act. This page was reviewed against primary sources on 30 September 2026.

Standard
AgID guidelines → EN 301 549 → WCAG 2.1 AA
Private sector
Partly
Accessibility statement
Required
Next deadline
28 Jun 2030
Reviewed
30 September 2026
The 50 criteria All jurisdictions Checklist

Scope

Who it applies to

Public bodies must make their websites, apps, documents and software accessible under the Legge Stanca and AgID's guidelines, which follow EN 301 549 (WCAG 2.1 AA), and file an accessibility statement with AgID every year by 23 September. Since the Legge Stanca was extended, companies with average turnover above €500 million that serve the public online have the same duties, and AgID can fine them up to 5% of turnover. Since 28 June 2025, d.lgs. 82/2022 also covers e-commerce, banking, transport, telecoms and e-books, with fines of €5,000 to €40,000 and the power to take a service or app offline.

  • Public sector

    Public administrations, public economic bodies, private concessionaires of public services, regional municipal companies, public assistance and rehabilitation bodies, transport and telecoms companies with majority public capital, IT service contractors, bodies governed by public law, and anyone receiving public funds or incentives to deliver services through IT systems or the internet (Legge 4/2004, art. 3, comma 1).

  • Private sector

    Partly

    Other legal entities that offer services to the public through websites or apps and had average turnover above €500 million over their last three years of activity (art. 3, comma 1-bis). Separately, since 28 June 2025, any provider of the EAA consumer services and any maker, importer or distributor of EAA products (d.lgs. 82/2022); microenterprises that provide services are exempt.

Coverage

What it covers

Websites are only part of it. Each tile says whether these rules reach that kind of product, with the detail.

  • Websites

    Covered

    Covered bodies' websites, plus the websites of EAA consumer services.

  • Mobile apps

    Covered

    Mobile apps; under the EAA rules AgID can order a non-compliant app removed from the store.

  • Documents

    Covered

    The AgID guidelines set requirements for non-web documents.

  • Software

    Partly

    The AgID guidelines cover software and hardware bought and used by covered bodies; the EAA rules add consumer operating systems and e-book software.

  • Kiosks and terminals

    Covered

    The EAA rules cover payment terminals, ATMs, ticketing and check-in machines and interactive information terminals.

  • Public procurement

    Covered

    Accessibility requirements are mandatory in public IT purchases, and contracts for websites or apps that omit them are void.

Timeline

Deadlines

Next: 28 Jun 2030. Transition ends for services run on products used before 28 June 2025; service contracts agreed before then may run no longer than five years from that date.

Dates move, so check the linked source before you plan around one.

  1. 23 Sep 2019 In force

    Public bodies: first accessibility statement due for websites published after 23 September 2018.

    Source

  2. 23 Sep 2020 In force

    Public bodies: statement due for websites published before 23 September 2018.

    Source

  3. 23 Jun 2021 In force

    Public bodies: statement due for mobile apps.

    Source

  4. 5 Nov 2022 In force

    Companies above the €500 million threshold must have accessible websites and apps.

    Source

  5. 28 Jun 2025 In force

    D.lgs. 82/2022 (the EAA) applies to products placed on the market and services provided from this date.

    Source

  6. Mar 2026 In force

    AgID publishes its guidelines on the accessibility of services under the EAA and opens its reporting platform.

    Source

  7. 28 Jun 2030 Upcoming

    Transition ends for services run on products used before 28 June 2025; service contracts agreed before then may run no longer than five years from that date.

    Source

Instruments

The law in Italy

4 laws, rules and rulings, oldest first. Each links to its primary source.

Every fact points at a primary source. Dates move, and several moved in 2025 and 2026, so check the source before you rely on one.

  1. 2004

    Legge 9 gennaio 2004, n. 4 (Legge Stanca)

    as amended, including the extension to large private companies (art. 3, comma 1-bis)

    Public bodies and publicly funded providers, and companies with average turnover above €500 million serving the public online, must make their websites and apps accessible and publish an accessibility statement. Public IT contracts must include accessibility. AgID can fine large companies up to 5% of turnover.

    Primary source

  2. 2019

    Linee guida AgID sull'accessibilità degli strumenti informatici

    AgID guidelines under art. 11 of Legge 4/2004

    The technical rules: requirements for hardware, web, non-web documents, software and apps based on EN 301 549 and WCAG 2.1, the test method, the statement model and the monitoring method. Technical references update automatically when the EU adopts a new harmonised EN 301 549.

    Primary source

  3. Jun 2025

    Decreto legislativo 27 maggio 2022, n. 82

    EAA transposition, Gazzetta Ufficiale n. 152 of 1 July 2022

    Listed consumer products and services must meet the EAA requirements. AgID supervises services and the ministry supervises products. Fines run from €5,000 to €40,000, and AgID can take non-compliant services offline.

    Primary source

  4. Mar 2026 Latest

    Linee guida AgID sull'accessibilità dei servizi

    AgID guidelines under art. 21 of d.lgs. 82/2022

    Operational guidance for the EAA services: e-commerce, banking, electronic communications, audiovisual media, passenger transport and e-books. Adopted after public consultation and notification to the European Commission, alongside a platform for reporting non-compliance.

    Primary source

Enforcement

Enforcement and penalties

  • Who enforces

    AgID (Agenzia per l'Italia Digitale) for public bodies, large companies and EAA services; the Difensore civico per il digitale for complaints about public bodies; the Ministero dello sviluppo economico, now the Ministero delle imprese e del made in Italy, for EAA products.

  • How

    AgID monitors websites and apps and checks statements against its model. The Difensore civico per il digitale rules on disputed statements, poor monitoring results and user complaints, and orders fixes. Under the EAA rules, AgID assesses services it has reason to doubt, sets a deadline for fixes, and can then order the service blacked out, the app removed from the store or its use blocked. It consults the transport regulator before acting against transport services.

  • Penalties

    Public bodies: breaches count in managers' performance reviews and trigger managerial and disciplinary liability. Companies above €500 million: after a formal warning with a deadline, AgID fines up to 5% of turnover. EAA breaches: €5,000 to €40,000, based on the extent of non-compliance, the number of units or services and the users affected; €2,500 to €30,000 for ignoring corrective orders or not cooperating.

  • Individuals

    Anyone can report defects through the statement's feedback mechanism and then go to the Difensore civico per il digitale. People discriminated against by a large company keep the right to sue under Legge 67/2006. Since March 2026 AgID runs an online platform for reporting EAA non-compliance.

Accessibility statement

A statement is required

Required

Public bodies and companies above the €500 million threshold file a dichiarazione di accessibilità for each website and app using AgID's online form only, and link it in the site footer or the app's store listing. It lists inaccessible content and why, offers a feedback mechanism, and links to the Difensore civico per il digitale if there is no satisfactory reply within 30 days. It must be reviewed on AgID's platform by 23 September every year. Public administrations also publish their accessibility objectives by 31 March each year. From 28 June 2025, providers of EAA services follow the EAA information duty instead: they publish how the service meets the requirements, in writing and orally, in accessible form.

Exemptions

What is exempt

Exemptions are narrow and usually have to be claimed and explained, not assumed.

  • Disproportionate burden, assessed by the body under AgID's guidelines; lack of time or information alone does not count (Legge 4/2004, art. 3-ter).
  • Under the EAA rules: fundamental alteration of a product or service, or disproportionate burden, documented and reassessed at least every five years for services.
  • Microenterprises that provide services: fewer than 10 staff and turnover or balance sheet of no more than €2 million.
  • Mobile content developed for closed groups of users and not used by the wider public.
  • Intranet and extranet content published before 23 Sep 2019, until substantially revised.
  • Under the EAA rules: pre-recorded media and office files published before 28 Jun 2025, online maps with accessible essential information, third-party content outside the provider's control, and archives not updated after 28 Jun 2025.
  • Self-service terminals used before 28 Jun 2025 may run to the end of their economic life, up to 20 years from entry into service.

The standard

What WCAG 2.1 Level AA asks for

50 success criteria: 30 at Level A and 20 at Level AA. 4.1.1 Parsing counts in this version, but WCAG 2.2 removed it as obsolete, so it has no page here.

1. Perceivable

2. Operable

3. Understandable

4. Robust

Beyond the law

6 Level A and AA criteria in WCAG 2.2 that these rules do not require yet. Meeting them now costs little and is where the rules are heading.

Meeting it

Where to start

The standard named here is WCAG 2.1 Level AA.

  1. Audit your pages against WCAG 2.1 Level AA: 50 success criteria at Level A and AA.
  2. Check text and control contrast in the Contrast Checker.
  3. Run the URL Analyzer for the problems a machine can find, then test with a keyboard and a screen reader.
  4. Publish an accessibility statement that says what does not meet the standard yet, and how to report a problem.
  5. If you sell to the public sector, document conformance in an accessibility conformance report, such as a VPAT or an EN 301 549 statement.
  6. Work through the Accessibility Checklist and keep a record of what you tested.

This is a summary to orient you, not legal advice. For a decision that matters, read the primary sources and ask a lawyer who practices there.

Questions

Common questions

  • Does it apply to private companies?

    Yes, in two ways. Companies that offer services to the public through websites or apps and had average turnover above €500 million over the last three years have been covered by the Legge Stanca since its extension. Since 28 June 2025, d.lgs. 82/2022 covers any provider of the EAA consumer services, such as online shops and banks, except microenterprises.

  • What are the fines?

    For companies above €500 million, AgID first issues a warning with a deadline and can then fine up to 5% of turnover. Under the EAA rules, fines run from €5,000 to €40,000 per breach, or €2,500 to €30,000 for ignoring AgID's orders. AgID can also have a non-compliant service blacked out or an app removed from the store.

  • How and when is the accessibility statement filed?

    Only through AgID's online form, which gives you a link to place in the site footer or the app's store listing. It must be reviewed and confirmed on AgID's platform by 23 September each year.

  • Which WCAG version applies?

    WCAG 2.1 Level AA, through EN 301 549. AgID's guidelines say their technical references update automatically when the EU adopts a new harmonised version, so the move to WCAG 2.2 should follow once EN 301 549 V4.1.1 is cited in the Official Journal.

  • We are a large company that also runs an online shop. Which rules apply?

    For services covered by d.lgs. 82/2022, the EAA rules apply from 28 June 2025, and several Legge Stanca provisions stop applying to them, including the statement article. The 5% of turnover fine still applies to companies above the €500 million threshold.

Sources

Sources

Every fact on this page comes from one of these; the few secondary sources are marked. Reviewed 30 September 2026.

Elsewhere

Also in Europe

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