Is WCAG a Legal Requirement in the UK?

13 October 2026 · AI Web Page SEO

For public sector bodies, yes: the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018 require websites and apps to meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA and publish an accessibility statement. For businesses, no UK law names WCAG, but the Equality Act 2010 requires service providers, including through websites, to make reasonable adjustments so disabled people are not put at a substantial disadvantage, and WCAG Level AA is the standard used to judge that. UK businesses selling to EU consumers may also fall under the European Accessibility Act.

Whether WCAG is a legal requirement in the UK depends on who runs the website. For public sector bodies it is written into regulations: their websites and apps must meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA and publish an accessibility statement. For businesses, no UK law names WCAG, but the Equality Act 2010 requires them not to put disabled people at a substantial disadvantage, including through a website, and WCAG is the standard used to judge whether a website does that. This is general information, not legal advice.

The short answer

Public sector: yes. The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 apply, and the technical standard is WCAG 2.2 Level AA.
Businesses and charities: not by name, but the Equality Act 2010 applies to services provided through websites, and WCAG Level AA is the yardstick.
Selling to people in the EU: the European Accessibility Act can apply to UK businesses too.

Public sector websites: the 2018 regulations

The Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations 2018 cover central and local government, the NHS, schools, universities and many other public bodies. GOV.UK guidance says the technical standard for their websites and mobile apps is Level AA of WCAG version 2.2. They must also publish an accessibility statement that explains how accessible the site is and which parts do not yet meet the standard.

The Government Digital Service (GDS) monitors public sector websites and apps by testing a sample of them. Enforcement is the job of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in England, Scotland and Wales, and the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI) in Northern Ireland.

Businesses: the Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010 applies to anyone who provides goods, services or facilities to the public in Great Britain, and that includes providing them through a website or app. Service providers must make reasonable adjustments so that disabled people are not put at a substantial disadvantage compared with people who are not disabled.

For service providers, that duty is anticipatory: you are expected to think ahead about what disabled people in general will need, not wait for a particular customer to complain. A website that cannot be used with a keyboard, that a screen reader cannot make sense of, or whose forms have no labels puts disabled customers at exactly that kind of disadvantage.

The Act does not name a technical standard. In practice, WCAG at Level AA is the standard that government guidance, regulators and accessibility specialists use to judge whether a website is accessible, so it is the clearest way to show you have done what the Act asks.

In Northern Ireland, disability discrimination in services is covered by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 rather than the Equality Act 2010.

Selling into the EU: the European Accessibility Act

The European Accessibility Act has applied since 28 June 2025. It covers services sold to consumers in the EU, including online shops, banking, e-books and passenger transport booking. A business based in the UK can fall under it if it sells those services to people in EU countries. The technical detail comes from the European standard EN 301 549, which uses WCAG as its baseline for websites. Microenterprises providing services (fewer than 10 staff and no more than €2 million turnover or balance sheet) are exempt from the service requirements.

What this means in practice

Aim for WCAG 2.2 Level AA. It is the standard for UK public sector sites and the benchmark for everyone else.
Test, fix and keep a record. Regular audits and the fixes that followed are the best evidence that you have taken reasonable steps.
Publish an accessibility statement if you are a public body (it is required), and consider one if you are not: it tells visitors what works and how to get help with what does not.
Do not rely on an overlay. A toolbar added to a page does not change the page's own code, so it does not make the site meet WCAG.

Our Accessibility Audit checks a page against WCAG 2.2 Level A and AA and reports all 55 criteria, including the ones that need a person to check, so you know exactly where you stand.

Sources

Try it yourself: Accessibility Audit

Frequently asked questions

Does the Equality Act 2010 apply to websites?

Yes. The Act applies to anyone who provides goods, services or facilities to the public in Great Britain, including through a website or app. Service providers must make reasonable adjustments so disabled people are not put at a substantial disadvantage, and that duty is anticipatory, so you should plan for disabled people's needs in general rather than wait for a complaint. The Act does not name WCAG, but WCAG Level AA is the usual yardstick.

Which WCAG version do UK public sector websites have to meet?

GOV.UK guidance says the technical standard for public sector websites and mobile apps is Level AA of WCAG version 2.2. Public bodies must also publish an accessibility statement explaining any parts of the site that do not meet it. The Government Digital Service monitors a sample of sites, and the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland enforce the rules.

Does the European Accessibility Act apply to UK businesses?

It can. The Act has applied since 28 June 2025 to services sold to consumers in the EU, such as online shops, banking, e-books and passenger transport booking. A UK business that sells those services to people in EU countries can fall under it. Microenterprises providing services, with fewer than 10 staff and no more than 2 million euros turnover or balance sheet, are exempt from the service requirements.