EAA requirements for Shopify stores: what applies to you and what to do

Updated 2026-10-18

General information, not legal advice. The European Accessibility Act is an EU directive applied through each country's own law, and details differ by country. If you're unsure whether it applies to you, ask a lawyer in the market you sell to.

The short version

The European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882, the "EAA") has applied since 28 June 2025. It covers e-commerce services offered to consumers in the EU, which includes online stores built on Shopify. If you sell to EU consumers and you're not a microenterprise, your storefront needs to be accessible and you need to publish information about how it meets the requirements. Shopify takes care of parts of the platform, such as the checkout, but your theme, content and apps are your responsibility.

Does it apply to your store?

You sell to consumers in the EU. The EAA is about services to consumers. A store that only sells business-to-business is generally treated differently; check with a lawyer.
You're not a microenterprise. The EU's Your Europe portal explains that service providers with fewer than 10 employees and annual turnover (or balance sheet) under €2 million are exempt from the service requirements. Many small Shopify stores fall under this exemption.
You're outside the EU but sell into it. The Act applies to services provided to consumers in the EU, so non-EU stores that actively sell to EU customers are often considered in scope. This is a question to confirm with a lawyer for your situation.

Even if you're exempt, the same work makes your store easier to use for every customer, and it's what US ADA demand letters and Canada's AODA rules look at too. See our guides to the ADA and the AODA.

What Shopify covers and what you control

Who is responsible for which part of a Shopify store
Part of the store	Who controls it	Notes
Checkout	Shopify	Shopify publishes a conformance report (VPAT) for Checkout tested against WCAG 2.2 A/AA.
Theme code (header, menus, product templates)	You (and your theme developer)	Shopify notes that merchants have complete control over their theme code. Free Shopify themes are a good start; keep them updated.
Colours, fonts, images, text	You	Theme settings, product media and descriptions. Most issues we find are here.
Apps (pop-ups, reviews, chat, filters)	The app developer, chosen by you	Test each app with the keyboard and ask the developer about accessibility.

Which standard to aim for

The EAA describes accessibility requirements in general terms (perceivable, operable, understandable, robust). In practice, businesses use the European standard EN 301 549, whose web requirements are based on WCAG 2.1 Level AA, as the technical reference. WCAG 2.2 AA (2023) includes everything in 2.1 plus a few extra checks, so aiming for WCAG 2.2 AA covers both.

Publish accessibility information

Annex V of the Act requires service providers to provide information on how the service meets the accessibility requirements, for example in the terms and conditions or another accessible document. Most stores do this with an accessibility statement page. Our guide How to write an accessibility statement includes a template you can adapt honestly.

A Shopify checklist for the EAA

Update your theme (Online Store > Themes; look for an update notice) so you have the latest accessibility fixes from the developer.
Check your colour schemes in Customize > Theme settings > Colors. Text needs a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1. See colour contrast in Shopify themes.
Add alt text to product and banner images. See how to add alt text in Shopify.
Test every app that shows something on the storefront (Customize > App embeds): can you use and close it with the keyboard?
Do a keyboard run-through from the home page to checkout.
Caption product videos that include speech.
Publish an accessibility statement with a way for customers to report problems, and link it from your footer menu (Online Store > Navigation).
Re-test after theme updates and app installs, and keep a simple record of what you checked and fixed.

For a deeper look at the Act itself (scope, the microenterprise exemption, enforcement), read our EAA guide for online stores. To see where your storefront stands, start with the free check or get the full report, which lists every automated finding with Shopify fix steps. It's an automated audit, not a certificate of EAA compliance.

Check your store in 2 minutes

Run our free in-browser check on any page of your store, or get the full $39 report: every automated issue on 5 key pages, with step-by-step fixes for Shopify and WooCommerce.

Free check See the full report

FAQ

Does the European Accessibility Act apply to Shopify stores?

It applies to e-commerce services offered to EU consumers, regardless of platform. Service providers with fewer than 10 employees and under EUR 2 million turnover are exempt. Check with a lawyer if you're unsure.

Is Shopify EAA compliant, so my store is too?

Shopify maintains its checkout and says it works to comply with the EAA for its own services, but merchants control their theme code, content and apps. Those parts are your responsibility.

What WCAG level does the EAA require?

The Act sets general requirements; the European standard EN 301 549 is the usual technical reference and is based on WCAG 2.1 AA for web content. Aiming for WCAG 2.2 AA covers it.

Do I need an accessibility statement for the EAA?

Annex V requires information on how the service meets the accessibility requirements. An accessibility statement page linked from your footer is a common way to provide it.

Sources

General information, not legal advice. ClearAisle provides automated audits only; a report is not a compliance guarantee or certification. Sources checked 2026-10-18.