Journal of Laws 2024 item 731 · in force since 28 June 2025 · 88 articles, 8 chapters
The Polish Accessibility Act — the act broken down by article
Full name: the act of 26 April 2024 on ensuring that certain products and services meet accessibility requirements by economic operators (Polish: ustawa o zapewnianiu spełniania wymagań dostępności niektórych produktów i usług przez podmioty gospodarcze, often called PAD). It transposes Directive 2019/882 (the EAA) and since 28 June 2025 it is law under which a supervisory authority can summon, prohibit and fine. Below is what concerns websites, shops and apps, quoted from the text of the act with article numbers so that every sentence can be verified. Quotations are our translation; the Polish text is authoritative.
Where the quotations come from. The text of the act is taken from the Polish Internet System of Legal Acts (isap.sejm.gov.pl / eli.gov.pl). The act amends eleven other acts (chapter 7) — those amendments are not covered here unless they concern websites. This is not legal advice; it is a map that makes the conversation with a lawyer shorter.
Chapter 1 — scope and definitions (arts. 1–5)
The act lays down accessibility requirements for products and services, the obligations of economic operators and the market surveillance system (art. 1). Services are the responsibility of the service provider (art. 2(2)) — anyone who "provides a service or offers to provide a service to a consumer in the territory of the European Union" (art. 5(35)). Being established outside Poland does not exempt you: what counts is where the consumer is.
"The provisions of the act apply to the following services offered or provided to consumers: 1) electronic communications […], 2) access to audiovisual media services, 3) accompanying bus and coach, waterborne, air and rail passenger transport services as regards: a) websites, b) services offered or provided via mobile devices, including mobile applications, c) electronic tickets and electronic ticketing services, d) the provision of information related to those services […], 4) consumer banking, 5) the distribution of e‑books, 6) e‑commerce — hereinafter 'services'."
The key definition for website owners:
"e‑commerce services – services offered or provided at a distance through websites and mobile devices, by electronic means and at the individual request of a consumer, with a view to concluding a contract;"
Four elements: at a distance, through a website or app, at the consumer's individual request, with a view to concluding a contract. A shop meets all four. So does an accommodation booking form, a sign‑up for a paid online course, a service order with payment, a subscription. A page where the consumer only reads and phones does not. The line, with examples.
The act also defines the four properties it repeats for every service — identical to the four WCAG principles:
"perceivability – a property of a service or part of it, or of information about a product or service, that enables the user to receive it through hearing, sight or touch;"
"operability – a property of a service or part of it that enables the user to use all the functions it offers;"
"understandability – a property of a service or part of it, or of information about a product or service, that enables the content and information related to using the product or service as intended to be understood."
"compatibility – a property of a product or service or part of it that enables undisturbed interoperation with other products or services […], including assistive tools […];"
A consumer is "a natural person who buys a product or uses a service for purposes unrelated to their trade, business, craft or profession" (art. 5(14)). A purely B2B platform does not provide services to consumers — but it is enough that a private individual can also buy.
Exclusions (art. 4)
"The provisions of the act do not apply to: 1) services offered or provided by micro‑enterprises; 2) websites and mobile applications as regards: a) maps and interactive maps, including geoportals, where […] address data and geographical location are presented in a digitally accessible way […], b) content that is neither funded nor created by the economic operator concerned and is not under its control; 3) urban transport services […]."
A micro‑enterprise within the meaning of the Entrepreneurs' Law: fewer than 10 employees on average and a turnover or balance sheet total not exceeding €2 million. The exemption concerns services — not products, not the website as such, and it does not protect against consequences under other law. Point 2(b) covers user comments, embedded third‑party content, programmatic ads — but not the payment module you chose and plugged in: that one is under your control.
Chapter 2 — requirements for services (arts. 12–21)
"When offering and providing services, the following shall be ensured: 1) the provision of information in paper or electronic form about the services offered and provided […] and the information necessary to use the service: a) via more than one sensory channel, b) in an understandable way, c) in text formats that can be used in alternative and augmentative communication […], d) in a font of adequate size and type, taking into account foreseeable conditions of use, with sufficient contrast and spacing between letters, lines and paragraphs, e) with an alternative presentation of non‑text content; 2) the provision of the information referred to in point 1 in electronic form in a way that ensures its perceivability, operability, understandability and compatibility; 3) consistency of websites and mobile applications by making them perceivable, operable, understandable and compatible."
Translated to a website: terms and service descriptions as real text (not an image, not a scanned PDF), a legible font and contrast, alternatives for images and video, and the whole site — WCAG. Point 3 is the one that covers everything: "consistency" of websites and apps under the four principles.
"In addition to meeting the accessibility requirements referred to in art. 12, e‑commerce services shall ensure: 1) the provision of information on the accessibility of products or services, where that information has been provided by the economic operator obliged to do so; 2) the perceivability, operability, understandability and compatibility of the functions and methods used to identify the parties to the e‑commerce service, to maintain security and to make payments, to provide electronic signatures and of the payment services that form part of that service."
That is: login and registration, CAPTCHA and verification, basket and payment, the payment gateway (even a third party's, if it is part of your service), electronic signatures. These are the places where a blind person most often fails — and where an audit most often fails. Online shops step by step.
Functional performance criteria (art. 19) apply where a function is not covered by arts. 12–18: at least one way of using the service without vision, with limited vision, without colour perception, without hearing, without voice, without fine motor skills, with limited reach, with a limited risk of photosensitive seizures, with privacy (art. 19(2)).
Presumption of conformity (art. 20(1)): a service that conforms to a harmonised standard or technical specification "is deemed to meet the accessibility requirements to the extent those requirements are covered by those standards". For websites that is EN 301 549 → WCAG 2.1 AA. Status of the standard's citation.
Disproportionate burden (art. 21)
The requirements apply only to the extent that they do not require "a fundamental alteration of the basic characteristics" of the service and do not impose "a disproportionate burden" (art. 21(1)). The assessment is the operator's duty, against three cost criteria (para. 3), with documentation kept for 5 years (paras. 5–6), handed over at the authority's request (para. 7) and — if the operator concluded it is exempt — notified to the authority in writing without delay (para. 8). A service provider repeats the assessment at least every 5 years and on every change to the service (para. 10). Whoever received funding for accessibility cannot invoke costs (para. 11). In other words: not a loophole but a procedure with paperwork and a notification.
Chapter 3 — the service provider's duties (arts. 32–34)
"1. The service provider shall assess the conformity of the service with the accessibility requirements. 2. The service provider shall: 1) in the terms of service or another equivalent document make publicly available, in writing, in paper or electronic form and in a way accessible to persons with special needs as specified in art. 12(2), information: a) about the service offered and provided, b) necessary to use the service, c) about how the service meets the accessibility requirements; 2) provide information about the process of offering or providing the service and its monitoring […]; 3) keep the information referred to in points 1 and 2 for as long as the service remains on offer; 4) take into account changes in the offering or provision of the service, changes in the accessibility requirements and changes in the harmonised standards […]; 5) where the service does not meet the accessibility requirements, take the corrective measures necessary […]; 6) inform the competent market surveillance authority […] without delay that the service does not meet the accessibility requirements […]; 7) at the request of the President of PFRON or the competent market surveillance authority […] provide the information necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the service […]; 8) cooperate […] on the corrective measures […]."
Three things to do at once: (1) the conformity assessment — an audit; (2) the accessibility information in the terms — how the service meets the requirements; (3) a procedure for when a non‑conformity is found, because para. 2(6) requires you to notify the authority yourself. Lack of an assessment (para. 1) and lack of a notification (para. 2(6)) are each separately punishable (art. 73(1)(2)(d) and (e)). Art. 33 adds information on the accessibility of premises if the service is also provided in a building.
Chapter 4 — the consumer's complaint (arts. 35–37)
"1. A complaint may be lodged: 1) in writing – in person at the economic operator's or sent by post […], or sent to an address for electronic delivery […]; 2) orally – by telephone or in person, recorded in minutes during the consumer's visit to the economic operator; 3) in electronic form using electronic means of communication, where such means have been designated for that purpose by the economic operator. 2. The economic operator shall consider the complaint and reply […] within 30 days of receiving it. […] 4. Where the deadline […] is missed, the complaint is deemed to have been resolved in accordance with the complainant's demand. The economic operator shall fulfil the complainant's demand within no more than 6 months of receiving the complaint."
A complaint must contain the consumer's details, the service, the unmet requirement and the demand (art. 36(1)); without these it is left unexamined (para. 3). In particularly complex cases the deadline may be extended to 60 days, but the consumer has to be told within the first 30 (art. 37(3)). A refusal must contain factual and legal reasons and instructions on notifying PFRON (paras. 5–6). An acceptance — a fulfilment deadline of no more than 6 months. The practical conclusion: you need an inbox, a procedure and a calendar. What a complaint looks like from the owner's side.
Chapter 5 — market surveillance (arts. 38–68)
The system consists of the President of PFRON, the market surveillance authorities and customs (art. 38(2)). For websites three authorities matter:
| Service | Market surveillance authority | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| E‑commerce (shops, bookings, paid online services) | the minister responsible for digital affairs (Minister of Digital Affairs) | art. 38(3)(2) |
| Consumer banking | the Financial Ombudsman | art. 38(3)(3) |
| Telecoms, audiovisual media, e‑books, computers, terminals | the President of the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE) | art. 38(3)(1) |
| Bus / rail / air / waterborne transport | road transport inspectorates / President of UTK / President of ULC / maritime and inland navigation offices | art. 38(3)(4)–(7) |
| Coordination, notifications from anyone, reporting | the President of the Management Board of PFRON | art. 38(2)(1), art. 67 |
"Where, following an inspection, the President of PFRON or the competent market surveillance authority finds that a service does not meet the accessibility requirements […] or that the obligations referred to in arts. 32 and 33 have not been fulfilled, they: 1) call on the service provider to take the corrective measures necessary […] or to cease offering or providing the service, and to submit, within a set deadline of no more than 120 days from receipt of the call, evidence that this has been done; 2) may, by decision, prohibit the offering or provision of the service for a period of no more than 180 days."
Then: proceedings ex officio when no evidence is submitted (art. 63), a decision ordering accessibility, prohibiting the service or ordering consumers to be notified (art. 65(1)), possibly with immediate enforceability (para. 4). Anyone — not only a consumer — may submit to PFRON a notification that requirements are not met (art. 67(1)), which reaches the competent authority within 30 days (art. 68(1)). This is the path that lets a competitor, an NGO or an auditor trigger an inspection.
Chapter 6 — fines (art. 73)
"A fine shall be imposed on: […] 2) a service provider that: a) does not ensure that the services it offers or provides meet the accessibility requirements referred to in arts. 12–19, b) has not provided […] the information referred to in art. 32(2)(7) within the deadline set in the request […] or has provided false or misleading information, c) has not submitted the evidence referred to in art. 62(1)(1) within the deadline […], d) has not fulfilled the obligation in art. 32(1), e) has not fulfilled the obligation in art. 32(2)(6) – of up to ten times the average monthly wage in the national economy for the preceding year […], but no more than 10 % of the turnover achieved in the financial year preceding the year the fine is imposed […]."
The average wage in the national economy for 2025 announced by the President of Statistics Poland is PLN 8,903.56, so the ceiling for a fine imposed in 2026 is PLN 89,035.60 — unless 10 % of last year's turnover is lower. The amount depends on the seriousness of the breach, the number of services and the number of people affected (para. 4); the fine goes to the Accessibility Fund (paras. 5, 7) and is enforced administratively (para. 6). Five separate grounds mean that inaccessibility itself, a missing conformity assessment and a missing self‑notification are three different fines. All the consequences, including those outside the act.
Chapter 8 — transitional provisions (arts. 84–88)
"Contracts for the offering or provision of services concluded before the entry into force of the act may continue to apply unchanged until they expire, but no longer than until 28 June 2030."
"The provisions of the act do not apply to websites and mobile applications as regards content: 1) that is pre‑recorded time‑based media published before the entry into force of the act; 2) that consists of document files published before the entry into force of the act; 3) that is archived and has not been updated or edited since the entry into force of the act."
"The act enters into force on 28 June 2025 […]"
Beware of a common misunderstanding: "until 2030" concerns contracts concluded before 28 June 2025 (e.g. a subscription signed in 2024), not websites. A shop that sells today concludes new contracts today and is subject to the act today. Old videos, old PDFs and an unmaintained archive are excluded — a new video and new terms are not.
The checklist from this page
- I have established whether I provide a service under art. 3(2) and whether I am a micro‑enterprise (art. 4(1)).
- I have carried out and documented a conformity assessment (art. 32(1)).
- The terms contain information on how the service meets the accessibility requirements (art. 32(2)(1)(c)).
- Identification, login, payment and signature are accessible (art. 18(2)).
- An electronic complaints channel and a 30‑day procedure exist (art. 37).
- If I invoke disproportionate burden — I have the documentation and the notification (art. 21(5)–(8)).
- I know who my supervisory authority is (art. 38(3)).