The Canadian government is steadily moving towards building a barrier-free society by 2040. Whether you are a retailer or federally regulated (like banks, etc.) or a private business, you should start focusing on accessibility. Accessibility is becoming a legal requirement with recent modifications to the Accessible Canada Act (ACA) and stricter provincial requirements in Ontario, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia. In this blog, we will explore the changes introduced, how they impact you and the deadline for compliance.
Table of Contents
What is ACA?
In the U.S., the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) makes sure people with disabilities are protected from discrimination at work, in public services, and in communications. Canada has a similar law called the Accessible Canada Act (ACA), which focuses on creating a barrier-free country. To make that happen, Accessibility Standards Canada (ASC) develops the accessibility standards that organizations are expected to follow.
The law applies to federally regulated organizations, including Parliament, Crown corporations, federal departments, and private businesses in sectors like banking, telecom, and transportation.
Let’s delve further.
The Federal Landscape: The Accessible Canada Act (ACA)
Your firm is affected if you operate in any of these sectors:
- Banking and Finance
- Telecommunications and Broadcasting
- Interprovincial Transportation (Air, Rail, Bus, Marine)
- Crown Corporations
If you run a local coffee shop or a provincial manufacturing plant, you are likely governed by provincial laws, not the ACA. However, the ACA sets the “Gold Standard” that provinces often emulate.
The Standard: CAN/ASC – EN 301 549
The ACA has adopted the standard CAN/ASC – EN 301 549. The law strictly mandates businesses to be compliant with WCAG 2.0 or 2.1. However, in some clauses, the law is moving rapidly toward WCAG 2.2. The newly released guidelines address gaps surrounding cognitive disabilities and low vision. Therefore, we recommend you aim for WCAG 2.1 level AA or higher, as anything less than that will require a rework soon.
AODA is evolving: Enacted in 2005, the AODA requires public websites and web content to comply with most WCAG 2.0 Level AA accessibility standards. It is currently under review to align more closely with federal standards. There is significant pressure to officially adopt WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 as the new legal minimum by 2027.
The Provincial Landscape: A Patchwork of Regulations
British Columbia: The Accessible B.C. Act, passed in 2021, is currently in the structure-building phase.
Current Requirement: As of now, prescribed organizations (mostly public sector) must have an Accessibility Committee, an Accessibility Plan, and a mechanism to receive public feedback on barriers.
The Future: While the Act currently focuses on the public sector, the BC government has signaled that private sector standards will be included soon. Businesses in BC should treat the AODA standards as a preview of what will hit the West Coast in the next 3-5 years.
Nova Scotia and Manitoba
In 2017, Nova Scotia passed an accessibility law covering six areas, including technology and communications. Like Ontario and Manitoba, it applies province-wide, and the government is developing standards for each area.
- Nova Scotia: The Accessibility Act aims for an accessible province by 2030. The “Information and Communication” standard, which covers websites, is expected to be enforced around 2028-2029.
- Manitoba: The Accessibility for Manitobans Act (AMA) mirrors Ontario’s AODA but often with tighter deadlines for customer service standards. Digital standards are currently being harmonized with the ACA.
The New Deadlines You Must Know
Recent amendments to the Accessible Canada Regulations have set hard dates for digital compliance. These are not target dates; they are enforcement dates. Under the ACA:
By June 1, 2026:
- Large businesses (100+ employees) must provide an updated 3 year accessibility plan for 2026-2028 cycle.
- Federal public sector departments such as government departments, RCMP, etc. should provide the first progress report for your second planning cycle (2026–2028).
By June 1, 2027
- Small Businesses (10–99 employees) who published their initial plan in 2024 should provide their first annual progress report.
By December 5, 2027:
- Accessibility training is required for all staff involved in digital technologies (federal and federally regulated private sector).
- Federal government websites and web apps must fully conform to EN 301 549 and publish an accessibility statement.
By December 5, 2028:
- Public-facing websites and web apps must conform (applies to organizations with 100+ employees).
- Digital documents, new mobile apps, legacy app assessments, and procurement ACR requirements apply to the federal government and large (500+) organizations, but not yet to medium (100–499) organizations.
Accessibility plans must be updated every three years and show real progress, with clear proof of barriers removed and systems improved. Annual progress reports are still required in between.
The Penalties: It’s Not Just About Fines
What happens if you ignore this?
- ACA Penalties: The Accessible Canada Act allows for penalties of up to $250,000 per violation. The Accessibility Commissioner has the power to inspect, demand records, and issue fines.
- AODA Penalties: In Ontario, corporations can be fined up to $100,000 per day for non-compliance. While enforcement has historically been educational, the province has ramped up audits significantly in the last two years.
- Human Rights Tribunals: Even without a specific “digital law” in your province, a customer can sue you under the Canadian Human Rights Act for discrimination. There is ample legal precedent where businesses have lost these cases because their digital services excluded disabled customers.
Common Myths to Abandon in 2025
It’s 2026, and it’s about time we abandon the common myths surrounding website accessibility.
Overlays and widgets will solve everything: They does not! Automated overlays that modify contrast or text size do not meet accessibility guidelines and do not fix code concerns. They are harmful and provide no legal protection, say accessibility activists. Legal needs should not be met via $60/month plugins.
People with disabilities don’t use our product or service: Think about it! Because they exit your site instantly when they can’t access it. Furthermore, an inclusive site aids everyone, including people with age-related disabilities and temporary disabilities such as a broken arm.
It is expensive: Not really! Remediation requires significant investment. However, building it right the first time is not. Accessibility is largely about standard coding practices. If your developers are writing good, semantic HTML, you are 70% there.
Conclusion
Accessibility in Canada is no longer a future goal; it is a present responsibility. With the Accessible Canada Act and evolving provincial laws raising the bar, accessibility has moved from a best practice to a clear compliance requirement. Deadlines are approaching, enforcement is increasing, and penalties are significant.
Here is a short summary of our blog.
- New National Standard: The Accessible Canada Act (ACA) is establishing a new “Gold Standard” (WCAG 2.1 Level AA) that is effectively overriding fragmented provincial laws in BC, Nova Scotia, and Ontario.
- Hard Enforcement Deadlines: Voluntary compliance ends soon; federal public sector websites must be compliant by June 1, 2027, while large private businesses (100+ employees) face a hard deadline of June 1, 2028.
- Significant Financial Risk: Non-compliance now carries heavy penalties, with federal fines up to $250,000 per violation and provincial fines (like Ontario’s AODA) reaching up to $100,000 per day.
- Strategic Pivot Required: “Quick fix” accessibility overlays are now considered legally insufficient and harmful; organizations must pivot to genuine code remediation (semantic HTML) to avoid liability.
The new regulations that come into force by 2027 and 2028 demonstrate Canada’s matured approach to human rights policies. Therefore, businesses should treat it as an opportunity to make their website more inclusive and attract more customers rather than looking at it as a compliance burden. Reach out to us at AEL data today to help you make your digital property, compliant.
