You may already be familiar with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Just think of some of its most visible effects: the ramp at the entrance to a building, the accessible restroom, the reserved parking space. Since it was signed into law in 1990, the ADA has shaped the physical world that Americans live in, ensuring that public life is genuinely open to people with disabilities.
But the world that we live in has changed a lot since 1990. Much of public life now happens online, and the ADA also applies to these experiences.
For any business operating in the USA, your website, your mobile app, and your digital documents are all subject to ADA obligations. For many American businesses and government bodies, that reality is only just beginning to sink in, and for some, a major compliance deadline is days away.
Here’s exactly what your team needs to know.
What Does the ADA Actually Cover?
The ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities across a wide range of public life. For digital accessibility, two sections of the law are most relevant.
Title II applies to state and local government bodies; everything from city councils and public libraries to state universities and school districts. These entities must ensure that their digital services are as accessible as their physical ones.
Title III applies to private businesses that serve the public. Courts and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have consistently treated websites and mobile apps as "places of public accommodation" under Title III, meaning that if your business serves the public, your digital presence is part of that obligation.
The practical standard that both courts and regulators point to is WCAG 2.1 Level AA, also known as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. These are an internationally recognised set of technical requirements that cover things like colour contrast, keyboard navigation, captions for video content, and screen reader compatibility. As with regulations in the EU, if your digital content meets WCAG 2.1 AA, you are on solid ground.
The April 2026 Deadline
In April 2024, this guidance was updated, formally requiring state and local government bodies to bring their websites and mobile apps into line with WCAG 2.1 Level AA. The rule came with firm compliance deadlines:
By April 26, 2026: All state and local government bodies serving populations of 50,000 or more must comply. This includes public universities, school districts, and government agencies of all kinds.
By April 26, 2027: Smaller public entities (those serving fewer than 50,000 people) must also meet the same standard.
It is worth noting that this compliance is not a one-time task. Once the deadline passes, public bodies will need to ensure that new content and new digital tools continue to meet the standard going forward.
What About Private Businesses?
The April deadline applies specifically to government bodies, but private businesses are far from immune.
Under Title III, private companies have faced a sharp increase in legal action over inaccessible websites. In 2025, over 3,100 federal lawsuits were filed against businesses for digital accessibility failures - a 27% increase on the previous year. Settlements typically range from $5,000 to $75,000, and that figure does not include legal fees or the cost of remediating the website itself.
The sectors most frequently targeted include e-commerce, retail, hospitality, healthcare, and financial services. But businesses of all sizes and industries have been affected. In recent years, between seven and ten demand letters are estimated to be sent for every lawsuit that actually reaches court, meaning that the visible litigation numbers tell only part of the story.
Private businesses should not wait for a formal deadline to act. A proactive approach will minimise the cost and stress of reaching legal compliance.
Accessibility as a commercial opportunity
Of course, accessible digital solutions provide businesses with far more than legal compliance.
More than 70 million American adults (over 25%) have some form of disability. An inaccessible website does not just create legal exposure, but closes the door on this portion of your potential audience before they have even had a chance to engage with your brand.
Beyond that, the improvements that make a website accessible tend to make it better for everyone. Clearer structure, stronger colour contrast, faster loading times, and intuitive navigation all improve the experience for every visitor. Search engines reward well-structured, accessible websites, and customers increasingly associate inclusive design with credibility and care.
Accessibility, done properly, can provide a real competitive advantage.
What Should You Do Next?
The road to an inclusive website typically starts with an audit. In this phase, we’ll see where your current digital presence falls short of WCAG 2.1 Level AA by using a combination of automated tools and manual assessment.
From there, remediation can be prioritised based on impact, fixing the issues that most directly block users from accessing your key services and content first.
Finally, accessibility will be embedded into how you build and maintain digital products going forward, rather than being treated as a one-off project.
If you would like to understand where your website currently stands, our team at AccessPoint would be happy to help. Just reach out to us today!