In December 2025, the Canadian government quietly published one of the most significant digital accessibility regulations in the country’s history. The Regulations Amending the Accessible Canada Regulations introduce enforceable requirements for web pages, mobile apps, and digital documents with compliance deadlines starting in 2027.
If you work for a federal department, Crown corporation, bank, airline, telecommunications company, or any other federally regulated organization, this directly affects how you publish digital content. Here’s what you need to know.
Who does this apply to?
The regulations apply to organizations under federal jurisdiction:
- Federal public sector organizations: Government departments, the Canadian Forces, RCMP, Parliament, and Crown corporations (such as Canada Post, VIA Rail, and CDIC)
- Large private businesses: (500+ employees) under federal regulation — banks, telecoms, airlines, interprovincial transportation
- Medium-sized private businesses: (100–499 employees) under federal regulation
Who’s exempt: Private businesses with fewer than 100 employees are not covered. First Nations Band Councils are exempt until December 31, 2033, allowing time for a tailored engagement process.
What’s required?
The amendments introduce five categories of obligation.
1. Accessible web pages. All new web pages, public-facing and internal, must conform to the national digital accessibility standard.
Deadline:
June 1, 2027 for public sector;
June 1, 2028 for private sector.
2. Accessible mobile applications. Federal public sector organizations and large businesses must ensure new public-facing mobile apps are accessible. They must also assess existing apps.
Deadline:
June 1, 2028.
3. Accessible digital documents. New digital documents published on public websites must be accessible.
Deadline:
June 1, 2028.
4. Accessibility statements. Organizations must publish clear, plain-language accessibility statements describing how their digital content meets the standard — and what alternatives exist where it doesn’t.
Public sector deadline:
June 1, 2027 (web pages), expanding to apps and documents by June 1, 2028. Large businesses:
June 1, 2028. Statements must be updated annually.
5. Training and procurement. Employees who develop, maintain, or purchase digital technologies must receive accessibility training by June 1, 2027, with refresher training every three years. Starting June 1, 2028, organizations must also conduct accessibility assessments when purchasing digital products and services.
An important note: these requirements apply to new content published after the compliance deadlines. Pre-existing web pages, apps, and documents published before those dates are not retroactively covered, though that could change in future amendments.
What’s the standard?
The technical standard is CAN/ASC – EN 301 549, a national standard adopted by Accessibility Standards Canada in May 2024. It incorporates the European standard EN 301 549, which itself includes WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
This is broader than WCAG alone. EN 301 549 covers not just websites but also software, mobile apps, electronic documents, and hardware interfaces. In practice, if your digital content meets WCAG 2.1 AA, you’re well on your way, but the full standard includes additional requirements for non-web ICT.
Worth noting: an update to EN 301 549 that includes WCAG 2.2 AA is expected. Several industry experts recommend targeting WCAG 2.2 now to avoid having to remediate again when the standard is formally updated.
What happens if you don’t comply?
Non-compliance is classified as a minor violation under the Accessible Canada Act. Penalties range from $250 to $75,000 per violation, depending on severity. The Accessibility Commissioner is responsible for enforcement.
While the penalty amounts may seem modest compared to some international regimes, the real risk for most organizations is reputational and the regulatory framework is explicitly designed to expand over time. These are Phase 1 regulations. Future amendments will address more complex areas, including legacy digital content, application software, and artificial intelligence.
What should you do now?
The deadlines feel distant, but they aren’t. Organizations that went through the WCAG compliance process for the original Treasury Board web standards know that remediating even a moderately sized website takes months, not weeks. Add training, procurement changes, and accessibility statements to the mix, and the runway shortens quickly.
Start here: Audit your current public-facing web content against WCAG 2.1 AA. Identify the gaps. Build accessibility requirements into any new web, app, or document projects happening right now because anything you publish after the compliance dates will need to conform from day one.