Key takeaways
- WCAG 2.2 Level AA is the technical standard nearly every Canadian accessibility law points to.
- Who is legally required depends on where you operate and your size: AODA in Ontario, the Accessible BC Act for BC public bodies, the Accessible Canada Act federally.
- Conformance means meeting every success criterion at your target level, page by page, with no exceptions on that page.
- Most issues are fixable: alt text, contrast, keyboard navigation, headings, form labels, and captions.
- This is general information, not legal advice. Verify your current obligations with a qualified advisor.
On this page
What does website accessibility actually mean?
Website accessibility means building your site so people with disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with it. That includes people who use screen readers, navigate by keyboard, need captions, or rely on strong colour contrast. The shared technical standard for getting it right is WCAG 2.2 Level AA.
Accessibility is not a plugin or an overlay you bolt on at the end. It is a set of practices baked into how a site is structured, coded, and written. The good news is that an accessible site is almost always a better site for everyone, including the people search engines send your way.
WCAG, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, is maintained by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Version 2.2 was published as an official W3C Recommendation in October 2023. It is the reference nearly every accessibility law in Canada and around the world points to.
An accessible website is not a favour to a few. It is a better experience for everyone who lands on the page.
Who is legally required to have an accessible website in Canada?
It depends on where you operate and how large you are. There is no single national rule for every business yet. Ontario has the AODA, British Columbia has the Accessible BC Act, and federally regulated entities fall under the Accessible Canada Act. Human rights law can apply on top of all three.
- Public sector organizations in BC named in the Accessible BC Regulation: committees, plans, and feedback tools are required.
- Ontario organizations with 50 or more employees, and all Ontario public sector bodies, must meet WCAG under the AODA.
- Federally regulated businesses (banks, telecom, interprovincial transport, broadcasting) fall under the Accessible Canada Act.
- Everyone else has no website-specific statute yet, but human rights law and basic duty of care still apply.
- Any business that wants more customers benefits, because accessible sites are easier for everyone to use.
A few specifics worth knowing. Under Ontario's AODA, organizations with 50 or more employees, plus all public sector bodies, must make public-facing web content conform to WCAG 2.0 Level AA, and that deadline passed on January 1, 2021. The Accessible BC Act took effect with its regulation on September 1, 2022, and requires named public sector organizations, which is where municipal and local government websites come in, to build accessibility committees, plans, and feedback tools. The federal Accessible Canada Act aims for a barrier-free Canada by 2040 and covers banks, telecom, broadcasting, and interprovincial transport.
If you are a private small business in BC with no federal regulation, you likely have no website-specific statute today. That can change, and human rights obligations still exist, so the honest answer is to build accessibly now rather than wait to be told to. This is general information, not legal advice. Verify your current obligations with a qualified advisor.
AODA vs the Accessible BC Act: how do they compare?
The AODA and the Accessible BC Act share a goal, removing barriers, but they work differently. The AODA points directly at a WCAG version and a hard deadline for web content. The Accessible BC Act focuses first on process: committees, plans, and feedback, with the technical standard set to follow.
| AODA (Ontario) | Accessible BC Act (BC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it covers | AODA: Ontario orgs with 50+ employees and all public sector bodies | Accessible BC Act: public sector orgs named in the regulation |
| Technical standard | WCAG 2.0 Level AA for public-facing web content | No fixed WCAG version in the regulation yet; WCAG 2.2 AA is the practical target |
| Core duty | Make websites and web content conform to WCAG | Build an accessibility committee, plan, and feedback tool |
| Key date | WCAG deadline was January 1, 2021 | Regulation in force September 1, 2022 |
| Goal | An accessible Ontario by 2025 | Identify, remove, and prevent barriers over time |
Both laws lean on WCAG underneath, so the practical move is the same wherever you are: build to WCAG 2.2 Level AA, the current standard. Meeting that one bar keeps you aligned with the AODA today, ready for BC standards as they firm up, and on track for the federal targets.
What are the four principles of WCAG?
WCAG organizes everything under four principles, often shortened to POUR: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. Every success criterion, from colour contrast to keyboard access, sits under one of these four. If you understand the four, the long checklist stops feeling random.
- 01
Perceivable
People can perceive the content. Images have text alternatives, video has captions, and colour is never the only way meaning is carried.
- 02
Operable
People can operate the interface. Everything works by keyboard, nothing relies on a precise drag, and focus is always visible.
- 03
Understandable
Content and controls behave predictably. Language is clear, forms label their fields, and errors are explained in plain words.
- 04
Robust
The code is clean enough that screen readers and other assistive technology can interpret it reliably, now and as tools change.
What does WCAG conformance actually mean?
Conformance means a page meets every success criterion at your chosen level, with no exceptions on that page. WCAG has three levels: A is the floor, AA is the standard most laws require, and AAA is the highest bar. WCAG 2.2 AA conformance means meeting all Level A and AA criteria.
Two things trip people up. First, conformance is measured page by page, so an accessible homepage does not make a buried form page conformant. Second, no overlay widget or accessibility script makes a site magically conformant. Real conformance comes from the underlying structure, code, and content.
- Level A
- The minimum. Without it, some people cannot use the page at all. Things like keyboard access and text alternatives live here.
- Level AA
- The standard nearly every law and organization targets, including WCAG 2.2 AA. Adds contrast minimums, consistent navigation, and clearer error handling.
- Level AAA
- The highest level. Often impractical to meet across an entire site, but useful as a goal for critical content.
What is a practical website accessibility checklist?
You do not need to memorize all of WCAG to make real progress. This is the short list of high-impact items that catch the majority of real-world problems. Work top to bottom, and you will clear most of what an automated scan and a frustrated visitor would flag.
- Alt text: every meaningful image has a short, accurate text alternative. Decorative images are marked so screen readers skip them.
- Colour contrast: body text hits at least 4.5 to 1 against its background, and large text at least 3 to 1 (WCAG 1.4.3).
- Keyboard navigation: every link, button, menu, and form field works with the Tab key alone, in a logical order.
- Visible focus: the element you have tabbed to is clearly outlined, so keyboard users can see where they are.
- Headings: one H1 per page, then H2 and H3 in a logical nesting order that describes the structure.
- Forms: every field has a visible label, required fields are marked, and errors say what went wrong and how to fix it.
- Captions: pre-recorded video has captions, and important audio has a transcript.
- Link text: links describe their destination, not "click here" or a bare URL.
- Target size: tap targets are large enough and spaced so they are easy to hit on a phone (WCAG 2.2).
- Page language and titles: the page declares its language and has a unique, descriptive title.
None of these require a rebuild on their own. Alt text, contrast, labels, headings, and link text are content and styling fixes you can make on most existing sites. Keyboard navigation and target size sometimes go deeper, depending on how the site was built.
How do you make an existing website accessible?
You audit, prioritize, and fix in passes rather than trying to do everything at once. Start with a free automated scan, then test by keyboard and screen reader, then fix the highest-impact issues first. Document what you did, and build accessibility into every new page from then on.
- 1Run an automated scan (a free tool like WAVE or Lighthouse) to catch the obvious contrast, alt-text, and heading problems.
- 2Test the whole site with the keyboard only, no mouse, and confirm you can reach and use everything with a visible focus.
- 3Fix the highest-impact issues first: missing alt text, low contrast, unlabelled forms, and broken keyboard navigation.
- 4Add captions to video and transcripts to audio, and rewrite vague link text to describe where each link goes.
- 5Document what you did, set a recheck date, and bake accessibility into every future page instead of treating it as a one-off.
If that sounds like a lot, it is the kind of thing a website audit exists to handle. I will tell you honestly whether your site needs a handful of fixes or a deeper rebuild, and we point you to the cheapest path that actually gets you compliant and easier to use. If you would rather talk it through first, our services page lays out how we work, and custom builds start from 2,000 dollars.
Accessibility is not a one-time certificate. Standards evolve, content changes, and new pages get added. The businesses that stay accessible are the ones that treat it as a habit, not a project, and that habit pays off in trust, reach, and a site that simply works better for everyone.
Sources and further reading
- W3C: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2
The official standard, published as a W3C Recommendation on 5 October 2023. The four principles and all success criteria, including Level AA.
- Accessible British Columbia Act (BC Laws)
The BC statute that requires named public sector organizations to build accessibility committees, plans, and feedback tools.
- Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act information
Ontario guidance on the AODA Information and Communications Standards, including the WCAG 2.0 AA website requirement and who it covers.
- Summary of the Accessible Canada Act (Canada.ca)
The federal law aiming for a barrier-free Canada by 2040, covering federally regulated entities like banks, telecom, and transport.
Frequently asked questions
Is my small business website legally required to be accessible in Canada?
It depends on where you operate and how big you are. A small private business in most of Canada has no website-specific accessibility statute yet, but Ontario businesses with 50 or more employees must meet WCAG under the AODA, BC public sector bodies have duties under the Accessible BC Act, and federally regulated entities fall under the Accessible Canada Act. Human rights law can apply regardless. This is general information, not legal advice.
What is WCAG 2.2 AA?
WCAG is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines from the W3C. Version 2.2 was published in October 2023. Level AA is the conformance level most laws and organizations aim for. It covers contrast, keyboard use, captions, labels, focus, and more, organized under four principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust.
What does conformance actually mean?
Conformance means a page meets every success criterion at your target level, with no exceptions on that page. WCAG 2.2 AA conformance means meeting all Level A and Level AA criteria. It applies page by page, so one accessible page does not make the whole site conformant.
Does the AODA apply to my business outside Ontario?
No. The AODA is Ontario law and applies to organizations operating in Ontario. If you are a BC business, the Accessible BC Act and federal rules are more relevant, though the AODA is still a useful benchmark because it points to WCAG, the same global standard everyone uses.
How do I check if my website is accessible?
Start with a free automated scan like WAVE or Lighthouse to catch contrast, alt-text, and structure issues. Then test the site with the keyboard only and with a screen reader. Automated tools catch roughly a third of issues, so manual testing and real-user feedback matter. An accessibility audit gives you a prioritized list.
Does accessibility help SEO?
Yes, indirectly. Many accessibility practices overlap with what search engines reward: clean heading structure, descriptive alt text, meaningful link text, and a fast, well-coded page. Building for accessibility tends to make a site easier for both people and search engines to understand.
What are the most common accessibility failures?
The usual suspects are missing or poor alt text, low colour contrast, forms without labels, content that cannot be reached by keyboard, missing video captions, and vague link text like "click here." These are also the easiest wins, which is why the checklist starts there.
Do I have to rebuild my whole site to be accessible?
Usually not. Many issues are fixable on an existing site: contrast, alt text, labels, headings, and link text. Deeper problems with keyboard navigation or a rigid template sometimes need a rebuild, but a good audit tells you which camp you are in before you spend anything.
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