AODA Website Accessibility: What Ontario Businesses Need to Know
Who has to make their website accessible, what WCAG 2.0 Level AA actually asks for, the December 31, 2026 compliance report deadline, and how to fix a site that falls short.
Quick Answer
- Who: businesses and non-profits with 50 or more employees in Ontario, and designated public sector organizations, must have accessible public websites.
- Standard: WCAG 2.0 Level AA, except live captions (1.2.4) and pre-recorded audio descriptions (1.2.5), since January 1, 2021.
- Report: businesses and non-profits with 20 or more employees must file an accessibility compliance report by December 31, 2026.
- Penalties: Ontario says not completing the report could lead to enforcement, which can include financial penalties.
Who Has to Make Their Website Accessible
Under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), it depends on the type and size of your organization.
| Organization | Public website must meet WCAG 2.0 AA? | Accessibility compliance report? |
|---|---|---|
| Business or non-profit, 1 to 19 employees in Ontario | No | No |
| Business or non-profit, 20 to 49 employees | No | Yes, every three years |
| Business or non-profit, 50 or more employees | Yes | Yes, every three years |
| Designated public sector organization | Yes, at any size | Yes, every two years |
The website rule covers public websites and web content published after January 1, 2012. It has required WCAG 2.0 Level AA since January 1, 2021. The organization that controls the website is responsible for meeting it, directly or through a contract, so hiring an agency does not move the obligation to them.
Smaller organizations are not off the hook entirely. Every business with employees in Ontario must tell the public it will make written information accessible on request, and cannot charge more for an accessible format. If your price list or forms only exist as an image on your website, that is worth fixing.
The December 31, 2026 Compliance Report
If you have 20 or more employees in Ontario, this one is due this year.
Businesses and non-profits with 20 or more employees must file an accessibility compliance report every three years. The current deadline is December 31, 2026. You file through the Accessibility Compliance Reporting Portal, and the report asks whether you meet the AODA requirements that apply to you. If you have 50 or more employees, that includes your website.
Ontario says organizations that do not complete their report could face enforcement measures, which can include financial penalties (Completing your accessibility compliance report).
Do not sign off on the website question blind
If your report will say your website meets WCAG 2.0 AA, check that it does. A short review now is cheaper than finding out later that the answer was wrong.
What WCAG 2.0 Level AA Means in Practice
WCAG is a long technical standard. These are the checks that catch most problems on small business sites.
| Check | What it means | WCAG criterion |
|---|---|---|
| Text alternatives | Every meaningful image has alt text that says what it shows or does. Decorative images are hidden from screen readers. | 1.1.1 (A) |
| Captions | Pre-recorded videos with sound have captions. | 1.2.2 (A) |
| Headings and structure | Pages use real headings in order, lists and tables, so screen readers can navigate them. | 1.3.1 (A) |
| Colour contrast | Body text has a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background (3:1 for large text). | 1.4.3 (AA) |
| Zoom to 200% | Text can be resized to 200% without content being cut off or overlapping. | 1.4.4 (AA) |
| Keyboard access | Menus, forms, sliders and pop-ups all work with a keyboard alone, and focus is visible. | 2.1.1 (A), 2.4.7 (AA) |
| Clear links | Link text makes sense on its own or in its sentence, not "click here" everywhere. | 2.4.4 (A) |
| Page language | The page declares its language so screen readers pronounce it correctly. | 3.1.1 (A) |
| Form labels and errors | Every field has a label, and errors say what went wrong and how to fix it. | 3.3.1 (A), 3.3.2 (A) |
Ten minutes you can spend today
- Put your mouse away and press Tab through your homepage and contact form. Can you reach and use everything, and can you always see where you are?
- Zoom your browser to 200%. Does the text still fit without overlapping?
- Look at your lightest grey text and your buttons. Is the text easy to read against its background?
- Submit your contact form empty. Does the error message tell you which field needs fixing?
- Check your videos. Do they have captions?
If any of these fail, your site has accessibility issues worth fixing whether or not the AODA applies to you.
How to Fix an Inaccessible Website
1. Review the site
Combine an automated scan with manual testing by keyboard and screen reader. Automated tools find things like missing alt text and low contrast, but they cannot tell whether alt text is accurate or whether a menu is usable by keyboard.
2. Fix templates first
Most issues live in the theme: the header, menu, footer, buttons and forms that appear on every page. Fixing those once fixes them everywhere. Then work through page content such as images, headings and link text.
3. Keep it accessible
New pages, blog posts and products can reintroduce problems. Whoever updates the site needs to add alt text, use proper headings and caption videos every time.
4. Rebuild if the platform fights you
On an old theme or page builder, fixing everything can cost more than starting over on a clean build. We can tell you which is cheaper after a review. See website redesign.
How PrimaryDM Can Help
We build and maintain WordPress, Shopify, WooCommerce and React sites for Ontario businesses. We can review your site against the checks above, fix what we find in the theme and content, and build new sites with keyboard access, contrast, headings and form labels done properly from the start.
- Fixes to an existing site: website updates, quoted per request
- A rebuild: custom website development, from $2,500
- Keeping it accessible: maintenance plans with content update hours
We are web developers, not lawyers. For questions about which AODA rules apply to your organization, see the ontario.ca pages linked below or get legal advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my small business website have to meet the AODA?
The AODA website requirement applies to designated public sector organizations and to businesses and non-profits with 50 or more employees in Ontario. If you have fewer than 50 employees, the website rule does not apply to you, but an accessible site is still easier for every customer to use, and businesses with 20 or more employees still have to file an accessibility compliance report.
Which standard does my website have to meet?
WCAG 2.0 Level AA, except success criteria 1.2.4 (live captions) and 1.2.5 (pre-recorded audio descriptions). The requirement has applied since January 1, 2021, to websites and web content published after January 1, 2012.
When is the next AODA compliance report due?
For businesses and non-profits with 20 or more employees in Ontario, the next accessibility compliance report is due December 31, 2026. Reports are filed every three years through the government's Accessibility Compliance Reporting Portal.
What happens if we do not comply?
The Ontario government says organizations that do not complete their compliance report could face enforcement measures, which can include financial penalties.
Our website was built by an agency. Who is responsible?
The organization that controls the website. Ontario's guidance says the requirements must be met by the organization that controls the site, whether it does the work itself or through a contract, so put accessibility requirements in your agreement with whoever builds or maintains it.
Will an accessibility plugin or overlay make my site compliant?
Do not count on it. The requirement is that your content meets WCAG 2.0 Level AA. Overlay widgets add a toolbar on top of the page but do not fix missing labels, poor heading structure or images without text alternatives in the underlying site. Fix the site itself.
Sources
Fees, rules and dates on this page come from these official pages. They change, so check the source before you rely on a number.
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