What is the AODA?
The AODA stands for the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, enacted by the Ontario Government in 2005.
The legislation was passed in mind to end discrimination against individuals with disabilities. The purpose of the AODA is twofold:
- “Developing, implementing and enforcing accessibility standards in order to achieve accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities with respect to goods, services, facilities, accommodation, employment, buildings, structures and premises on or before January 1, 2025.” (from the official AODA Web page)
- Provide government agencies, commercial industries, and additional sectors with the development of accessibility standards.
Accessibility, according to the AODA, refers to physical as well as virtual places, e.g. websites, phone apps, etc.
Who must comply with AODA?
The AODA explicitly states that its accessibility standards apply “to every person or organization in the public and private sectors of the Province of Ontario.”
The AODA asserts January 1, 2025, as the final deadline to bring your assets up-to-date with the required accessibility standards. However, an amendment to the regulation in 2014 required speeding things up.
The legislation notes: “By January 1, 2020, all internet and intranet websites and web content must conform with WCAG 2.0 Level AA.” This applies to the Government of Ontario and the Legislative Assembly, as well as “public sector organizations and large organizations.”
Web content from before 2012 does not require AODA compliance, but any update to pre-2012 content would require meeting the WCAG 2.0 Level AA standards.
Compliance with AODA standards is required of all organizations and businesses listed in the Ontario province.
How is AODA compliance enforced?
The penalties for non-compliance can be quite severe. For individuals and non-corporations, a maximum fine could result in CA$50,000 PER DAY until the accessibility violation is fixed. For corporations, this could result in up to CA$100,000 for every day the violation continues.
Full AODA compliance
Equalweb’s accessibility consultants are ready to explain everything you need to know about the AODA, as well as other compliance standards, and how to make your website accessible and friendly to people with impairments.
Our team of Web accessibility experts seamlessly transforms your websites to the latest WCAG 2.1 compliance standards; putting you ahead of the legislative procedure, providing liability protection, and creating an all-inclusive browsing experience for the disabled.
Learn all you need to know about
WCAG 2.1 conformance standards.
Read also about ACA compliance, the Canadian federal accessibility-related non-discriminatory body of legislation.
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