Spain's General Disability Law: what changes in 2026
Royal Legislative Decree 1/2013 evolves with the EAA and new obligations. A practical summary for businesses and public administrations.
Spain transposed the European Accessibility Act with Law 11/2023 of 8 May, amending the Consolidated Text of the General Law on the rights of persons with disabilities (RDL 1/2013). In 2026 additional obligations come into force and the sanctioning regime is fully deployed.
The Spanish legal framework is among the most demanding in the EU: it combines the state law, regional developments (especially in Catalonia, the Basque Country and Andalusia) and sectoral regulation (transport, banking, communications). This article summarises the essentials for companies and administrations.
What already applies
Products and services within the EAA scope must comply from June 2025: e-commerce, consumer banking, passenger transport, electronic communications, e-books, hardware and operating systems, payment terminals.
Public-sector websites and apps have been required to comply since 2018 (RD 1112/2018, transposing Directive 2016/2102). The required level is WCAG 2.1 AA and a public accessibility statement is mandatory.
What's new in 2026
- Strengthening of the sanctioning regime: regions begin full inspections
- Tighter documentary requirements for products imported from outside the EU
- Scheduled inspections in priority sectors: banking, transport, e-commerce
- Tightening of the disproportionate-burden criteria
- Reinforced staff-training obligation in companies with more than 50 employees
Sanctions
Very serious infringements can reach one million euros. Serious ones range from 30,001 to 300,000 euros. Minor ones, from 301 to 30,000 euros. Authorities may also order product withdrawal from the market or service suspension.
Repeated discriminatory practices, retaliation against whistleblowers and systematic non-compliance with essential requirements after administrative warning are deemed very serious.
Who oversees compliance
Oversight falls to the Royal Board on Disability, the State Observatory on Disability and the regions, each with their own legislation. The Disability Service Office (OADIS) receives citizen complaints and escalates files.
Recommendation
If you do not yet have a compliance audit, do it this quarter. The adaptation curve takes months: prioritise, allocate budget, contract providers, deploy and validate. Starting late guarantees arriving late, and the cost of sanctions exceeds the cost of prevention by at least an order of magnitude.
Useful resources
- Royal Board on Disability — recommendations and templates
- CEAPAT — Spanish national reference centre on accessibility
- AENOR — UNE accessibility standards and certification
- CERMI — liaison and guidance for businesses
- Regional federations and sector organisations (ONCE, CNSE, Plena Inclusión, Down España)