Now available: Webinar recording – Preparing for the European Accessibility Act (EAA)
The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is set to bring new accessibility requirements for businesses, including the way payment solutions are designed and offered.
To help you understand what’s coming and how to prepare, CCV recently hosted a webinar on the EAA and its implications for both in-store and online payment environments.
If you couldn’t attend the live session - or simply want to explore the topic at your own pace - the webinar recording and Q&A summary are now available:
In the session, our experts covered:
- How CCV supports people with disabilities
- Our approach to EAA compliance and inclusive product development
- Accessibility features for payment terminals (Florian Anzinger, Technical Product Owner SECpos Evo)
- Accessibility features for online payments (Bruno Debonnet, Product Manager Online Payments)
- Legal considerations and compliance insights (Michelle Nooijen, Legal Counsel)
Q&A from webinar
1. Accessibility features - general functionality and activation
Q1. How does a blind person know the amount?
There is a sound output on the 'Card please' screen. A blind person will hear the amount and instructions to present/insert the card, so they can decide whether to proceed.
Q2. Will it be possible to activate the accessibility mode for terminals with buttons before 15 sec?
Yes, this is possible. You can activate the modes by double tapping or by pressing the button, even if the timer hasn’t elapsed yet.
Q3. In the terminal PIN entry and transaction result screens, does the sound output right away if it was already used in the "Card please" screen?
Yes, it does. It only takes time during the first "Card please" screen. After that, if accessibility is enabled, all following screens will have sound output immediately.
Q4. Smart terminals like the A920 / A77 / A35 & A960 have a volume rocker on the side. Will the accessibility mode override the volume setting?
Yes, accessibility mode will set a defined default volume. However, volume can still be adjusted during the payment process to ensure it’s audible enough.
2. Accessibility Features – language and navigation
Q5. Is the "Blind mode" PIN entry navigation an agreed standard, or CCV-specific?
It’s not just a CCV-specific solution. We work together with external parties, including organizations for people with disabilities, and our system has been tested accordingly.
Q6. How many languages will be supported for the voice support/instructions?
For SECpos Evo and acCEPT we start with German and English. Next, French and Italian will follow. Additional languages will be priioritized based on needs. The Paygear platform supports English, Dutch and French at the moment.
Q7. Is the bank card language token automatically recognized for the correct language?
Yes.
Q8. Can you switch between Dutch and German?
No, the language is determined by the card. For example, a German card will result in German language, English card in English. Other languages default to English.
3. Testing and compliance
Q9. Will/is/have CCV tested this new mode with legally blind people?
Yes, it has already been tested with a group of people with different disabilities and will continue to be improved based on test results.
4. Compliance, certification and transitional period
Q10. Will merchants working with PSP and CCV need to certify terminals in use again?
No, terminals that are in use already before the 28th of June 2025 can stay in the market. There is a transitional period of up to 20 years (15 years for Germany) for terminals already on the market. Our software for the accessbility mode will be updated automatically with the newest update, so you don't have to do anything right now.
Q11. Where can we find info about the 20-year period for adjusting terminals?
The EEA allows terminals already placed on the market to remain in use until their normal end of life, up to a max of 20 years (articl 32 EAA). In Germany, the period is max 15 years due to national legislation.
5. Additional functionalities and limitations
Q12. What about DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion)? How will it work?
Currently, no solution for DCC is included. Focus was on the most common transaction types. Other flows like DCC will be considered for future software versions.
Q13. Is it indicated whether a PIN receipt is issued?
No specific indication is provided. The merchant receipt is printed, and customer receipt printing can be skipped if configured, but that is outside the EAA accessibility feature.
Q14. What is the industry of merchant not applicable for blind people? will it be still mandatory to update the software?
Under the scope of the EAA are (article 2 of the EAA):
- Consumer general purpose computer hardware systems and operating systems for hardware
- Payment terminals
- Automated teller machines
- Ticket machines
- Check-in machines
- Interactive self-service machines
- Electronic communication devices
- Audiovisual media services
- E-readers
- Consumer banking services
- E-books
- E-commerce services
The EAA applies on all the abovementioned products and services, also if these products are not used by blind people. The EAA requires these products to be accessible for anyone, blind, motor impaired, hearing impaired etc. It only counts for products that are consumer facing. For example the merchant terminal does not need to meet all the requirements, as it's not consumer facing.
Our software update will automatically be done on all terminals that are consumer facing. If you don't need to use the accessibility mode, you can continue to use the terminal in the normal way as well. The accessibility mode can be activated by the consumer when needed.
Learn more on our EAA landing page.
Questions? Reach out to us directly - we’re happy to help.