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mattgarrish merged 3 commits into from
Feb 4, 2026
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Clarify exemptions can apply to some conforming content #2906

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Clarify exemptions can apply to some conforming content
mattgarrish Feb 2, 2026
7287b35
fix caution header
mattgarrish Feb 2, 2026
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minor edits to note
mattgarrish Feb 2, 2026
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52 changes: 30 additions & 22 deletions wg-notes/a11y-exemption/index.html
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
<meta name="color-scheme" content="light dark" />
<title>The EPUB Accessibility exemption property</title>
<script src="https://www.w3.org/Tools/respec/respec-w3c" class="remove"></script>
<script src="../../common/js/add-caution-hd.js" class="remove"></script>
<script src="../../common/js/css-inline.js" class="remove"></script>
<script class="remove">
var respecConfig = {
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -34,6 +35,7 @@
branch: "main"
},
preProcess:[inlineCustomCSS],
postProcess:[addCautionHeaders],
xref: {
profile: "web-platform",
specs: ["epub-33"]
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -62,9 +64,8 @@
<body>
<h1 id="title">The EPUB Accessibility <code>exemption</code> property</h1>
<section id="abstract">
<p>The <code>exemption</code> property allows EPUB creators to indicate that an EPUB publication that does
not meet accessibility conformance requirements has an exemption under the applicable jurisdiction's
laws.</p>
<p>The <code>exemption</code> property indicates that an EPUB publication that does not meet a
jurisdiction's mimimum accessibility conformance requirements has an exemption under its laws.</p>
</section>
<section id="sotd"></section>
<section id="sec-intro">
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -107,10 +108,9 @@ <h3>Terminology</h3>
<section id="sec-evaluator-name">
<h3>Accessibility conformance exemptions</h3>

<p>When a jurisdiction provides specific legal exemptions for [=EPUB publications=], [=EPUB creators=] whose
content fails to meet the requirements of the EPUB Accessibility standard [[epub-a11y]] (or any other
standard), can use <a href="#exemption-property">the <code>exemption</code> property</a> to indicate
when their publications fall under one of these provisions.</p>
<p>When a jurisdiction provides exemptions for [=EPUB publications=] that do not meet its minimum legal
accessibility requirements, <a href="#exemption-property">the <code>exemption</code> property</a> can be
used, when applicable, to indicate a publication falls under one of the provisions.</p>

<aside class="example"
title="An EPUB publication exempt from the European Accessibility Act's conformance requirements">
Expand All @@ -119,10 +119,13 @@ <h3>Accessibility conformance exemptions</h3>
</aside>

<div class="note">
<p>EPUB creators do not have to include an accessibility conformance claim of "<code>none</code>" when
listing that a publication has an exemption from accessibility requirements, but it is best practice
to also provide this information. Reading systems that do not recognize the exemption might
otherwise list the accessibility status as unknown.</p>
<p>An EPUB publication that meets accessibility standards might also claim exemptions. A publication
could indicate conformance to [[wcag22]] Level A, for example, and also have to claim an exemption
because Level AA conformance is required by law.</p>

<p>An accessibility conformance claim of "<code>none</code>" is not required when an EPUB publication
fails to meet the requirements of [[[epub-a11y]]] [[epub-a11y]] but the accessibility status could
be presented as unknown if it is not set and the exemption is not recognized.</p>
</div>

<p>The property MAY be repeated to list exemptions for multiple jurisdictions and/or for multiple exemptions
Expand All @@ -144,8 +147,8 @@ <h2>The <code>exemption</code> property</h2>

<div class="note">
<p>The EPUB Accessibility standard [[epub-a11y]] reserves the prefix "<code>a11y:</code>" for use with
properties in the <code>http://idpf.org/epub/vocab/package/a11y/#</code> namespace. [=EPUB
creators=] do not have to declare a prefix in the [=package document=].</p>
properties in the <code>http://idpf.org/epub/vocab/package/a11y/#</code> namespace. The prefix does
not have to be declared in the [=package document=].</p>
</div>

<section id="exemption">
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -199,14 +202,21 @@ <h3>Definition</h3>
<section id="exemption-values">
<h2>Exemption values</h2>

<div class="caution">
<p>It is strongly advised to seek legal guidance when unsure whether an EPUB publication meets the
legal requirements for these exemptions.</p>
</div>

<table class="zebra">
<tr>
<th>Value</th>
<th>Definition</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="top" id="eaa-disproportionate-burden">
<p><code>eaa-disproportionate-burden</code></p>
<p>
<code>eaa-disproportionate-burden</code>
</p>
</td>
<td>
<p><a
Expand All @@ -218,13 +228,13 @@ <h2>Exemption values</h2>
<p>Use of the <code>eaa-disproportionate-burden</code> value indicates an EPUB publication
is exempt because it would require such a disproportionate burden to make
accessible.</p>
<p>EPUB creators are responsible for ensuring their publications meet the legal requirements
for this exemption.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="top" id="eaa-fundamental-alteration">
<p><code>eaa-fundamental-alteration</code></p>
<p>
<code>eaa-fundamental-alteration</code>
</p>
</td>
<td>
<p><a
Expand All @@ -235,13 +245,13 @@ <h2>Exemption values</h2>
fundamental alteration of its basic nature</q> [[directive-2019/882]].</p>
<p>Use of the <code>eaa-fundamental-alteration</code> value indicates an EPUB publication is
exempt because it would require such a fundamental alteration to make accessible.</p>
<p>EPUB creators are responsible for ensuring their publications meet the legal requirements
for this exemption.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="top" id="eaa-microenterprise">
<p><code>eaa-microenterprise</code></p>
<p>
<code>eaa-microenterprise</code>
</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>The <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32019L0882"
Expand All @@ -258,8 +268,6 @@ <h2>Exemption values</h2>
<p>Use of the <code>eaa-microenterprise</code> value indicates that the publisher of an
[=EPUB publication=] that does not meet accessibility standards qualifies under the
definition of a microenterprise.</p>
<p>[=EPUB creators=] are responsible for ensuring they meet the legal requirements of a
microenterprise when using this value.</p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
Expand Down