# Quick accessibility check

Two parts. The first decides whether the law covers you; the second lists the
failures that turn up again and again when reviewing a published site, ordered
from most to least common.

Neither replaces a full audit against WCAG 2.1 AA. They tell you where you stand
before commissioning anything.

## 1. Does the law cover you?

The microenterprise exemption requires **both conditions at once**. Crossing
either one on its own is enough to be covered.

| Figure | Yours | Threshold | Below it? |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Average annual headcount | | 10 people | |
| Turnover for the last closed financial year | | €2,000,000 | |

- Answered "yes" to both: the exemption applies, for now.
- Answered "no" to either: **you are covered**.

Two warnings. Headcount is the **annual average**, not today's: a business with
seasonal cover can be near ten without realising. And turnover is the **sales
figure**, not the profit; confusing the two changes the answer completely.

Nobody grants the exemption and no certificate proves it: it is a matter of fact
you have to be able to stand behind if asked. And it stops applying the year you
cross either line, with no notice.

## 2. The five recurring failures

Each can be checked in an afternoon, and fixing them improves the site for
everyone, not only for people with a disability.

### Text contrast

- [ ] Normal text reaches 4.5 : 1 against its background
- [ ] Large text reaches 3 : 1
- [ ] No text sits over a photo without a layer behind it
- [ ] The brand colour on buttons has been measured, not assumed

Use any contrast checker. A shade that lands on 4.4 does not pass: darken it one
step.

### Image alternative text

- [ ] Every image that carries information has its `alt` written
- [ ] No `alt` says "image1.jpg" or repeats the file name
- [ ] Decorative images have an empty `alt` **on purpose**

Empty by oversight and empty on purpose look identical, but only one is right.
If the image adds nothing, leave it empty; if it adds something, describe it.

### Form labels

- [ ] Every field has its own visible, associated `label`
- [ ] No field relies only on the grey text inside it
- [ ] Error messages say what to fix, not just that something is wrong

Text inside a field disappears as soon as you type, and many screen readers
never announce it.

### Video subtitles

- [ ] Every video with speech has subtitles
- [ ] Automatic subtitles have been checked by hand

This affects people who cannot hear, and also everyone watching without
headphones, who are far more numerous.

### Keyboard navigation

- [ ] The whole site can be navigated with the tab key, without a mouse
- [ ] It is always visible which element is selected
- [ ] Menus open and close without a mouse
- [ ] Focus is never lost, and never trapped inside a dialogue

This is the fastest test of all and the one that uncovers most problems.

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*Díaz Oliva · diazoliva.com*