Web pages' translation service now active
In a significant move towards digital accessibility, Germany has enacted the Barrier-Free Reinforcement Act (BFSGV) and the Barrier-Free Information Technology Ordinance (BITV 2.00) on June 15, 2022. These legislative frameworks, which complement the European Accessibility Act, aim to ensure that digital services, including those provided by public bodies and certain private services, are accessible to persons with disabilities without substantial additional effort or assistance.
The BFSGV, along with its ordinance BFSGV, came into force on June 28, 2025. These laws apply to digital services of public bodies and certain private services, requiring them to be accessible to all users, including those using assistive technologies. The BFSGV refers to harmonized European standards, especially EN 301 549, and requires conformance to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA for websites and digital applications.
Accessibility means that digital content should be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust for all users. Practical requirements for websites include providing alternative text for images, ensuring high color contrast for readability, designing navigation that is accessible via keyboard, and avoiding content that causes barriers like non-captioned videos or inaccessible forms.
BITV 2.00 specifies technical accessibility requirements that public sector websites must meet, aligned with WCAG guidelines. It functions as a concrete implementation rule ensuring that IT products and services provided by or for public institutions are barrier-free.
In a municipal website's translation and accessibility enhancement project, these legal requirements are integrated by ensuring all translated content remains accessible, maintaining or improving compliance with WCAG 2.2 AA standards in all language versions, conducting accessibility audits and usability testing with diverse users, providing easy-to-find accessibility statements and reporting channels, and making all interactive elements operable with assistive technologies.
The institution, in its commitment to these laws, is implementing the BFSGV and BITV 2.00. The municipal websites of the institution are now available in five languages: English, French, Arabic, Turkish, and Russian. Compliance with these laws requires the introduction of online tools on the municipal websites. An online tool is introduced to promote accessibility and inclusion, in accordance with the Barrier-Free Information Technology Ordinance and the Barrier-Free Reinforcement Act.
The translation tool is designed to facilitate navigation to municipal services and leisure activities. The project focuses on improving navigation skills on the website, with the widgets and tools visibly integrated on the homepage of the municipal website. However, users may notice errors or inconsistencies in the initial weeks of the live launch due to the AI used for translation.
The project team expresses gratitude to all involved for their voluntary commitment. A press conference about the project will take place at the end of July. The goal is to achieve barrier-free access so that all citizens, regardless of ability or language, can equally access and use the municipal digital services without additional help or difficulty.
- The Barrier-Free Reinforcement Act (BFSGV) and its accompanying ordinance, which came into force on June 28, 2025, require digital services, including those provided by public bodies and certain private services, to be accessible to all users, including those using assistive technologies and to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA.
- In their commitment to the BFSGV and BITV 2.00, the institution has introduced an online tool on their municipal websites to promote accessibility and inclusion, particularly focusing on improving navigation skills for citizens of various abilities and languages.
