Brazil Digital Accessibility Laws

Brazil's legal framework for digital accessibility

Digital accessibility in Brazil rests on three layers. The LBI creates the legal obligation. ABNT standards provide the technical requirements. eMAG guides federal government websites.

Law: Brazilian Inclusion Law

Law No. 13,146/2015, also known as the Statute of Persons with Disabilities.

Technical standard: ABNT NBR 17225 and NBR 17060

Requirements for web content and applications and for mobile apps.

Federal government: eMAG 3.1

The e-Government Accessibility Model, mandatory on SISP websites.

What Article 63 of the LBI says

Article 63 makes accessibility mandatory on websites run by companies headquartered or commercially represented in the country and by government bodies. Accessibility must follow internationally adopted best practices and guidelines. The law does not name WCAG.

• Companies headquartered or commercially represented in Brazil.
• Government bodies at every level.
• Accessibility symbol displayed prominently on websites, under § 1.
• Community telecentres that receive federal public funds and LAN houses must have accessible equipment and facilities (§ 2).
• At least 10% of the computers in these venues must have accessibility features for people with visual impairments. If the calculation gives less than one, there must be at least one such machine (§ 3).

Other digital obligations in the LBI

The LBI also covers e-commerce, advertising and documents. These rules complement Article 63.

• Online sales channels and advertisements must provide, as far as the medium allows, the accessibility features listed in Article 67. These include closed captions, a Libras interpreter window and audio description (Art. 69, § 1).
• Bills, payment slips and statements must be provided in an accessible format on request (Art. 62).
• Books and publications: Art. 68, § 2 treats digital files as accessible when screen readers and other assistive technologies can recognise them. They allow synthesised speech, enlarged characters and different contrast settings.
• Consumer information: Art. 69 requires correct and clear information about products and services, including online. This covers quantity, quality, features, composition, price and risks for consumers with disabilities.

Digital barriers and discrimination

The LBI defines barriers in communication and information. These are obstacles that make it hard to receive messages through communication and information technology systems. The law also treats the refusal of reasonable accommodation and assistive technology as discrimination.

ABNT NBR 17225: web content and applications

ABNT NBR 17225 was released in March 2025. It is based on WCAG 2.2 and contains 96 requirements and 50 recommendations. The standard defines two types of conformance.

Regular conformance: all requirements

Aligned with WCAG 2.2 Level AA.

Full conformance: requirements and recommendations

Also includes the recommendations linked to Level AAA.

ABNT standards are technical documents. The text of NBR 17225 itself states that bodies responsible for technical regulations may set dates from which its requirements apply.

ABNT NBR 17060: mobile apps

ABNT NBR 17060 was published on 26 October 2022. It applies to native apps, web apps and hybrid apps. The standard contains 54 requirements and recommendations based on WCAG.

The requirements are grouped into four themes:

• Perception and understanding
• Control and interaction
• Media
• Coding

eMAG: accessibility on federal government websites

Ordinance No. 3 of 7 May 2007 established eMAG within SISP. Adoption became mandatory for the bodies and entities in that system. For state, municipal and Federal District administrations and private organisations, the ordinance provided for voluntary adoption. The current version is 3.1, from April 2014.

Enforcement and liability

The LBI does not set a specific administrative fine for breaching Article 63 on its own. Even so, a lack of accessibility can lead to court action and other legal consequences, depending on the circumstances of the case and the applicable law.

• Public civil action. Can be brought by the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Public Defender's Office, public bodies and associations set up more than one year earlier (Law No. 7,853/1989, Art. 3).
• Crime of discrimination. The LBI punishes anyone who practises, induces or incites discrimination on the grounds of disability with 1 to 3 years' imprisonment and a fine (Art. 88). A website's lack of technical accessibility does not, on its own, constitute this crime.
• Duty to report. Anyone must report a violation of the rights of a person with a disability to the competent authority (Art. 7).