From reaching a wider audience to improved public relations and even improved search engine optimization, there are already plenty of incentives for companies to invest in making their website more accessible.
The only downside? Making updates to your website costs money. That’s why the IRS offers a tax credit to help small businesses adapt their website to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
What is Website Accessibility?
Website accessibility refers to the ease with which people with disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate and interact with content on a website.
For example, a blind person navigating the web wouldn’t be able to visually read text off a screen and, instead, relies on screen-reader software to read website text aloud. However, creating a website that can be properly interpreted by a screen-reader takes some thoughtful design and many websites aren’t coded in a way that this type of software can effectively navigate or decipher.
The result: Many websites are simply not accessible to blind internet users.
This questions of whether or not a website is accessible has become more urgent as more and more of the basic public services we all depend on are primarily accessed online. From banking to higher education to health services, being able to access the websites you need is increasingly vital for everyone.
Is Your Website Required to be Accessible?
The short answer: In all likelihood, yes.
Here’s why….
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) stipulates that all public accommodations must be accessible to people with disabilities. Although the ADA does not specifically mention websites, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has interpreted the ADA to mean that websites that are operated by public accommodations must be accessible to people with disabilities.
Public accommodations are businesses or organizations that are open to the public and that offer goods or services. This includes businesses such as restaurants, hotels, retail stores, eCommerce stores and banks. It also includes government agencies and educational institutions.
Do You Qualify for the ADA Tax Credit?
The Disabled Access Credit is a tax incentive available to small businesses that make expenditures to improve accessibility for people with disabilities.
According to the IRS, to qualify for the credit, the business must have total revenues of $1,000,000 or less in the previous tax year or 30 or fewer full-time employees.
Check with your accountant or tax specialist to see if you qualify.
What Does the Tax Credit Cover?
The ADA tax is equal to 50% of the eligible access expenditures in a year, up to a maximum expenditure of $10,250. There is no credit for the first $250 of expenditures. The maximum tax credit, therefore, is $5,000.
For example, if you spend $1,250 on accessibility updates to your website,
- The first $250 isn’t eligible for the tax credit.
- Half of the remaining money spent is eligible for the tax credit.
- You’re eligible to receive a tax credit of $500.
Meaning, instead of spending $1,250, you will have only paid $750 for your accessibility updates after applying your tax credit.
The credit can be claimed on Form 8826, Disabled Access Credit. The credit is non-refundable, which means that it can only be used to offset the amount of taxes owed. If the credit exceeds the amount of taxes owed, the unused portion can be carried forward to future years.
Is My Website Accessible?
There are two primary means of determining whether your website is accessible.
- Use an Automated Website Accessibility Scanner
- Have your Website Reviewed for Accessibility by a Web Design Professional
Automated website accessibility scanners are useful because they can very quickly and efficiently identify some common accessibility issues. However, automated scanners can only detect a limited number of accessibility issues, and they can sometimes produce false positives or false negatives.
According to a study by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), automated scanners can detect about 20-25% of WCAG success criteria. This means that 75-80% of accessibility issues will not be detected by automated scanners.
For this reason, we recommend using a combination of automated scanners and professional review of your site.
To help get you started, we offer a Quick Accessibility Review. This includes a manual review of 5 pages of your website. We will look for key accessibility factors, create report outlining any issues we find and create an Accessibility Statement for your website.
For more information, check out: