In Israel, web accessibility regulations require website owners to make their content (and apps) accessible to people with disabilities, ensuring equal opportunity in the digital space.
The regulations apply to commercial websites, public-sector sites, and service-based websites, as well as their mobile app versions — all of which must meet the accessibility criteria set out by law.
When we sat down to write this article, we considered listing every detail about who is exempt from accessibility requirements and who isn't. Instead, we'd rather point you to the relevant official resources, which cover three possible exemption scenarios clearly and reliably: exemption due to significant financial burden, exemption due to technological infeasibility, and exemption due to a very small user base.
The bottom line is this: anyone who doesn't qualify for an exemption and fails to properly make their site accessible is exposed to fines and accessibility lawsuits.
So what did we actually want this article to cover?
We decided to go beyond the dry legal text and explain what web accessibility is really about — and why making your entire site accessible to all users matters far more than simply ticking boxes in a compliance checklist.
True accessibility involves adapting content, images, links, and navigation so that a visitor with a disability can enjoy a digital experience that's just as smooth and satisfying as anyone else's.
Let's Step Into a Disabled User's Shoes for a Moment
For most of us, browsing the internet feels completely effortless.
We scroll through a site, skim content, click links, and move from page to page. Sometimes it takes just a few seconds before we put down our phone or close the laptop. Other times, we dig deep into a site's content for a good while.
For a user with a disability, none of that is a given.
You've probably landed on a website that was painfully slow — you clicked and clicked to get somewhere, and nothing happened. Frustrating, right? Now imagine that's the experience every time you visit a site that hasn't been properly made accessible. Or think about a website with a confusing layout where you can't intuitively figure out where to go next or how to start a process. Frustrating? Many people with disabilities would agree with you wholeheartedly.
Where Does an Inaccessible Website Fail a Disabled User?
Take a website that can't be navigated using a keyboard. For someone who is blind or has a severe visual impairment, being unable to use keyboard navigation makes the site completely unusable. They can't freely move a mouse to find what they're looking for. To browse a site properly — getting where they need to go and clicking what they want — the site has to support keyboard navigation. Without accessibility, it simply doesn't.
What if the image descriptions on your site are inaccurate or missing? Again, a visually impaired user is left frustrated and excluded.
For those unfamiliar with this: it's possible to embed a text tag in the code — called an ALT tag — that describes what appears in an image to a user who cannot see it.
Here's a real-world example: most of us are familiar with the large hero banners at the top of websites. These typically feature a marketing image overlaid with text promoting deals, offers, and promotions.
A site owner who describes the banner image in the ALT tag but fails to include the promotional text in that tag will lose that visitor entirely. The user, for their part, misses out on an offer that might have been relevant to them.
In Other Words: Imagine a Website You Simply Cannot Use
Some people view accessibility law as an annoying bureaucratic burden — a set of forced changes that help no one, or at best, help very few.
Our goal with this article is to show that web accessibility law exists to ensure everyone can use your website on equal terms.
Look at the law from the perspective of the people it speaks for — the ones whose needs it was written to protect.
At User Accessibility, we understand that web accessibility is often perceived as an expensive process. That's why we're proud to offer full website accessibility services at a fixed, highly competitive annual rate.
Our service includes both manual and automated accessibility implementation, along with year-round support and consultation — covering updates whenever something changes, whether that's a change to your site or a change in the law.
Our mission is simple: give you exactly what you need, at a fair and transparent price, with ongoing support whenever you need it. Just as we respect and advocate for people with disabilities, we respect website owners and work hard for them too — and our offering reflects that, with no unnecessary marketing gimmicks.
For more information or to get in touch, contact us today.