BFSG: Which Companies Are Affected? Scope and Exemptions

The BFSG has applied since 28 June 2025 to the products and services listed in Section 1. Your offering, customers and any applicable exemption determine whether your company is affected.

The free BFSG questionnaire helps you organise these questions. Assessing your legal obligations requires a review of your specific offering.

1. Is your offering within scope?

Section 1 lists specific consumer services: e-commerce, telecommunications, specified elements of passenger transport, consumer banking, and e-books with their dedicated software. Offering a service online does not by itself bring it within scope.

For a website with bookings, check whether the process is intended to conclude a consumer contract. A general enquiry form alone does not establish this. Record the actual steps: offer, booking, payment and contract conclusion.

Covered products include consumer computers and operating systems, specified self-service terminals, telecommunications terminal equipment, equipment for accessing audiovisual media services and e-book readers. Check the precise category in Section 1 rather than treating every device with digital components as covered.

2. Does the service address consumers?

The listed service obligations concern consumer offerings. For a purely B2B service, the exclusion of consumers should be supported by the actual sales process. A B2B label alone does not settle the scope of a mixed shop.

3. Does the microenterprise exemption apply?

Section 3(3) exempts microenterprises providing services from the relevant requirements. Section 2(17) defines these as businesses with fewer than ten employees and annual turnover or annual balance sheet total of no more than two million euros. This is not a blanket product exemption.

Record the employee count and financial measure. Have unclear classifications or calculations reviewed before relying on the exemption.

4. Is there a transition rule?

Section 38 provides limited transitions: products previously used lawfully to provide services may remain in use until 27 June 2030; earlier service contracts may continue unchanged until expiry, no later than that date. Previously lawfully used self-service terminals may remain until the end of their economic useful life, capped at 15 years from entry into use. These rules do not give existing websites a general grace period.

5. What constitutes disproportionate burden?

Section 17 requires an assessment using Annex 4 criteria. A high bill alone does not establish an exemption. Document the assessment; for services, reassess after changes, at an authority's request and at least every five years. Fundamental alterations are addressed separately in Section 16.

Next steps after assessing scope

1. Record your offering, customers and the basis of your assessment. The BFSG check solution explains the process.
2. Review technical requirements using the BFSG checklist and WCAG hub.
3. Use the Accessibility Audit for machine-evaluable findings. Add keyboard, screen reader and user testing.
4. Use the Statement Generator to draft from your test results. Add manual findings, responsibilities and service information, then review the text before publication.

Record outstanding issues and planned fixes in your working documentation. An action plan does not replace applicable requirements. Section 37 sets different maximum fines of €100,000 and €10,000 depending on the offence.