The verdict in three sentences
For a municipality in the Amsterdam region, bringing the website to WCAG 2.2 AA costs between EUR 15,500 and 48,000 excl. VAT: an audit of EUR 3,500 to 8,000 and fixes of EUR 12,000 to 40,000. The realistic timeline is 3 to 5 months, from audit to an updated statement on the national register. Doing nothing is riskier than ever: since the European Accessibility Act applies from June 2025, citizens and advocacy groups have more grounds to challenge inaccessible public services.
What Dutch rules require from a council in 2026
The Dutch Temporary Decree on Digital Accessibility for Government (Besluit digitale toegankelijkheid overheid) requires public bodies to meet EN 301 549, which references WCAG success criteria at level AA, and to publish a statement for every website and app.
| Obligation | Expected content | Exposure if missing |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility statement | Status A to E, known issues, contact | Public listing as non-compliant |
| Register entry | Statement published on toegankelijkheidsverklaring.nl | Monitoring by Logius |
| Recent audit | Evaluation by an independent auditor, under 12 months for status A or B | Status downgraded |
| Improvement plan | Dated measures for each open issue | Council and press scrutiny |
| Feedback channel | Form or address to report barriers | Complaints from residents |
| Procurement clauses | Accessibility required in every new contract | Recurring non-compliance |
WCAG 2.2 AA counts 55 success criteria across levels A and AA. Many audited public sites meet only around 45% of applicable criteria on first assessment, which typically yields status C or D.
Cost of a WCAG audit and fixes
The audit covers a sample of 10 to 20 representative pages: home, news, online services, forms, events, downloadable PDFs. Fix budgets depend mainly on the quality of the theme and the CMS.
| Service | Scope | Timeline | Budget (EUR, excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick scan | Priority criteria, 10 pages | 1 week | 1,800 to 3,000 |
| Full WCAG-EM audit | 55 criteria, 15 to 20 pages | 2 to 3 weeks | 3,500 to 8,000 |
| Theme fixes | Contrast, keyboard navigation, structure | 3 to 6 weeks | 7,000 to 20,000 |
| Form fixes | Labels, errors, online services | 2 to 4 weeks | 3,000 to 10,000 |
| PDF remediation | Council decisions, newsletters, guides | variable | 35 to 140 per document |
| Editor training | Accessible writing, images, links | 1 to 2 days | 1,800 to 3,500 |
| Re-audit and statement | Verification, drafting, register update | 1 to 2 weeks | 1,800 to 4,000 |
The most overlooked item is PDFs. A council publishes hundreds of decisions: the sound strategy is to fix documents from the last 12 months and publish new ones as HTML wherever possible.
Typical 5-month timeline
| Month | Step | Deliverable |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | Full audit and prioritization | Report, baseline score, fix plan |
| Month 2 | Theme and template fixes | Keyboard navigation, contrast, headings |
| Month 3 | Forms and online services | Compliant forms, error messages |
| Month 4 | Priority PDFs and training | Remediated documents, trained editors |
| Month 5 | Re-audit and publication | Updated statement, improvement plan |
A site on a recent, well-built CMS can be done in 3 months. An older site on a proprietary theme that cannot be fixed may justify a full rebuild, to assess from the audit report onward.
Mini case study
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Eva, municipal secretary of a 45,000-resident municipality near Amsterdam, finds the site listed with status D on the register. The full audit, invoiced EUR 6,000, shows 38% of criteria met. The fix plan is priced at EUR 24,000, plus EUR 4,900 for 70 priority PDFs at EUR 70 each and EUR 2,400 of training.
Total project: EUR 37,300 over 5 months. The re-audit shows 82% of criteria met with a dated plan for the rest, and the statement moves to status B. Compared with a full rebuild estimated at EUR 80,000, the targeted retrofit saves about EUR 42,700 while giving the council a defensible position.
FAQ
What is the minimum time to publish a valid statement?
A statement requires a prior audit, so plan at least 3 weeks. You can publish a first statement with a low status, then update it after fixes, which quickly shows good faith.
Is a quick scan enough?
It helps prioritize, but statuses A and B require a full audit by an independent party. A quick scan at EUR 1,800 to 3,000 is useful as a diagnosis before a tender.
Do we need to rebuild the site to comply?
Not always. If the CMS and theme allow fixes, EUR 12,000 to 40,000 is usually enough, compared with EUR 60,000 to 110,000 for a rebuild.
Must all old PDFs be fixed?
No, archived documents not needed for active services can be exempted. Focus on documents from the last 12 months and those tied to online services.
What does keeping compliance cost?
Plan an annual re-audit of EUR 2,500 to 4,500 and training for new editors. Without that follow-up, scores often drop 10 to 20 points within a year.
Let's scope your project. We scope the WCAG audit, fixes and accessibility statement for your council, for an indicative budget of EUR 15,500 to 48,000 over 3 to 5 months. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
