28 CFR Part 35 · Subpart H — Web and Mobile Accessibility
§ 35.205 Effect of noncompliance that has a minimal impact on access
Last updated June 11, 2026
What 28 CFR §35.205 requires of state and local governments.
In Plain Language
Minor technical failures that have no meaningful impact on access for people with disabilities will not be treated as violations. If noncompliance with a specific WCAG 2.1 AA criterion has a minimal impact on the ability of people with disabilities to access the content or service, it will be treated as if the entity is in compliance. This is a practical provision that prevents enforcement over technical errors that cause no real-world accessibility harm.
This summary is educational, not legal advice. The official text below controls.
Official Regulatory Text — 28 CFR § 35.205
Verbatim from 28 CFR Part 35, current through June 9, 2026.
A public entity that is not in full compliance with the requirements of § 35.200(b) will be deemed to have met the requirements of § 35.200 in the limited circumstance in which the public entity can demonstrate that the noncompliance has such a minimal impact on access that it would not affect the ability of individuals with disabilities to use the public entity's web content or mobile app to do any of the following in a manner that provides substantially equivalent timeliness, privacy, independence, and ease of use:
(a) Access the same information as individuals without disabilities;
(b) Engage in the same interactions as individuals without disabilities;
(c) Conduct the same transactions as individuals without disabilities; and
(d) Otherwise participate in or benefit from the same services, programs, and activities as individuals without disabilities.
What § 35.205 Means in Practice
- Minor noncompliance does not automatically violate the rule if it would not affect a person with a disability's ability to use the content in substantially equivalent ways
- The bar is high: the entity must show the noncompliance has only a minimal impact on access across all four dimensions the rule lists
- This is a compliance backstop, not a license to skip testing
- Documenting your testing and remediation program is the practical way to benefit from this provision
Common Questions
Does this mean we do not have to fix every single WCAG error?
No. It means that isolated, trivial technical errors with no meaningful impact on access may not be enforced as violations. Systemic problems and barriers that affect real users must be fixed.
How do we know if a failure has a minimal impact?
Ask whether someone using assistive technology would be affected. If the failure creates an actual barrier to access, it is not minimal.
Does § 35.205 apply to your entity?
You don’t need to fix everything today. You need to know what matters first. We’ll help you find it.
Prefer to talk it through? Call the Title II Line: (608) 960-8830