DOJ ADA Website Deadline (2027 / 2028)
State and local governments serving populations of 50,000 or more must make their websites and mobile apps conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA by April 26, 2027; smaller jurisdictions and special district governments have until April 26, 2028. These dates come from the DOJ’s April 20, 2026 Interim Final Rule, which extended the original 2026 deadlines by 12 months — the WCAG 2.1 AA standard itself did not change.
Who is covered
The rule applies to ADA Title II entities: state and local governments, cities, counties, public schools and universities, transit agencies, and special districts. It covers public-facing websites, web content, and mobile apps, with narrow exceptions for things like archived content and certain third-party posts.
These dates are being litigated
These dates are being litigated. On May 21, 2026, the National Federation of the Blind sued the DOJ and HHS in federal court (U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland), arguing the agencies extended the deadlines without the required public notice-and-comment process. The suit asks the court to vacate both interim final rules and restore the original compliance dates. If it succeeds, the deadlines could revert — so confirm the current date at ADA.gov before relying on it. (We review this page quarterly and after any ruling.)
How to use the runway
The extension is runway, not a reprieve. Non-compliance still means federal complaints, DOJ investigations, and private ADA litigation today. The winning pattern: baseline audit now, fix by severity, then continuous monitoring so redesigns and CMS updates don’t reintroduce issues before your deadline.