LatviaLaw on the accessibility of goods and services, fundamental alteration and disproportionate burden
Preču un pakalpojumu piekļūstamības likums, 13. un 14. pants
In force since .
An accessibility requirements rule binding public and private bodies.
What it requires
- You are bound by an accessibility requirement only to the extent that meeting it does not require a significant change that alters the basic nature of the product or service and does not impose a disproportionate burden under the criteria in Article 14 (Law, Art. 13(1); Directive (EU) 2019/882, Art. 14(1)).
- Assess whether compliance would cause such a change or burden, document the assessment in writing, and keep it for five years after the product was last offered or the service last provided (Art. 13(2) and (3)).
- If you offer goods, employ fewer than 10 persons and your annual turnover or annual balance sheet total does not exceed EUR 2,000,000, you need not document the assessment in writing, but you must give the Consumer Rights Protection Centre, on request, the facts relevant to the defence (Art. 13(4)).
- If you provide a service, renew the disproportionate burden assessment for each category or type of service at least every five years, or earlier if the service changes or the competent authority requires it, and give the authority a copy on request (Art. 13(3)).
- If you receive funding from other public or private sources for improving accessibility, you cannot rely on the disproportionate burden defence (Art. 13(5)).
- If you apply the defence, other than as a goods operator exempt from documentation, inform in writing the market surveillance authority or competent authority of the Member State where you place the goods or provide the service (Art. 13(6)).
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text.
If you get it wrong
Penalty structure
For goods: Article 19(9) of the Law on Conformity Assessment sets 14 to 140 fine units (EUR 70 to 700) for a natural person and 40 to 1,400 fine units (EUR 200 to 7,000) for a legal person. Article 19(10) sets 14 to 140 fine units (EUR 70 to 700) for a natural person and 56 to 2,800 fine units (EUR 280 to 14,000) for a legal person. Article 19(11) sets 40 to 400 fine units (EUR 200 to 2,000) for a natural person and 140 to 4,000 fine units (EUR 700 to 20,000) for a legal person. Paragraphs 9 to 11 apply from (law of ); from to the tier was Article 19(2), 14 to 140 fine units (EUR 70 to 700) for a natural person and 140 to 1,420 fine units (EUR 700 to 7,100) for a legal person. One fine unit is EUR 5 under Article 16(2) of the Administrative Liability Law, and the Consumer Rights Protection Centre conducts the proceedings under Article 20(1). For services: The Law on the accessibility of goods and services sets no fine of its own for a service provider. A competent authority's decision under Article 23(3) is an administrative act enforced under Article 368 of the Administrative Procedure Law, which allows a coercive fine: EUR 50 to 5,000 for a natural person and EUR 100 to 10,000 for a legal person (Article 370(3)), which may be imposed again no sooner than seven days after the previous one until the decision is complied with (Article 370(2)); no total cap is stated.
- Rule
- Fixed only
- As of
- Currency
- EUR
- Fixed cap
- 20,000
Who enforces it
Enforcement body
the Consumer Rights Protection Centre (Patērētāju tiesību aizsardzības centrs), the market surveillance authority for goods under Article 18(1), which conducts the administrative offence proceedings for the fines under Article 20(1) of the Law on Conformity Assessment; for services the competent authorities in Article 22
What it reaches
Instrument type
an act of a legislature
Applicability criteria
- As of
- Combinator
- Any of
- Criteria
- the economic operator that offers goods employs 10 or more persons (Article 13(4) exempts from written documentation an operator "kurš nodarbina mazāk par 10 personām un kura gada apgrozījums nepārsniedz 2 000 000 euro vai gada bilances kopsumma nepārsniedz 2 000 000 euro , un kurš piedāvā preces": that employs fewer than 10 persons, whose annual turnover does not exceed EUR 2,000,000 or whose annual balance sheet total does not exceed EUR 2,000,000, and that offers goods)
- the economic operator that offers goods has both an annual turnover and an annual balance sheet total above EUR 2,000,000
- the economic operator provides a service
What this law does
Article 14(1) of Directive (EU) 2019/882 applies the accessibility requirements only to the extent that compliance does not require a significant change resulting in a fundamental alteration of the basic nature of a product or service and does not impose a disproportionate burden on the economic operators concerned.
Article 13(1) of the Law limits each economic operator's duty to the extent that compliance does not cause a significant change that alters the basic nature of the product or service, or a disproportionate burden under the criteria in Article 14. Article 13(3) requires the operator to document its assessment in writing and keep it for five years after the goods were last offered or the service last provided.
Article 13(4) exempts an operator that offers goods and is a microenterprise from documenting the assessment in writing. Article 13(4) still requires such an operator to give the market surveillance authority, on its request, the facts relevant to the defence. Article 13(5) bars an operator that receives funding from other public or private sources to improve accessibility from relying on the disproportionate burden defence.
Article 13(6) requires an operator, other than the operator referred to in Article 13(4), to inform in writing the market surveillance authority or competent authority of the Member State concerned that it applies the defence. Article 14 requires the disproportionate burden assessment to follow its criteria.
Article 18(3) requires the market surveillance authority, where a defence is applied to goods, to check that the assessment was prepared and its content, including the use of the Article 14 criteria. Article 1(8) of the Administrative Procedure Law defines a private person as a natural person, a legal person governed by private law or an association of such persons.
Article 23(3) lets the competent authority, where the provider does not remedy a non-conformity voluntarily, adopt a decision ordering the necessary actions within a set time. Article 368(1) of the Administrative Procedure Law has an administrative act that obliges its addressee to perform an action enforced by substitute performance, a coercive fine or direct force.
Article 370(3) of that Law sets the coercive fine at EUR 50 to 5,000 for a natural person and EUR 100 to 10,000 for a legal person. Article 370(2) lets the coercive fine be imposed again, no sooner than seven days after the previous one, until the addressee complies. Article 4(2) of the Law on Conformity Assessment applies chapter III.1 of that Law to non-food goods for which requirements are set in legal acts, including European Union acts on goods accessibility requirements.
Article 19(9) of that Law sets the fine for failing to ensure that goods meet the requirements of an act referred to in Article 4(2), or for breaching the rules on the circulation of goods, at 14 to 140 fine units for a natural person and 40 to 1,400 fine units for a legal person.
Article 19(10) sets the fine for placing on the market, offering or selling goods that do not meet the safety or essential requirements or technical parameters of such an act at 14 to 140 fine units for a natural person and 56 to 2,800 fine units for a legal person. Article 19(11) sets the fine for failing to maintain internal control processes that cause systematic non-conformity at 40 to 400 fine units for a natural person and 140 to 4,000 fine units for a legal person.
Article 16(2) of the Administrative Liability Law sets one fine unit at EUR 5. Article 20(1) of the Law on Conformity Assessment makes the Consumer Rights Protection Centre the authority that conducts the administrative offence proceedings for the fines in Article 19(1), (3), (7), (8), (9), (10) and (11). The law of , in force from , deleted Article 19(2) of the Law on Conformity Assessment and added paragraphs 6 to 11, among them the fines in paragraphs 9 to 11.
Article 23(2) point 1 lets the competent authority request and assess a service provider's fundamental alteration or disproportionate burden assessment and check that the Article 14 criteria were applied correctly.
In the version in force from to , Article 19(2) set a fine of 14 to 140 fine units for a natural person and 140 to 1,420 fine units for a legal person for placing on the market, offering or selling goods that do not meet the essential requirements or technical parameters set in normative acts.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app ships a consumer interface, ships a mobile app, provides telecom services, provides financial services or distributes a software product.
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