Home India Securities and Exchange Board of India Compliance Guidelines for Digital Accessibility Circular ‘Ri...
Date: 2025-09-25 Category: Not Applicable State: Union Government Country: India

Compliance Guidelines for Digital Accessibility Circular ‘Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 and rules made thereunder- mandatory compliance by all Regulated Entities’ dated July 31, 2025 (Circular No. SEBI/HO/ITD-1/ITD_VIAP/P/CIR/2025/111)

Issued by Securities and Exchange Board of India · Not Applicable

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Executive Summary & Key Takeaways

**Executive Summary** This circular, issued by SEBI on September 25, 2025, outlines compliance guidelines for digital accessibility according to the 'Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016'. It mandates compliance by all Regulated Entities (REs) and includes specific deadlines for submissions and reporting. The compliance guidelines are enclosed as Annexure-A. **Key Points / Main Content** * **Compliance Guidelines:** * REs must comply with guidelines for digital accessibility based on the 'Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016'. * Compliance Guidelines are listed in Annexure A of the circular * **Compliance Requirements & Timelines (Table A):** * Submit a list of digital platforms for investors: September 30, 2025 * Appoint IAAP-certified accessibility professionals as Auditors: December 14, 2025 * Conduct accessibility audit for digital platforms: April 30, 2026 * Remediate audit findings and ensure compliance: July 31, 2026 * Annually conduct accessibility audits and submit a final report: April 30, 2027 (and annually thereafter within 30 days of each Financial Year) * **Mechanism of Submission (Table B):** * Stock Brokers/ Depository Participants: Submit via Stock Exchanges/Depositories * Investment Advisors (IAs) and Research Analysts (RAs): Submit via BSE Ltd. * MIIs and rest of the REs: Submit directly to SEBI * **Submission Details:** * Submissions to SEBI should be emailed to digital_acc@sebi.gov.in in specified formats. * REs with multiple digital platforms must consolidate audit reports into a single submission. * **Formats for Compliance Submission (Part C):** * REs must use specified formats for: * Information about Digital Platforms (Table C1) * Appointment of IAAP certified accessibility professionals as Auditor for digital platforms for REs (Table C2) * Initial Accessibility audit report for digital platforms (Table C3) * Final accessibility audit report for digital platforms (Table C4) * **List of REs submitting compliance directly to SEBI (Part D):** * REs include: Alternative Investment Funds(AIFs), Bankers to an Issue (BTI) and Self Certified Syndicate Banks (SCSBs), Clearing Corporations, Collective Investment Schemes(CIS), Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs), Custodians, Debenture Trustees (DTs), Depositories, KYC Registration Agencies (KRAs), Merchant Bankers (MBs), Mutual Funds (MFs)/ Asset Management Companies (AMCs), Portfolio Managers, Registrar to an Issue and Share Transfer Agents (RTAS), Stock Exchanges, Venture Capital Funds (VCFs) **Impact Analysis** **All Regulated Entities (REs) listed in the circular:** **Impact:** REs must comply with the new digital accessibility guidelines outlined in Annexure-A. This involves appointing IAAP-certified accessibility professionals, conducting accessibility audits of digital platforms, and remediating any identified issues. **Action Required:** REs must take the following actions: * Submit a list of digital platforms by September 30, 2025. * Appoint IAAP-certified accessibility professionals by December 14, 2025. * Conduct initial accessibility audits by April 30, 2026. * Remediate audit findings and ensure compliance by July 31, 2026. * Submit annual compliance reports by April 30 of each subsequent year. * Report compliance through the appropriate channels (Stock Exchanges/Depositories, BSE Ltd., or directly to SEBI) based on their entity type. * Use the specified formats (Part C) for all submissions to SEBI.

Key Entities Referenced

Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992: This circular is issued under powers conferred by Section 11 (1) of this Act, to protect investors and regulate the securities market. Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016: This circular pertains to compliance with this Act and related rules regarding digital accessibility by regulated entities. SEBI: Securities and Exchange Board of India, the regulator issuing the circular. Regulated Entities (REs): Entities regulated by SEBI, required to comply with the digital accessibility guidelines outlined in the circular. They are listed in Part D. Compliance Guidelines for Digital Accessibility Circular: The main subject of the circular, outlining digital accessibility requirements and compliance procedures for regulated entities.
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CIRCULAR SEBI/HO/ITD-1/ITD_VIAP/P/CIR/2025/131 September 25, 2025 To, All Recognised Stock Exchanges All Recognised Clearing Corporations All Registered Depositories All Registered Intermediaries Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) Association of Portfolio Managers in India (APMI) BSE Limited (Investment Adviser Administration and supervisory body-IAASB) BSE Limited (Research Analysts Administration and supervisory body-RAASB) Sir/Madam, Subject: Compliance Guidelines for Digital Accessibility Circular ‘Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 and rules made thereunder- mandatory compliance by all Regulated Entities’ dated July 31, 2025 (Circular No. SEBI/HO/ITD-1/ITD_VIAP/P/CIR/2025/111) 1. SEBI issued circular on ‘Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 and rules made thereunder-mandatory compliance by all Regulated Entities’ on July 31, 2025. 2. The Compliance Guidelines are enclosed at Annexure-A of this circular. 3. This circular is being issued in exercise of powers conferred under Section 11 (1) of the Securities and Exchange of India Act, 1992, to protect the interests of investors in securities and to promote the development of, and to regulate the securities market. 4. This circular is issued with the approval of Competent Authority. Page 1 of 95. This circular is available on SEBI website at www.sebi.gov.in under the category “Legal” and drop “Circulars”. Yours faithfully, Deepankar Chatterjee Deputy General Manager Phone: 022-26449643 Email: deepankarc@sebi.gov.in Page 2 of 9Annexure-A Compliance Guidelines for Digital Accessibility (For SEBI Circular No. SEBI/HO/ITD-1/ITD_VIAP/P/CIR/2025/111) These compliance guidelines are applicable to all the Regulated Entities (REs) that are required to directly submit the compliance of the said circular to SEBI Part A: Summary of Compliance Requirements Table A S/N Compliance required Date of submission of compliance 1 REs shall submit a list of digital platforms provided Sept 30, 2025 by them for the investors (Table-C1) 2 Appointment of IAAP certified accessibility professionals Dec 14, 2025 as Auditor. (Table-C2) 3 Conduct of Accessibility Audit for the digital platforms. April 30, 2026 (Table-C3) 4 Remediation of findings from the audit and ensuring July 31, 2026 compliance with this circular. (Table-C4) 5 Annually give compliance to conducting annual *April 30, 2027 accessibility audits of all the digital platforms and submit final report of such audit to SEBI *Annual compliance is to be submitted within 30 days of each Financial Year, effective April 30, 2027 Part B: Mechanism of Submission of Compliance (latest updated as per SEBI circular no. SEBI/HO/ITD-1/ITD_VIAP/P/CIR/2025/121 dated August 29, 2025) Table B S/N Regulated Entity Reporting Authority 1 Stock Brokers/ Depository Stock Participants Exchanges/Depositories 2 Investment Advisor (“IAs”) and Research BSE Ltd. Analysts (“RAs”) 3 MIIs and rest of the REs SEBI This mechanism of compliance is applicable for all REs mentioned in row 3 of the table immediately above. It may be noted that the submission to SEBI in this regards shall be through email on digital_acc@sebi.gov.in in the formats specified in Part C. For the REs having multiple Digital Platforms, the audit reports for the digital platforms shall be consolidated and submitted through email as per guidelines laid down in points 4 and 5 of Part C. Page 3 of 9Illustration: An RE has listed 5 Digital Platforms. It should submit the consolidated initial audit reports of all the digital platforms by April 30, 2026 and consolidated final audit reports by July 31, 2026. Page 4 of 9Part C: Formats for Compliance Submission REs shall submit compliance to the respective reporting authorities in the formats mentioned below: 1. Format for Information about Digital Platforms of the RE. Email Subject: [RE Registration No.] Information About Digital Platforms of the RE. Email Body: Name of RE Category for which submission is made (from the list provided in Part D) Table C1 S/N Name of URL Purpose Remarks on current digital accessibility status of the platform platform (add or remove rows as applicable) Page 5 of 92. Format for Information about appointment of IAAP certified accessibility professionals as Auditor for digital platforms for REs. Email Subject: [RE Registration No.] Information about appointment of IAAP certified accessibility professionals as Auditor for digital platforms for REs. Email Body: Name of RE Category for which submission is made (from the list provided in Part D) Table C2 Sl. Particulars Details to be No. filled by RE 1 Name of IAAP Certified Accessibility Professional 2 Certification Details (IAAP ID/Certificate No.) 3 Date of Appointment 4 Scope of Audit (Websites, Mobile Apps, Portals, etc.) Note: Make sure to cover details of all digital platforms as applicable 5 Is the SEBI circular notified to the appointed auditor for compliance verification (Yes/No) 6 Contact Details of Auditor Page 6 of 93. Format for Submission of Initial Accessibility audit report for digital platforms. Email Subject: [RE Registration No.] Submission of Initial Accessibility audit report for digital platforms Email Body: Name of RE Category for which submission is made (from the list provided in Part D) Table C3 Sl. Particulars Details to be filled by No. RE 1 Name of IAAP Certified Accessibility Professional / Firm 2 Date of Completion of Audit 3 Digital Platforms Covered (Websites, Terms of Reference Mobile Apps, Portals, etc.) and Scope of audit to be attached 4 Key Findings / Observations Consolidated PDF copy of the report(s) to be attached. The consolidated audit report is to be attached under the file name [Department]_Table- C3_[SEBI Reg No.]_DDMMYYYY.pdf* 5 Action Plan / Timelines for Remediation *Here, Department will be the concerned department corresponding to the RE category in Part D. DDMMYYYY is the date of the report where DD is 2-digit date of month, MM is 2-digit month of year and YYYY is 4-digit year. Page 7 of 94. Format for submission of final accessibility audit report for digital platforms. Email Subject: [RE Registration No.] submission of final accessibility audit report for digital platforms Email Body: Name of RE Category for which submission is made (from the list provided in Part D) Table C4 Sl. Particulars Details to be filled by No. RE 1 Name of IAAP Certified Accessibility Professional / Firm 2 Date of Completion of Final Audit 3 Digital Platforms Covered (Websites, Mobile Terms of reference Apps, Portals, etc.) and Scope of audit to be attached 4 Key Findings / Observations from Final Audit Consolidated PDF copy of the report(s) to be attached. The consolidated audit report is to be attached under the file name [Department]_Table- C4_[SEBI Reg No.] _DDMMYYYY.pdf* 5 Remediation Measures Undertaken 6 Status of Compliance (Fully Complied / Partially Complied / Pending) 7 Supporting Evidence (Screenshots, URLs, Certificates, Reports) *Here, Department will be the “concerned department” corresponding to the RE category in Part D. DDMMYYYY is the date of the report where DD is 2-digit date of month, MM is 2-digit month of year and YYYY is 4-digit year. Page 8 of 9Part D: List of REs submitting compliance directly to SEBI Table D S/N REs submitting compliance directly to SEBI Concerned Departments 1 Alternative Investment Funds(AIFs) AFD 2 Bankers to an Issue (BTI) and Self Certified CFD Syndicate Banks (SCSBs) 3 Clearing Corporations MRD 4 Collective Investment Schemes(CIS) IMD 5 Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs) DDHS 6 Custodians AFD 7 Debenture Trustees (DTs) DDHS 8 Depositories MRD 9 KYC Registration Agencies (KRAs) MIRSD 10 Merchant Bankers (MBs) CFD 11 Mutual Funds (MFs)/ Asset Management IMD Companies (AMCs) 12 Portfolio Managers IMD 13 Registrar to an Issue and Share Transfer Agents MIRSD (RTAs) 14 Stock Exchanges MRD 15 Venture Capital Funds (VCFs) AFD -------x x x------- Page 9 of 9

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