Guide
The multi-year accessibility plan
A multi-year accessibility plan is the one document the General Section of the form most often turns on. It is required at 50 or more employees and in the public sector, and it is not required for smaller businesses and non-profits.
Who must have one
- Businesses and non-profits with 50 or more employees in Ontario: yes (s. 4(1), “other than small organizations”).
- Designated public sector organizations, any size: yes, plus consultation and an annual status report (s. 4(2), (3)).
- Businesses and non-profits with 1 to 49 employees: not required.
What the regulation requires (s. 4(1))
- Establish, implement, maintain and document a multi-year accessibility plan that outlines your strategy to prevent and remove barriers and to meet the regulation's requirements.
- Post it on your website, if you have one, and provide it in an accessible format on request.
- Review and update it at least once every five years.
Where you have accessible public spaces covered by Part IV.1, the plan must also include procedures for preventative and emergency maintenance of those elements and for dealing with temporary disruptions when they are not working (s. 80.44).
Extra duties in the public sector
- Establish, review and update the plan in consultation with persons with disabilities and, where one exists, the accessibility advisory committee (s. 4(2)).
- Prepare an annual status report on progress, post it on the website, and provide it in an accessible format on request (s. 4(3)). Upper- and lower-tier municipalities may prepare joint plans and reports.
- Municipalities that provide transit or license taxicabs must cover bus stops and shelters and on-demand accessible taxicabs in the plan (ss. 78, 79).
A plain structure
- Statement of commitment and the period the plan covers (for example 2026 to 2031).
- Where we are: a short, honest account of what is in place for each standard.
- Barriers we know about and how we found them (feedback, staff, review).
- Actions by standard, each with an owner and a target date: customer service, information and communications, employment, public spaces, training.
- Maintenance and disruption procedures for accessible elements, if any (s. 80.44).
- How we will review: at least every five years; who is responsible.
- Where to find it and how to request it in another format. Signature and date.
Common mistakes
- A plan that lists only what is already done. The regulation asks for a strategy to prevent and remove barriers: future actions with dates.
- A plan that is not posted. If you have a website, posting is part of the duty.
- A plan from 2016 that was never reviewed. Five years is the maximum.
Lisavel's full report (50 or more employees) drafts a multi-year plan from your questionnaire answers: the actions are the gaps your report card found, with owners and dates for you to fill in. Start with the free check (about a minute), then see pricing.
Sources
- O. Reg. 191/11, s. 4; s. 80.44; ss. 78 and 79.
- Ontario: Accessibility rules for businesses and non-profits, “Multi-year accessibility plan”.
- Ontario: Accessibility rules for public sector organizations.
Not legal advice. The regulation on e-Laws prevails.