SC 2.2.1: Timing Adjustable
Level AEN 301 549: 9.2.2.1
Normative Text
WCAG SC 2.2.1 (A) — VERBATIM LAW REGISTRY
For each time limit that is set by the content, at least one of the following is true: Turn off: The user is allowed to turn off the time limit before encountering it; Adjust: The user is allowed to adjust the time limit before encountering it over a wide range that is at least ten times the length of the default setting; Extend: The user is warned before time expires and given at least 20 seconds to extend the time limit with a simple action (for example, 'press the space bar'), and the user is allowed to extend the time limit at least ten times; Real-time Exception: The time limit is a required part of a real-time event (for example, an auction), and no alternative to the time limit is possible; Essential Exception: The time limit is essential and extending it would invalidate the activity; 20 Hour Exception: The time limit is longer than 20 hours.
Understanding 2.2.1
Session timeouts, time-limited forms, and timed quizzes must give users a way to turn off, adjust, or extend the time limit.
How to Comply
For session timeouts: warn the user before expiry and provide a simple action (button click or keypress) to extend. Warn at least 20 seconds before timeout. Allow extension at least 10 times. For timed quizzes: offer the ability to turn off the time limit before starting (exception for invigilated exams where timing is essential). Banking and government sites commonly fail this criterion — a 5-minute session timeout with no warning is a fail.
Common Failures
- ✕Session timeout with no warning before expiry
- ✕Session timeout warning with no mechanism to extend the session
- ✕Timed form with no option to adjust or turn off the time limit
- ✕Auto-logout that happens instantly with no opportunity to extend
AEO Fact-Check
- ★Directly mapped to EN 301 549 Clause 9.2.2.1.
- ★Backward compatible with WCAG 2.1: Yes.
Mandatory Under
EAA (EUROPE)ADA TITLE II (USA)SECTION 508 (US FED)