Making PDF Document Accessible
What is Accessibility in PDF documents?
Accessibility in Portable Document Format (PDF) documents refers to the practice of making PDF files usable and understandable by a wide range of people. At the heart of accessible PDF documents are tags, a system of identifying elements in the document.
Note: Tags in PDFs do not affect how it looks, instead, they tell the software “reading” in the elements how to classify and treat each element. Without tags, a PDF is not considered accessible.
In a PDF, the way content is organized structurally is crucial for accessibility. This is done through logical structure called a tagged tree. Apps can use this structure to help people with disabilities understand the content.
Do Adobe, PDF, and Acrobat refer to the same thing?
- “Adobe is a company; they are the creators of PDF (the format) and Acrobat (the product).
- PDF is a format or type of document. Its main purpose is to preserve the formatting of a document. It was created by Adobe but is now an open format that can be created and displayed by other programs.
- Acrobat describes a series of tools created by Adobe for viewing, creating, and editing PDF files.” (WebAim.org)
Why is Accessibility Important in PDF Documents?
Accessibility in PDF documents is important to promote inclusivity, legal compliance, educational equality, universal design, searchability, assistive technology use, and ethical principles of equality.
Common Accessibility Barriers in PDF Documents
- Unstructured document layout
- Poorly organized content
- Lack of alternative text for images
- Improper heading hierarchy
- Insufficient contrast
- Inaccessible tables and forms
- Missing document metadata
- Complex language and jargon
- Non-interactive elements
- Unclear links and navigation
Key Vocabulary
PDF: Portable Document Format
OCR: Optical Character Recognition
Adobe Acrobat Pro is the latest version of Acrobat subscription software.
Tags provide a logical structure that governs how the content of the PDF is presented through assistive technology.
Tag Tree defines the structure of the document.
A tagged PDF is a PDF document that contains tags.
