PDF Accessibility Remediation: How to Check and Fix Your Files in Acrobat Pro

Relevant to: faculty, staff, and students

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Introduction

Accessible PDF tags are crucial for screen reader users. The tag tree is how document structure and information is conveyed to a screen reader; without accurate and logical tags, your PDF may be inaccessible to your audience. When you properly label a heading or list, write alternative text for images, or verify there is a logical order to your document, you provide access. This article highlights key steps for ensuring your PDF is accessible to all readers. While it doesn’t cover every detail, these basics will help you get started. Note: You need Acrobat Pro to perform a PDF remediation.

Tips for Making Your PDF Accessible

1. Always go back to the source file, if possible, and optimize it for accessibility before exporting to PDF.
   1. Ensure you have a logical structure in the document, such as headings and real lists.
   2. Verify that all of your images have alternative text.
   3. Check color contrast if your document includes color. You can use a tool like WebAIM’s Color Contrast Checker (opens in a new window).
   4. Ensure tables have a header row and are used only for data, not visual layout.
   5. If your source file comes from a program like Microsoft Word, run its built-in accessibility checker before exporting.
   6. Export using "Save As" or "Save as Adobe PDF." Avoid "Print to PDF" which removes accessibility tags
       
2. Make sure your document has a title. Select “Menu” and then “Document properties” and verify the listed title is accurate.
   
   
    
3. Run the accessibility checker. To do this, open your PDF in Acrobat Pro and select “All tools” and then “Prepare for accessibility.” Select “Check for accessibility” and then select “Start checking.”
   
   
   
   
    
4. Review the issues and remediate. To view and correct an issue, first open the arrow for the category (such as Document or Page Content). Then right click on anything that failed. You can then show the location of the issue in the tag panel or content panel. For help with how to fix an issue, select “explain." You will be directed to the Adobe Acrobat Pro help page. Note that you will always have two document issues present: reading order and color contrast. This is because these need to be checked manually.
   
   
    
5. Verify the accuracy of tags and adjust as needed. Even if your document passes the accessibility checker as being tagged, that doesn’t mean the tags are correct. (Imagine putting eggs in a pizza box; they’re technically in a container, but it’s not the right kind of container. An egg carton would be more suitable, recognizable, and usable.)
    
6. Auto-tag only when necessary (your file is untagged, or existing tags are unusable). If the source file was optimized for accessibility and saved correctly, there should be fairly accurate tags present. If for some reason the tags are really out of order or incorrect, it is sometimes faster to delete the tags and auto-tag instead. Always verify and adjust the tag structure afterward.
    
7. Check the reading order via the tag tree.
   1. First, open the tag tree.
   2. Expand all tags (ctrl + left-click the arrow).
   3. Use the down arrow on your keyboard to move through all the tags in the tag tree, and verify that the order is logical and matches how the content is visually structured in the document.
   4. To adjust reading order, drag and drop or copy and paste tags as needed.
      
      
       
8. Forms require a different process for remediation. Usually, it is faster and easier to delete the tag tree and auto-tag after your form fields have been set up using the “Identify form fields” feature.